NOVEL NEXT Chapter 126: Rapid Progress
Leon wanted to sleep more after finally achieving one of his minor goals and so he did, waking up in the evening of the next day.
After getting some food from Amber's mansion, he spent some time talking with Evelyn and also Amber since she had discovered a few things. He also called his friends and talked with them for quite some time.
They were apprehensive about this situation, but Leon had reassured them and told them to work harder to become as strong as they could before the Conclave.
As for Natasha's issue, he had an idea for it and also contacted Amber regarding that. It would be risky, but he was quite confident in his strategy.
Once he was done with all that, he blasted songs on full volume and sat on his bed, contemplating something.
'Whatever. I'll first use the Energy Orb. I'm really curious how far a Level 20 Energy Orb, especially from a Mini-Boss would take me.'
Leon rubbed his hands excitedly, his eyes burning with passion and anticipation while his smile refused to leave his lips. Even if the overall situation was bleak, he was still trying to find happiness in these small achievements.
He took out the big, glowing red orb from the inventory and began to assimilate the Essence contained within it. The surplus of Essence seemed to drown his body, as every cell felt rejuvenated.
'Ah! This feeling is so good!'
It took some time for him to absorb all the Essence and even without looking at his status, he knew he had leveled up at least twice in a single go.
Still, he wanted to see the success so he muttered, "Status!"
...
[SYSTEM INTERFACE]
Host: Leon Walker
Age: 19
Level: 18 (Tier 2)
Rank: Beginner
Race: Mutant
Bloodline: —
Talent: Grade 4
Affinity: —
Status: Stable
Skills:
Passive: —
Active: Sprint Boost, Iron Skin, Mountain Lord Hammer
Inventory:
Energy Orb (Level 07) ×12, Energy Orb (Level 05) ×18, Energy Orb (Level 12) ×3, Energy Orb (Level 11) ×4..... Galactic Baseball Bat, War Hammer, Silver Knight, The Perfect Run, Crown of Silence, Clearwill Potion, Healing Potion... Air Cannon, Skill Stones ×2.
Dungeon Access
Status: Awakened (Bound)
Core Name: ******
Current Zone: Floor 1 – Meadows of Salar (Unlocked whole Floor 1)
Time Flow: 3:1 (3 days inside = 1 day outside)
Sync Rate: 7%
Previous Evolution Rewards: Skill Stones
Next Evolution: Unlocks Affinity Orbs
...
"Fuck yeah!!" Leon exclaimed in delight. "Wait! No! I should push this through while I'm at it."
He hurriedly took out the remaining Energy Orbs from his inventory. He had gathered a small number of them after killing many Crimson Rabbits and now Mosspounders who had suffered under his wrath.
He had already set aside a small portion for his mother, but as he had promised her, most of the Energy Orbs were used for his progress.
After absorbing all of them, he felt his body brimming with power that didn't exist previously. He felt he could punch a hole in these reinforced walls easily.
[Level: 19 (Tier 2)]
"Haha! This was the best day!" Leon laughed and muttered. "With this, I'm a step closer to escape this position of pawn. I can fight better in the Conclave. This will also allow me to gather some supporters."
Level 19 for a Second-Year male student was just plain ridiculous. This speed was even better than most elite female students considering there were only two students in Tier 3.
"Grade 8 Talent... absurdity," Leon shook his head and thought. 'I hope to keep this speed, but it'll be tough. It was a mini-Boss after all. Whatever! Next goal is to reach Tier 3 before the Conclave. This alone will put me in the attention of everyone. I wonder if it's a good or bad thing.'
He dropped those thoughts and looked at his Skill Stones in the inventory. He could use them on Mountain Lord Hammer Technique, but he didn't think it was worth it.
He needed to save them for the best.
'Air Cannon. It's that skill of the punkass. The one where it throws that air fist. What's the rank?'
[E-Rank.]
Leon was speechless. Sometimes this system talked and gave him information while other times it stayed silent like a dead body.
'E-Rank. It's decent and might be useful in the Conclave,' Leon thought, as he knew he wouldn't be getting full mastery with the Skill.
It didn't work like that. He would just get the base Skill on Grade First, then he would have to either grind from there or use Skill Stones to increase the Mastery.
'Alright, give it to me!'
He closed his eyes, wondering how the system would decide to bestow the Skill to him, but he should have expected it.
A head-splitting pain registered in his mind as he clutched his head and groaned. It felt like someone was using brute force to split his head in half.
"Aghh!!" He clutched his head tightly in his hands and endured the pain.
Fortunately, it didn't last long but those few seconds really made him curse at the system. It always chose the extreme methods for everything.
'At least I got the skill.'
New information resided in his mind. Even without the Wind Affinity, he could use Air Cannon to some extent. Surprisingly, it had already risen to Grade Two for some reason.
'This is good. If the worst comes, I'll put both Skill Stones into this skill and blast enemies from my personal cannon.' Leon thought. 'But it's still better if Galactus Shatterpulse gets to Grade First. I can then use these Skill Stones on it. It's the best investment.'
As he was contemplating his future plans, he turned to his right where Amber materialized out of nowhere. She had really taken his room as her home so she never even bothered to ask for his permission before entering.
Did it bother him?
Not at all!
After all, this meant she was that comfortable around him and also considered his place as her home. That thought alone put a smile on his face.
"Welcome back, honey," Leon smiled and stood up. "What would you like? Dinner, bath or..."
Before she could reply, he pressed her against the wall and leaned forward. His breaths made her wolfish ears twitch as he whispered, "Or me?"
"Why are you behaving like those Japanese waifues?" Amber asked, as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Shouldn't that be my job?"
"I really shouldn't be surprised that you know of it," Leon felt his day was getting better and better with her presence. "And what does it matter? In the end, I will be the one to taste you."
"That's true, but tonight I need cuddles," Amber's cyan eyes looked into his as she said. "I'm dead tired after a whole day of running around."
"It was that exhausting?" Leon asked, as he took her to his bed.
"It was more exhausting to keep things secretive and still try to find out everything," Amber said, as she buried her face in his embrace.
He was obviously weaker than her, but she always felt a strange sense of security and peace in his embrace. It was a strange feeling, but definitely not unwelcoming.
"It'll all be over in the Conclave," Leon rubbed her back and said, his eyes filled with burning fire. "We won't just be defending this time."
Amber hummed and closed her eyes in his arms, but it was then she noticed something peculiar and pulled away from him.
Eyeing him with her piercing cyan eyes, she asked, "What's your current Level?"
"19." Leon replied calmly, as if it wasn't that big of a deal.
"You... what are you?" Amber couldn't find words to describe her emotions, but she was also too tired to express her shock properly.
"Your boyfriend," Leon stated as a matter of fact. "And also your future husband."
Amber rubbed the bottom of her nose to hide a smile as she said, "Isn't this too fast? Did you get lucky or suffer a lot?"
"I was a bit lucky, but most of it is from hard work," Leon replied. "What? You aren't happy with my progress?"
"I'm the happiest person for this, idiot," Amber knocked on his head lightly and said. "I'm waiting for the day you catch up to me so we can explore the Primordial Expanse together."
She suddenly remembered something and said, "By the way, Morgon has arranged a bodyguard for you."
"Huh? What?" Leon got confused and asked.
"You're simply too valuable to not only the Academy but also to humanity so how could they let any harm come to you?" Amber shrugged in response. "She, along with many in the higher echelon, is scared because of the recent murder. They're scared of losing you too."
"Seems like I can't deny it," Leon sighed. "At least can you make sure it's someone you trust? I would really prefer if someone like you is my bodyguard."
"I can't be there for you all the time, so I do agree it's better to have a bodyguard with you all the time, even though I have my own force protecting you," Amber said. "And you don't need to worry. I'm choosing the bodyguard."
"Thanks."
"Now, gimme my cuddles. I wanna sleep already."
"Only on one condition. I want something soft in my hands while sleeping."
"...fine. You can have your hands inside my pajamas."
Leon grinned at his victory and tackled Amber as they both now laid on his bed with Leon spooning Amber from behind. Of course, his naughty hands slid inside her pajamas, caressing her well toned physique and finally reached a frabric of clothes which hid something soft beneath them.
He cupped them in his hands and closed his eyes.