The week somehow felt both slow and fast at the same time. When I’m busy, I feel time flying by; one moment I’m doing something, and when I finish, several hours have already passed. Then I have more things to do, and time flows extremely quickly.

  At the same time, it felt painfully slow. Knowing I had to wait another 7 days before facing another hero dungeon was eating away at my mind. Every second I wanted the day to end so I could start the next one, and then I wanted that one to end quickly too. That’s how it went for 6 days.

  As I walk toward the training center, I feel a strange presence a few meters away from me. When I focus my vision on that bench, I only see a middle-aged man; he doesn’t look extraordinary.

  In these kinds of situations, I usually probe people discreetly with my Imra. So far, no ruby-rank user has ever noticed me doing it. I’m not trying to learn about the person, just to know if they have bad intentions or if they’re strong.

  My control over Imra makes it almost impossible to detect unless the person is actively monitoring their own body. If they’re not paying attention, the chances are nearly zero. I try doing the same with the man several dozen meters ahead. Before I can even enter the 10-meter range, I feel something different—but I don’t know why.

  I manage to probe the man with perfectly kept black hair tied into a small ponytail, but I don’t feel anything unusual. He doesn’t seem any different from a sapphire rank. What was that strange feeling from before? Should I be careful with this person? Did my senses fail?

  My mind becomes confused. My senses have only failed me a handful of times. Before I can overthink it further, I hear him speak. “I heard you’re someone with manners. It’s rude to snoop on people you don’t know.” …He noticed? He’s not a normal person. If he’s a sapphire rank and still sensed my Imra, then he’s definitely not normal.

  Does he know about me? Based on his words, someone must have told him something. Before I can speak, react, or even twitch, a horrible pressure falls over me. It feels as if my body is carrying several dozen tons. I collapse face-first onto the ground—the pressure hit me in less than a blink.

  I reinforce my entire body as fast as I can. Every part receives an injection of power as intense as in my last fight with that assassin. And yet… I still can’t move? I even feel the pressure increasing in proportion to my strength.

  I can’t move anything—not even a finger. My body is being crushed against the hard pavement. Who is this man? I erase every useless thought and try to escape as fast as I can. I focus on activating my movement skill, but it’s like slamming into a wall—I can’t activate it at all.

  Someone is interfering with my movement skill. I can’t inject the necessary mana, and my mind is in constant chaos, making it even harder. Shit! If this continues, I’m going to die.

  I keep injecting gravity mana around me to counter his pressure, forcing my brain and body to their limits. I’m even bleeding a bit from the nose and mouth from the strain. After a few seconds, I manage to push my gravity skill to its maximum—I’ve never used so much gravity mana before.

  I manage to move my hands slightly. My reinforced body is screaming internally just to lift myself a little. Every motion makes me want to scream in pain. When I finally manage to look up and see his feet in front of my eyes, I notice something—at some point, he got closer.

  The pressure increases again, and I’m slammed face-first onto the floor. Damn bastard! He was playing with me, giving me false hope.

  In less than two seconds, the pressure around me disappears completely. My body suddenly feels light. Carefully, I stand up. I don’t try to run. I don’t attempt to escape. I don’t use any skill. I know perfectly well this person could kill me whenever he wants, and there’s no point in fleeing from this situation.

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  I only inject a gentle stream of life mana into my body to recover from the damage. I was bleeding heavily from my nose and mouth; my whole body aches from enduring all that pressure without breaking, and my mind also suffered—it could shatter at any moment. The mental pressure wasn’t any smaller than the physical.

  “You’ve passed the test.” I freeze for a few seconds. “You were a bit rough at first, but I can understand why. You’ve been having a lot of complications lately. You definitely passed the first exam with a solid nine.” I hesitate to lift my head, but after less than a second, I gather the courage to look directly at him.

  Two different-colored eyes—heterochromia. One is deep red, the other dark green. He looks around sixty, with sharp features and dressed entirely in black. His expression is serious and serene; I don’t see even a hint of a smile so far.

  “Excuse me, sir… what test are you referring to?” Now that I don’t feel any intention to kill me or make me kiss the ground again, I dare to ask.

  “Didn’t Susan tell you anything?” A faint wrinkle appears on his forehead. His mouth opens to speak but stops halfway; I notice a tiny smile forming on his lips. “She can explain it.”

  As soon as he finishes speaking, I feel space mana shift around us—and Susan appears beside us. She scans the surroundings and lets out a sigh. “Looks like I arrived late.” She looks at the man and smiles widely. “It’s been years, my friend. I see you haven’t changed at all.”

  They’re friends? Is that what he meant by me passing a test? Did Susan send him to test me?

  “Yes… more than fifteen years without seeing each other.” His voice softens slightly near the end. “You haven’t changed either, my friend. I’m glad you’re living the life you always wanted.” His gaze sweeps across the campus.

  “Luck and effort—that’s the key to achieving your goals.” I see clear pride on Susan’s face.

  “You haven’t wasted your time either. A daughter and a rather exceptional protégé—I’m a bit envious.” For the first time, I notice a small smile on his face.

  “I’ve always had a good eye for finding talent.” Susan looks at me and continues, “I see you two have gotten acquainted, and someone seems to have tasted the flavor of our concrete.” She’s enjoying this way too much—her eyes betray her. She wants to burst out laughing.

  “Maki, he’s a great friend. His name is Cype. I’ve been inviting him for months, and he finally agreed to spend a few days here to meet you and give you some training.” …Training? Susan must’ve read my mind, because she continues. “Cype is the strongest gravity mage I’ve ever met in my entire life. You’ll definitely learn something good from him.”

  Gravity magic? Then all that pressure came from gravity? How did I not sense his affinity at all? It takes me a fraction of a second to understand: Cype is far stronger, and his Imra must be completely sealing any leakage. For me, detecting it would be like a baby trying to see through a steel wall.

  I’ve met many people in my life with ice and lightning affinities, but never someone with such a unique affinity for gravity. If I manage to absorb even a hint of his wisdom, it’ll give me the push I desperately need—especially now, when I’m focused on improving all my gravity-related skills… and he appears out of nowhere.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mister Cype.” I bow lightly in greeting.

  “The pleasure is mine. And forgive me for being so rough. At first, I only wanted to test you for probing me with your Imra, but I was surprised by how much pressure you could withstand. You even managed to push back several times, so I decided to keep increasing it until I saw your limit. Susan was right when she said you were someone special.” His voice is straight and serious.

  “Thank you.” His sincere praise catches me off guard for a moment, but I manage to respond with a big smile.

  “You’ve gotten even more serious and professional over the years, Cype,” Susan comments.

  “I’m not sure why that surprises you. Unlike you, my school is small, and I also act as the main professor.” The logo on his cloak must be from his school—it looks like a mountain, but the peak is flattened, as if something had smashed it.

  “We should keep talking at my house; we have a lot to catch up on.” Susan suggests, and Cype agrees immediately. “Maki, we’ll see you tomorrow to guide you to the dungeon. Cype can give you some lessons when you come out.” I can only nod. We had already arranged to meet outside her house early tomorrow.

  Both disappear instantly, leaving me alone with several curious stares behind me. Many people who wanted to follow this path were standing dozens of meters away; some were already there from before. They all froze when Susan appeared and when they felt Cype’s pressure as I was pinned to the floor.

  “Why does everything—good or bad—always happen in such a strange way?” It’s good news to meet Cype. I’ll absorb his teachings like a sponge. But our first encounter was… unique. He crushed me like a cockroach on the pavement. I let out a long sigh. Will I ever meet someone normally?

  All sadness evaporates from my body in a heartbeat. Knowing I’ll receive training from someone like him motivates me to give everything in today’s training. Let’s go all out today! I’m two levels away from ranking up Gravity Burst—today’s goal is to gain at least one level.