Chapter 69: Chapter 69: Attack On Central Mall (Part 5)

'Is it over...' Don thought to himself as he felt soreness all over his body. He was in a groggy and dazed state, struggling to even open his eyes, which felt incredibly heavy.

As he began to open them, he saw a bright, blurry white light and flashes of red and blue in the distance. Trying to open his mouth, he could taste his own dried blood on his lip. Amidst this, he heard a faint voice calling his name, "Donnie... Donnie."

The longer he listened, the louder and clearer it got.

'That's Samantha,' Don realized just as he was finally opening his eyes. Once fully opened, he realized he was in the back of an ambulance, the source of the bright white light coming from above.

He looked to his right and saw a paramedic tending to him. When he looked to his left, he saw his mother, who, upon seeing her son wake up, exclaimed, "Donnie!"

Overcome by emotion, she leaned in and hugged him.

Don couldn't help but groan out in pain, immediately causing Samantha to pull back. "I'm sorry," she quickly apologized, realizing that although Don was awake, he was still in bad shape.

At this time, the paramedic tending to Don raised a tablet, which showed a digital representation of the male body with certain areas highlighted in red and having information. After looking at this device for a moment, the paramedic raised his head to look at Don and asked, "Are you by any chance a superhuman?"

Don weakly turned to face the paramedic, but before he could answer, Samantha spoke for him. "Yes, he is, but he barely has any powers. As a boy, he was only slightly more aware than other children, and the doctor said he had enhanced senses as well as speedy healing."

The paramedic nodded while scratching his head before replying, "Well then, he must've evolved because according to my data here, his injuries have healed by a good margin. Look at this--the muscle damage caused by his hand getting broken has already been repaired, and from the looks of it, his arm should be healed within the week. His blood levels are also almost back to normal.

Otherwise, he would've stayed unconscious until a transfusion was done. When was the last time you got a superhuman evaluation?"

"I don't remember," Don weakly muttered, finding it hard to even raise his limbs.

"I see. Well, I'll suggest you go get one to have a better idea of your capabilities. You might be in the higher tier of those in C-class with a body like this. But anyway, ma'am, like I said, he should be fine with a bit of rest."

Before the paramedic could finish speaking, Samantha glanced at Don, who was in pain, and then back at the paramedic before arguing, "Can't you see he's in pain? I've been begging you to rush him to the hospital for the past 10 minutes. Now you're telling me he's all fine and we should wait? Can we get a doctor's opinion on this?"

The paramedic couldn't help but force an awkward smile as he replied respectfully, "Ma'am, I understand your concern, but we already sent the data to the hospital in initial preparation for his arrival. This device here is actively monitoring the state of his body in real time, and according to it, your son should be fine with a week's rest.

We're simply following standard medical protocol, especially in the event of superhuman crises with limited spaces available in hospitals. It is always advised to prioritize those more injured and-."

"My son is injured!" Samantha argued in a shaky voice, on the verge of tears again. She couldn't help but recall the terrifying situation they had found themselves in and how helpless she felt as her son put his life on the line to protect her. So, though the paramedic was right, as a mother, she wanted to be 100% sure that her son was going to be okay.

Before Don could contribute to this conversation, a system prompt appeared in front of him.

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**Secret achievement unlocked: Near-Death Experience**

**Secret achievement unlocked: Turned the Tables**

**Secret achievement unlocked: Killer Hero**

**Rewards:**

- **Ability upgrade: Basic Regeneration>>>Enhanced Regeneration**

- **Ability unlocked: Basic Durability**

- **Ability upgrade: Limited Telekinesis>>>Basic Telekinesis**

- **+100 Aura**

- **Samantha's trust level increased from 35% to 53%**

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'There's even secret achievements?' Don questioned, surprised by what he saw. He couldn't help but feel a bit of relief knowing that he didn't risk his life for nothing.

'Still, that was too close for comfort. I'm way too weak if a bunch of minions can nearly kill me,' Don concluded, his brief elation from the rewards fading as they were replaced by a sense of urgency--a need to get stronger lest he find himself in the same situation again, or worse.

As the system prompt vanished, Don turned his attention back to Samantha and the paramedic, who were still arguing.

"Ma'am, please--"

"No! I demand my son be admitted. You have no idea how he--"

Before Samantha could finish, Don forced himself to sit upright, groaning as he did before speaking up, "Mom, it's fine."

"No, Donnie, it's not fine. You're clearly in pain. You can barely even sit up."

Don understood her worries as a mother, so he needed to be very careful with what he said, as every interaction with her mattered. "I understand you're worried, Mom, but I trust the paramedic's conclusion. Besides, we weren't the only ones in that mall. Imagine what happened to the people who couldn't protect themselves like I did. They're the ones who should get the spaces available in hospitals.

I wouldn't feel right if people died just because I couldn't handle a bit of soreness," Don replied, showing a weak smile, even though his face hurt just from doing that.

"Oh, Donnie..." Samantha couldn't bring herself to argue with Don's response. Looking at it from that perspective, it did indeed seem a bit too selfish to want her son to be admitted when others may have been more grievously injured. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Don gave a weak nod. "Yes, I am. I promise if I feel any worse than I do now, I'll let you know."

"But Donnie, please--"

"Mom," Don interjected gently.

Once Don said this, Samantha couldn't bring herself to argue anymore, and she sighed, "Fine. But if after a week you're still like this, I'm going to sue your hospital for that conclusion you've made." She warned the paramedic.

"No problem, ma'am," the paramedic replied with an awkward smile. He couldn't help but glance at Don and give him a thankful look. "Well then, let's get you up."

The paramedic and Samantha helped Don climb out of the back of the ambulance and stand on his feet. Looking around, he could see they were in the mall's parking lot, which had now become so chaotic that it was hard to recognize.

Numerous ambulances and police vehicles were gathered, and along with them, Don could spot reporters and cameramen constantly moving around, either questioning civilians or the police officers themselves.

As he was glancing around, his attention turned toward a police officer who approached him and Samantha with an unsure look.

Samantha looked worried, and as the officer got close, she asked, "Is there a problem, officer?" Sёarch* The nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

The officer didn't immediately reply as he looked at Don and asked, "Are you Don Bright?"

A feeling of worry overcame Don, but it wasn't like he could deny this. For the officer to approach him and ask, he obviously knew. So with a bit of hesitation, he answered, "Yes. Is there a problem?"

The officer didn't give a direct answer, and instead asked, "Could you please come with me?"