After playing wildly, dominating the playground, and becoming the King of the Castle, Xander finally became tired of acting all disdainful and cool and finally decided to come down.
Now that he recalled it, it's somewhat embarrassing actually. A kid's body combined with adult intelligence is really a recipe for self-combustion.
The kids watched in awe as Xander performed a series of simple yet purposeful and intricate movements that brought him down safely.
That's a ten meters tall tower! Xander, without any safety measures, easily conquered such a tall tower.
Xander felt somewhat speechless. Clearly, there were gaps to step on that they could use to climb. It only took precise movements, so why are you treating me as if I'm some sort of magician?
"Big Brother, Big Brother, teach me, teach me! I want to know how to be like that!"
"Me too, me too!"
Xander was surrounded by the kids of the playground. Although he was smaller than them, since most of them are three to five years old, his aura did not diminish in the slightest.
A little girl chirped out, "Big Brother, can you teach me how to talk back to my nitpicking mom?"
Hearing such audacity, the kids, including Xander, turned silent.
Not to mention the kids, even Xander couldn't help but hissed. Whose kid is this? So brave?
Xander, with his small stature, lifted his hand and patted the little girl's shoulder, his small face shaking incessantly, "Little Sister, even if I could talk ten times better, I wouldn't dare to talk back to my mother. It's simply asking for a beating!"
The surrounding kids all nodded, each with their own history. For a little kid, a mother is like a king; obey and you'll prosper, rebel and you'll die!
The little girl slumped her shoulders down like a punctured balloon. Xander merely shook his head. It's better to be dissuaded than to let her seek death. Retaliating against a mother as her kid is not just asking to be beaten; they're asking to be dealt with!
Xander looked around, his eyes pinpointed every single kid that gathered here, his golden eyes thoughtful and deep.
"Now, I am the King of the Castle. Who agrees? Who disagrees?" Xander proclaimed grandly, his back tall and straight.
As for whether he was embarrassed or proud, that doesn't matter. He could feel silly later. Right now, he'll utilize this authority to search for more bugs!
A wise man utilized everything that he had in his hands and used them to their maximum potential.
Even a self-proclaimed, silly title like the King of the Castle could be used.
"Not disagreeing! Not disagreeing!"
"Big Brother is the King of the Castle!"
"King! King!"
"We will follow Big Brother!"
As expected of a bunch of kids, their words are very limited, but their enthusiasm and sincerity are top notch. Xander nodded, and with a wave of his hand, commanded loudly, "Now go and catch some bugs! The more, the better!"
As soon as the command fell, some kids excitedly scattered each in their own direction, while some kids rubbed their own face with a confused look on their face, but they still went on their way.
Eventually, only a few kids were left standing. They looked at each other briefly, hesitating, but they ultimately asked their doubt, "Big Brother, why are we catching bugs? Shouldn't we play?"
Xander's golden eyes sharpened, his aura went up a notch, intimidating the kids, "Rule Number 1: When a King decreed, none shall defy!"
The kids were immediately awed by such a domineering statement, and they saluted quickly, though the form was very sloppy. Where else could they learn this from other than the cartoons that they watched?
"Okay! Okay!"
After the salute, they quickly ran away like fleeing birds.
Now that he was left alone, Xander immediately feel a surging heat from his abdomen. It was torrential, as if it had been accumulated for long and was searching for a way out, wanting to be released.
Xander gritted his teeth. He was familiar with this feeling.
That's right, it's cringe!
"Damn! No, I refused to cringe!"
Slapping his own face, Xander remained resolute. He would never admit that he was just trying to be cool and was now dealing with the aftermath from his adult intelligence.
No! All of his actions have their predetermined reasons and objectives. It was never meant to be based on something as shallow as 'acting cool'!
After stabilizing his heart, Xander focused on the shining nametags around him. Now that the playground was under his control, there's no need to be reserved. He'll overturn the playground if he wants to!
Soon, after a brief walk, he came across his first adversary.
『Physique +0.5』
Xander widened his eyes. So many?
Under the shiny nametag, a yellow furry dog was sitting there, its tongue lounging out. Its beady black eyes innocently looked around before settling on Xander, who was just a dozen meters away.
"Bark bark" The yellow dog barked in a way that Xander couldn't understand. It sounded playful and sleazy, like an uncle who tried to pry away unsupervised kids.
...So it's not a bug?
So it hasn't always been just bugs, is that it?
"Big Brother! Get away!"
Suddenly, Xander was pushed back by a hand, prompting him to take a few steps back before he stabilized his footing. He looked at the culprit and couldn't help but cursed inwardly.
The kid was bald, wore a white singlet, and was pulling up his oversized pants. It was all fine, but why is his mouth so crooked?
"Brother, why is your mouth so crooked?" Xander asked earnestly. What happened? What tragedy that has occurred that could possibly create this astounding result?
"When I was still just a baby, my mother was carrying me when a man passed by and tried to molest her. However, he miscalculated and instead of her chest, he pinched my mouth. He pulled it ruthlessly, even twisting it like a key. Thus, my mouth was like this since then," The bald kid earnestly explained, earning him a speechless look from Xander.
No, Bro. What kind of absurdity is this?
"But I'm proud. I protected my mother from molestation! That evil man had long been thrown into prison!" At the end, the bald kid swiped his crooked mouth shyly, as if he was embarrassed because of showing off.
Holy f*ck!
Xander stared wide-eyed at this incredible conjecture of the bald kid's experience. What kind of tragedy is that? To ruin a kid like this?!
That man deserves to die!
"Big Brother, I like the way you said that retaliating against your own mother is simply asking for a beating! Heheh, you know, my mom has become real strong since that incident, so I feel your words deeply!" The bald kid lifted his head proudly. He was clearly full of admiration for his strong mother!
The kid: ദ്ദി( •̀ u - ) >✧
An image of a woman full of muscles was automatically generated by his mind. Xander trembled. This kid, he couldn't afford to provoke him!
Must befriend! Never offend!
Xander merely patted the kid's shoulder and smiled earnestly, "What's your name, Brother? My name is Xander, and I was moved by your heroism. Shall we be friends?"
The bald kid was so excited that his crooked mouth trembled, "Onyonyo! My name is Onyonyo!"
WTF!
Xander was shocked, astounded, and intimidated. What kind of amazing name was this! Whose idea was it! Xander was so curious his heart trembled.
He was moved.
After introducing himself, the bald kid, Onyonyo, soon became serious, his crooked mouth forming a straight line as he solemnly explained, "Big Brother Xander, I pulled you back earlier because that Yellow Dog is too dangerous! Its hobby is to bite the boy's legs and girl's underwear! Often, when it drools too much, it will begin its attack on others! We called it the Yellow Death!"
"It would attack boys when they provoked it, but it would attack girls merely because they passed its eyes!" Onyonyo was clearly indignant and was filled with hatred towards such an audacious tendency.
"Why! Why it is that it could easily attack girls and not boys!"
Xander turned silent, quietly distancing himself from Onyonyo.
Indeed, having too strong of a mother could definitely lead to some issues.
His eyes turned to the Yellow Dog, whose tongue was still lounging out and whose beady black eyes were still moving.
Yellow Dog: (* ´ ﹃｀*)
Yellow Dog? What Yellow Dog, this is clearly a f*cking pervert!
Xander turned solemn, his heart filled with indignant rage, and he firmly declared, "Such a dangerous thing dares to loiter around in this playground?! It deserves to be beaten! As the King of the Castle, I shall take care of this scourge!"
Onyonyo was thoroughly moved, "Big Brother Xander, you are truly a worthy King! Wuwuwu!"
Xander resolutely left behind the moved Onyonyo and stood before the perverted dog, his golden eyes flashing like lightning. He remained unmoved even when the rate at which the dog's drool dropped to the ground was increasing.
Yellow Dog: (* ´ ﹃｀*)
Xander: ( ◺_◿ )
His rage was provoked further when this perverted dog's black beady eyes darted around before focusing on the little girl who was previously bullied due to her smudgy black mark on her face.
It was fine when he's not here, and it was fine when he's still unaware, but now that he's here and was aware, it still dares to act so audaciously?!
"You dog, your tyrannical perverted tendencies end here!" Xander firmly declared as he slowly made an advancement towards the Yellow Dog.
The Yellow Dog's beady black eyes glinted with disdain, and it lifted its furry head, unconcerned and unrepentant.
Tsk tsk, you, a mere juvenile bipedal creature, dares to stand in front of me, the Great Yellow Dog? You got guts!
At the same time, a familiar notification made a pleasant sound.
『Impression imprinted successfully. +0.5 Physique』
A pleasant, nourishing, refreshing feeling immediately assaulted his senses. Xander was inwardly shocked. He could feel that his body was being strengthened, but not in a violent way. Rather, it was as if something from the depth of his being was enhanced.
Bones, flesh, organs, even blood... All of their functions have been enhanced in a way that does not disrupt the bodily system. The enhancement was not like tempering similar to how training strengthened the body, but more like an evolution, but on a smaller, yet complete scale.
Theoretically, if the physique of an average adult is 1, and the physique of an average 1 year old is 0.15, then with his current physique, which was 0.65, he would have over 4.33 points of Physique by the time he became an adult.
It doesn't change his 'existence' by adding 0.5 on top of his original 0.15 points of Physique. Instead, it was more like a fundamental replacement.
The number 0.15 was directly changed to 0.65. Very domineering indeed.
And more importantly, this is very, very far from his limit!
Confidence surged like an unstoppable tide, and Xander became even more resolute.
"I'll make you regret living!" Xander, with righteous intent, makes his first move!