Anna walked up to Kyon. It was unusual to see a former slave in the mansion. It violated all the rules.

Kyon bowed slightly, playing his part as a servant:

«Ms. Anna, would you be so kind as to show me where my room is?»

«Follow me.» - She went to one of the doors on the ground floor and opened it.

The room was fabulously decorated even if it was inferior to any other room. Kyon was pleased with lots of space and his big and soft bed. There also was a dining table, an armchair, and several cupboards.

Anna closed the door from the inside. She crossed her arms, put on an icy cold look and coughed loudly to make Kyon turn around. It was time to comply with Dinah’s request and interrogate him. Tons of questions had been bugging her all day long. Her sister had lost it completely, got irritable and impatient with everything.

«Answer my questions quickly, boy. And don’t try to lie. I can tell when someone lies to me.»

Kyon gave an affirmative nod like he wasn’t even thinking that.

«How did you survive? Where did you live all this time?»

Kyon answered Anna’s harsh questions after a pause. He was still playing his role of a servant, keeping his voice soft and shy:

«Lady Juno left me alive when she saw my combat potential.»

Anna's beautiful eyes widened in surprise. «Your teeth... They are safe and sound! Every single one of them!»

«Yes, they are. The lady gave me a strange round pill, and they got quickly restored... And what is more, the formation is gone.» - He tousled his bangs feigning embarrassment.

Anna could barely hold back her surprise. It was totally unlike lady Juno to appreciate the boy's skills? It couldn’t be true. «And what did you eat? Where did you relieve yourself?»

Kyon got red in the face. He lowered his head and replied:

«Lady rewarded me with food and water every time I proved myself in the fight…»

Anna put her snow-white hand on her forehead. {Did she train him?!} - It was hard to believe that the young lady had been treating the boy as her pet, taking care of him. But Kyon was standing right in front of her, very much alive. There was only one question left without an answer...

«As for relieving myself, I secretly used the bathroom. I didn't want to bother you.»

Anna snorted in disbelief.

«It’s pure nonsense... You could not have passed me! It’s been more than two weeks! Do you think you could go unnoticed?!»

Kyon just shrugged in response and confidently looked into her eyes. «As you see.»

The maid grinned:

«I know you’re keeping something back!» – She said in a shrill voice. She looked at him with her fixed chilling gaze that forced him to lower his eyes in embarrassment. - {I don’t believe him! I can’t believe it! Lady Juno had been taking care of him?! Alright, my servants do keep their mouths shut. But how could he sneak into the bathroom? I should punish him but…}

Kyon added important words:

«There’s something else… I am Marina’s good friend. You can ask her yourself. Here is her handkerchief. She has given it to me.» - He said and held out the present he had recently received.

«You? Her friend?» - Anna was a little confused when she took the snow-white handkerchief. She returned it at once. What else should she do with it? Sniff it? The maid was aware that the lady was on good terms with the girl who resembled her mother, Diana.

Kyon nodded. Anna decided that she should, by all means, speak with Marina later. She didn’t doubt that the servant was telling the truth, but she wanted to find out what kind of friends they were.

Before Kyon knew it, she grabbed his wrist and dragged him out of the room. {What?! Where is she taking me?!} - His fears were totally justified. The maids didn’t only know Juno very well, they were also a serious challenge in a fight, with outstanding strength and assassin skills.

Anna brought Kyon to the training area and said:

«I am going to check myself if lady Juno was right about you. Are you ready to fight?»

Kyon opened his mouth in astonishment. «My lady, but you are way stronger than I am. I mean many times stronger…»

The girl theatrically rolled her eyes and said, visibly displeased:

«I will lower my stage of development. Attack, have no fear. I won't kill you.»

All the practitioners, beginning with the 2nd phase, can lower their level of development. They do not use this trick too often, or rather, they do it extremely rarely. Some consider it as an insult, others take it as humiliation, and certain individuals dismiss it as mere posturing. But no matter what others might think, Anna had rapidly reduced her development to the fourth stage of the base phase.

With his fists in front of him, Kyon took up a fighting stance. He thought bitterly that he could use a better movement technique. He would be moving like a cheetah, not like a turtle. But even without the technique he needed so badly, Kyon was hurt by the underestimation of his strength. Considering that Anna had high-heeled shoes on, it must be tough for her to fight. She wasn’t going to use the blades that were probably hidden inside the heels.

Anna interrupted Kyon's thoughts and quickly reduced the distance between them with the intention to hit him directly in the chest.

*bang*

Kyon instantly jumped back. He avoided the attack and moved forward. Anna was now inferior to Juno by two stages, and her speed was within his control. He could fight any way he wanted.

The maid was surprised: the boy was the real deal. He dodged and then immediately attacked. {With my movement skills, he will lose in a few seconds, anyway...} - That’s what she thought. In response to his blatant attack, Anna gracefully arched her slender body, made a spectacular flip back and gave him a flash kick. In her opinion, it was top of the line to attack and defend herself in one movement. Suddenly, her plans failed. The boy didn’t seem to attack at all. The balance of his body shifted back even if he had to move by inertia directly towards her attack...

Then something happened that Anna wasn’t expecting. Kyon grabbed her ankles, and with one deft movement interrupted her maneuver. She was standing on two hands like an inverted Christmas tree. Her short skirt treacherously succumbed to gravity and fell revealing all that was hidden underneath.

When Kyon saw the charms of the girl’s body, his pupils dilated. The low frequency of sex in one mental year and his weakness for all the beautiful took their toll on him.

{White and lacy... Oops…}

Hadn’t he come to his senses that he saw an illusory movement and felt a sharp pain in his chest. The blow sent Kyon a few meters away, and then he rolled some more. His empty eyes looked into the night sky wondering about the meaning of life.

Anna pulled down her skirt. Her face turned red with anger and humiliation. She was steaming with a desire to deal with the insolent boy once and for all. Her insides were churning: the servant had seen her underwear! What a disgrace! It was like the dirty boy had touched her! Who was he anyway?! It was unacceptable, unforgivable for him to see something like that. But Anna’s good nature helped her quickly calm down. Her common sense reminded her that it was she who screwed up. She let the boy corner her. Silly her... She thought her attack was unexpected and sudden! But as it turned out...

She looked at the body lying on the ground feeling guilty. However, the rage had not subsided inside her yet. Anna resolutely approached Kyon playing it cool. «Have you seen it, boy?»

Kyon put on a miserable expression and mumbled pitifully:

«Lady, I... Please, don’t kill me…» - His eyes were full of tears and regret.

Anna wavered. He had seen everything and didn’t deny it. She could have the moral right to punish him if he had lied. But the boy was pure as snowflakes. She looked aside and bit her full lip, reflexively adjusting her skirt. «Let’s call it today. I'm sure your bones are intact. But if you… Oh well, forget it.» - She had no more taste for fighting and left.

Anna walked off but the blush never left her face. She could not understand the uncomfortable sensation haunting her. Was it helplessness? She caught herself thinking that her sister’s character had its advantages. If the boy had seen Dinah in the same position, he would have been dead in a second, saving her from all remorse. But Anna wasn’t like that.

The maid entered the mansion and went to the bedroom. It so happened that she shared her bedroom with her sister. When she came into the room, Anna saw Dinah lying on the bed, her legs gracefully crossed. She was wearing irresistible black lacy underwear.

«Did you interrogate him?»

Anna sat on the bed silently. She touched her nose as if she was hiding something and said finally:

«He said that Marina is his close friend. I don’t think he is lying but I’ll definitely talk to her myself. He also said that Lady Juno appreciated his fighting skills.»

«What skills can this jerk have?»

Anna nervously played with a lock of her blond hair. «I'm not quite sure…»

«And that’s it?!» - Dinah squinted. «No one has any idea how the guy has been going unnoticed for two weeks, how he could survive and become the lady’s servant. And that's all you’ve got?!»

«Dinah, stop it! I will talk to lady Juno and Marina, and…»

«All you had to do was to question him. We were taught to torture. We can get any information. Why didn't you interrogate him properly? Do you feel pity for him? We must never hesitate when it comes to the mansion and especially to lady Juno.»

Anna stared at his sister, not daring to answer her. Dinah was ruthless and relentless, as ever. But even she wouldn't react to a common slave like that... Something was wrong. «You can’t let an ordinary servant get to you. Could you possibly have any feelings for…»

«Shut up!» - screamed Dinah. – «I’d gladly kill him, but he's no longer in my power because of the... The order…»

There was silence after she said that. Then Anna went to the shower, lost in her thoughts. {{Sister has been acting out of sorts. She says he’s getting fresh with her. I don’t buy that! I wonder if she fancies him!?}

Kyon was out of breath. He was gradually coming to his senses. He felt a dull pain in his chest but fortunately, no bones were broken. He couldn’t get Anna’s sexy, alluring, seductive charm out of his mind. She had left a deep trace in his consciousness. The masters kept saying to him that his weakness for beauty was going to get him in trouble, but there was nothing he could do.

In the simulation Earth, he had almost no interest in women. They didn’t attract him. It was below him to mess around with the programs. Outside the simulation, he spent almost all the time on the tasks the masters gave him. His so-called weakness did not bother him at all. Moreover, he had absolutely no interest in average and below average girls. He had to be alert, given that any rich old woman could afford to buy youth and virginity. Everything was different here. Beauty was a valuable gift and a great blessing. Generations following one after another became stronger and more attractive because the beautiful young girls were not burned at stake. The most deserving men took them as wives. In this world, beauty was a valuable resource for gentlemen.

As soon as Kyon recovered, he returned to his room. He remembered that he had ordered a little box and hadn’t had time to check its contents yet. He took it in his hands and began his inspection.

He found inside a spatial ring of several meters in size where he could store the most valuable things; a handful of little balls with enzymes. They were of a smoky shade of white, similar to the base phase spheres. The enzymes also belonged to the base phase. His body couldn’t metabolize the advanced ones.

Kyon picked up the little pale ball and scanned it with Synergy. It contained the essence of enzymes that can be found in small amounts in food. The local population had long guessed that it didn't make sense to eat meat and plants that contained enzymes of their phase. It was easier to extract the most valuable part of food and concentrate it, increasing the purity (the number of beneficial enzymes) at the same time.

Here is an example, where could he find chicken for the noble phase? Kyon imagined a hen walking about the farm, scaring people stiff. Bit by bit, they left food alone and converted enzymes into the pills. As a result, their bodies developed faster as well as their souls. “Strong in spirit, strong in body.”

A thought flashed through his mind:

{I wonder how faster my development will go?}

Kyon was disappointed to find out that Synergy and enzymes mutually destroyed each other as if exposed to alien energy. He couldn't send beams of energy into his cells to have an advantage over other people.

By the time he arrived, he had managed to complete the modernization of his nervous system, which significantly increased the stress resistance of his organs. From literary sources, he got to know that useful enzymes got absorbed much faster while the worthless ones overloaded the body and took a longer time to get excreted from the blood.

According to Juno, this medicine is about 80% pure. It was an amazing rate for the Iron Throne Kingdom. Kyon took the pill and examined the state of his body.

A stream of microscopic energy balls spread through his body like oil. Their effect was similar to alcohol, only the symptoms were absent. Judging by the descriptions in the books, the symptoms would appear if he had overdosed on enzymes.

The jet-black night had long wrapped the world in its embrace, covering it with a thick dark blanket. Kyon didn't want to waste his precious time. He went to the training ground. Sleeping was not part of his plan. He could sleep in later. He needed less time for sleep than the others, anyway. Using Synergy, he could be in the deep and fast phase of sleep at the same time, which means he could get enough sleep twice as fast.

Gradually, step by step, Kyon began to master the protection against electricity. He knew the theory well. It was a matter of time before he created high resistance from the powerful element of ether. An hour and a half of training flew by. He felt that his body had already absorbed one pill of enzymes. Kyon took a second pill with no hesitation. This knock-out dose could poison an average person, but Kyon’s body easily withstood the stress.

Less than a couple of seconds later, his organs seemed to have gained weight. However, everything remained within the normal range. There were no irregularities or disorders. He was doing well for the time being. Bundles of enzymes safely penetrated the cells of his body.

Half an hour later, Kyon dared to take a third pill. Intoxication increased to the maximum level. He shouldn't perhaps take a fourth or each of his organs would suffer from stress.

{Come on… I can develop my body three times faster than an ordinary person, can’t I?!} – A pleased smile lit up Kyon's face. He came to this world with only treasure, his Synergy. It wasn't the first time it had pleased him with its amazing advantages and unique properties. Increased intoxication, perfect purity of keys, bonuses from body development, and so on. Any mortal would sell their soul to the devil for the privilege of having these unique features!