Unable to repay my student loans, I had no choice but to work part-time as a demon hunter.

The next day, Gordon was awakened by the screams of patients downstairs.

When he sat up, he first smelled the medicine from the dentist's office, then the rusty smell of hot water, and finally heard the sound of running water.

In the living room, Vera was drying her hair, and clothes were hanging to dry on the balcony.

She didn't understand how to coordinate aristocratic clothing, but she knew very well what things were hard-won.

This is why Gordon saw the most efficient bandage wrapping ever.

It accurately covers the areas that require public order and good morals, but nothing else.

Gordon had intended to remind her that this was not her place.

But considering that Vera might interpret the "reminder" as an invitation to fight, he chose to change the subject.

"Charlotte's clothes are quite expensive," he said.

"So you have to wash it clean," Vera said. "It's hard to clean if it gets dirty."

"I agree."

……

Over the next few days, Gordon attended classes during the day and studied with Charlotte in the afternoons, or went to the tennis club.

They trained all night.

On the first night, Vera still lost bronze points to Gordon.

Gordon tried to catch it, but he couldn't.

One, two, three.

He made the connection to tennis.

He could definitely sense the trajectory of the tennis ball as it flew towards him, but bronze was different. Vera's throw was very fast and difficult to see clearly.

But there must be a pattern to this.

Just like Charlotte's swing, Vera makes hand movements, changes her shoulder posture, and slightly alters her breathing rhythm before tossing the coin.

Gradually, Gordon began to recognize the traces of these things.

That way he can at least know when he will be hit.

Then, he discovered that he could recognize the signs that preceded Vera's actions.

Under the regulation of the source, he connected with the causes and consequences of the world's operation.

  

"If I avoid these copper coins, will they belong to me?"

"Yes, back," Vera said.

She tossed a copper coin at Gordon, only to find that he caught it precisely, just like the day she threw out the corpse of a demon, which Gordon caught.

As a result, Vera lost several more shots and gradually stopped being able to hit him.

Gordon also earned five copper points.

Both parties were very satisfied.

This is just the beginning.

The second night, she stopped using copper coins and started using her fists, and she also turned off all the lights.

"It's so dark," Gordon said.

"There's nothing we can do. Many people die in sewers and drains, in places where people don't have time to prepare."

The fight is unfair.

If a real war breaks out, darkness, exhaustion, and misjudgment will all bring enormous risks.

Gao Deng held his breath and concentrated.

A gust of wind came crashing down.

[The Unbroken String: Synchronous Transmission]

Gordon quickly retreated, instinctively making a dodge maneuver.

Vera took it as luck, then went around behind Gordon and kicked him.

Gordon couldn't see her.

But he could hear the floor creaking under his feet, hear the sound of his legs brushing against the air, and feel a gust of wind hit his back.

Then he establishes connections between these things.

He dodged, making a big movement.

Although he bumped into the chair leg and almost fell over, he has gradually become familiar with the feeling.

"Again."

It's somewhat like futurism, but unlike directly seeing the future, it's more like sensing the connections between things.

When the skin senses heat, it tries to guess whether there is fire or sunlight.

The spider sensed the vibration of its web and knew that prey had come to it.

Now, if Gordon senses the wind, he will associate it with something about to hit him.

Vera quickened her pace, delivering a right punch, a step-back elbow strike, followed by a knee strike.

Gordon dodged the first blow, but took the second.

The pain instantly pierced through my chest.

On the third time, Vera pulled her knees back.

Otherwise, the only outcome tonight will be a thick stack of emergency medical bills.

Gordon rubbed his ribs.

Although the ribs are one of the bones that heal most easily, the impact was still quite severe.

"Pain makes you grow," Vera said. "Once you can dodge three of my combos in a row, we can go catch Harold together."

"I can still—"

"You can't," Vera said. "You can dodge a punch now, but you can't dodge the floor."

Gordon wanted to argue, but his head was spinning and his body felt very heavy.

This is the price of the source material.

Using too much will leave you feeling completely exhausted.

Vera parted ways with him.

Gordon went back and lay down immediately.

Every nerve in my brain was buzzing.

The hands, feet, and forearms still retained subtle tremors.

Although it was very painful, he felt that he was growing.

that's enough.

……

Gordon also tried to verify the source's abilities at the school.

Now, he can tell how many people are in the classroom just by listening to their breathing, without even looking up.

When someone pushes the door open and comes in, he can immediately tell who it is.

He could still notice Charlotte from a great distance.

It was only then that I realized she sometimes deliberately created these chance encounters.

But even from a distance, Gordon could already feel Charlotte's unique body temperature, heartbeat, and breath.

This change is even more pronounced on the tennis court.

Charlotte discovered that Gordon was now proving to be quite difficult to deal with.

Gordon stopped chasing the ball.

As soon as she swung her racket, Gordon anticipated the landing point and moved precisely to where it should go, as if he had read her mind.

After a few rounds, she could no longer tell whether the balls Gordon missed were because she played exceptionally well or because Gordon deliberately let her win.

Charlotte was initially just unconvinced, but later her unconvinced turned into admiration and a competitive spirit.

Inside the safe house, Gordon could tell whether Vera was truly asleep.

He knew when she was truly relaxed and completely rested, knew where her first step would land when she got up, knew when she would stare blankly out the window, and knew when she would just sit there eating.

He understood that if he wasn't strong enough, she would deal with Harold herself.

It's like Gordon throwing a knife into the water; it might come back, or it might not.

Gordon still wants to go.

After all, a truly reliable partnership shouldn't be one where one person is always standing in front of you.

……

The training gradually began to show results, and Vera returned less frequently.

Sometimes she would spend more than ten hours keeping watch, just to confirm which boat a wet-footed man was delivering a wooden crate to.

Fortunately, her understanding of Harold became more and more accurate, eliminating many wrong answers and killing a bunch of clueless fools.

The information was gradually piecing together, and the time to close the net was not far off.

She was confident she could win him over.

But she was still worried about one thing: whether Gordon could keep up.

So that evening, Vera returned to No. 9 Knight Road and knocked on the door.

Gordon opened the door.

She instantly punched Gordon in the throat.

A few days ago, this strike would have finished off Gordon.

But now, he dodges instantly.

As soon as Vera saw him back down, she threw a second punch.

There was no feedback on whether it was a hit.

The third strike is a kick.

Vera's kick was swift and vicious; it was her true aim to end the fight.

[The Unbroken String: Synchronous Transmission]

Gordon pulled the silver string.

For the first time in his life, he truly unleashed his source power, covering the entire room.

All the vibrations flowed along countless threads into the depths of Gordon's mind.

When Vera kicked out, he had already read all the cause and effect related to this strike.

—Gorden calculated the distance accurately and slightly dodged the attack, so he was not injured, only his clothes were slightly dirty.

Vera glanced at Gordon.

He was intelligent, but that intelligence shouldn't remain trapped in an ordinary person's body. That's why she wanted to train him.

His performance exceeded expectations.

From that moment on, Vera understood that Gordon was no longer the mortal employer he once was; he had become a true Source-type ability user.

"Although I don't know what kind of source it is, it's definitely 'usable' level," she commented. "If we go together to deal with Harold, our chances of winning will double."

"Thank you for your recognition."

Vera instinctively guessed that it was a power similar to the ability to sense killing intent.

Or to exaggerate a bit, to briefly predict reality two or three seconds later.

No matter how you look at it, it has great potential.

At this moment, Gordon felt a sharp pain in his head, as if thousands of tiny needles were piercing him repeatedly, but he was both clear-headed and excited.

[The fusion of source matter deepens... Don't stumble during this process.]

The integration has deepened once again.

He felt that there were many clear, subtle movements in the world.

For example, your heart is beating in your chest, your ribs are burning, your blood vessels are twitching, and the dentist downstairs is putting the forceps back on the tray.

A horse-drawn carriage drove through the puddles, splashing mud onto the curb.

Previously, these noises would be automatically discarded by his consciousness.

Now they are separated into layers, clearly discernible within his perception network, and are all usable intelligence.

Then, he focused his attention on Vera.

Her breathing was calm and steady.

Gordon suddenly realized that she hadn't even broken a sweat, and her heart wasn't beating any faster.

The three attacks that required him to use his abilities to deal with were just normal attacks to her.

"You're not serious," Gordon said.

"I'm training, not risking my life. If we set a really high bar, it might take three to five years to see results. Besides..."

Vera paused for a moment, then quietly added:

"I really want to go on an adventure with you."