“What!?” Noah Grant’s bad premonition really came true. Her face turned pale as she bit her lip and said, “Lillian Nolan sis, are you saying twenty-four hours?”

“That’s right. Not even for a second can we let him out of our sight, whether he’s eating, showering, or going to the bathroom.” Lillian Nolan finally stopped crying and said seriously, “For his safety, we have to stay within a five-second rescue range. Especially you, since you’re the remote support.”

“Lillian Nolan sis, wh-what if he, he wants to… do that…” Noah Grant’s pretty face flushed a deep red as she said, “Th-then what should I do? I’m still a high school student.”

“You mean if he wants to sleep with a woman? Even then, you can’t let him out of your sight. If you’re unwilling, you can go undercover as his girlfriend and protect him up close.”

“I’ll do it, even if I get a stye on my eye.” Noah Grant gritted her teeth and muttered.

“Don’t worry, from what I’ve observed, he doesn’t seem like the kind of man with a messy private life.” Lillian Nolan comforted her.

……

“Uncle, I need to go home first.” For some reason, Ryan Walker kept feeling a prickling sensation on his back, a chill in his heart, and goosebumps popping up. He really didn’t want to stay any longer. “Can I get my stuff first?”

“Stuff? Oh, you mean that.” Derek Carter turned around and rummaged under the counter, then tossed several boxes of condoms onto the counter, grinning suggestively. “Little Ryan, I didn’t expect you to be so secretly wild. Here’s banana flavor, apple flavor, oh, and seafood flavor? Tsk tsk, textured ones, ah, and even ribbed? Uncle, I’ve really learned something new today.”

Ryan Walker was dumbfounded.

“It wasn’t me who opened them. Some little brats stole them to play with, but luckily I got them all back for you. Check if any are missing?” Derek Carter packed everything into two black plastic bags for him, gave him a knowing look, and said, “With your consumption rate, Uncle is really envious. But as someone with experience, I have to give you some advice. Young man, you need to show some restraint! Remember, slow and steady wins the race.”

Restraint, slow and steady? Ryan Walker was sweating. This really wasn’t a place to linger. There was no way to explain things clearly to this uncle with his dirty mind.

“Uncle, thank you for taking me to the hospital and for looking after my bike and my stuff.” After expressing his thanks, Ryan Walker immediately grabbed the keys and the two big bags of assorted condoms, rushed out to his tricycle, and made a hasty, embarrassed escape.

“Lillian Nolan sis!” Noah Grant gripped her little silver pistol tightly, feeling a murderous urge. “Th-this is the man you said doesn’t have a messy private life?”

“Uh… haha!”

……

Ryan Walker decided to go home first. After the mysterious changes to his body, he needed to calm down and sort things out.

As soon as he got on the tricycle and pedaled as usual, Ryan Walker froze.

What was going on?

Why did the pedals feel so light? So light it was as if they had no weight at all. With just two or three pushes, the tricycle shot forward with a screech. It felt just like riding a geared bicycle set to the lightest gear.

Was this also an effect of his body being transformed?

Ryan Walker was delighted. He had thought only his vision and hearing had become extraordinary, but he hadn’t expected his strength to increase so much as well.

His mood instantly improved. Pedaling the tricycle home, he actually made it feel as cool as driving a sports car. What usually took twenty minutes only took seven or eight, and he only broke a slight sweat, barely out of breath.

The rented apartment was in a remote, old neighborhood, with buildings over twenty years old. The walls were mottled with peeling paint, and the cement was chipped and missing in places.

The stairwell was very dim, most of the lights didn’t work, and it was filthy, cluttered everywhere with bottles and jars. Every time he climbed to the fifth floor, it felt like crossing a minefield—if he accidentally knocked something over, someone would open their door and curse him out.

Ryan Walker got home and took a good shower, feeling refreshed and comfortable.

Then, bare-chested and wearing only a pair of big shorts, he sat on the old sofa, slowly smoking a cigarette, using nicotine to stimulate dopamine, calming his excitement and anxiety, and sorting out his thoughts.

While showering earlier, he had checked his chest in the mirror. There was no bruise from being hit by a foreign object, but there was a new faint red birthmark shaped like a flame.

The flame-shaped mark was vivid, as if a real flame was dancing seductively. It didn’t hurt or itch to the touch, and felt no different from normal skin.

Ryan Walker glanced around, and details he usually couldn’t see were now crystal clear in his mind.

The dust in the corners that hadn’t been swept, the dried soup stains on the coffee table, the two flies stuck to the window screen, the big mosquito buzzing out of the kitchen.

His hearing was also enhanced; otherwise, with all the daytime noise, it would be hard to hear a mosquito flying.

His sense of smell—hmm, after testing it, it seemed much stronger too. The smell of stinky socks, leftover food from the night before… Ugh, the stench from the kitchen trash can was the worst. He hurried over to close the kitchen door, which made things a bit better.

Pinching his nose, Ryan Walker couldn’t help but wonder how he used to put up with living in this kind of environment.