"Do you want to buy her so jewelry?" Max asked, glancing at the ring on Adam's finger.
He didn't need to be a mind reader to understand who Adam was talking about and why he wanted to do it. All it took was deduction, logic, and a little mature experience.
Adam nodded, realizing it was impossible to hide anything from Max, but not that it was his goal.
"Yes, Silvana did so many things for , but in all that ti I only gave her a few bags of coffee. It was a success, but I want her to have sothing that will always remind her of ."
Max smiled slightly, letting a puff of smoke out of his mouth.
"Hah, I see you're looking at rings, but that would be a bad idea, I'd even say that gift would ruin everything."
Adam turned his head sharply towards Max, there was a glint of anxiety in his eyes.
Max shrugged his shoulders.
"Osana gave you a ring, and then you're going to give so kind of ring to Silvana? Co on, that wouldn't just show you have no imagination, it would be insulting."
Adam frowned. He realized Max was right.
"The bracelet, how about the bracelet?" Adam asked when he had an idea.
Max nodded deeply.
"That's better, much better. But, don't pick sothing flashy, with a handful of gemstones or made of three different tals. Silvana isn't the kind of woman who would like sothing like that, that's obvious."
Adam leaned against the wall with a pensive look.
'Yeah... Max is right. A bracelet like that wouldn't suit Silvana, not with her appearance, not with her clothes, not with her personality.'
Crackle.
The elevator doors opened as Max stepped outside. He wanted to take a walk before the start of training.
"Oh, don't forget to order cigarettes. You owe quite a bit, you rember?" Max said with a wave of his hand.
Adam nodded.
"Sure, don't worry, you won't be disappointed. After all, I haven't won once yet."
Max smirked.
"Well, it's not my fault."
Adam took a few steps forward and stopped in the middle of the hallway, picking out a suitable gift for Silvana.
'Hmm... It should be sothing simple, yet interesting. It should also show that I really tried and did not just pick the first bracelet I saw.
After a few minutes, Adam realized what might fit his requirents.
After spending so ti searching with the AI-helper, Adam was able to quickly find an online store that sold unique custom-made bracelets.
They looked simple, but at the sa ti were complex constructions consisting of many parts attached to the fra.
In fact, such bracelets were practically a constructor. There was no functionality in them as there was no technology, just quality tal and a well-thought-out design that looked calm and stylish.
And... most importantly.
Oddly enough, the most expensive bracelets from this company were sold as parts. Sure, it doesn't need to be a master to gather them, as the jewelers and engineers made sure that it wasn't difficult, but it would still take so effort.
The advantage of this option was that all parts fit together in any position, which ans that each assembled bracelet was truly unique and no one else could have anything similar.
"Damn... The price is a little intimidating.... 125 thousand for a bracelet?" Adam scratched the back of his head, but when Silvana's silhouette appeared in his mind he realized that he needed to get rid of those thoughts as soon as possible.
"Well, if I was having money problems I might have to consider a more budget-friendly option, but now I can just get what I want, can't I?"
Tap.
Adam tapped the screen, and within minutes his order was placed.
Then it was ti to go back to his room, where a delicious breakfast prepared by Silvana was waiting for him.
...
'Hmm? Is it just , or are his eyes glittering like he's up to sothing?' Silvana pondered watching Adam, who was eating with great appetite whatever she cooked.
Then, Silvana shook her head.
'Never mind, that's not what I should be thinking about right now. Adam's training continues, but I shouldn't fall behind either. Riska...'
Silvana internally muttered as her eyes grew deeper.
'She's the Operator of the K3-Phantom, so I'd rather learn sothing from her than waste ti going through advanced courses in the Fort Norton.'
Silvana nodded, deciding on her plans.
...
The next two weeks continued at a similar pace.
He was constantly fighting against Max and training with heavy weights. Tron would make him train until he was exhausted, then Adam would eat a lot and eat good food and be full of energy again.
Training wasn't as interesting as fighting on the brink of death in the Dead Lands, but for Adam, it was the best way to get stronger, at least for the mont.
His Energy Control was getting better and better, it was still far from perfect, but the results were obvious.
The sa was true for the battles against Max.
Unfortunately, Adam was still losing, Max's mastery was too high and was still out of Adam's reach, but he was making significant progress here too.
Ten days later, Max fought with all seriousness and ferocity in each of their battles. Otherwise, he would have lost, so he was giving his best.
Also, the duration of their fights beca longer and longer as Adam learned to block attacks, get out of grapples, and react to Max's slick moves.
So, while on the first day of training, Adam had lost more than 30 tis, on the fifteenth day he had lost only 7 tis.
Sure, it was still only losses, and Max already had a mountain of cigarettes that not even he had ti to smoke, but it was obvious that Adam was progressing, and quite quickly.
If the current Adam and the Adam of two weeks ago t in a fight, their battle would be over in a matter of seconds.
Thanks to the Energy Control, Adam had increased his pure power, and his improved mastery made him a more dangerous foe.
But... the Plague Reaper's mastery was still far ahead of Adam's.
It was an opponent he could barely hold on to for a few minutes, using all his abilities and being under three amplifications at once.
However, the gap was closing, and Adam felt that soon he might be able to defeat Max for the first ti.
Then, it was the first day in two weeks when sothing changed in Adam's training.
"Hmm? I'm not fighting anyone today?" Adam tilted his head in confusion.
Tron shook his head, throwing on his long black coat. He wasn't dressed in a tracksuit today, but more formally.
So was Max, who was getting ready to go out beside him.
"No, Max and I have so things to do today. It is nothing related, it just coincided on the sa day, but I knew about it beforehand, so you won't be bored. On the contrary, I'm sure it will be the most useful and informative day for you."
"Agh...?" Adam raised an eyebrow in confusion.
Tron smirked as he waved his hand, pointing to Riska, Silvana, and Dahla who were sitting in a room in the training hall.
"They'll explain everything to you."
Then, Tron turned to Max and looked at his NEP.
"Max, let's go, the car should be waiting for us by now."
"Sure, boss." Max shrugged and pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, brand new with a shiny wrapper.
Crackle.
The door closed, and Adam slowly turned around.
Now it was just him, Riska, Silvana and Dahla.
Dahla had a serious face as always, Riska had a kind smile, and Silvana was focused.
Being slightly stumped, Adam slowly approached them and sat down at the table.
He put his hands together and asked:
"So... Is soone going to explain to what's going on here?"
Dahla nodded.
"Yeah, the ti has co for you to learn more about K2-Level. I'm sure Silvana has already explained to you that between each level the difference gets bigger, and it takes more and more ti to reach the next level."
Adam shrugged as he spread his arms out to the sides.
"Yeah, sure. Also, I heard that K2-Level is sothing different from K0 and K1, right? I an, it's supposed to be even harder and even longer, but sooner or later Phantom reaches K3-Level." Find more to read at empire
Dahla smirked as her intense gaze headed towards Adam.
"Well, you're wrong. The point is, if you proceed with caution, take your ti, and choose your squads carefully, every Phantom has a possibility of reaching K2-Level."
She continued.
"Sure, in practice it doesn't work out for everyone, so die, and so just give up, but it is possible. However, for many, it's the end of the road."
Adam blinked a few tis as his eyes went wide.
Dahla leaned back in her chair as she narrowed her eyes.
"Ti, caution, and luck will in no way help you reach K3-Level. Many Phantoms stay at K2-Level forever."
Adam gulped. He realized that after K2-Level, things were getting really tough.
She waved her hand.
"As you realize, it's not about sothing trivial like genes, essences, or artifacts. All of those can be found without difficulty, and it's not like you'll have any strong need for that type of resource. And... it's not even about sothing rarer like the Midnight Crystal."
Dahla leaned forward and stared at Adam with a serious look.
"Adam, it's all about the Two Walls."
Adam was puzzled.
"The Two Walls?"
Dahla nodded slowly.
"Yeah, you'll have to go through them if you ever want to create the Second Key and make it to K3, but it won't be easy at all."
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