abcnovels
Chapter 205: Close Call
Chapter 205: Close Call
"AHHH."
"AHHH."
"AHHH."
The sound of heavy breathing echoed through the room, its source none other than a figure kneeling on the bare glassy ground, which was covered in hundreds of cracks, and filled with craters almost decimating the surface completely.
Long, deep gashes marked every inch of his body, and around him were various robotic parts, scattered across the floor.
Just a few meters to the side lay a robotic figure, its upper part reduced to nothing but a pile of mush, crackling with faint blue electricity.
It seemed the robot had been violently blown apart by a large amount of intense, raw energy, and Nolan remained on the ground, breathing uncontrollably, his dagger clutched tightly in his grasp.
He was injured, covered in blood and most of all incredibly exhausted.
Soon the AI voice rang out.
[The match has ended!]
[Congratulations to the user for defeating an opponent of strength figure Digit 3!]
[User's body is in critical condition. Training module will be disabled until the user finds a way to increase their stats.]
[Shutting down interface...]
The voice faded, and soon the lights in the room dimmed as the blue holographic interface in front of Nolan disappeared into thin air.
But he hardly paid attention to it.
All he could think about was the last move that had led to the robot's defeat, allowing him to win against an opponent with almost triple his own physical strength.
But it also came at its own significant risk.
[You almost got yourself blown apart.]
The system's golden notification panel appeared in front of Nolan, who forced himself to rise onto one knee.
Then, with much agony, he pushed himself upright, his hand gripping the wall at his side to steady himself.
[Majority of your bones are either cracked or close to it! You got too reckless!]
"Don't fret. They'll heal..." Nolan replied, his eyes drifting to the other side of the room where a smaller door was located.
He made his way forward.
When he arrived, he realized it was a bathroom, and immediately, he stepped inside, washing away the bloodstains that covered his entire body.
The cold water seemed to almost wash away the pain from his wounds, and soon Nolan exited, smelling less of blood and machine.
He quickly began putting on his clothes again, thankful he had taken them off before the fight.
He was pretty sure he would have ruined one of his uniforms otherwise.
Dressed, Nolan stood upright and moved outside.
It was already dark when he stepped into the night, and as he checked his runic device, he saw it was 9:45.
"Time moves pretty fast now," he muttered, raising an eyebrow.
Continue your adventure with M-V-L
He immediately started jogging toward his dorm room, soon turning into a phantom that vanished into the distance.
He still remembered Luna saying she would begin searching for him once it hit 10:00.
Though Nolan didn't know how serious she was, he didn't want to risk Luna coming outside, as being out at night, or to say with people worsened her health, capable of undoing his efforts over the past few days.
That was why he decided to speed up and reach his dorm room before it got too late.
When Nolan swiped his card on the glass door, the time displayed exactly 10:00, and he stepped inside.
As soon as he entered, he spotted someone coming out of the bedroom, wearing a long robe with a large hood.
"You're back!" Luna called out, but then she narrowed her eyes, scanning Nolan's body.
It was as if she could see right through him, gasping a little when she saw the various wounds on him.
"What happened? Did someone do this to you?" she asked, her tone filled with worry.
Nolan nodded. "Yes, someone did. The robot in the training room..." He replied, walking toward her.
"You git me worried. Go take a proper bath, you reek of metal and blood!" Luna said, wrinkling her nose in mock disgust.
With an embarrassed smile, Nolan rolled his eyes and disappeared into the bathroom.
A few minutes later, he emerged with a towel draped around his neck, now dressed in much lighter clothes for the night.
Sitting on the sofa with the TV on was Luna, watching her favorite show, and on the table lay an array of dishes.
Luna had already placed away her dark robes and was now in her night pajamas as Nolan quickly devoured the food prepared for him.
"You do know there's a possibility of dying in those robot training rooms, right?" Luna suddenly asked after Nolan finished his meal, her voice now hard and cold.
"I realized that today. But I also realized I can say 'stop' before that happens," he replied, and her eyes narrowed at his face before scanning his body again, still littered with scars.
"You went too far and you failed to think far."
"What would have happened if you'd been ambushed just after exiting the room? Right now, you have less than 20% of your true strength."
"You'd be nothing but a sitting duck for anyone wanting to harm you." She pressed, and Nolan had to admit she was right.
He might have gone too far today.
Though he had planned the training, he hadn't expected to injure himself this badly or end up with scars covering his body.
It had all happened when he got lost in the excitement of training.
If he had to face a two-star ascendant right after exiting the training room, he'd be in a dangerous situation, fighting with only 30% of his strength—something that wouldn't be enough against the immensely strong two-star ascendants.
"I'll be more careful next time," he said seriously, and Luna nodded in agreement.
Nolan rose from his seat and carried his dishes to the kitchen before heading to the bedroom.
The day will begin again at 7 and right now it was already past 11 and closing to 12.
He needed his rest to better prepare himself for tomorrow.