American Adventure: My Uncle is Don Quixote-Chapter 38 - 35: Expedition and the Start of School
He’s here!
Li Wei lightened his steps, peering down with the help of the dim light from the second-floor hallway lamp.
Don Quixote stood at the door of his bedroom, fully clad in his armor.
Unlike before, Don Quixote didn’t immediately push the door open and charge out tonight. Instead, he remained perfectly still, like a statue.
"Knight Don Quixote?" Li Wei walked up to his side and called out softly. "Long time no see?"
It was a long moment before Don Quixote turned his head.
"Ah, Knight Li Wei, my friend... Your timing is perfect," he said, his voice low yet laced with a faint, almost imperceptible excitement. "After ten months of arduous training on the wild frontiers, I can feel it... The bottleneck that has constrained me for years is finally loosening."
Li Wei chuckled inwardly but played along. "So, you’re about to advance?"
"Indeed!" Don Quixote declared loudly. "The moon is full tonight—the perfect moment to break through my rank and restore the glory of the Knights!"
With that, he strode toward the small garden by the back door.
In that instant, Li Wei felt the familiar voice resound in his mind:
[You have received a quest: Protector]
[Knight Don Quixote is at a critical juncture, breaking through his mortal coil to achieve the Extraordinary. As his friend, you must ensure he is not disturbed by any creatures of darkness for the next 30 minutes.]
[Quest Reward: +0.1 Free Attribute Points]
’It’s been over ten days. Finally.’
A slight smile touched Li Wei’s lips as he followed Don Quixote onto the stone patio of the backyard garden.
"Where is the Holy Statue we brought back?" Don Quixote asked after glancing around. He turned to go back inside. "I’ll go get the Holy Statue."
Seeing him about to head back and foolishly try to move the statue again, Li Wei quickly stopped him.
"Let me get it!!!" he said hurriedly. "You need to conserve your strength for your breakthrough! Don’t waste your energy on this!"
’If I let Don Quixote try and fail to move it, wouldn’t he just go back into seclusion? Would I have to wait another ten days?’
He scrambled back into the house and moved the plaster lion statue with its peeling gold paint—the one he’d brought back two weeks ago—to the center of the garden.
"The Holy Statue shall bear witness to this moment," Don Quixote said, sitting cross-legged before the plaster statue. "My friend, please guard this hallowed ground for me. Until I have completed my circulation of energy and reforged the holy light, not even the lords of Hell themselves shall be allowed to set foot here."
"Understood!"
Li Wei sat crouched on the steps, one hand propping up his chin and the other holding an electric mosquito swatter, ready to support Don Quixote at a moment’s notice.
For the next thirty minutes, Don Quixote kept his eyes closed, his breathing slowed, and his entire body trembled faintly.
Meanwhile, Li Wei stood guard in the dead of night, electric swatter in hand. Every so often, the air would be filled with a sharp CRACKLE from his weapon.
Thirty minutes later.
Don Quixote let out a long breath and rose from the ground.
Right on cue, a panel popped up in Li Wei’s mind: 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞
[Quest: Protector - Complete]
[Under your protection, Knight Don Quixote has successfully completed his ’Sublimation’.]
[Reward Issued: +0.1 Free Attribute Points]
But before Li Wei could even start celebrating, a second panel appeared:
[You have witnessed the Knight’s ’Sublimation’ up close.]
[Constitution +0.1]
[Constitution 1.4] -> [Constitution 1.5]
’A double yolk!’
’I can’t believe it. After ten days with no quests, the first one back is a double prize, giving me 0.2 attribute points in one go!’
Seeing Don Quixote about to try and move the Holy Statue by himself again, Li Wei didn’t even have time to allocate his new points. He tossed the electric swatter aside and rushed forward to take over.
"I can feel myself brimming with power," Don Quixote said once they were back inside. "I can now begin preparing for the great expedition."
"Expedition?" Li Wei asked, curious. "But wasn’t the Witch already defeated?"
"The Witch was merely an immediate threat, my friend," Don Quixote said gravely. "We have enemies that lie much farther afield."
’Right. Don Quixote must have bought a new fantasy novel about knights recently. That’s why his storyline has been updated.’
’Still, I’m happy to play along. After all, triggering quests from Don Quixote’s sleepwalking is far more frequent and reliable than the uncertainty of triggering them out in the world.’
"Please allow me to join your expeditionary force!"
Li Wei declared loudly, while secretly activating [Eloquent Speaker] to try and influence Don Quixote.
The request was perfectly reasonable to Knight Don Quixote, and with the added boost from the skill, it didn’t take much effort before he nodded in satisfaction.
He clapped Li Wei’s shoulder solemnly, then dragged his clanking armor back to his bedroom. A short while later, the familiar snoring, like a low, muffled thunder, once again rumbled up through the floorboards from the first floor.
Li Wei returned to his bedroom on the second floor and looked at the extra free attribute point he’d gained.
’My recent experience has made me change my strategy. Simply stacking strength creates a sense of lag between my muscle and nerve responses.’
He decisively changed his approach, allocating the 0.1 attribute point to Agility.
[Agility 1.5] -> [Agility 1.6]
The simultaneous boost to his Constitution and Agility in such a short time made Li Wei feel like his physical awareness had reached a new level.
His heartbeat grew steadier and more powerful. As Li Wei focused on the sensation, he placed a hand on his chest and could feel an immense power that seemed ready to burst forth.
The powerful pump could instantly deliver highly concentrated oxygen to every single muscle fiber.
The increase in Agility also brought a noticeable change to his neural transmission speed. The feeling of his body moving as he willed it—of perfect coordination—was even more pronounced.
Li Wei couldn’t help but look out the window.
’It’s been almost a month since I came to New York. The system I got has raised my Strength from 0.8 to 1.8, my Spirit from 1.0 to 1.5, my Agility from 0.9 to 1.6, and my Constitution from 0.8 to 1.5.’
’The changes have been earth-shattering. I’ve gone from an out-of-shape rookie who struggled to lift a 90-pound barbell and was just average intellectually, to an absolute beast who can bench press 495 pounds, squat 615 pounds, and learn a difficult foreign language in two weeks. (I can already understand slow-paced Russian news now.)’
’With these physical specs, forget making the high school team—I’d be a bulldozer even in a higher-level college league.’
’Not to mention the two bug-like skills I’ve gained, and the Bronze Body—whose principles I still don’t understand—which gave me increased durability and resistance to various diseases and plagues.’
’And what’s even crazier is that my strength seems to be growing without any limit.’
’I bet when a single attribute reaches 3.0, my body might even evolve further.’
Li Wei closed his eyes. ’Tomorrow is the first day of school. I hope my classmates are easy to get along with.’
