The door to the elevator opened. Two people walked out with Maria lending her shoulder to Jason.

“Oppa,” said a woman in her early twenties. She saw the pathetic sight of this man covered in blood with his suave suit, now turned into torn up clothes.

“You’re hurt,” Eugene saw Jason’s badly injured arm. Her hand covered her gaping mouth in shock.

She rushed to Jason’s other side and tried to help him.

“Eugene, it’s fine. I’m okay. I can walk on my own,” said Jason.

But her sharp gaze glancing over to Maria was like an alarm bell for Jason to see. He would be too much of a dunce if he couldn’t see it right in front of his very eyes.

“Don’t mind her. She’s just too overprotective,” said Jason.

Her expression didn’t change as if he said something wrong.

Did I say something wrong? I thought I was clear about it.

“Let’s get you to a couch in the guest room. You need to rest,” said Maria, knocking him off from his thought.

“No,” he took his arm off from Maria’s shoulder. “I need to see Gina.”

He didn’t wait for those two as his feet brought him over to the room. A few people were surprised after seeing Jason’s state but none of them knew, that they were about to see something that defied common logic.

“Jason, you shouldn’t move around. You’re still hurt,” said Maria as she appeared from the door.

“Help me with this,” he handed over the first aid kit to Maria.

The first aid kit was in her hand but she was clueless about what she was supposed to do.

“What should I do with this? Didn’t you said, she needs a real doctor to treat her?” asked Maria as she had a bad feeling about this.

“Status open,” he said, ignoring Maria’s words.

A brief glance at his EP parameter and he noticed it was down by one.

A single usage used one point, fair enough. At least it's much simpler than within the games.

For an RPG lover, he couldn’t help but compare between these two.

“Maria, wear your gloves,” said Jason as his eyes were on the pale looking Gina.

“Jason, think about this for a second. Aren’t we endangering her life if we attempt whatever you’re trying to do?” although she was against him being reckless yet her hands were in the process of wearing those latex gloves.

“Get ready to pull out these shards, I need you to be fast and quick. Got it?” said Jason who turned deaf to whatever Maria was talking about.

Gritting her teeth, she was about to lash out at this ex of hers. Just a while ago, they had a moment together and now he was making her do an irresponsible act.

But Maria didn’t falter. She remained calm and held on to the tweezer. She was hoping to use a medical forceps but she had to put up with whatever she has. Her days of working in a stressful environment had at least honed her to be focused at critical times.

“Maria,” Jason called out to her.

She glanced at him breaking off from her focus time.

“Sorry I made you do this, but-” he showed off his injured arm. “My arm is kinda useless right now, so thank you.”

He smiled and for some reason, it had to affect her in some way. Butterflies in her stomach perhaps or her heart fluttering? Well, who knows only Maria knew what she felt.

“Then promise me, you won’t do it again,” said Maria.

Jason who was smiling turned confused. He didn’t know what she meant. There was a lot of things that he could think of but nothing rings a bell, she only made it worse sending him into a brainstorming session.

“So what do you want me to do?” asked Maria as she broke Jason’s time of thinking. It was brief but enough to made him felt a headache.

Jason shook his head and concentrated on the matter at hand.

“One shard at her flank, and two more shards at her abdomen. I want you to take it out fast but don’t break the shards,” he asked for the impossible but failing was not an option.

Maria used the tweezer in her hand and pulled out the shard from the flank.

“Faster,” Jason urged her.

She was trying her best to pull it out using a freaking tweezer but then...

“No-” her hand slipped and the tweezer fell to the ground. She was about to pick it up.

“Stop, don’t touch it. It’s already contaminated. Use your hands,” said Jason.

“What?” Maria couldn’t help but raise her tone.

“The gloves are already sanitized by the alcohol from before so it’s probably safe,” said Jason.

“Probably?” she stared at him with her eyebrows scrunched together.

“Maria, please. There’s no other way,” he said.

Maria swallowed a mouthful of her saliva and pulled out the shard with her hand. The shard was halfway out but Gina started to move. The pain might be kicking in as she started to groaned in her sleep.

“Eugene, help me hold her down,” said Jason.

Eugene was flustered at first but soon enough she restrained Gina’s leg from moving.

“Maria, hurry up,” Jason pressed her on.

“I’m trying here,” she shouted. It seems someone was having trouble with being patient.

“Got it,” Maria said as she pulled a bloody shard off from Maria.

“Oppa,” Eugene called out to Jason as she saw blood spurting out from the wound at the flank.

“Maria, hurry up. The other shards,” to Jason's words, Maria moved and removed the other big shards at the abdomen.

Three big glass shards were removed but blood was spilling out from those wounds as Gina’s condition worsened.

“Jason, she’s-” before she could say anything to Jason, he acted out and used his right hand placing on top of Gina’s abdomen.

“Minor Heal+,” said Jason.

Greenlight emerged from within his hand and soon surrounded Gina’s entire torso. Maria was speechless and Eugene sat there with her mouth gap wide open as she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Not only them but those who were in the room, witnessing the event fell in a numbing daze staring at the green light coming out from Jason’s hand. They were shocked to the core as too much had happened in a span of a night. A night full of surprise, surprise that could kill you in a heartbeat.

She’s not healing fast enough. Shit, I only got one more point left to use.

A trace of worry on Jason’s face. Beads of sweat trickled down from his forehead as he watched his skill being used healing his cousin. Soon the green light faded and the injuries on her body did not fully heal, but then he received a surprising message. Something that he had hoped for.

Minor Heal+ level up to level 2

He smiled and for some reason, he felt a sense of confidence.

One last time.

“Minor Heal+,” Jason said.

Once again, his hand glowed in pale green light engulfing Gina. The light was brighter than before and soon, it ended. Jason glanced at Gina’s body and saw her wounds closed up with only a small tiny scar. The look on her face looks for the better, different from her previous pale complexion.

“You did it,” Maria said after seeing it in front of her very eyes.

“Jason, you did it,” she turned to Jason and saw him smiling but then.

“Jason,” Maria shouted.

“Oppa,” Eugene too shouted.

Jason fell on the floor as his eyelids slowly closed. Maria placed Jason’s head on her lap, with her trembling hands stroking Jason’s face.

“No, no, no, no. Please don’t,” tears started to swell up in her eyes. She promised to herself she wouldn’t cry after meeting him after so long but seeing him like this only pushed her to the point of tearing up. A hand raised up and wiped away those tears before it could fall to her cheeks.

“Relax. I’m just tired. Just need a little... bit of... sleep,” relieving words coming from a man who was always close to death.

In the end, he slept on her lap, dozing off while the world going through an upheaval.

---

“Ugh, my head,” waking up from his sleep, the first thing he did was complaining about his headache.

“Where am I?” the barely open his eyes looking around but there was only darkness.

His sight brought him over to the windows as the noise kept on scratching his ears. New York was still under attack by creatures from another world. Even under the night sky, he could saw few creatures flying through the air.

“Oh,” he felt something underneath his hand. He turned and saw a woman sleeping while sitting with the wall behind her back.

His hand was quick to move away from the sleeping lady’s thigh.

Did I sleep on her lap?

The last thing he remembered before he dozed off was the sight of teary Maria right above his face. It made sense for him to assumed that he slept on her lap.

But where the heck is this?

Yet this place was rather strange. He didn’t remember this place. A small office-like room with the lights out.

She probably brought me over here. I wonder why.

Jason looked around the room and saw a landline phone. He picked the handle but there was no line.

“I guess the lines are down, I might try my-” he heard something.

“Mmm, please...” it was Maria. “Please don’t go...”

She was talking in her sleep.

Well, that doesn’t change.

He remembered it like it was clear as day. Then his face frowned after that happy smile. A big change one might say.

Nevermind, the world is ending and here I am thinking about the past.

Jason saw Maria shivering a bit and went to search through the drawers in the room.

Found it.

A blanket, enough for a single person. He covered her up as she snuggled with the warm blanket. A slight smile arched up against his lips as he couldn’t deny what he felt, but then.

An explosion just went up, it was a couple of blocks from where he was. It wasn’t loud but he heard it like a whisper. But he indeed saw the towering flames rising up from the explosion. Shaking his head, Jason knew that New York City was done. Nothing could save it. Looking up at the night sky, he said.

“Need to get out here,” said Jason.

Taking out his phone, the clock was 5 o’clock. He didn’t know how long did he slept, but from the look of it, definitely not a good night's sleep.

Can we go before dawn?

He didn't know how the streets are doing, was it safe? Could a car drive through the road? Was he sure about surviving while taking these people? He didn't know a thing and that scared him.

“Ah,” a slight pain felt over his left arm.

I forgot about this arm of mine.

A casualty from his flight away from those freakish monsters. He thought he would only be a one-arm man but now he had hope.

“Status open,” said Jason and the blue window appeared.

Jason Park Job : None Level 3 EP : 2/3 Strength : 8 Agility : 13 Dexterity : 5 Stamina : 4 Energy : 1 E.Resist : 0 Points : 3 Unique Trait : Rapid Growth Skills : Basic Swordsmanship Lv.9, Minor Heal+ Lv.2

Oh, my EP had recovered.

He swore that he used all the EP he had before passing out. Seeing it had recovered only made him smile.

“Here goes, Minor Heal+,” his right hand reached out to his left arm and soon pale green light exuded out from his hand and soon the whole left arm enveloped by the soothing green light.

The light faded and as he moved around his left arm, he felt it was good as new. He swung around his arm as the pain was no longer there.

“This is really too much,” Jason stared at his left arm returned to its normal state. He didn’t want to deny it but now it was a new world.

Nothing he knew before matters no more. The reason he said so was because of the skills. Anything can be attained more so within this new game-like world. Staring at the blue window, he knew his own shortcomings. More so, in an unfavorable situation with strong monsters roaming around.

I need to get stronger, but how should I distribute the leftover points? Focus on speed and strength or tapping into the energy?

Then something just crossed his mind.

Ah, I need to get that.