Chapter 21: Sparring Dummy
The open palm of the Silver Goddess hurtled toward Leon’s throat with a speed that absolutely defied human limitations.
Lady Seraphina was not even utilizing her terrifying crimson aura but her physical base stats as a master level Aura Knight were enough to shatter solid stone with a simple flick of her wrist.
To an ordinary observer her arm would have been nothing more than a lethal blur but Leon was no longer an ordinary commoner shivering in the dirt.
His fifty five points of Agility seamlessly synchronized with his newly acquired Aura Step skill to slow his perception of the incoming strike down to a manageable window.
The digital knowledge of the movement technique violently burned itself into his nervous system and instinctively taught him how to fold the physical space around his body using pure kinetic energy.
He channeled his dense magical core and pushed off the polished marble floor with a force that miraculously left the stone undamaged while launching his body sideways.
He vanished from Seraphina’s line of sight just a fraction of a second before her lethal grip could crush his windpipe.
Leon reappeared exactly three feet to her right with his dark magnetic eyes completely focused and his breathing perfectly steady.
He even had the astronomical audacity to casually reach out and snatch the heavy leather bound tome out of the air right before it crashed onto the floorboards.
The fluidity of his evasion was martial precision that completely bypassed the usual rigid movements of a classically trained knight.
Seraphina stumbled slightly forward as her strike hit absolutely nothing but empty air.
Her violet eyes widened to an almost comical degree as her mind struggled to process the sheer impossibility of what had just happened.
A common male servant possessing absolutely zero readable mana had just effortlessly dodged an ambush from a noble swordswoman of the Sterling estate.
She whipped her head around and found Leon standing casually beside her velvet armchair while politely brushing a speck of dust off the cover of her boring taxation book.
"I believe you dropped this Lady Seraphina," Leon stated in a smooth resonant voice while offering the massive tome back to her with a respectful bow.
The suffocating crimson aura that usually surrounded the noble daughter suddenly flared to life and painted the grand library in a terrifying bloody hue.
She was not angry anymore but rather consumed by an overwhelming predatory excitement that made her Lie Detector aura violently flash with intense competitive heat.
Seraphina completely ignored the book and fluidly spun on her heel to deliver a devastating sweeping roundhouse kick aimed directly at his ribs.
Leon knew he could not simply dodge forever without eventually making a fatal mistake so he firmly planted his leather boots into the marble and prepared to block.
His newly acquired Mana Skin skill passively activated as a dense invisible layer of magical armor rapidly enveloped his forearms. He brought both of his arms up and braced his forty points of Strength against the incoming attack.
The impact sounded like a heavy iron siege engine violently colliding with a castle wall.
The sheer kinetic force of her long leg smashing into his guard sent a painful shockwave rattling all the way down to his teeth.
Leon felt his boots lose their grip on the polished floor as he was aggressively pushed backward across the room with his shoes squeaking loudly against the marble.
He slid for nearly ten feet before he finally managed to dig his heels in and bring his body to a complete halt.
His forearms were throbbing with intense dull pain but his bones remained miraculously intact thanks to the combined protection of his invisible magical armor and his monstrous Strength stat.
He lowered his arms and casually rolled his shoulders while offering the stunned noblewoman a deeply confident smirk.
"You hit quite hard miss," Leon quipped while actively suppressing a wince because the Silver Goddess hit like a runaway freight train.
Seraphina slowly lowered her leg and stared at him with an expression of pure unadulterated fascination.
She had intentionally put enough force into that kick to completely shatter the ribs of an Adept level guard yet this floor sweeper had taken the hit head on and was currently joking about it.
Her passive Aura Sight still showed absolutely nothing emanating from his body which only deepened the tantalizing mystery of his existence.
A genuine and highly melodic laugh suddenly escaped her perfect lips and echoed beautifully across the vast silent library.
It was not the cold mocking chuckle she reserved for arrogant nobles but a warm sound of genuine amusement that made her look breathtakingly ethereal.
"You are some anomaly Leon," Seraphina declared while pacing slowly toward him like a lioness circling an intriguing piece of prey.
"You possess the raw physical speed of a trained assassin and the durability of a seasoned adept knight but you hide it beneath the uniform of an Upper Wing Attendant. I do not know which rival family trained you or how you manage to conceal your aura so perfectly but you have become the most interesting thing in this boring estate."
Leon kept his face completely neutral while his mind raced to formulate a plausible lie.
He needed to ensure she did not suspect him of being a spy while simultaneously keeping her dangerously captivated by his mysterious persona.
"I assure you Lady Seraphina that I am entirely loyal to House Sterling," Leon replied smoothly while locking his magnetic Piercing Gaze onto her violet pupils.
"I simply picked up a few survival tricks on the streets before your generous family took me in. A man has to learn how to move quickly when the world is constantly trying to crush him."
Seraphina stopped just inches away from him and leaned forward until he could smell the intoxicating scent of ozone and sweet lavender radiating from her dark velvet corset dress.
She tilted her head and her silver hair brushed against his shoulder in a highly intimate gesture that made his heart violently hammer against his ribs.
"Your little street tricks are incredibly entertaining," she whispered softly while trailing a single manicured fingernail lightly down the silver embroidery of his tailored collar.
"Julian the squire was supposed to help me practice my elemental resistance today but you just chased him out of my library. Since you are so exceptionally durable you are going to take his place."
Leon raised an eyebrow in genuine surprise because becoming the personal punching bag for a magical prodigy sounded like a highly efficient way to get himself killed.
"I am officially claiming you as my personal sparring partner Leon," Seraphina announced with an arrogant smirk that completely brokered no argument.
"You will report to the private training grounds every afternoon when my official duties are concluded. If you manage to entertain me I might just decide to teach you how to properly throw a punch. If you bore me I will throw you off the eastern tower."
She did not give him a chance to accept or decline the suicidal offer.
She simply turned on her heel and gracefully walked out of the library while leaving her heavy taxation book abandoned on the velvet armchair. Leon watched her wide hips sway hypnotically beneath her sheer black stockings until she completely disappeared into the golden corridor.
He let out a massive sigh of relief and heavily leaned against a nearby wooden ladder.
The physical toll of taking a direct hit from a master Aura Knight was finally catching up to his newly enhanced muscles.
He mentally opened his system interface and quickly navigated to the shop utilizing ten of his accumulated Shameless Points to purchase a Minor Healing Potion.
A small glass vial filled with glowing red liquid materialized in his pocket and he quickly downed the bitter concoction to immediately soothe the painful bruising on his forearms.
The pervert system had successfully forced him into the direct orbit of probably the most dangerous woman in the estate but he knew any attempts at seducing Lady Seraphina was going to require astronomical amounts of raw power.
He picked up his feather duster and resumed cleaning the massive library while highly anticipating the dangerous rewards his future sparring sessions would undoubtedly bring.
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