The rest of the guys in the gym couldn’t help but stop what they were doing when they saw Patty’s unbelievable feat of strength. They were the kind of people who believed that peak physical strength could only be achieved by a body chiseled like a Greek God. However, Patty wasn’t anything like that. He didn’t even have any muscles to show at all.

If Patty was able to do that without having chiseled abs, mountainous biceps, or a rocky back, then what were they even doing with their lives? They wanted to know what kind of training Patty was doing, and what routine had led him to become this strong. They also wanted to know what kind of Teqx he had, and how he was able to train it to the point that they couldn’t even see it activate at all.

They started to crowd Patty, asking him all sorts of questions as if he was some sort of idol.

“Dude! How did you do that?”

“I wish I was as strong as you! Can you teach me how to do that?”

“What Teqx do you have? Is it C-class? No, B-class…maybe even A-class?!?!”

Of course, Patty’s only response to them was a simple, “I was just lazy.”

They didn’t believe Patty at all and simply thought he was joking. After all, in their perception of the world, you can’t get stronger without working hard, especially in the Power Route. This route was very physically demanding and needed you to move your body to conquer mountains, needed you to sweat oceans while meditating, or lift weights until you could lift the entire world itself. There was no way that you could become strong by staying at home all the time–they believed.

Beatrice, on the other hand, was frustrated beyond belief. The only reason she even went below her class and went into this public gym was for Patty to get humiliated and taught a lesson on true strength, but the very opposite happened! She looked at the alpha guy named Chad, who was still on his knees and looking up at the leaderboard as if he was waiting to wake up from this bad dream. He was devastated.

At this point, there was no denying it. Patty was strong. He was very powerful beyond belief, something that couldn’t even be explained by her knowledge. All the conventions that her family and the world taught her were thrown out the moment that she met Patty. He seemed to actively go against reality itself and was somehow able to become powerful without all the prerequisites. He was a nobody. He wasn’t an inheritor. He wasn’t talented and he wasn’t hardworking. In all accounts, he should be at the very bottom of the power ladder. But as he showed, he wasn’t.

There was one thing for sure, Beatrice thought. Patty must have a B-class Power Teqx with a majority Earth Aura at the very least. His Teqx must only have an Earth Aura, which can explain why he was able to have mastery over it in such a short time. It still didn’t make sense that it could be done in a year, but that was the least irrational explanation for Patty’s existence.

She had to admit. Patty was strong. However, that didn’t mean that he and Xandra were going on a date. She knew her childhood friend as someone who was an independent woman who didn’t date someone because they were strong. She still had a lingering suspicion that this was just a simple ruse between Patty and Xandra. They weren’t dating.

But as soon as she thought that, Xandra suddenly moved through the crowd of sweaty guys surrounding Patty. Her mere presence made the guys step back to try and appreciate the fullness of her beauty. Even though they were very close to her, they couldn’t get the courage to talk or touch her. There was this regal aura around her that put her on a pedestal above others. She had the beauty of a goddess and no mere mortal was deserving of this.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Unfortunately for them, Xandra walked over to Patty and congratulated him personally. “That’s my man!” she exclaimed as she leaned in towards him and gave him a peck on the cheek.

“Woah…”

“Damn….”

“Lucky….”

All the guys were envious of Patty, but they knew they couldn’t complain because Patty showed them that he was a person strong enough to break through the top 20. The alpha guy named Chad saw this and felt even more embarrassed. Not only did Patty steal his spot on the leaderboard, he also stole the woman of his dreams. This was a loss that broke his very manly psyche. He was utterly destroyed. There was nothing left here for him, so he trudged out the door and left the Training Hall.

Beatrice, on the other hand, was slack-jawed. The act of kissing was a line that shouldn’t ever be crossed, especially for inheritor women like them. This was a black mark on their record that cannot be erased. Most of the other bachelor inheritors would quickly retract their offers of engagement when they hear about Xandra kissing another boy.

If Beatrice knew this, then so should Xandra. She should have been very careful in letting a boy kiss her and only reserved that for her future man. She knew what people would think of her, yet she still went through with it. Were Xandra and Patty truly dating? She couldn’t believe it.

Even still, the damage was done. Even if Xandra and Patty were just pretending, she still went over the line and crossed it the moment she kissed Patty. This won't go well, especially with the Matriarch of her family…

Beatrice stomped out of the building because she couldn’t bear seeing Xandra act like this. Was she so lovesick towards Patty that she was willing to jeopardize her whole future?! She went home mad at herself, at Xandra, and at Patty.

Xandra looked at Patty and gave him a sincere thanks. “She finally believes it. We finally tricked them!”

Patty looked at her and had to admit that she was one gutsy girl. She was even willing to kiss a guy like him just so that she could get out of some ball that she had to go to. That was respectable. As someone who hated going to events, he knew her pain well.

“Well, you helped me too. If you didn’t you didn’t…you know…” Patty said as he pointed at his cheeks.

She smiled at him. “Don't put yourself down, mister. You did well with the Seize the Flag game. That was mighty impressive and could make a girl swoon.”

Patty shrugged. He didn't think it was all that impressive. That was literally the least he could do. He also didn’t understand how breaking through the leaderboards of a very simple game could make a girl swoon. Yes, Xandra was being all smiley and looking at him with those eyes, but wasn’t she just doing that to trick Beatrice into believing that they were going on a date?

“Can I confess something to you?”

“Huh?”

“It’s…it’s about my Teqx.”

“Oh.”

“I have very special eyes that allow me to see what or who could help me in the future. The moment I laid my special eyes on you, I saw that you were glowing with a bright golden aura, meaning that you were the one who’d help me get out of the ball. But I also saw a black outline on you, meaning that you’ll probably refuse to help me.”

Patty knew that since he already copied her Teqx.

“But then, I saw your friend pick up this black paper from the ground, and I immediately saw that it was also glowing a golden aura. It had an intangible connection with you, meaning that it was the thing that I needed to convince you to help me. So, I quickly snatched it up and thought of the ‘dating’ ruse to trick Beatrice.”

Now he knew why Xandra suddenly stole the Do-Everything Coupon from Sam and used it to force Patty into going with her on the lie. She shouldn't have known how it worked, but now that she explained it, everything made sense.

“What was that ticket?” Xandra asked.

Patty shrugged yet again. “It’s nothing.”

Xandra nodded and didn’t ask any further. She didn’t want to intrude on his privacy. “Well, thanks again for all your help. As for our agreement, I will recommend someone to you and he’ll buy up your high-quality Kores.”

Patty perked up when he heard that. He could finally sell off his Kores and become rich! This was what he had been waiting for all morning! It was the reason he wasn’t so bothered with the mission at all, even though it had the threat of death looming over him.

“Thanks!” Patty gave her a thumbs up.

“Hehehe,” Xandra chuckled. “You’re one funny guy, Patty.”

Patty didn’t understand what she said. After all, he didn’t say any kind of joke. And just as he looked up, he suddenly saw Xandra leaning over to him and gave him another kiss on the cheeks! This time, her lips were a lot closer to his, just barely about to make contact.

“We’ll meet again,” she whispered to him. Then, she walked away without waiting for any response, her smell still lingering around him.

Patty couldn’t understand what was going on in Xandra’s mind. Beatrice was already long gone, so she didn’t have to pretend to kiss him. Who was she trying to fool this time? He sighed. He would never know how women’s minds worked at all, and he was too lazy to find out.

Sam arrived from the elevator and walked up to Patty. He looked for Beatrice and Xandra, but they were already long gone. Not only that, there were a lot of guys trying to talk and engage with Patty as if he were some sort of active social guy.

“What happened?” Sam wanted to know how Patty became this popular.

Patty shrugged. “I literally don’t know.”