Chapter 59: Testing the Limits

Arthur had made his way back to his dorm.

He placed his thumb against the scanner beside the door.

Beep.

The door unlocked.

Arthur stepped inside and closed it behind him.

He walked over to his bed and settled down, letting out a quiet sigh.

He had barely gotten comfortable when Genesis’s voice suddenly sounded in his mind.

〘You know, giving that girl your number wasn’t a good move, Master.〙

Arthur raised an eyebrow.

Before he could respond, Genesis continued.

〘What about Lyra?〙

Arthur stared at the ceiling for a moment.

Then he chuckled softly.

"Calm down, Genesis, dear."

He closed his eyes.

"Your master isn’t a jackass."

Arthur shrugged.

"If a nice young lady offers to pay for my implant and simply asks for my Cadet Number, it would be rude to say no."

He leaned back against the bed, completely unbothered.

"Besides, I can always shut things down later."

Genesis continued to stare at him.

Even through her chibi avatar, Arthur could somehow feel the disappointment radiating from her.

Arthur glanced at her.

"...What?"

Genesis said nothing.

She simply gave him an even more disappointed look.

Arthur sighed.

"You’re judging me, aren’t you?"

Genesis folded her arms.

〘I don’t need to say anything, Master. You already know what I’m thinking.〙

Arthur smiled faintly.

"...Fair enough."

Genesis suddenly spoke.

〘Master, aren’t you forgetting something?〙

Arthur smiled as he glanced toward her.

"How can I forget?"

There was a reason Arthur decided to return straight to his dorm instead of going to the Academy sparring rings to spar with someone to test out what the implant was capable of.

He wanted to just upgrade it right away instead of wasting time getting used to the implant in its default state. It would be better to just upgrade it to its highest form and get used to that from the get-go.

Genesis tilted her head.

〘Are you actually planning to upgrade it?〙

A faint smile appeared on Arthur’s face.

"Yes."

He sat upright on the bed.

"It’s time to crank it up."

Genesis’s eye widened slightly.

〘You just got it installed.〙

"Exactly."

Arthur raised one hand.

"I might as well make good use of it."

With a thought, Arthur opened his equipment interface.

A translucent holographic window materialized before him, displaying his items and equipment.

He selected the Synaptic Acceleration Spine.

The interface changed.

〘Displaying Equipment Information...〙

〘Equipment Information〙

〘Name: Generation V: Synaptic Acceleration Spine〙

〘Type: Neural Augmentation〙

〘Grade: Gold Star Grade〙

〘Level: 1〙

〘Skill: None〙

〘Description:〙

〘A Generation V artificial spinal implant designed to accelerate neural signal transmission between the brain and body. The implant improves the speed and precision of physical responses by reducing the delay between neural commands and muscular movement.〙

〘Enhancement point balance: 999,999,999,999....〙

〘Would the player like to enhance?〙

[Yes] [No]

His smile widened.

"System, enhance it all the way to Divine Grade..."

Then the system responded.

〘Enhancement Request Detected.〙

〘Target Equipment: Generation V: Synaptic Acceleration Spine〙

〘Current Grade: Gold Star Grade〙

〘Target Grade: Divine Grade〙

〘Warning: Advancing equipment to Divine Grade will result in substantial changes to its properties and functionality.〙

〘Proceed with Enhancement?〙

[Yes] [No]

Arthur looked at the two options.

He didn’t hesitate.

"...Yes."

Arthur suddenly felt a strange buzzing sensation in his back.

It started around his spine.

Then it spread.

A strange energy surged through his entire body, traveling along his nerves like electricity.

Arthur’s muscles tensed.

For a brief moment, the sensation became so intense that his face went numb.

〘Master!〙

Genesis and Eclipsion were worried.

Arthur gritted his teeth.

Before he could respond, another wave of pain suddenly tore through his body.

"Urgh!"

His fingers dug into the sheets.

Then another wave came.

And another.

Each one felt as though something was being rewritten inside his body.

Arthur’s teeth clenched tightly.

"What the hell..."

Another surge hit him.

"Fuck!"

His entire body trembled.

"Why the hell does it hurt so much?!"

A particularly violent wave coursed through his spine.

"Fuuuuuck! Damn it... I might never enhance an implant again after this."

The pain continued.

Seconds passed.

Then minutes.

At least, that was what it felt like.

Arthur had completely lost track of time.

The sensation became so overwhelming that even breathing properly became difficult.

Then...

It stopped.

The pain vanished as suddenly as it had appeared.

Arthur collapsed backward onto the bed.

His entire body was drenched in sweat.

He breathed heavily, his chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Haa..."

He wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Haa... haa..."

For several seconds, Arthur simply lay there.

Then a familiar mechanical voice echoed through his mind.

〘Congratulations, Player.〙

〘Equipment Enhancement Complete.〙

〘Generation V: Synaptic Acceleration Spine has successfully evolved.〙

Arthur’s eyes widened.

The system continued.

〘New Equipment Name: Divine Synaptic Sovereign〙

〘Equipment Grade: Divine Grade〙

〘Equipment Level: 1〙

〘Enhancement Complete.〙

Arthur stared at the window.

Divine Grade.

The Synaptic Acceleration Spine had been completely enhanced.

Then another notification appeared.

〘Two new skills have been obtained from the equipment.〙

〘Passive Skill Acquired: Absolute Self-Puppetry EX〙

〘Description: As long as the player can accurately visualize an action that is physically possible, the player’s body will automatically execute the designated action according to the player’s intended timing and speed.〙

〘The player’s body will perform the designated action as quickly and precise as the player desires, not going beyond the body’s physical limits.〙

Arthur’s expression slowly changed.

His exhaustion disappeared.

He stared at the description.

"...So if I can visualize it..."

His eyes narrowed.

"...my body will do it."

Another system window appeared.

〘Active Skill Acquired: Overclocked EX〙

〘Description: Temporarily overrides the user’s physical limitations, allowing the player to perform feats that would normally exceed the body’s natural physical capabilities.〙

〘Usage Limit: 3 times per day〙

〘Remaining Uses: 3/3〙

Arthur remained silent.

Three times.

Every day.

He slowly sat upright.

A grin appeared across his face.

"...Now that’s an upgrade."

Arthur began wondering how exactly he should test his new passive skill.

He frantically looked around the room, considering his options.

He needed something simple.

Something that would allow him to test the limits of Absolute Self-Puppetry without immediately putting himself in unnecessary danger.

His eyes suddenly landed on the place where he had left his standard-issue blade.

Arthur stared at it for a moment.

Then he smiled.

He got up from the bed and walked over.

He picked up the blade and slowly examined it.

Eclipsion’s mechanical eye immediately turned toward him.

〘What are you planning to do with that?〙

Arthur looked at the blade.

Then at his own hand.

A slightly mischievous smile appeared on his face.

"I’m going to see if I can cut myself."

Eclipsion’s eye widened.

〘...What?!〙

Genesis immediately appeared beside him.

〘Master!〙

Her look in her eye was one of pure disbelief.

〘Isn’t that a little dangerous?!〙

Arthur calmly turned the blade in his hand.

"Calm down. I won’t actually cut myself. I just want to see if I can stop myself before I actually cut myself."

He pulled the blade from its sheath.

"If I have absolute control of my body, this should be a cakewalk."

Genesis stared at him.

Arthur smiled.

"Besides..."

He raised the blade slightly.

"I need to know exactly how much control this ability gives me."

Genesis’s expression became even more concerned.

〘Master, that is absolutely not a normal way to test an ability.〙

Arthur chuckled.

"Whatever gave you the impression I was normal?"

Arthur held the blade firmly in one hand, and stretched out the other.

He stared at it for a moment.

Then he looked at his arm.

Without another word, Arthur swung the blade with all his might.

〘MASTER!〙

Genesis and Eclipsion both panicked simultaneously.

The blade tore through the air, rapidly approaching Arthur’s arm.

But Arthur remained completely calm.

His eyes narrowed.

He began visualizing exactly what he wanted to happen.

The blade would stop.

Not an inch away.

Not half an inch.

A quarter of an inch away from his arm.

The distance was already fixed in his mind.

The blade continued moving.

Closer.

Closer.

Closer.

And then, in the final instant...

Stop.

The blade came to a complete halt.

It stopped exactly a quarter of an inch away from Arthur’s arm.

Not even the slightest movement remained.

Arthur froze.

His eyes widened.

He stared at the blade.

Then at his arm.

Then back at the blade.

He had done it.

He had actually done it.

Arthur slowly lowered the blade.

For several seconds, he said nothing.

Then...

His expression changed.

His eyes lit up.

A massive grin spread across his face.

"Ha..."

He raised his right hand and covered the upper half of his face.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Arthur suddenly burst into hysterical laughter.

"HAHAHAHAHA!"

He bent forward slightly, his shoulders shaking as he continued laughing.

Genesis stared at him in disbelief.

〘Master...?〙

Eclipsion’s mechanical eye tilted slightly.

〘...Is he mad?〙

Arthur couldn’t answer.

He was too busy laughing.

The sheer precision of what he had just accomplished was exhilarating.

His body had obeyed his visualization perfectly.

Not approximately.

Not mostly.

Perfectly.

He could control his movements down to an absurd degree.

And he had just proven it.

"HAHAHAHA!"

Arthur wiped a tear from the corner of his eye.

"This is fucking amazing..."

Just then, a voice suddenly came from the doorway.

"I knew you were a psycho, but I didn’t think it was this bad."

Arthur’s laughter immediately stopped.

He slowly turned his head.

Standing in the doorway was Kladirex.

His roommate stared at him with an expression of complete disbelief.

Arthur blinked.

"...Kladirex?"

For some reason, the boy was covered in blood.

Arthur’s eyes moved from Kladirex’s face...

To his clothes.

Then to his arms.

Then back to his face.

There was blood everywhere.

Arthur stared at him for a moment.

"...What happened to you?"