Chapter 229: Kelly Is Special

While the rest of the world was descending into absolute chaos, the members of the Aetheldawn household were safely nested inside the tranquil sanctuary of the Cultivation Tower, casually watching the carnage unfold from the safety of their dining table.

?"This is genuinely fascinating," Juliana murmured cheerfully, popping a handful of buttered popcorn into her mouth while staring intently at the live feed streaming across the screen of Asher’s laptop.

?"What a brilliant idea, Husband, outfitting Viper with a reconnaissance drone so we can observe the entire battlefield in real-time! It’s utterly mesmerizing." She added, her eyes reflecting the glowing combat feeds.

?Asher simply offered a warm, steady nod, gently setting a steaming, beautifully plated dish onto the polished wooden table before her. He had formally relocated the household’s dining room directly into the spatial bounds of the Cultivation Tower; not only that, but he had personally prepared a lavish, elaborate breakfast for everyone to enjoy amid the tension outside.

?The laptop sat squarely at the dead center of the table, broadcasting the high-definition aerial footage captured by the spirit drone Viper was currently piloting over the city.

?’That single specialized drone cost a literal fortune in market value... Thank the heavens I managed to acquire it through my operations in No Man’s Land.’ He thought to himself, carefully placing Sara’s plate of breakfast down at her designated spot.

?Sara lowered her dark, contemplative gaze to the meal before her—a meticulously prepared plate of perfectly toasted artisanal avocado toast crowned with fluffy, scrambled eggs, and fruits:

?"Thank you."

?She offered him a polite nod, gently setting her book down on the edge of the table before picking up her silver spoon and knife with quiet grace.

?"Whoa! Hold on, something major is shifting out there!! Everyone is frantically streaming toward the North Gate!" Juliana suddenly shouted, her eyes widening as she pointed a butter-stained finger at the screen.

?"We can already monitor the general situation through the audio feeds, but Julia, perhaps you should set that popcorn aside and focus on eating a proper meal," Asher suggested gently, pulling out his own chair to take a seat.

?Juliana looked up from the screen, glancing down at her bowl of popcorn, then back toward the steaming plate of breakfast resting on her table:

?"I am fully capable of multitasking." She declared brightly, instantly snatching up a piece of her avocado toast and taking a massive bite while keeping her eyes glued to the unfolding war on the laptop.

?Asher could only chuckle softly at her unflagging enthusiasm, turning his attention toward Sara, who was entirely ignoring their banter, quietly eating her breakfast.

?"Kelly should be finishing up her intensive trial by now." Asher muttered, looking over his shoulder toward the heavy, rune-carved door situated some distance away down the corridor.

?"Do you genuinely believe this reckless training was wise?" Juliana asked, tilting her head as she glanced back and forth between Asher and the closed door.

?"Kelly chose this path... It was entirely her own decision." Asher answered firmly, taking a measured bite from his toast. He let out a soft, contemplative sigh, staring down at his plate:

?"She has effectively been locked inside that accelerated time-chamber for an entire month now, even though only seven short hours have bled away in the outside world... I honestly don’t think I would have possessed the psychological fortitude to endure such brutal conditions in the past."

?"Your summoned Knights... You consciously dialed down their combat strength to match her starting phase, didn’t you?" Juliana asked, narrowing her eyes at Asher with a flicker of residual worry.

?Sara momentarily paused her chewing, her fork hovering inches from her plate, though her ears remained locked onto every single word of their exchange.

?"I calibrated their strength downward when she first stepped into the ring, yes. But over the course of this month, those Knights have steadily unlocked their most devastating abilities, occasionally even using some of my own skills... Rest assured, they operate without any genuine murderous intent! Though... I suppose I cannot offer absolute guarantees against severe physical injuries or bone fractures." Asher explained smoothly, washing down his bite with a sip of water.

?"Wait!! Didn’t you state that your summoned Knights currently operate at the true Ex-Rank ?! Are you telling me Kelly has been surviving and fighting against Ex-Rank combatants while she herself is only A-Rank—and she has sustained that high-intensity battle for an entire month straight?!" Juliana shrieked, dropping the popcorn in absolute shock.

?"She explicitly begged for the challenge... Every single one of my Knights has climbed into the Ex-Rank bracket---"

?{System Alert: 100 Knights have been thoroughly annihilated.}

?Asher abruptly stopped talking. His eyes snapped toward the floating golden system notification, a sharp, troubled frown carving itself across his features:

?’From the start of this grueling training, Kelly has never managed to permanently destroy a single Guardian Knight... So how did she suddenly obliterate a full hundred of them in a single breath?’

?{System Alert: 500 Guardian Knights have been thoroughly annihilated.}

?Asher surged to his feet in sheer, unadulterated astonishment. The situation had officially spiraled past controlled training parameters into catastrophic territory.

?"What on earth just happened?!" Juliana yelled, the panic in her voice completely overriding her interest in the laptop or her breakfast.

?"Kelly... She just wiped out six hundred of my Knights in less than a second."

?"Six hundred?! Isn’t she fighting a thousand?!!" Juliana leaped out of her chair, turning desperately toward the quiet Sara:

?"Elder Sister Sara!! Is there any known physical mechanism or secret art in existence that allows someone below the SSS-Rank to kill an entity standing at the Ex-Rank?!!" She pleaded, practically shouting her question at Sara.

?’Ex-Rank beings are vastly superior to ordinary Humans, but they are by no means immortal gods... The sole thing capable of killing them are Mythic-Tier equipments, or...’

?"Or what?! Stop keeping us dangling in suspense!!" Juliana screamed, frantically relaying Sara’s half-spoken thoughts across the table to Asher, who was already striding toward the training room door.

?’Unless an individual has managed to infuse a weapon or artifact with pure, unadulterated blood harvested directly from a genuine god... The ancient historical scrolls I studied back in the academy detailed such a possibility, though the world dismissed it as a myth.’ Sara calmly swallowed a bite of her toast:

?’Where on earth could any Human possibly locate a true god’s blood, let alone successfully integrate it into their personal weapon without triggering a catastrophic soul rejection? Even if an individual miraculously accomplished that feat, a living Ex-Rank would never passively stand in one spot and allow you to stab them... But Kelly possesses an entirely different foundation.’

?"How is her foundation different?!"

?Both Asher and Juliana shouted in unison, their eyes locked desperately on Sara as they awaited her definitive explanation.

?"Kelly currently harbors a precious thing deep within her spiritual core... Which is..."