CHAPTER 169: EX 169. BROKEN BONES

The training room’s polished floor gleamed under the overhead lights, the air carrying that faint metallic tang of sweat and steel. Leon and Nikko stood opposite each other, both loose-limbed but coiled, the quiet before the first strike. Off to the side, Elizabeth leaned against the wall, a paper bag of cookies in hand, watching with all the anticipation of someone settling in for a good play.

"Nikki, make sure you break all his bones," she said around a mouthful. "Maybe he’ll even rank up from the pain."

Leon shot her a look. "That’s not how the talent works."

"Oh?" She bit into another cookie, feigning innocence. "But we won’t know if we don’t try."

Leon sighed inwardly. ’What karmic debt am I paying off here?’

Nikko tilted her head, a faint smirk curling her lips. "So... the reason you asked for a spar last time was for the stress multiplier?"

"Yes and no," Leon said, adjusting his stance. "My main goal then was an Evo Point. I wanted to make an art strong enough to rank me up. The stress bonus was just an additional reward."

Nikko nodded slowly. She still thought his talent was absurdly broken, but the knowledge warmed her all the same. What woman wouldn’t want her man to have that kind of power? Even if Leon still wasn’t at the level she wanted him to be, she knew he’d get there. Sooner rather than later.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

Leon flexed his fingers, the weight of ten thousand unspent attack points thrumming in his mind. All he needed now was the stress multiplier to put them to work. "Yeah," he said. "I’m ready."

They vanished in the same heartbeat, only for Leon to reappear a fraction later, slammed into the wall hard enough to send a boom rolling across the room.

BOOM!

And dust drifted down in lazy spirals.

’Right... I almost forgot how this feels.’

Nikko didn’t give him the chance to recover. Unlike last time, she wasn’t holding back, she knew what he needed, and she was going to give it to him in full. Her next strike cut through the air like a whipcrack.

Elizabeth just popped another cookie into her mouth, eyes gleaming with lazy amusement. She looked every bit the mellow sadist, enjoying the show without a shred of guilt.

****

The spar was less of a match and more of a one-sided beatdown.

Compared to their previous session, Nikko barely held back this time. Every strike cracked through the air with bone-shaking force, her movements fluid and merciless. Leon fought under heavy restraints, no Extreme Art, no Force Affinity, no stat boosts. Stripped of his usual advantages, he was fighting at what was essentially peak C-rank strength, and the stress multiplier chewed through him like wildfire.

Blows slammed into him faster than he could guard, his body bouncing from wall to floor to wall again. Each impact drove home two truths, he couldn’t keep up, and he didn’t need to. The pain was the point.

By the time Nikko finished, Leon lay on his back, chest rising and falling, sweat streaking through the grime. Healing potions mended the damage, but the exhaustion lingered like lead in his limbs.

He pulled up his status panel, eyes scanning the numbers.

---

[Status Panel]

Name: Leon Kael

Race: Human

Age: 19

Class: Warrior

Rank: E-Rank

Talent: {Attack} — EX Rank

Status: Normal

Health: 100%

[STATS]

Strength: 2500

Senses: 2500

Vitality: 2500

Stamina: 2500

Speed: 2500

Aura: 2500

Affinity: Force-Tier I

[Skills]

[EXTREME ART]

---

[Inventory]

---

He stared at it for a moment. Every stat... perfectly even.

"That’s a first," he muttered. "I was so focused on surviving against Nikki that I didn’t even check before adding the points."

A pause.

"Hope I didn’t use up all my luck because of it."

The thought made him chuckle, soft and low, still sprawled on the training room floor.

Two shadows fell over him.

"Oh, stars, how hard did you hit him? He’s laughing for no reason," Elizabeth’s voice said above him.

"Did I take it too far?" Nikko asked, tone tinged with genuine concern.

Leon kept his eyes half-lidded, mind already plotting.

’Go ahead, laugh now. Tonight... we’ll see who’s laughing.’

Somewhere above, a faint shiver ran through both women. Elizabeth’s brow furrowed.

’Why do I feel like someone’s planning something against me?’ The thought hung a second too long before another crept in. ’And... why do I want it?’

****

The walk back to the accommodation was quiet, save for Elizabeth eating opening and eating another pack of biscuits and Nikko glancing at Leon every so often, still gauging how much of the earlier beating he had actually taken. Leon, for his part, moved with that steady, unhurried pace, his mind already shifting toward the next day.

When they stepped inside, the common room was already occupied. Adrian and Eden sat at the table, both looking up as the door opened. Sandra was nowhere to be seen, she’d already returned to the Feran Domain. Adrian, whose parents’ ranks were too low for them to be here in person, had sent them a letter earlier to let them know he was fine.

The moment Adrian’s eyes landed on Nikko, his posture stiffened.

’The Supreme Heir? What is she doing here?’

Leon didn’t bother drawing it out. "She’s coming with us into the trial world," he said plainly. "Governor’s orders."

No explanations, no extra details. Just enough to stop the questions before they started. And really, who was going to argue with an order from the governor?

The news only left Adrian and Eden more confused, but Leon wasn’t about to clarify. He had things to do. Leaving them to puzzle it over, he headed toward his room, thoughts already on tomorrow’s summoning.

There was, admittedly, a sting of annoyance in him. He’d had plans for the night, plans involving certain lessons for two certain women, but that would have to wait. They weren’t going anywhere, after all.

Instead, his thoughts turned homeward.

"I should let my family know what’s happening." Even here at the base, he kept in touch with them, and once inside the trial world, contact would be far more difficult. He’d send them a letter tonight.

As he sat down to write, his pen hovered for a moment over the paper.

"I wonder what they’ve been up to all this time..."