As Strong As A Genesis Sea
After making sure his cultivation did not have any problem, Ryker exited the chamber, only to be greeted by Hylla who seemed to be surprised by his appearance.
"You already out? I was just about to get you- You already at the Genesis Source!" she yelled, making the guard look at her weirdly.
She covered her red face, embarrassed from causing such a scene. Ryker chuckled at her expression before nodding, answering her question.
"Well, in that case..." she trailed off, seemingly unsure of what to say. Ryker snapped his finger in front of her face, making her come back to her senses.
"The Duke wished to see you first, but he does allow you to go meet with your lovers, all of them missed you," she told him. Ryker gave her a nod of acknowledgment before he walked towards the door.
Hylla let out a sigh of relief though it did not last long, "Oh, when did I say such a thing?" a voice behind her, one she knew all too well, spoke.
She shakily turned her head, seeing her uncle giving her an unimpressive glare. She looked away sheepishly, pretending like she had not just issued a different order.
The Duke sighed, shaking his head due to his niece's action. While she did not spoil her too much, she was treated like a princess by him and the servants and subordinates that are in the knows.
As such, she often played pranks like pretending her uncle ordered some of the more annoying servants to do stupid things for the sake of pettiness.
Thankfully, she did not go too far, only causing inconvenience to the people involved. If not, she would have received severe punishments.
"I let this go because I don't want to separate a man from his family. But, if you did this one more time..." he did not finish his sentence, letting the young woman think of all of the possible punishments imaginable.
Indeed, it seemed to work as she nodded shakily before running away from the Duke. The Duke let out a sigh, saying to himself, "You have one troublesome child, dear brother,"
-x-
After spending the night with his lovers, Ryker returned to the mansion, where the Duke greeted him readily.
The older man then led him to the training field, where a group of guards lined up.
"I am able to recall some of my Genesis Lake experts. Similar to before, I want to see you unleash your full strength, just to see how strong you are," he explained.
To his surprise, Ryker shook his head, looking him in the eye before saying, "I think a Genesis Sea expert would be better," his statement caused the people on the field, the Duke included to let out a shocked gasp.
"A-are you sure?" he asked shakily, still surprised by what he had said.
"Yes," the short answer makes the older man realize that yes, he is serious. He let out a sigh before walking into the field himself.
When Ryker is about to say something else, the Duke stops him, "Yes, you might want to face 1st Stage Genesis Sea expert but we don't have one here, both in the city and inside the entire duchy.
The only way you can test your strength is by going all out and letting me judge how strong you are," he explained, making the younger man nod in understanding.
"Well then, let us begin soon," Ryker took the spot opposite of the Duke before he retired himself. Before they could begin, the Duke added some more rules.
"I will not be allowed to attack you. I can only defend for the entire time. This test is to see how strong you are,"
After he finished, the man readied himself, though he did not create a barrier around him. Ryker then took a fighting stance, ready to launch one of his strongest attacks.
He gathered the lightning qi into his fist before adding the addition of Law of Fire into the mix. The combination of flame and lightning qi, despite the two clashing for a period of time, let out intense energy that makes the surroundings both hot and electrifying.
The Duke's become serious as the power he showcases now seems to be stronger than before. He added several qi barriers around himself, preparing for the powerful attack that would soon come.
His prediction came true as the powerful attack from Ryker clashed with the Qi barrier. The attack was able to pierce the defense, though it became weaker as it broke more barriers.
When it reached the final barrier, the attack was stopped, though the Duke had a shocked expression on his face.
"Y-your strength... how can it be this strong?" he let out a voice so quiet one would have thought he was only whispering.
"So, it is to your satisfaction, my Lord," Hearing how Ryker teased her made the Duke have the urge to make the back of his head. Only patience allowed him to be safe from him.
"You did excellently, " the Duke praised him, after all, it is the truth. "Tomorrow you can start with being the leader of the entire southern wall,"
The sudden promotion caused both him and the guards to look at the man like he was insane. Seeing how they had been eying him like this, he replied, "I'm the one that can dictate who will keep watch over certain areas. His strength is more than enough to be assigned a more important job,"
Hearing their Duke's words, some of the disgruntled guards began to question their lord's choice. A simple glare from the man makes them more meek and quiet.
"Good, now you can take a rest. I will send some people to show you the ropes of leading an entire part of the wall," he told him before pushing him out of the training field.
Ryker followed the order, exiting the Duke's mansion. The Duke watched him with an unreadable expression, his eyes followed him until he was out of sight.
When he returned his attention to his guard, one of them, the strongest person currently inside the capital walked towards him before asking him a question.
"My lord, why did you allow him to do as he please?" the guard asked, a look of confusion and frustration can be seen on their face.
"Can you let out a strong enough power to block an attack equal to a Genesis Sea expert, albeit on a weaker side," the Duke asked, making the guard shake their head.
"That young man, he was able to unleash enough strength that could rival what a 1st Stage Genesis Sea expert could do,"