I don't know how long it's been, but judging by the light outside, it's almost dawn.
Looking around, I noticed I was lying down with Alexia in my arms. I didn't move, just continued to lay there, checking the system to see what boosts I'd gotten.
'Stats.'
---
**Stats**
Name: Akashic Torre
SP: 10,108
Skills: [Heal], [Parallel Thought]…
Physique: Eden's Grace, Supreme King [!!]
Strength: 125
Agility: 120
Stamina: 122
---
My eyes immediately gravitated toward my new, staggering point balance.
Looking through the backlog of notifications, it seems Alexia provided 7,500, while the rest came from the satisfaction brought about by my new physique.
My overall strength seems to have gone up by fifty as well. I can feel the difference, but it's still not strong enough. Not to mention his guards—Silas alone had stats in the 400s…
Though while they've been training for years, I got such an increase overnight. I wasn't too worried, as I had plenty of points now.
Finally, I checked out the exclamation mark that alerted me of my new physique.
**{Supreme King}**
- [King's Aura]
- [Supreme State]
- [Unyielding Defense]
- [Supreme Senses]
- [Impenetrable]
- [Locked]
- [Locked]
[King's Aura]: A commanding presence that can intimidate and potentially cause weaker foes to flee or submit.
[Supreme State]: Body and soul are in perfect harmony, enabling rapid enhancement of strength, speed, and resilience.
[Unyielding Defense]: Enhanced durability and resistance to physical attacks and poisons.
[Supreme Senses]: Heightened senses such as sight, hearing, and perception, allowing the user to detect danger and opportunities from afar.
[Impenetrable]: Unbreakable willpower and resistance to mental attacks, illusions, and mind control.
One word...
What?!
I'd be happy with just one of these skills, but I've gotten five? And there are still two locked ones!
I figured the physique would be good, but… this is amazing.
I glanced at Alexia and saw that she had two different abilities. Replacing my [Unyielding Defense] and [Impenetrable], she had [Royal Command] and [Divine Insight].
[Royal Command]: Ability to issue commands that compel obedience to varying degrees.
[Divine Insight]: Enhanced intuition and the ability to see through illusions and lies.
'Interesting… I'd like to see the command ability in action, but I don't think it'll work on me.'
I absentmindedly stroked her hair as I lay there. A few minutes passed before I came to my senses. I stopped, fearing I'd disturb her sleep, but she simply smiled and moved closer to me.
It was still early, and I knew she wouldn't wake up anytime soon, so I thought about my next course of action.
Originally, I wasn't planning to go to school today, but I realized that if I wanted to keep up the life I had, I needed to be more ruthless in how I handled things.
I struck at Daniel first, but that wasn't going to stop him. I especially wanted to find out what was going on with his friends and Lena.
My plan? I didn't have one yet. I'd mostly play it by ear and see what happened.
As for the Silas issue… While he's mad at Daniel, that's still his grandson. He definitely wouldn't like it if I went too far.
Based on my rare healing physique, saving his life, and my friendship with Sierra, I'm confident that as long as I don't kill him, Silas won't come looking for trouble.
'First, I want to get stronger.'
---
**Shop**
Balance: 10,108 SP
[Strength Potion] 50 SP
[Stamina Potion] 50 SP
[Agility Potion] 50 SP
[Stone Hands Pill] 1,000 SP
[Titan's Endurance] 1,000 SP
[Crystal Breeze Pill] 1,000 SP
---
Scrolling through the shop, I was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of items listed. At the bottom, I saw items going for a few hundred thousand to a million points.
Focusing on my price range, the pills seemed like a good idea. They increased my stats by 25, which wasn't bad. The potion boosted them by 50, but only for five minutes.
Before I could purchase anything, however, a sub-section caught my eye.
---
**Special**
[Dragonheart] 3,000 SP
[Lightning Essence] 3,000 SP
[Phoenix Tear] 3,000 SP
---
'I can't click on them… System, what makes these items special?'
I sat in contemplation for a moment before deciding. With my points, I could raise all my stats by 75 right now.
On the other hand…
'Screw it, why not? I'll buy one of them and see how it works out. Worst-case scenario, I'll just have to earn more SP.'
After settling on it, I bought the Dragonheart and watched my points disappear. A few seconds later, a crystal-clear box materialized in front of me, with a glowing, beating mass of red and black inside.
Quickly opening the box, I picked up the wet organ and took a bite.
And believe it or not, in all honesty?
It tasted like absolute shit.
Did I finish it?
Hell yeah I did. It was 3,000 SP.
Immediately, I felt a pounding sensation in my head as a loud roar echoed through it. It wasn't painful, necessarily, but it made me dizzy as the room seemed to shake. I closed my eyes and let the feeling pass, trying not to vomit.
Eventually, it calmed down, and I felt a surge of strength. To verify it, I checked my stats and was not disappointed.
[Strength: 275]
A solid increase of 150! I couldn't tell what the other effects were, but I'd find out eventually, I'm sure.
With newfound confidence, I happily purchased the other two items. A similar scene repeating itself.
The lightning essence came in a bottle this time, with a faint, bright blueish-white strand bouncing around inside. I timed its movements before unscrewing the lid and letting it jump into my hand. It took little effort to digest, bringing a tingling sensation through my body as if every pore had received a jolt.
Next was the Phoenix Tear. It appeared in a vial, and it was simple enough to drink, but the fiery sensation that followed was not fun.
Still, the results were more than worth it.
With my remaining points, I bought a Stone Hands Pill, a Strength Potion, and an Agility Potion.
Now my stats looked like this:
---
**Stats**
Name: Akashic Torre
SP: 8
Skills: [Heal], [Parallel Thought]…
Physique: Eden's Grace, Supreme King
Strength: 300
Agility: 270
Stamina: 272
---
While not enough to face Silas, with Supreme State and some potions, I had more confidence in preserving my life in a fight against him.
This emboldened me greatly. Since I can't outright kill Daniel now, shouldn't I have some fun with them? After all, killing them would be a far better mercy than they deserve.
*Growl* x2
The growling of our stomachs woke me from my thoughts. I forgot that we hadn't eaten before we started.
Standing up, I took a shower and went to make breakfast.
Unfortunately, upon opening the fridge, I realized I didn't have many ingredients left. I hadn't gone grocery shopping, so all I had were the basics and some things from my apartment.
Scrounging together what I had, I managed to make a neat breakfast of French toast and some fruit. I was thankful for my cooking skills and quickly set the table.
Looking at the time, it was almost 8:00 AM, and we had class soon. I covered the food to keep it warm before heading upstairs to wake Alexia.
Entering the dim room, I saw her lying under the covers, now in the spot where I had been.
I gently sat next to her and began calling her name.
After a few seconds, she lazily opened her eyes and looked up at me.
"Nnn?" she mumbled before closing her eyes again.
Before I could say anything, she inched closer, wrapped her arms around my waist, and buried her face into my side as she drifted back to sleep.
Seeing that, I no longer had the mood for class and gave up the idea entirely.
Since I was staying home, I sent Lena and Luna a message, telling them I'd deliver the clothes after their classes ended.
'Eh, whatever. Nothing major'll happen today anyway.' I adjusted my position and just laid there, thinking.