Not only would it be hard.
It was impossible to learn in a few days. Even with the help of Arcane Assimilation, there was no way I would manage to grasp the basics of such a spell.
It had been a few hours since I had witnessed it, and I was still in shock. Under Seraphina's guidance, I tried to learn the Mana Paths to use the spell, but it was simply too hard for someone like me who had just learned about magic a few days ago.
I needed more time and experience.
My overpowered skill wouldn't get me out of this situation this time around.
"Are you nervous?" Elena, who was lying down right beside me, asked.
The tournament would begin tomorrow, and while I was supposed to get some easy matchups to start with, I couldn't shake the fact that I was anxious. I would have to try my best to reach the Top 128, and that result would be catastrophic in the eyes of everyone who knew the role Jake was supposed to take inside the Academy.
"A little."
She ran her fingers through my hair and smiled in my direction. "Don't worry about it. I've watched just how strong you've become in a few days. You'll definitely manage to impress my father. You're one of the greatest talents of this generation. There's no doubt you will perform well."
I raised an eyebrow at how close Elena was acting.
She wasn't even under hypnosis, and she was behaving very intimately with me, even running her fingers through my hair.
It was clear that the memories the hypnotized Elena had created worked wonders. She was no longer suspicious of me, which was exactly what I wanted.
"Right… I guess we'll see tomorrow."
As we were both about to go to sleep, a weak knock echoed from the door.
It was late at night, and someone was knocking. There was definitely something strange happening here.
I stood up from the bed, motioned for Elena to be quiet and hide as I moved closer to the door, and heard a weak mutter.
"J-Jake… it's me. Aria, can you open up?"
I raised an eyebrow, recognizing the voice in an instant.
I opened the door and saw Aria standing before me. However, she wasn't in her usual maid uniform. She was wearing a nightgown that was a little long, but even then, her figure could not be well hidden. Looking at her in a different outfit was definitely different.
I was used to seeing her dressed like a doll, acting like the perfect maid. But right now, she didn't look like that at all.
Nevertheless, with Elena standing before me, I couldn't act as I pleased. I needed to stay serious, especially since it was the first time that Aria had come to visit me at night in the past week.
There was definitely something strange here.
"The King has asked to see you. He wants to have a chat with you before the tournament begins."
I immediately gulped, knowing very well that this moment would come whether I liked it or not. Seraphina had probably given the King a quick summary of the training they had done together. I could only hope that she hadn't said anything that could get me in trouble.
"I-I see…" I weakly muttered as I put on some better-looking clothes and headed out while Elena watched from afar, clearly worried about why her father would ask for me so late at night.
There was a chance that Seraphina had told the King that I was a fraud. I just hoped deep down that wasn't the case, especially since Seraphina had been amazed by my talents.
As I walked toward the King's room, I could feel my heart beating in my chest, hoping that nothing would go wrong.
Who knows? He might even reward me. The last time I had seen him, he had been quite nice. I could only hope that it would be the same this time around.
Within a few minutes, I arrived before his door, where two guards were posted in front. They quickly opened the door without even asking a question, as they clearly recognized me.
The King was seated on his throne as he watched me enter, his gaze locking onto me.
He wasn't laughing loudly like the last time I had seen him. He looked serious—extremely serious.
I walked closer and gave him a quick bow, greeting him as politely as possible.
"Do you know why I have called you here?" he asked, sounding extremely cryptic.
Obviously, I had thousands of thoughts going through my mind, but I took a deep breath and managed to stay calm as he scrutinized me.
"Um, did you want to talk about the tournament?"
He shook his head. "Seraphina already told me that she was confident in your victory. No need to talk about that. I wanted to talk about your relationship with my daughter."
My eyes widened, as this was the last subject I had expected.
"I've been told by many guards and maids that the two of you have grown quite close to one another, which is normal in the case of a typical marriage. But in this case, I want to tell you especially that you aren't allowed to have any kind of intimacy with my daughter."
I stayed neutral; however, my mind wasn't.
'A little too late to tell me that, aren't you?' I thought, as I had already begun to seduce her, even hypnotizing her.
It was only a matter of time before the two of us would actually become "married."
And to be honest, even as he said that to my face, I couldn't care less. As soon as we entered the Royal Academy, he wouldn't be able to know everything happening between Elena and me, which is where I will be sealing the deal.
"Of course, sir. I would never engage in an intimate relationship with her. I am simply her guard."
He smiled, looking extremely happy at my response.
"It's good that you know your position. To help you with the tournament and your future job inside the Academy, I have decided to let you choose a single item from the Royal Vault. One of the guards outside will guide you there."
My eyes widened. 'The Royal Vault?!'
I wasn't sure what would be inside, but based on the name, there had to be some more overpowered items in there.
I'd just have to make the right choice.