Ti passed, and before he knew it, the morning sun had faded, replaced by the twin moons of Miranda and Sylvia.
At the edge of the courtyard, Leon kept running, his once-handso face now pale and drained.
"Nine hundred and ninety-eight... nine hundred and ninety-nine," he muttered, breathless.
As he completed the final lap, reaching a thousand, his body collapsed onto the ground, his gaze blank and unfocused.
"Hah... hah... finally... finally..." He closed his eyes, struggling to catch his breath, each inhale feeling heavier than the last.
From morning to night, he had kept running, and at last, he had reached his goal—a thousand laps.
He never imagined it would be this exhausting. His legs felt numb, his arms barely responsive, as if they no longer belonged to him.
"It's been so long... since I've felt... this way." He opened his eyes weakly, staring up at the twin moons.
Back when his body was strengthened by holy power, he could have run thousands of laps without breaking a sweat.
But now, as an ordinary human, it felt like sheer torture.
Had it not been for his unwavering determination, he would have collapsed long before reaching five hundred.
"Hahaha! Such impressive stamina and spirit, Fated One!"
The dragon ancestor's laughter echoed beside him, snapping Leon out of his daze.
With stiff movents, Leon turned to him and let out a small sigh. "Thank you for the complint, Dragon Ancestor. This was a valuable experience for ."
Though it was the dragon ancestor who had pushed him to this point, he felt no anger or resentnt. This was his choice.
If he wanted to grow stronger, he had to be willing to pay the price.
Miranda approached and stopped beside the dragon ancestor.
Seeing Leon in such a miserable state, her chest tightened with sorrow.
She crouched beside him, gently wiping the sweat from his face. "Are you alright, Master? Does anything hurt?" she asked with concern.
Leon smiled and took her hand. "Don't worry, I'm fine."
Miranda knew he was lying, but she chose not to press him, letting out a quiet sigh instead.
"Alright, your training is done for today. Get so rest—we'll continue tomorrow," the dragon ancestor said casually.
Leon slowly pushed himself up, but the mont he moved, a sharp pain tore through his body.
He sucked in a breath, gritted his teeth, and gave a small nod. "In that case, I'll head back to my room."
After bidding farewell to the two, he hobbled over to retrieve his robe before making his way back to the palace where he resided.
As the dragon ancestor watched him leave, he could almost glimpse the image of a powerful figure—one who would one day stand tall to support this world.
A faint smile crossed his lips as he murmured, "What a blessing it is to live in the sa era as him..."
...
Leon trudged toward his room, each step heavy with exhaustion.
After running all day, his bones, muscles, and nerves were stiff and strained.
Every movent felt unsteady, making it difficult to walk properly.
"I'm so hungry," he murmured, pressing a hand to his stomach.
The last ti he ate was at breakfast. From noon until now, he hadn't touched a single bite.
If he were his forr self, he could go days without food. But in his current state, that was no longer possible.
He paused, his gaze drifting toward the hallway leading to the kitchen.
"I should make sothing to eat before washing up and getting so rest. Athena probably hasn't eaten lunch or dinner yet either, so I'll make so for her too."
Since he had never seen Athena cook before, he wasn't sure if she even knew how. That thought left him slightly concerned.
Then again, considering she was a dragon, his worry was probably unnecessary.
Without hesitation, he headed straight for the kitchen.
The mont he stepped inside, his eyes widened in shock.
"Damn! What happened?" He stood frozen, rubbing his eyes as if to make sure he wasn't imagining things.
The kitchen was a disaster. Pots and cooking utensils were strewn everywhere.
Burnt vegetables littered the floor near the stove, and what looked like charred at lay discarded, its appearance nothing short of horrific.
Leon swore this was the worst kitchen disaster he had ever seen!
"Leon? Why are you here already? Is your training over?"
Athena's excited voice rang out from behind him, making him jump slightly.
He turned to see her standing there in a pink apron, looking utterly disheveled.
Her usually cold yet alluring face was now smudged with black stains.
It wasn't just her face—her apron, dress, and even her skin were covered in traces of burnt food.
"Athena, this... What exactly happened? Did enemies invade the kitchen?" Leon asked, still in shock.
Athena bead and walked toward him.
"Enemies? What are you talking about?" She rolled her eyes before looking around the kitchen with a proud grin. "This whole ss is my doing. I tried cooking for you earlier, but I didn't expect it to be so hard. But don't worry, the food's ready."
Leon: "..."
The corners of his lips twitched as he let out a resigned sigh.
For a mont, he had genuinely thought an enemy attack had destroyed the palace kitchen. But no—it was just Athena trying to cook.
Rubbing his temples, he surveyed the chaos once more and asked, "Why is the kitchen such a ss? What exactly have you made?"
Even the most inexperienced cook wouldn't cause this much destruction... right?
Athena's expression remained calm as she replied confidently, "Actually, this is my first ti in the kitchen, so this ss is to be expected, right?"
Leon fell silent. He wanted to utter so aphorisms but held back.
Despite the chaos, this was Athena's way of showing care and affection for him, and he didn't want to dampen her feelings with unnecessary words.
"Well, thank you for your effort, Athena," Leon said warmly, almost reaching out to pinch her cheek but stopping himself.
He was sweaty and hadn't showered yet, worried he might dirty Athena's face.
To his surprise, Athena took his hand and pressed it against her cheek.
"Why are you hesitating? I don't mind the sweat," she said lovingly.
Her words lted Leon's heart. He found himself falling even more deeply in love with her.
Had he known Athena had this tender side before, he never would have run from her pursuit in the past.
After their intimate mont ended, Athena eagerly led Leon to the dining room.
"Look, this is what I made," she said excitedly, pointing to two plates on the table.
As soon as Leon saw them, his expression froze, and his body stiffened.
"Those… are they supposed to be food?"
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A/N: Phew! A new month is here, and with it cos a fresh spirit!
Thank you so much for your support last month, my handso and beautiful readers!
I hope you'll continue to support my book this month. Thank you!
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