Chapter 13: Revival and New Strength

Waking up, Franz realized he was in his room. Over at the tea table, Emon was slumped over, fast asleep, with drool dripping onto the table.

*Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the job transfer quest and earning the title of Chūnin. Rewards: 30,000 EXP, 20,000 coins, the skill Lightning Shock (Nagashi), 10 bottles of mid-level healing potions, 10 bottles of mid-level chakra recovery potions, and 10 bottles of mid-level stamina recovery potions.*

*Ding! Congratulations to the host for reaching level 32, with an additional reward of 1,300 coins.*

The continuous system notifications made Franz beam with joy. Level 32 meant his strength had significantly increased, now on par with a late-stage battle master. If he encountered the Black Lynx again, he could easily defeat it.

“Open the attribute panel.”

**Name**: Franz Bonaparte  

**HP**: 2300/4200  

**Chakra**: 300/4000  

**Stamina**: 500/4050  

**Level**: 32  

**Experience**: 32,034/35,323  

**Skills**: Substitution Technique, Shadow Clone Technique, Fireball Technique, ...  

**Equipment**: Chūnin Shinobi set (complete mid-level ninja gear), Kusanagi Sword,...  

**Coins**: 32,430  

*Ding! The host's coin balance has exceeded 30,000. Would the host like to upgrade the system?*

Oh, there’s even an upgrade? Franz was slightly surprised, then decided, "Upgrade."

*Ding! System upgrade initiated. Duration: 1 day. The system will be unavailable during this time.*

In an instant, 30,000 coins were consumed. Though he felt a bit regretful, Franz didn’t hesitate. He was curious to see how the system would evolve after the upgrade.

Franz quickly drank a healing potion. After all, recovering from his injuries was the priority. Though the recent battle had nearly left him beaten to a pulp, the rewards were substantial. Not only had his level increased, but he had also gained a great fortune, along with the **Lightning Shock** skill.

**Lightning Shock**: A variant of **Chidori**, it envelops the ninja in electricity, protecting them when surrounded by enemies.

This was definitely a life-saving ninjutsu! Franz had always admired the **Heavenly Spin** technique, but that required a bloodline limit with the Byakugan. Since he had chosen the Sharingan, he had to give it up. However, to his surprise, the Lightning Release had a similar technique.

“You’re awake, little brother.”

Leona entered the room and, upon seeing Franz awake, immediately embraced him.

“Thief! Help!” Emon, who had just woken up, screamed in panic.

“You brat, you sleep like a pig.” Franz laughed and kicked him in the rear. Emon, embarrassed, rubbed his backside and scratched his head, stepping aside. Leona, who had been crying, couldn’t help but laugh. Seeing her puffy eyes, Franz felt a bit emotional. It was clear that Leona had cried a lot because of him.

“Hey, is anyone going to notice me?”

Following Leona was none other than Geoffey. He looked rather miserable, with a white bandage around his head, a wrapped shoulder, and his arm in a sling.

“Little brother, your recovery is much better than I expected.”

Seeing that Franz could sit up and move around normally, Geoffey was astonished. Leona was equally surprised. Although the family had hired a priest (a Light-element mage) from the Holy Church to heal him, it was estimated that it would take about three days before he could sit up. But now Franz seemed to be in great shape, and that kick he gave Emon was enough to show he had fully recovered. Noticing the curious gazes of the two, Franz knew he needed to provide a convincing explanation, or he might end up back in bed for half a month. He smiled wryly and said:

“My fast recovery is thanks to this medicine. You should take some too, cousin.”

Franz handed Geoffey a basic healing potion. He gave only a basic potion because he realized Geoffey, despite looking rather pitiful, wasn’t seriously injured. After all, being the family’s genius, he had already received healing from a Light-element mage. Geoffey accepted the potion and drank it. As the liquid went down his throat, a cool, soothing sensation spread through his body, and his wounds began to heal.

“This is incredible, absolutely incredible!” Geoffey exclaimed, removing the bandage from his arm, which was now moving normally. Leona was just as amazed. Franz chuckled and said, “I’ve got a few more bottles here for you, just in case.”

He handed Geoffey two mid-level healing potions, but Geoffey quickly waved his hands, saying, “No, no, these are far too valuable. I can’t accept them.”

Franz’s expression turned serious. “If you don’t take them, then don’t consider me your brother anymore. Besides, I’ve got plenty.”

He pulled out a few more potions to demonstrate. Geoffey had no choice but to accept. Franz also gave a few bottles to Leona, who happily took them. But suddenly, she seemed to realize something and asked:

“Hey, little brother, do you have storage equipment?”

Franz groaned inwardly. He had been too careless. Spatial equipment was incredibly rare, something the average person couldn’t easily obtain. Geoffey hadn’t paid much attention, but Leona had noticed. Franz smiled awkwardly and said, “It’s my secret. Please, keep it to yourselves.”

Leona snorted, raising her hand adorned with a jade ring. “What’s so special? I have one too. It has a capacity of five cubic units.”

Franz knew how precious a spatial ring was, and five cubic units were quite good. After all, the largest spatial equipment currently available only had ten cubic units. But if Leona knew his Shinobi pouch had 32 cubic units, her reaction would be priceless.

“Little brother, you’re getting more mysterious by the day. Speaking of which, you’d better not go outside for a while,” Geoffey suddenly advised. Franz looked surprised. “Why not?”

Leona laughed and replied, “Why ask? You beat Geoffey, so now you’re the family’s hero!”

Currently, in the family, everyone idolized Franz, using him as a role model. They were all training enthusiastically, hoping one day to become like him. This made the elders so happy they couldn’t stop smiling.

“That’s only because cousin went easy on me. If the tournament allowed mounts, I’m sure he would’ve beaten me early on.”

Franz humbly replied, and he wasn’t wrong. Geoffey was a knight, and his true strength only came out when combined with his mount. Moreover, Geoffey hadn’t even used his full power during the match.

“No, you’re wrong. A loss is a loss. I underestimated you, and on a real battlefield, such a mistake could have cost me my life.”

Geoffey disagreed. Leona chuckled. “Alright, enough about that. We should let him rest now.”

With that, she and Geoffey left. Before leaving, Geoffey patted his chest and said, “If you ever need anything, just let me know. I’ll do my best to help you.”