Leveling Up by Seducing Milfs-Chapter 49. Bonds of Steel and Spirit

Rick woke up in his room, his body covered in bandages and glowing with a soft golden light. Sylvia sat next to his bed and moved her hands in complicated patterns while dragon magic healed his wounds and knit his bones back together.

"Urgh..." Rick croaked, "That was embarrassing."

"That was needed," Sylvia said. "Rick, you’re not a dragon."

"You will never be able to beat them in a physical fight, but the trial isn’t about who wins fights. It’s about showing that you can get through it and that you have the will to get back up no matter how many times you fall."

The magic of healing was effective. Rick could feel his broken bones healing and his torn muscles coming back together, but even though the physical damage healed, the pain stayed with him like a phantom pain, reminding him of every blow he’d taken. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

"This is what you’ll have to deal with for the next six days," Sylvia said in a low voice. "Every day will be different, but the violence will always be the same."

"My people need to know that you can live in our world and that you won’t break when faced with a lot of power."

Rick said, "I don’t know if I can do this six more times."

"Then you’ll fail and have to go home." Her amber eyes met his. "I won’t judge you for it, Rick."

"This trial has broken people who are stronger than you, but if you want to keep going, I’ll heal you every night. You will face each new day with a whole body, even if your spirit is broken."

Rick thought about Carmilla and Natasha and how worried they were, even though he was far away. He thought about Liora and how much she believed in him. He thought about the world that would end in six months if he didn’t bring the Seven Powers together.

"I’ll keep going," he said.

Sylvia smiles hearing that. "I thought you might.... Take a break now."

"Drakor has asked to be your opponent on Day Two, which is tomorrow."

Rick groaned. Drakor would definitely want a turn.

"And if you really manage to survive this trial, I’ll give you something in return." Sylvia touched Rick’s lips, which made him blush.

"Y-Yes...!" Rick knows exactly what she meant.

...

Day Two was worse than Day One.

Drakor didn’t just want to beat Rick. He wanted to make Rick look bad to show that he didn’t deserve Sylvia’s attention. The warrior with red scales was faster and stronger than Korvan, and he fought with a viciousness that went beyond what was needed for the trial.

Drakor yelled, "This is what you get for thinking you could court a queen!" as he slammed Rick into the wall of the arena hard enough to break the stone. "You’re just a weak little person pretending to be a hero!"

Rick spat blood and tried to get his balance, but Drakor wouldn’t let up. Drakor would pull Rick back up every time he fell, only to knock him down again. The crowd loved it, and their cheers got louder and louder every time Rick fell.

By noon, Rick’s left arm was definitely broken. He was pretty sure he had internal bleeding by the afternoon. By night, the swelling around his eyes made it hard for him to see.

But he didn’t stay down. Rick made himself get back up every time Drakor thought it was over.

He couldn’t win and couldn’t even land meaningful hits, but he could stand. He could handle it. He could say no to quitting.

Drakor stood over Rick’s crumpled body when the sun went down, looking both frustrated and grudgingly respectful. "Heh..."

The dragon said, "You should have stayed down. It would have made it hurt less."

Rick managed to say, "Fuck you," through his split lips.

Drakor really did laugh. "Maybe you do have some spine after all, mortal."

...

On the third day, Rhyssa, the dragon with silver hair and ice-blue eyes, came. She was faster than the last two, and her fighting style was based on precise strikes instead of overwhelming power. This made her less effective in certain aspects.

Korvan and Drakor had been cruel, but their attacks were clear. Rhyssa danced around Rick as if he were standing still, hitting him in every weak spot and every gap in his defense.

"You keep giving away your moves," she said in a cold voice as she swept his legs and sent him crashing to the ground for the hundredth time. "Your form is terrible. Your footwork is funny. How did you ever make it through real combat?"

Rick tried to answer, but she kicked him in the ribs before he could say anything. Rick noticed that his hands wouldn’t stop shaking that night when Sylvia healed him again. The pain was always there, and even after the magical healing, his body still felt wrong, like it was remembering all the damage it had done.

Sylvia said softly, "I can see it in your eyes... You’re starting to break."

Rick said, "I’m not quitting," even though his voice broke.

"I understand... That’s what makes me nervous." She put her hand on his chest, and he felt warmth spread through him. "Rick, pride can be a source of strength, but it can also be a trap. It’s okay to say when you’ve had enough."

"If I say that now, everyone will die in six months."

That didn’t get a response from Sylvia.

...

He almost died on Day Four.

His opponent was Theron, an older dragon who had fought in many battles and had scars on his humanoid form that even dragon healing couldn’t completely get rid of. Theron didn’t waste energy on taunts or showmanship like the younger warriors did.

He just tore Rick apart with cold, clinical efficiency. Rick’s body finally gave out in the middle of the day.

He fell to his knees and couldn’t get up or even lift his arms to protect himself. The crowd in the arena was quiet, waiting for him to stop.

Rick was on his knees, blood dripping from many wounds, and he was breathing heavily. Everything hurt. His body yelled at him to stay down, give up, and end this pain.

Then he felt it. A pulse through the Spirit Bond that was weak but clear.

Carmilla’s steady warmth wrapped around his broken spirit like a protective hug. And next to it, Natasha’s sharp clarity, which cut through the fog of pain and tiredness.

They couldn’t be here in person, but they were sending him everything they had. Their power. Their willpower. They resolutely refused to let him fall.

Rick’s hands were on the stone that was covered in blood. His arms shook from the effort, but slowly, and against all odds, he got back up.

The arena went crazy. Some people cheered, some jeered, but everyone yelled. Rick had been down for a whole minute, and no one thought he would get up again.

"Now that’s impressive for a mere mortal like you," Theron said, sounding genuinely surprised. "Your body should have let you down by now... What keeps you standing?

Rick wiped the blood from his eyes. "Milfs... who... trust... me!"

He didn’t last very long. Theron ended the fight a few minutes later with a blow that knocked Rick out cold, which was a good thing, but he had gotten back up when he shouldn’t have been able to. The dragons had seen it.

...

Rick could feel the difference that night as Sylvia worked her magic to heal him. His body was getting better, but something deeper had changed.

Stretched thin over a vast distance, the Spirit Bonds had transformed into more than mere emotions. They were actively supporting him, giving him strength he shouldn’t have had.

"Your bonds are amazing," Sylvia said. "I’ve never seen anything like them before..."

"They’re making up for your physical problems by giving you strength that goes beyond what most people can do."