On the veranda in front of the house, Paige Summers supported herself with a stone pillar, taking one difficult step after another. After fifty meters, she finally stopped, exhausted.
"How do you feel?" Quentin Sutton, who had been following right behind her, asked.
She nodded slightly. "I'm okay." 'Even though I'm dead tired, it's a huge improvement compared to a few days ago when I couldn't even walk ten meters without stopping!'
Beside her, Nola gently patted her shoulder and smiled happily.
"Looks like it won't be long before you're back to normal!"
'Yeah…' Paige Summers smiled, wiped her face, and glanced down at her right leg. 'I'll finally be able to leave this place soon!'
Their joy was infectious, and Quentin Sutton smiled as well, though he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.
'Once she's all better, they'll leave, won't they…'
'It was rare to meet someone who not only enjoyed studying medicine but was also incredibly smart. In just two months, after reading a couple of medical texts, she was already asking questions that even I struggled to answer; she was truly inspiring. I had hoped to spend more time with her, but her recovery rate was unexpectedly high. An injury that should have kept a First-rank Superpower User bedridden for at least three to four months… and yet, she's progressed this far in just two.'
His smile faded as he glanced at Nola's excited face, then he impassively averted his gaze.
'She's also… unexpectedly different.'
'What a pity.'
While he was lost in thought, Nola was already helping Paige Summers back to her room. When she noticed he wasn't following, she called out to him.
Paige Summers glanced at their expressions but didn't dwell on them. She simply didn't have the mental energy to worry about them.
Ever since the day she rejected Shawn Monroe and he'd left her room laughing like a complete lunatic, she thought he wouldn't be back—at least not for a while. But that wasn't the case at all. As long as she stayed put, he maintained his rhythm of visiting her every other day.
He no longer teased her with words or gestures, but his bizarre stares made her skin crawl even more. She had a dreadful feeling that any day now, his "sickness" would take a turn for the worse!
'I'm just a normal person, you know? The pressure is just too much!'
She'd been wishing on every star for the day of her liberation to arrive, so how could she not be excited?
Besides, after contacting her boss, she'd heard he had already received payment for the Wine Pourer. That made her even more eager to get back to the furniture store. 'There's so much I can do now that I have money!'
Lost in these happy thoughts, she returned to her room. As she was wiping the sweat from her brow, Quentin Sutton handed her a medical book. "Here, take this," he said. "I have to leave town in a few days, and I'm not sure when I'll be back. It might not be as easy for us to see each other after this, so consider it a keepsake."
Paige Summers paused, stunned, before accepting it with a grateful smile. A warmth spread through her chest, and a light flickered in her eyes. She was surprised by his tremendous kindness, but at the same time, she felt something strange stirring within her body.
She made the excuse that she was tired and needed to rest, and soon, she was alone in the room, lying on her bed.
Her hand gently brushed over her chest, a peculiar sensation washing over her.
It felt as if a vessel in her chest had been collecting all the kindness people had shown her, and now, it seemed to be full.
'What will happen next?'
She couldn't make heads or tails of it, no matter how much she thought about it. Gradually, her eyes closed, and she fell into a genuine sleep.
She was unaware that as she slept, her body was slowly undergoing a transformation.
That kindness had indeed been stored there. It had always been intangible, but through the vessel that held it, this spiritual power was gradually converting into a form of energy. Invisible tendrils of this energy began to flow from her chest, spreading throughout her body. It diminished slightly with each area it passed, but in exchange, every part it "cared for" was altered. This was particularly evident in the still-healing wound on her leg.
By the time the energy completed a full circuit and returned to her chest, almost none of it remained.
At that moment, every part of Paige Summers's body—her organs, bones, muscles, blood vessels, and even her skin—had undergone changes, some minor and some significant, some visible and some not.
She slept from morning until evening that day. When she finally woke up, she felt sticky all over, as if she had sweated buckets, and she had an urgent desire to take a bath.
As she placed her feet on the floor and took a couple of steps, she immediately felt something was different.
'My body… it feels stronger, and lighter!'
The sensation was most obvious in her right arm and right leg.
She tentatively walked to the door—a distance of nearly ten meters—without holding onto anything for support. She hadn't been able to do that this morning. But now... not only did she manage it, but she also felt no discomfort at all!
She reached out to steady herself against the stone wall beside the door, and in her excitement, her hand actually sank slightly into the surface.
She whipped her head around in shock. There, under her fingers, was a faint handprint!
'No way… This is solid stone!'
She looked at her right hand and right leg in utter disbelief.
'What in the world is going on?'
'What happened while I was asleep?!'
She stood there for a long time, taking several deep breaths to try and suppress her pounding excitement. Still steadying herself against the wall, she made her way to the nearby bathroom.
"Miss Summers, are you going to take a bath?" Luna, who usually took care of her daily needs, asked with some surprise. "Will you be alright on your own? Should I go get Miss Nash?"
"No, no, it's fine. I'm much better now, I can manage by myself." 'I have to be alone. I need to get a good look at my body and figure out what exactly happened!'
Luna hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded and went to prepare the hot water for her.
She was a very kind girl; Paige had felt that warm current from her before, just from a simple friendly gesture.
As Paige blankly watched her fill the wooden tub, place all the necessary items within arm's reach, and then say worriedly that she'd be right outside the door if Paige needed anything, a thought suddenly struck her. 'Could it be… because of all that kindness?'
Her suspicion was soon mostly confirmed.
Standing naked in front of the mirror, she saw a milky-white mark that had faintly appeared on her chest.
Paige Summers's eyes flew wide. The shape, the pattern… It was so familiar! 'Isn't this the Jade Pendant I wore constantly in my past life?!'
When she was young, her health had been poor, so her grandfather had specially asked his good friend, Grandmaster Veritas, to consecrate a Jade Pendant for her to wear at all times. The pendant was said to have an extraordinary origin, containing a sacred aura that would keep her healthy and strong. She'd never believed any of it. Even though her health did gradually improve after she started wearing it, she had always chalked it up to her grandfather's diligent care…
But now, as she touched the Jade Pendant Mark on her chest, her heart ached with both sorrow and nostalgia. It had actually traveled through worlds with her, and transformed into something so miraculous.
'It must be… It must be Grandpa watching over me!'
His kind, loving face seemed to materialize before her, earnestly reminding her to live a good life. Even if her parents were gone, even if he himself was gone one day, she had to live on, and live well!
"Grandpa, I miss you so much…"
Tears instantly streamed down her face.
Paige Summers Promoted. Five days after the Jade Pendant Mark activated, it was a natural and inevitable progression.
Not only had her leg injury completely healed, but her entire being seemed transformed.
Her skin grew fairer and smoother, her features softened, and her sweet disposition became even more apparent. Her running speed, meanwhile, had taken a quantum leap. Unable to refuse Nola's request, she did a few test runs down the corridor. Even using only eighty percent of her strength, she left both Nola and Quentin Sutton breathless with admiration.
"They always say it's difficult for Speed Superpower Users to Promote, and now I see why!" Nola exclaimed, green with envy. "If you keep this up, by the time you reach the Sixth Rank, no one will be able to catch you!"
Quentin Sutton, however, commented hesitantly, "Sue's speed is certainly incredible. In my opinion, she's probably faster than other Second Order Speed Superpower Users. Could it be related to her underlying physical fitness?"
Paige's heart skipped a beat. 'It must be the Jade Pendant's doing, the Enhancement to my body…' she thought. But she went along with his theory, smiling as she said, "Could be! I used to train every single day, after all!"
Neither of them doubted her, as such cases were known to happen. Even among Superpower Users of the same rank, the actual power they could wield varied from person to person. The difference might be small, even minuscule, but in a critical moment, that tiny sliver of an advantage could be the difference between life and death!
These were the changes others could see. But what they didn't know about was her right arm.
After she Promoted, the strength in her right arm had reached a whole new level. Before, she could easily shatter a rock; now, she could crush one to powder. The difference was self-evident.
The feeling of wielding such power was intoxicating, for it was the key to her imminent freedom.
Just as she was planning her departure, Shawn Monroe appeared again.
"Congratulations on your Promotion."
"Oh, it's nothing. I'm still a long way from catching up to you all," Paige Summers said with a wide smile, her mood soaring at the thought of soon being free from these entanglements.
Shawn Monroe's expression, in contrast, was anything but pleasant. He let out a low grunt. "You're leaving?"
"Yes," she answered candidly. "My injuries are healed, so I can't keep imposing on you all. Don't worry, I've already finished the blueprints for the Crossbow Arrow. I'll get them for you now."
He took the densely annotated blueprints, a sour taste in his mouth. As he watched Paige start to retreat, his eyes darkened. 'To be so thoroughly rejected, kept at arm's length… and by a woman, no less! It's never happened before.' Every time he saw her, a fire inside him burned hotter. Was it desire or indignation? He didn't care to distinguish between the two. All he knew was that whatever he wanted, he would seize and hold it tight!
'Both her and this entire city!'
With lightning speed, he seized her arm and yanked her into his chest, pinning her hands behind her back. Feeling her soft body pressed tightly against his, inhaling the faint, pleasant scent of her skin, Shawn Monroe finally felt some of his agitation ease.
Only then was he in the mood to mockingly admire the girl before him, whose neck was flushed crimson with humiliation.
"You want to leave? Fine. But first… we…"
Before he could finish, an immense force erupted from her arm. Caught completely off guard, his grip on her was partially broken. In the split second he was stunned, Paige moved—and a sudden coldness touched his neck. A gleaming Sharp Blade was pressed against his carotid artery!
One side of his body was in a warm, fragrant embrace, while the other was steeped in mortal danger. In that instant, Shawn Monroe truly understood what it meant to be caught between heaven and hell.