Chapter 31: I’m not your Kid

[Daily Quest Protocol Initialized!]

[Run 5km]

[Do 100 Push-ups]

[More will be added in due time...]

Raphael read the new text on the system screen and released a small smile. Things were going better than he expected. He knew he would’ve regretted not truly accepting that he was a Sovereign.

The mana flowing within him was so pure that he used the veil as easily as breathing. He didn’t even feel like he’d used it. It had just happened. It shifted across his skin as naturally as breathing, an automatic, micro-thin layer of reinforcement that enhanced his movement while consuming virtually zero stamina. What had taken Vanessa decades of rigorous discipline to master had aligned with his vessel in a matter of days, all thanks to the total synchronization of his core.

Tucking his hands casually into the pockets of his dark grey tracksuit, Raphael stepped out of the residential complex’s side exit and into the crisp morning air. High above on the fourth floor, the faint sounds of raised voices and hurried footsteps echoed through the open windows.

He knew the junior official was likely undergoing a fierce interrogation by security personnel, but the thought didn’t register as a concern. The opinions and panic of the Bureau were no longer variables he felt compelled to manage.

"Busy bodies..." he muttered softly, his deep, resonant voice lost to the morning breeze.

He set off at an even, rhythmic pace, keeping his posture relaxed as he navigated the paved perimeter paths surrounding the Bureau’s tactical facility. He knew surveillance cameras were tracking his path, and he could feel the faint, distant mana signatures of concealed observers positioned along the rooftops. They were watching him, analyzing his stride, measuring his speed, and trying to comprehend the sudden, impossible leap in his physical presence.

He let them watch.

After completing a wide 5-kilometer loop around the training grounds without a single drop of sweat breaking across his brow, Raphael stopped at a quiet, open plaza near the center of the residential courtyard. Civilian staff and lower-ranking operatives were already milling about, grabbing morning coffee or heading to early briefings.

Without paying the surrounding crowd the slightest bit of attention, Raphael dropped into a firm plank position on the paved ground and began his push-ups.

One, two, three, four...

His form was textbook, his movement impossibly smooth and explosive. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

The micro-thin layer of mana surrounding his forearms and chest absorbed the kinetic momentum, turning the exercise into an effortless display of physical control. Passing personnel slowed their pace, whispering among themselves as they stared at the towering, six-foot-five figure completing rapid-fire reps with effortless grace.

Some looks held confusion, others quiet awe, but none dared to approach him. The cold, heavy atmosphere radiating off him kept everyone at a distance.

Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred.

Raphael pushed up off the pavement, rising smoothly to his feet in a single fluid motion. He didn’t pucker for breath; his lungs were steady, his pulse calm.

[DAILY QUEST COMPLETED!]

[Rewards Applied: Stamina Restoration, Minor Stat Alignment.]

Dismissing the prompt, he turned and walked back toward the residential building, taking the stairs two at a time. The moment his runners stepped onto the Fourth Floor landing, the temperature in the corridor plummeted.

Standing directly at the end of the hallway, blocking the path to his apartment, was Elena.

Her broadsword was sheathed at her waist, but her posture was taut, every muscle coiled like a spring. Her striking blue eyes were wide, burning with a mixture of intense frustration, suspicion, and sharp annoyance. The moment her gaze locked onto Raphael’s six-foot-five frame, her mana flared violently.

A heavy, suffocating pressure flooded the corridor. Elena’s A-Tier aura radiated outward, sharp, dense, and suffocating, like the edge of the massive blade she wielded in combat. It slammed against the walls, creating an invisible wall of force meant to pin Raphael in place and force him to submit to an interrogation.

But to the current Raphael, it was a comic show. He almost burst out laughing.

"Care to explain what the hell is going on, Raphael?" Elena demanded, stepping forward as her aura pressed down harder. Her blue eyes searched his altered features, lingering on his towering height, his broad shoulders, and the cold silver irises staring back at her.

"You ignore protocol, break past security, and show up looking like... this? Captain Vale is losing his mind upstairs, and I’m the one who has to answer for it. What did you do to yourself?"

The heavy, razor-sharp pressure of her A-Tier aura beat against him, trying to force his posture to break, trying to make him yield like the civilian he had been yesterday.

Raphael didn’t flinch. He didn’t even shift his stance. The Sovereign’s Veil naturally flared beneath his skin, entirely neutralizing the crushing weight of her aura before it could affect his chest. To him, her oppressive aura felt like nothing more than a passing breeze.

Raphael took a single step forward, closing the distance until he was staring down at her from his full height, his luminous silver eyes reflecting her tense expression with absolute, icy detachment.

"I’m not your kid," Raphael said.

His voice was a deep, reverberating baritone that cut through her crushing aura like a hot blade through silk, carrying an absolute authority that left no room for debate.

Elena’s breath hitched in her throat.

The heavy pressure she was exerting shattered in an instant. She froze, her blue eyes widening as a sudden, primal instinct surged through her mind.

Standing before him, she didn’t see an unclassified civilian asset who needed protection; she felt as though she were standing in the shadow of a colossal threat, something ancient, unyielding, and utterly beyond her control. A subtle tremor ran through her fingers, and a faint flicker of genuine fear flashed across her face.

Before she could recover her composure or utter another word, Raphael brushed past her shoulder without looking back, stepping smoothly down the corridor and entering his apartment, leaving the door to seal quietly behind him.