Chapter 24: Knowledge About High Humans

[Ding! You’ve obtained knowledge on High-Humans.]

The moment the notification appeared, a large amount of information flooded into Nero’s mind.

He gradually began understanding what High-Humans truly were, but the information was so unbelievable that he stopped moving altogether.

Lucas immediately noticed something was wrong.

"Hey, Nero? What happened? You okay?"

Nero quickly recovered and shook his head.

"Nothing. I think we should go eat something."

Lucas grinned. "Yeah, I’m getting pretty hungry myself."

With that, Nero, Lucas, and Jasmine left the training room and headed toward a nearby fast-food restaurant.

During the walk, Jasmine chatted with Nero, mentioning that Lucas particularly liked the restaurant they were heading to.

However, Lucas soon noticed how naturally the two were getting along.

"You two are oddly close now," he remarked, looking between them. "Weren’t you both beefing before?"

He suddenly narrowed his eyes.

"Wait... Don’t tell me, Sister, you’re trying to steal Nero from me so you can become better at combat than me?!"

Jasmine rolled her eyes.

"You’re stupid."

Nero couldn’t help smiling at their exchange.

Watching the siblings argue so casually made him realize that spending time with friends could actually be quite enjoyable.

The three eventually arrived at the restaurant and ordered their food. They spent the meal chatting about various things, and Jasmine also exchanged contact information with Nero.

After finishing their meal, they prepared to leave.

"See you tomorrow!" Lucas said with a wave.

"Yeah. See you."

Nero deliberately stayed behind for a while, wanting to examine the information about High-Humans before returning to the training room.

He found a quiet bench nearby and sat down.

The first thing he learned was that High-Humans were a direct evolutionary advancement of ordinary Humans.

According to the knowledge he had received, there shouldn’t a single complete High-Human currently living on Earth Star.

Even someone as powerful as Lilia was considered an incomplete High-Human.

However, what truly surprised Nero was their biological advantages.

High-Humans possessed vastly superior cellular adaptation, allowing their bodies to adjust to various conditions much more efficiently.

Their minds could surpass normal human cognitive limits, while their stronger bodies and more efficient organs allowed them to withstand tremendous physical strain.

In fact, their physical strength could reach levels comparable to Awakeners without relying entirely on awakened abilities.

But that wasn’t even the most shocking part.

Every High-Human possessed an innate Psychic ability.

Telekinesis!

And unlike ordinary Awakeners, their Telekinesis didn’t require Mana.

High-Humans possessed something called Mental Power, a unique form of energy originating from their minds.

While an Awakener with a Telekinesis Talent used Mana to activate their ability, High-Humans could move objects directly through Mental Power.

It was a natural ability of their species, completely independent of any Talent they might awaken.

Nero was stunned.

In this world, awakening a powerful Talent was already considered an extraordinary achievement.

Yet every High-Human possessed Telekinesis by default?

’Isn’t that ridiculously overpowered?’

For the first time, Nero was beginning to understand just how much more there was to this world than he had imagined.

However, one thing frustrated him.

He still didn’t know how to become a High-Human.

The knowledge he received had stopped just before explaining the actual method of evolution.

Normally, considering how Enlightenment worked, gathering this much information could have taken him an entire year.

But now that he had already gained such a deep understanding, Nero believed a few more encounters might be enough to uncover the remaining information.

More importantly, there was a method.

The final piece of knowledge was surprisingly straightforward.

[Any human can become a High-Human once they form a....]

And that was where the information ended.

"..."

Nero was speechless.

’Even the Enlightenment ability is giving me cliffhangers now?’

Before it was only his favorite web novels.

However, rather than feeling discouraged, he was becoming increasingly excited.

If he could evolve into a High-Human, he would gain Telekinesis, one of the most powerful Psychic abilities in the world.

His physical body would also undergo a tremendous evolution, allowing him to surpass the limits of ordinary Humans.

He would no longer be an ordinary human being.

For perhaps the first time in his life, Nero felt genuinely excited about his future.

Just then, someone approached him.

Nero turned around and discovered a familiar face.

It was Serina.

She wore her usual mischievous smile, although there was also a hint of urgency in her expression.

"It’s you, Mr. Savior!"

She quickly glanced around before asking,

"Can I hide here for a little while?"

Nero blinked.

"Hide? What do you mean?"

"Well, I pulled a prank on one of my friends, and I think I kinda went a little too far," Serina explained hurriedly. "She’s chasing me now, and I really need somewhere to hide!"

Before Nero could respond, Serina grabbed his arm and pulled him off the bench.

She dragged him toward a narrow passage between two nearby buildings, barely wide enough for two people to stand side by side.

"W-What are you..."

Before he could finish speaking, Serina pushed him against the wall and pressed herself against him.

Nero immediately stiffened.

Her body was pressed against his chest, and he could feel the softness of her breasts through their clothes. She wrapped her arms around his waist before burying her face against his shoulder.

"Just play along," she whispered urgently. "She won’t bother us if she thinks we’re..."

Serina didn’t finish her sentence, but Nero understood what she meant.

"..."

"Do you have something wrong with your head?!" he asked, completely bewildered.

Why did this woman keep involving him in these situations?

Was she trying to get him killed by her father?!

"Shh!"

Serina immediately hushed him before pressing closer, her hips resting against his as she tried to make their embrace look convincing.

Nero was having a difficult time remaining calm.

’Seriously, why does this keep happening to me?!’

Just then, footsteps approached.

A girl appeared near the entrance of the passage, looking rather annoyed as she searched the area.

However, the moment she noticed Nero and Serina, she stopped.

From her perspective, a girl was hugging a young man rather intimately against the wall, seemingly unaware of anyone around them.

Her annoyance immediately turned into disbelief.

"...Seriously?"

She shook her head.

"In public? Get a room!"

With that, she hurriedly walked away, clearly disgusted by what she had witnessed.

Serina waited until the footsteps disappeared before bursting into laughter.

"Pfft! Hahaha! Did you see her face?!"

She finally released Nero, wiping the tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

"That was priceless!"

"You’re insane," Nero replied, looking at her in disbelief.

Serina grinned without the slightest hint of shame.

"Maybe~"

She stepped back and straightened her clothes.

"But it worked, didn’t it?"

"..."

Nero didn’t bother answering.

He simply pushed himself away from the wall and walked out of the passage without looking back.

Once he was far enough away, he stopped and took a deep breath.

His heartbeat gradually returned to normal.

’What the hell is wrong with that woman?’

Nero ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

However, just as he was beginning to calm down, familiar footsteps approached from behind.

He turned around.

Serina was standing there with her usual playful smile.

"You saved me again, Mr. Savior~"

She tilted her head.

"Are you secretly my personal guardian angel or something?"

Nero was speechless.

"If you’re done, go away."

Serina simply giggled, her blue eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Since you saved me again..."

She leaned closer with a smile.

"Would you like a reward?"