Chapter 9: Who is He?

Sword Energy!

An excited expression appeared on Lia’s beautiful, alluring face. She closely observed her dantian—her energy sealed—yet all that remained was the powerful sword energy. If she undid the seal on her body, she believed the sword energy would only become even stronger!

For a moment, she didn’t know what to say. She could only gaze at Grey with a stunned expression.

His words still echoed in her mind. She remembered clearly when he confidently told her that he would help her awaken sword energy.

What is sword energy?

It was a direct display of one’s mastery over the sword. Only those who had attained master-level mastery in a sword technique could even hope to comprehend it.

Her entire worldview had been turned upside down. Everything she was taught, everything she believed in—

’Nobody will believe me if I told them I comprehended Sword Energy at basic-level mastery…’ Lia thought speechlessly.

That was how shocking it was to comprehend sword energy so early.

Lia stared at Grey, who was now looking at his phone with a big smile.

She was the only one shaken. To him, it looked as though comprehending sword energy this early was a completely natural process.

It truly made her wonder—who exactly was this Instructor, Daniel Carter?!

She believed that not even her father, who was extremely powerful and well-known in the evolver’s circle, could make her comprehend things as quickly as Grey guided her.

Not to mention her father—even the top instructors her father hired for her were utterly useless compared to Instructor Daniel Carter!

Not only had she reached basic mastery, but he had also imparted the importance of utilizing sword energy in the Zenith Sword Art. Now, even with basic-level mastery, she could skip a level and fight someone stronger than her using only the Zenith Sword Art.

And that was without utilizing her spiritual energy!

Just then, Grey stepped closer and casually pulled out his phone, the screen displaying his number. “Add me. If you ever need to contact me in the future, just call.”

Now that the fish had bitten the hook, it was time to make sure it kept biting every time he threw the bait back into the sea.

Of course, there was still a decent chance this young lady might hire a hitman to deal with him for “scamming” her, but Grey went ahead with his plan regardless.

After all, the girl standing before him wasn’t ordinary. She possessed a heaven-defying physique—a physique so rare it could shake the world.

How could he possibly let such a treasure slip by? If he didn’t steal her physique for himself—or rather, ahem, selflessly guide her onto the right path—wouldn’t that be doing Blue Star an injustice?

With her talent, once she reached her peak, she could completely eliminate the looming disaster of the corruption fields!

Yes, that was Grey’s noble motive. He definitely wasn’t planning to steal her physique. Nor was he scheming to scam her out of money. Absolutely not.

“Number?” Lia frowned slightly. “But Instructor, I already have your number. Didn’t we contact each other through messenger today?”

She gave him a strange look. Did this guy have dementia?

“Oh, that one’s my business number,” Grey replied matter-of-factly. “This here is my primary.”

“…Is that so.” Lia muttered before nodding. She quickly entered his number into her contacts.

At the same time, she noticed several notifications piling up on her screen—messages she had received during training. She didn’t bother checking them now, not while Instructor “Daniel Carter” was still standing before her.

“Alright, now that you have my number, I’ll take my leave.” Grey said with a calm, lofty air, like an expert who cared little for trivial matters. “Farewell, Miss Lia.”

Without waiting for her response, Grey moved as though a cat had leapt onto his back, slipping past her and heading straight for the door.

Outside, Albert was still standing guard, face expressionless. Their eyes met briefly before both men looked away, ignoring each other in perfect silence.

Once Grey disappeared from his view, Albert stepped into the training room where his young lady was still inside.

As soon as he entered, he saw Lia staring at her phone with a confused gaze.

“The owner of this number is called Grey Lockhart?” A strange expression appeared on her face as she viewed Grey’s profile.

His profile picture on the messenger app was of a huge chicken towering above mountains.

Just then, she noticed another notification in the corner of her screen. It was from Instructor “Daniel Carter,” sent just as she started training with Instructor “Daniel Carter.”

Slowly, she opened the message—and her eyes flashed with three emotions: strangeness, confusion, and disbelief.

Ding!

Daniel Carter’s phone rang as he sat slouched on the bench, looking like a shriveled-up corpse.

The Iron fang brothers had already called it a day because a corruption field had opened, leaving Daniel free at last.

“Damn those idiots. If not for me limiting my physical body to that of First Rank, the training they made me go through would’ve been a breeze,” Daniel cursed.

The twins had made him do nearly 200,000 push-ups under the influence of powerful gravity—something that, if said to an ordinary mortal, would only earn disbelief.

Of course, even after that, he wasn’t hurt. But he definitely looked drained and lifeless. Then, a seal formed near his abdomen and a unique green energy suddenly appeared, revitalizing him.

Only then did he finally pick up his phone and check the notification.

To his surprise, it was from Miss Lia.

He had messaged her just before getting dragged into training by the Iron fang brothers. He thought it was a lost cause, but apparently not!

He read through the messages, starting from three hours ago:

[Daniel Carter: Miss, I sincerely apologize. The nearest grocery store was 30 minutes away on foot. I managed to shorten the distance by 10 minutes with my advanced physical ability, but to my luck, there was a sale going on. I had to wait an hour in line just to buy it, and I almost got beaten up by the aunties for trying to cut the queue.]

[Daniel Carter: I believe you have great talent for the sword! I promise that if you come back, I’ll help you reach basic mastery in a day!]

[Lia: What are you talking about, Instructor Daniel Carter? Didn’t we just finish training?]

[Daniel Carter: Huh? Stop teasing me, miss. I know I’m in the wrong for not showing up on time, but at least show me some leniency.]

[Lia: ???]

[Lia: Where are you right now?]

[Daniel Carter: Miss, I knew you would come back! Someone of your talent shouldn’t be stuck at basic mastery level in the Zenith Sword Art! Hence, in hopes of guiding you, I stayed in the open training zone all this while.]

[Lia: Come meet me at Training Room 19.]

[Daniel Carter: Right away, miss!]

Daniel immediately stood up from his spot. He was near Training Room 40, so it didn’t take him long to stride over to Training Room 19.

The moment he entered, Lia’s eyes widened in shock.

“Miss Lia, I’m here!” Daniel greeted her with a warm smile.

“You are…” Lia’s voice trembled.

She was right. The person who had guided her earlier… wasn’t Daniel Carter at all.

It was an imposter wearing the same clothes and fitting the same description as him.

A flabbergasted look crossed her delicate features before it twisted into anger, her hands curling into fists.

She had been scammed. Completely and utterly deceived!

Yet, as fury surged through her chest, Lia forced herself to take a steady breath. It was true—she had been toyed with. But at the same time, she could not deny the results. In merely three hours, she had reached basic mastery of the Zenith Sword Art and even comprehended Sword Energy.

Could that really be called scamming?

Her brows knitted tightly. The thought didn’t lessen the anger burning in her heart. Being played with was still being played with.

Suppressing her emotions, she slowly shifted her gaze back toward the real Instructor, Daniel Carter.

Before he could even open his mouth, Lia turned toward Albert. Her voice was calm, but carried quiet authority. “Can you step out for a moment? I’d like to speak with this man alone.”

Albert gave a slight nod. Without a word, he turned and walked out, the door clicking shut behind him.

“Thank you for coming, Instructor Daniel Carter.” Lia let out a soft sigh.

Of course, she couldn’t tell anyone she had just been scammed. That would be far too humiliating. Especially Albert—her butler must never know.

“It’s nothing. Now then, when shall we begin?” Daniel asked with a polite smile.

“No need.” Lia shook her head lightly. “It’s already too late, and… I’ve been training these past three hours on my own. I managed to reach basic mastery level by myself.”

“Huh?” Daniel’s eyes widened in surprise. “Is that so?”

“Yes.” She nodded firmly, forcing composure into her tone. “But I still appreciate your efforts in coming all this way. I’ll honor our agreement and pay you the 5,000 Union Credits.”

“This… how can that be?” Daniel’s expression turned awkward, his voice carrying a righteous tone. “I, Daniel Carter, am not the kind of man who would accept money without teaching a single move. Please, it’s nothing worth mentioning. If you truly wish to repay me, just call me again for training in the future.”

Lia shook her head. “No need. Please show me your bank details.”

Seeing her insistence, Daniel reluctantly pulled out his phone and displayed his bank details.

Without hesitation, Lia made the transfer. To her, 5,000 Union Credits were nothing. More than that, she felt it would be too harsh to let Daniel leave empty-handed after waiting three hours for her.

“Now, please excuse me. I have to return home.” She spoke politely as she walked past him.

At the same time, a darkened look had appeared on her face.

She was going to find out everything about the man called “Grey Lockhart” and have a talk with him after that.

“Let’s go, Albert. We’re going home.” Her voice carried across the hall as she brushed past him.

Albert nodded without a word as he silently followed her.

Daniel watched the young lady leaving with a joyful look on his face.”Such a kind young lady. Now I can buy that new virtual reality headset everyone’s been talking about!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep