Awakening

Three days later, at midday, Hughes slowly awoke.

With his sleepy eyes half-opened, the familiar wooden ceiling came into view. Hughes shook his head with a wry smile. How many times had he come to Grandma Porlyusica's house?

Could it be that I have some kind of connection with this place?

It's a pity I don't have any money; I'd better not come to this place too often in the future!

Lying in the hospital bed, Hughes folded his hands behind his head, his mind filled with the image of Makarov's devastatingly large fist.

"Tsk, that old man's punches are incredibly powerful!" Hughes muttered to himself.

Having undergone multiple upgrades by the system, his physique was already exceptionally tough. Coupled with the combined effects of Perfect-Level Tekkai and Armament Haki, his body was like refined iron and precious gems.

In other words, none of the three kids were as hard as him!

But this terrifying physique was as fragile as paper under Makarov's final blow; it couldn't even steady itself, let alone resist.

I overestimated myself and underestimated these Fame Far and Wide the magical world!

Thinking of this, Hughes touched the small bundle wrapped around his waist; the blood dagger and the warm stone were still lying safely inside.

It seems the landlord's surplus grain will have to be used...

At that moment, a rustling sound came from outside the ward, and Hughes slightly activated his Observation Haki.

It was Mira. She was walking towards her ward. So, was it Mira taking care of her again this time?

Hughes shook his head and exhaled, his fingers rubbing the small pouch at his waist with even more intensity.

"Creak!"

The door to the ward was gently pushed open, revealing Mira's small figure. She looked at Hughes, who had regained consciousness, and her lips instantly curled into a smile, as beautiful as a flower.

"Grandma Porlyusica said you should be waking up soon, so I came to check on you!"

"She's amazing! She can even predict this!"

"Hey, are you hungry? Drink your nutritional supplement first, then I'll cook for you later!"

As they spoke, Mira smiled and handed over a small nutritional supplement, "This is a single serving. Grandma Porlyusica only has this much nutritional supplement for now; you've eaten all the others in these three days!"

Hughes didn't hesitate for a moment, took the drink and poured it straight into his mouth, then shrugged and smiled wryly, "Mira, don't say such alarming things. The more you say it, the more I feel our debt is going to increase!"

Mira's eyes narrowed into slits with a smile, and she playfully raised her delicate little index finger.

"1 million J?"

Hughes immediately breathed a sigh of relief. 1 million J was nothing to him now; he could easily earn more than that by doing a simple mission.

Seeing Hughes's relieved expression, Mira shook her little head and said in a soft voice, "It's 10 million J! Grandma Porlyusica even gave us a 2 million J discount!"

Mira stood by the bed, completely ignoring Hughes's stunned expression, and counted the price of each nutritional supplement on her fingers.

"A nutritional supplement for ten people, each dose costing 1 million J, and you've used five doses in the last three days, Hughes!"

"A nutritional supplement for five people, each dose is approximately 700,000 J, and you've taken five doses."

"A portion for three people and a portion for one person would be too much. Grandma Porlyusica is kind; she only gave us a total of 2 million J."

"Oh, by the way, to prevent you from going insane from taking too many nutritional supplements, Granny Porlyusica also had me give you two doses of mental potion!"

Looking at Mira, who was talking so eloquently, Hughes felt a chill run down his spine. This wasn't saving him; it was eating his flesh.

Suddenly, Hughes's long-dormant mind seemed to have a flash of inspiration.

"Wait, Mira, are you sure you haven't miscalculated? How could I possibly consume so many nutritional supplements in three days? Do you take me for a dragon or Lisanna?"

Nutritional supplements—you can tell what their effects are just from the name. He'd been in a coma for three days, not dead for three years, so why would he need so many?

Is Granny Porlyusica using him to settle old scores?

Meeting Hughes's questioning gaze, Mira nodded affirmatively, "You're right. I personally fed you all the potions, and I kept track of how much you used!"

"Grandma Porlyusica said that your body has the ability to heal itself, but the healing process requires a lot of energy."

"The energy you possessed at the time was insufficient to sustain your recovery. To prevent the necessary energy from being drawn from your body to treat your injuries during the self-healing process, which could lead to other problems, Grandma Porlyusica instructed me to administer nutritional supplements to you every three to four hours!"

Upon hearing this, Hughes abruptly interrupted. He knew that Mira's self-healing ability referred to was Life Return, and that activating Life Return required consuming internal energy, a fact Hughes was well aware of.

But there's no need to consume so many nutritional supplements... If I remember correctly, in the world of One Piece, it seems that just a few meals are enough to replenish the energy lost in the body.

Mira gently patted Hughes, signaling him not to interrupt her, "Grandma Porlyusica said that you've turned misfortune into a blessing in disguise this time."

The raw materials for the nutritional supplements are either from Beast King or medicinal herbs that are hundreds of years old, all of which are rare and high-grade products; after taking them, they can greatly improve physical vitality.

During your body's self-healing process, you continuously absorb high-level energy from nutritional supplements; repairing and nourishing at the same time, your body will definitely be stronger once your injuries are fully healed.

Furthermore, if there is an excess of nutritional supplements in the body, your body will actively circulate this excess energy throughout your body during the self-healing process, helping to repair any chronic or long-standing illnesses.

After Mira finished telling Hughes everything she knew, she stared at him quietly with wide eyes.

"I'll try it first, then I'll tell you the result!" With that, Hughes closed his eyes to comprehend himself, and even concentrated his mind, enveloping himself with Advanced Observation Haki.

He wanted to see if it was really as exaggerated as Mira said!

A moment later, Hughes opened his eyes with a strange expression...

"Hey, is what Grandma Porlyusica said true?" Mira asked curiously.

Hughes winked at her, then shook his head, saying, "I don't know, I just feel very comfortable..."

He didn't mean to hide anything; he had tried three or four times just now, but couldn't sense anything, only inexplicably feeling very comfortable.

Mira:...

"Practice makes perfect. How about I go back and have another fight with the old man?"

"No thanks, I don't want to see you lying here anymore. You're still a long way from being the guild leader!" Mira immediately pouted.

Slightly flustered, Hughes immediately stood up and defended himself. "Hey, let me tell you, it was only because I was careless that I was lying here, otherwise it wouldn't be me lying here!"

"By the way, why did you fight with the guild leader? I asked him, but he wouldn't say anything."

Laxus and the others came to see you yesterday. I asked them about it, but they didn't know either. The guild master also refused to tell them!

Looking into Mira's bright, curious blue eyes, Hughes suddenly raised his hand and tapped her little head.