Hand Wrestling
Ivy was so taken aback she couldn't speak for an entire minute. "My body under your authority…?" she finally muttered, almost in a whisper. "What are you saying…? What do you want to do to me…?"
The girl couldn't even imagine the depths her brother had fallen to. Had hitting puberty and turning eighteen him into a hormonal, savage beast? Was he so much consumed by lust that he would defile his own sister?
Ethan used to be a notorious prankster, which, despite being annoying, was mostly childish and harmless. How did he turn into a sex-crazed fiend who didn't think twice before groping a sibling? That he'd want to own her body?
Granted, the boy suffered from the Chaste Devil's curse. Not satisfying his urges could kill him. However, a disciplined schedule of sexual relief could be arranged with voluntary maids and elves. He was the Cromwell heir, for God's sake!
Ivy wondered in horror what had happened to Ethan that he'd set his lecherous eyes on blood-related sisters. Didn't the premise of incest scare him in the least?
Bottomless wrath bubbled in Ivy, and all she wanted to do was stab Ethan in the face over and over. However, that aspect of her personality had lately been giving her trouble.
The girl's trainer expressed disapproval of her anger problem. She had trouble restraining herself during mock battles and exercises, often ending up hurting her classmates and seniors. The latter had to endure the torture since she was a Cromwell.
"Supreme excellence in battle is achieved by breaking the enemy without fighting," the teacher preached to Ivy. "A warrior must not let wanton emotions control her! Fight the violent impulses!"
Ivy took a deep breath to calm her nerves. Feeling better, she tried to reason with herself. Attacking Ethan would only bring unwanted trouble. The Countess might even cancel her training privileges, such is the woman's bias towards the precious, fertile son.
Ivy crossed her arms at the boy and smirked thinly. Nursing his hollow pride, he had presented the perfect solution to the problem. She could defeat him in one fell swoop.
"Are you sure about that?" the girl posed. "You will swear never to touch me or Gwen, and generally leave us alone. All I have to do is defeat you in arm wrestling."
Ethan nodded without emotion. "Precisely. You have my word."
Ivy pursed her shapely lips and settled into the chair opposite him. The plan was simple—to demolish her brother with brute strength. Ethan was a weakling, after all.
Even if the girl did not suffer through years of backbreaking weight and weapons training, she would still be genetically superior to her brother.
Currently, as a warrior trainee, Ivy was exponentially stronger than him. She could break his wrist or snap his neck with an effortless twist. Even a dozen Ethans couldn't subdue her in a battle. The boy's fragile body was like glass in her presence. The fool had invited his own funeral.
"Let's wrestle," Ivy said confidently, placing her elbow on the table. Ethan leaned forward and got into an arm wrestling position, nestling his hand in hers.
His elder sister's hand was softer than he expected. After years of weapons training, wasn't her skin supposed to be callused and hardened? Perhaps she had an extensive moisturizing regimen, trying to strike the perfect balance between beauty and power. The results were not bad at all.
However, Ivy's hand grip was firm. "Let's go!" she said aloud out. The arm wrestling bout began!
Both siblings strained their muscles and applied pressure. Ethan judged his sister's strength as equivalent to that of an Olympic athlete on Earth. Despite her slender constitution, she could probably give beefy professional arm wrestlers a run for their money.
On the other hand, the old Ethan was probably as weak as a twelve-year-old girl from Earth. Because of their sheer difference in physical strength, Ivy bullied him in the past. Now, things were different, and the roles were about to be reversed.
Initially, Ethan's hand dipped, making his sister grin in satisfaction. She determined the competitive bout would be over in seconds. In fact, as revenge for groping her, she intended to slam the boy's wrist down on the mahogany surface with her full strength.
Ivy was about to break her brother's arm and shatter his bones. However, he hadn't used his full strength yet.
"What's going on?" Ivy exclaimed in shock as Ethan turned the tables, making his hand rise like a lever until he was in a dominant position. "How are you doing this?"
Within seconds, Ivy's strength was overwhelmed, and she was losing! Ethan put on an evil grin. It was true he was originally much weaker than his elder sister. However, the previous afternoon, the boy received a gift from his system—the LEVELING section!
Earlier, Ethan added the first three points of leveling up to the strength attribute. He was four times stronger now!
Bam! Ivy's hand smashed against the table's surface, making her squeal. It was over!
"I win," Ethan declared, reluctantly letting go of her hand. He rose from his seat in glory like the victor he was. The boy suddenly realized his sister's dagger swipe had sliced a tear in his tunic.
In fact, the blade grazed the boy's skin without drawing blood. Did increasing the strength attribute make him more resilient against weapons?
[+1 AP]
[Allotted points: 16/900]
[Unallotted points: 1]
[New skill (passive): Jelly skin Lvl 1]
[Description: User will not receive damage or injury from any hostile weapon on its first strike. Does not apply to magic-imbued weapons. Full damage and injury will be inflicted from the second strike] [Cost: 8 MP]
'Not bad,' he thought. 'Now I can earn rewards and skills without the challenges. Moreover, I have a first line of defense against surprise attacks!'
"You're a cheater!" Ivy exclaimed bitterly, hopping off her seat and nursing her hand. She pointed an accusatory finger at him. "Tell me what you did! Deceptive creep!"