Before sleep had claimed him properly—before Melissa's arms had wrapped around him like a warm, perfumed straightjacket—Phei had done one last thing before falling asleep.

The fifteen Charm points.

He'd released them all. Every single one, dumped into his system like a kid shoving quarters into an arcade machine, not even bothering to check what they did because consciousness was a flickering candle and he was about three seconds from face-planting into oblivion.

Now, hours later, standing in the master bathroom at 2 AM with city lights painting everything in shades of blue and gold, Phei stared at his reflection and nearly didn't recognise himself.

"Who the fuck is that?"

The face staring back at him wasn't just better. It was handsome. Properly, unfairly handsome.

The kind that made guys like Danton—who'd spent his life being told he was God's gift to women, who strutted around Paradise collecting stares like loose change—look in the mirror and give themselves a reassuring little nod just to confirm they still had it.

This face? This face would make Danton's nod falter.

His features had sharpened overnight, the soft, forgettable planes carved into something striking. Jawline that could slice diamonds. Cheekbones high and defined, casting subtle shadows even in the low light.

Nose refined—elegant, aristocratic, like it belonged on marble statues of gods who fucked mortals for sport.

Weren't his charms supposed to be 100 to compete with guys like Danton? Was it because his charms were system influenced or something? He wasn't sure but that was a good thought that would explain the anomaly.

But the eyes.

The fucking eyes.

Still that impossible amethyst purple—but now deeper, richer, almost luminous. The irises sharper, ringed in a darker violet that caught the light like fractured gems. They didn't glow (he told himself that firmly), but they burned—with something ancient, something hungry, something that made his own reflection feel like a stranger wearing his skin.

Bloody hell.

****

His body arched as he turned away from the mirror, muscles still protesting from training, still sore in that deep, satisfying way that whispered growth. He padded back to the bedroom, bare feet silent on the heated floors.

Melissa wasn't there. The sheets on her side were rumpled, still warm, carrying her scent—expensive perfume and warm, aroused woman. He could hear soft clinking from the kitchen: cabinets opening, the hum of the refrigerator, the quiet domestic sounds of someone making food at an hour that mocked normal people.

She was making him food. At 2 AM. Because neither of them had eaten—her too busy panicking over his silence, him too busy being unconscious.

His stomach growled like a chained beast.

When had he last eaten? Before the gym? That felt like another lifetime.

Phei sat on the edge of the massive bed, closed his eyes, and pulled up his status.

[STATUS]

[NAME: Phei Maxton

AGE: 17

TITLE: Awakened Dragon (Newborn)

[RESOURCES]

POINTS: 847

EXP: 485

[ABILITIES: Charm Speech Lv.3 — 20% persuasion on all targets, 60% on aroused targets, 5% on hostile targets. Passive, always active.

Dominance Aura Lv.2 — Submissive women feel stronger draconic authority and mild physical arousal. Weak-willed men experience fear and will actively avoid you. Passive, always active.

Taboo Multiplier Lv.1 — +20% success on taboo actions. Cucklord's Dominance Lv.1 — Married/taken women feel 25% more attracted. Partners of marked women experience inferiority complex.

Cool Aura— Passive.

[PENDING REWARDS: BASKETBALL SKILLS: 60% LEGENDARY GRADE

Awaiting Transfer]

Legendary grade.

He stared at the line for a long moment.

Sixty percent of legendary basketball skills.

Not some amateur hour download. Not college level. Legendary. The talent that made scouts weep and NBA contracts appear like magic.

And he hadn't even claimed it yet.

The numbers hadn't advanced that high. Not dramatically. But the strength was there—this new vigour thrumming through him like electricity waiting to discharge.

Phei flexed his hand, watching tendons shift beneath skin that looked healthier than it had any right to.

He'd reached a conclusion over the past few hours, something that crystallised more with each training session: his body grew faster than normal bodies.

Way faster.

Maybe because of the system.

Maybe because of something else—

Usually, you didn't see or feel instant changes after just one day of exercise. That wasn't how muscle development worked. The soreness, the breakdown, the rebuild—it took time. Days. Weeks. Months for real transformation.

But his body was developing at a pace that should've been impossible. He felt it with each reward, each stat boost, each morning he woke up slightly different than the night before.

This motivated him even more.

Who knew how long this explosive rise would last? He better use it while it was still happening. Better push himself so hard that by the time that acceleration stopped—if it ever does—he'd already be a monster.

His gaze drifted to the ability list.

Intelligence and Perception were unmoving. Those required different kinds of work, apparently. But the Points kept climbing since he wasn't spending any as he had to finish the main quest to unlock the shop, as for his EXP... had increased enough that he could level up a few abilities now.

Charm Speech and Dominance Aura were the only ones that could grow through EXP. The rest—Taboo Multiplier, Cucklord's Dominance—needed conquests. Needed him to break more taboos, cuck more men.

Cool Aura though... didn't need his input to rise, just like Daddy's. It grew on its own, fed by something he didn't fully understand yet.

Charm Speech was working just fine at Level 3. The 20% base persuasion handled his daily interactions beautifully, and the 60% on aroused targets? He hadn't even needed to push hard with anyone.

The words just... landed. Found their mark. Made people listen.

But Dominance Aura...

Dominance Aura was the bottleneck.

Given his current situation—the Academy, the basketball team, Brett and his crew of dickheads—he didn't need Charm Speech as much as he needed Dominance Aura. At this level, Charm Speech was effective. Working. Doing its job just fine.

But Dominance Aura? Not quite there where he wanted yet.

And with his next path clear—becoming the ace of the basketball team, taking what Brett had, standing at the top of Ashford Elite Academy's social hierarchy—he needed that aura cranked up to eleven.

Although he wanted girls, Charm Speech wasn't an instant ability that guaranteed women unless they were already in a horny situation. With the current level, the 20% persuasion worked just fine for regular interactions.

Right now, it was Dominance Aura's time to shine. Time to level it up until the mere act of walking into a room made lesser men's balls shrivel.

But not now. Not this second.

First, there was something else to handle.

"System," Phei said quietly, keeping his voice low. "The 60% basketball skills. Explain."

[DING!]

[SKILL REWARD: BASKETBALL — 60% LEGENDARY GRADE]

[NOTE: Host utilized intelligence and strategic thinking, leveraging psychological advantage over opponent. Although the confrontation was not a "fair" duel in the traditional sense, Host demonstrated understanding of a crucial life lesson:

"Life isn't fair, Phei. The sooner you learn that, the better equipped you'll be." —Harold Maxton

Host weaponized this lesson to win 'fair' and square. Used available leverage to secure victory and establish dominance. Made opponent submissive to Host's demands.

[ORIGINAL REWARD TIER: ELITE

ADJUSTED REWARD TIER: LEGENDARY

Performance exceeded expectations. Reward upgraded from Elite to Legendary, skipping World-Class tier entirely]

Phei stared at the window, a slow, predatory grin spreading across his newly sharpened face.

Harold's own words, turned into a weapon against his legacy.

Poetic.

The old man had spent years drilling that lesson into him—usually while reminding Phei how unfair it was that he even existed in the Maxton orbit.

Now the system had taken Harold's philosophy, handed it back to Phei on a silver platter, and upgraded the reward because he'd excelled at being unfair.

Life isn't fair.

And today, it was finally unfair in my favor.

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