We walked for a while—not long, but not short either—and I had to endure an endless stream of small talk, even though I wasn't in the mood for it.
Eventually, we reached her room.
It looked almost identical to mine.
Uriel immediately pointed to the couch.
"Lie down on your back there. Oh, and take your clothes off too~"
I froze for a second before looking at her.
"…Take off my clothes?"
"Yes."
"…Do I really have to?"
This didn't sound like it was in either of our best interests.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Just think of me as a doctor. This is my job. Besides, I already saw you completely naked when I treated you last time, so I don't see the issue now."
"…Fair enough."
I quietly removed my armor, exposing my bare skin to her.
"Oh? That was fast. You accepted it way too easily."
"No point overthinking it."
Let's just get this over with.
I lay down on my back, staring up at the ceiling.
"Go ahead… all yours."
Do what you want with this body—it's still better than all the beatings it's taken lately.
"Hmm… alright."
She seemed… hesitant.
Shy, even?
Seriously? That's the expression you're making now, after everything you just said?
Was she the type who only acted strong on the outside?
After all, as a Saint candidate, she'd likely never had any sort of close interaction with a man—let alone being alone in a room with one who was half-naked.
Trying to be as considerate as I could, I closed my eyes and let her work.
And sure enough, I soon felt something touch my chest—a strange holy power seeping inside me.
Little by little… her hesitation vanished.
"I'll begin now."
That sacred energy lived up to its reputation.
My body felt lighter and lighter as Uriel worked with focused precision.
But then… as she became fully absorbed in her work, her expression began to shift into one of confusion.
The more she examined me, the more puzzled she looked.
"Your aura pathways… they're perfect."
After inspecting every inch of my body… Uriel showed a reaction I hadn't expected.
"This is unbelievable…"
"What is?"
She looked like she'd uncovered something.
"To be honest… I don't understand anymore."
After reviewing her thoughts carefully, she came to a conclusion.
"Your body hasn't recovered from the damage it took—not really. Actually, that's the wrong way to put it…"
There was no way I could have fully recovered from all those injuries in such a short time…
"To explain it properly… it didn't heal—it was replaced!"
"What are you even talking about?"
My head was starting to ache from her words.
"Your body—it doesn't leave scars. It recovers perfectly from fatal injuries…"
That's not possible. No matter how much a body heals, there's always a limit—even with a healer's help.
In other words, some injuries simply can't fully recover.
And I had sustained many of those.
Yet… I was healed.
"Dead cells… damaged organs… somehow, they're being replaced entirely. Your body is regenerating itself."
The destroyed aura pathways hadn't been repaired—they had been completely remade.
That's what Uriel was trying to tell me.
"Do you even realize what you're saying right now?"
That's impossible.
A human body has limits.
Uriel shook her head, thinking deeply.
"I've heard that people like Saint Eurasha and the Three High Priests can recover from nearly any injury unless they're already dead..."
"But that's with holy power."
Uriel stared at me seriously.
"But you don't have any. Which means… everything that's happening inside your body is happening naturally."
It didn't seem like Uriel was wrong. Her words sounded crazy at first, sure—but they explained a lot.
How I'd survived until now. How I was able to fight in situations that no ordinary human could ever withstand.
Suddenly… everything made sense, which only made it more confusing.
What exactly happened to this body… inside the Shadow Sect?
What did those statues do to me?
My head throbbed just thinking about it.
Uriel looked like she wanted answers—but…
"Don't stare at me like that. I know even less about my body than you do."
She probably knew more about me than I did at this point.
Uriel sank into deep thought.
"So even you don't know much… Then the answer must lie in your time spent in the Eastern Nightmare Lands…"
Clever.
A regeneration that came neither from holy power nor demonic contracts…
"I need to study this more!"
"Got it, now move your face away."
This girl was way too excited.
And I had a bad feeling about that.
"Frey! From now on, come see me every day at this exact time!"
"What? Why would I—"
"I'm being serious! I'll treat you after every fight—I'll make even your eyebags disappear! So please—let me keep studying your body!"
"No. Why would I agree to that?"
"Why?! Come on! Think of it as a service to humanity!"
"Stop throwing that nonsense in my face."
"Please!"
What was I supposed to do with this girl?
It wasn't like I could outright refuse her. If she went around spreading what she'd discovered about me—even if it sounded insane—who knew what might happen?
I had no choice but to accept. The girl started hopping around gleefully, and I honestly questioned how simple she really was.
And just like that… I ended up with my own personal healer for the entirety of the Victoriad.
The quarterfinal matches lasted for three straight days. Then, after a three-day break, the semifinals would begin on the seventh day.
And so, during those following days—
I visited Uriel's room every day, stripped down, and let her mess with my body.
The Victoriad soon became the source of bizarre rumors regarding the nature of Frey Starlight and Uriel Platini's relationship—especially after people began seeing that young man enter the Saint candidate's room… every single day.
...
...
...
The upper-year quarterfinals wrapped up quickly.
Sure, they showcased several powerful students—like Uriel Platini, Ellen White, and Rob Valerion, the son of the Empire's greatest mage—
But overall… they were boring.
Most of the matches ended far too fast.
Even now, the crowd couldn't forget the image of Ellen White forcing her opponent to beat himself to death.
There was a limit to how much you could humiliate someone in battle.
With that stage concluded, the Victoriad was now entering its serious phase.
– Day Seven –
First-Year Semifinals:
Snow Lionheart vs. Ghost Umbra
"So it's today…"
What should have been the final match of the Victoriad had somehow turned into an early semifinal clash.
But it was a good opportunity—to see just how far Snow's strength had evolved now that he wielded Vermithor.
His fight against Dawn hadn't shown much.
But Ghost was on a different level.
This one… would be a real battle.
"Hoh, the Hero's fighting today…"
I would've appreciated watching it alone, honestly—but somehow, I ended up seeing the match in Uriel's room under the excuse that she needed to "prepare me better" for my upcoming battle with Daemon.
We sat together in front of the screen.
And there—before us—
Snow and Ghost stepped into the arena to roaring cheers from the audience.
"Who do you think will win?"
Uriel asked playfully, while I answered seriously:
"Snow."
"Ah, fair enough. He is the Hero, after all…"
But I wasn't saying that because of the 'Chosen Hero' title nonsense.
I knew exactly what Snow Lionheart was capable of. Even without that added power from Vermithor…
He would still beat Ghost.
That young man wasn't called the Final Obstacle for nothing.
I wanted to see it—that power.
And just like me… Ghost stared silently at Snow.
We both said the same words in our heads as we locked eyes with Snow Lionheart:
"I want to know… just how far this person's power reaches."
How far ahead of us was he?
He had been chosen as a Hero… placed on the same level as the First Emperor.
Ghost wanted to know the strength of the light that Snow shone—
And how much it would enlarge the size of his own shadow.
And deep down…
Was he wrong all this time for choosing me instead?
The answer… would become painfully clear in this fight.
…
Everyone was waiting for the match to begin—
Snow Lionheart vs. Ghost Umbra.
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