Chapter 246 – Arm Wrestling
“Parul, did you suddenly become so strong?” Jayad looked at me in surprise as I put down two buckets full of water. The scene had caused a strong sense of contrast for him.
Before, Jayad had always thought Parul was delicate and easily pushed around, as if a strong gust of wind might blow her away. He wondered if her small, slender hands could even lift buckets of water without their arms snapping.
“Hehehe, isn’t Older Brother Jayad also incredibly powerful after awakening as a Holy Knight? I’m like that now too. I can take care of all the housework from now on!” I exclaimed, waving my fist excitedly.
As expected, a strong man should have strength. What was that weak, limp little fist like before? Ever since I transmigrated, I’d been dragged down by this frail body. Now, it has finally improved.
If only I had refined the Strengthening Potion first. What a miscalculation!
“Seeing Parul become so strong, I feel a little disappointed. It feels like Parul doesn’t need me anymore,” Jayad said. He had always done the heavy lifting, and now Parul had snatched even that away. He felt his status in the household plummeting?
“No! How could that be? Older Brother Jayad earning money is very important,” I said, then paused. It seemed I could also earn money recently. I was gradually eroding his sense of purpose.
“Ahem, it’s okay. Anyway, Older Brother Jayad will also drink this potion. But before that, let’s arm wrestle!” I excitedly raised my hand.
“Arm wrestle?” Jayad asked with doubt.
“That’s right. Put your arm on the table, yes, like this. I want to see how strong I am.” I placed my arm on the table, wanting to gain some confidence from Jayad.
Although Jayad had never arm-wrestled himself, he had often seen others do it. He also wanted to see how much my strength had increased, so he took my hand.
“One, two, three! Huh?” I suddenly exerted force and was shocked. Jayad’s hand didn’t budge. Then, he began to exert his strength.
“Crack!” My wrist was easily pressed onto the table. Even with all my might, I couldn’t budge him an inch.
It felt as if this was only natural. Jayad’s strong and powerful hand was naturally much stronger than Parul’s slender arm. It was perfectly reasonable for me to be pinned to the table.
But how was this possible? I had drunk the Strengthening Potion! Although I had considered that I might still not be a match for Jayad, I hadn’t expected such an overwhelming defeat, being pinned down without any resistance.
“I don’t believe it, let’s go again!” “Ugh! Let’s try again.” “This, this, let’s switch sides, I’ll change my posture.” “Ah! Huff… huff… I can’t anymore, I’m so tired…”
Against my disbelief, I tried arm wrestling with Jayad five or six more times. In between, I even drank another Strengthening Potion. But without exception, I never won against Jayad, and I was usually defeated instantly.
Drinking the Strengthening Potion again felt less effective. It was completely unlike the first time I took the potion, when a seemingly inexhaustible strength surged from my body.
It seemed that strengthening through potions also had a limit, or at least, the limit of the Strengthening Potion was here. To become stronger, I would have to buy more advanced potions.
“Parul, are you okay? You seem a little unhappy.” Jayad wondered if he should have intentionally lost to Parul just now.
“I’m fine. I just didn’t expect the gap to be so large even after drinking the potion. If you also drink the potion, won’t the gap in strength between us widen even further? Then, if Older Brother Jayad bullies me, I won’t be able to resist at all,” I said sulkily.
“How could I possibly?! I would never bully Parul. This strength is only used to protect Parul,” Jayad said quickly.
Actually, I could also understand it. Jayad’s strength came from the Holy Light’s reinforcement of his physical body, while the Strengthening Potion merely enhanced the strength of a mortal body.
It could strengthen a sickly cat to the level of a normal person, or it could turn a normal person into a strongman. But ultimately, it was still within the realm of mortals. Jayad, as a Holy Knight, had transcended the mortal realm. Of course, I couldn’t possibly compare to him.
“Okay, if Older Brother Jayad says so, I’m relieved. Here, you drink one too. We’ll give Miss Leo Man a surprise tomorrow.” I couldn’t wait to see her surprised expression.
The next morning, in the training grounds, Leo Man and Jayad dueled again, but this time it was different.
“Clang!” Jayad’s longsword struck Leo Man’s page hammer with force. Blunt and sharp weapons collided, and the Holy Light that burst forth illuminated the surroundings. But unlike yesterday, this time it was the page hammer that was knocked away.
“Ah?!” Leo Man hadn’t expected Jayad’s strength to increase so much. He was already very strong, and after drinking the potion, his strength had progressed by leaps and bounds, even more than the strength I had gained.
Coupled with the fact that he had familiarized himself with the page hammer’s tactics yesterday, and Leo Man had formed a stereotype of Jayad from yesterday’s practice, she was caught off guard and had her page hammer struck.
As she had said, she was actually just a Priest, not a combat-specialized profession. Her strength was not great. After drinking the Strengthening Potion, Jayad’s strength even surpassed Leo Man’s, directly knocking her page hammer away.
With his sword pointed at Leo Man’s chest, Jayad looked at her surprised expression. This was the first time he had defeated Leo Man in training.
When Jayad lowered his sword, Leo Man was speechless for a moment. After a moment of awkwardness, she finally asked, “What method did you use to suddenly gain so much strength?”
“I drank a Strengthening Potion,” Jayad admitted honestly.
“No wonder. I advise you not to rely on external means. This is not your own strength after all, it’s very dangerous, and accidents can easily happen,” Leo Man said coldly, but she didn’t accuse Jayad of doing something wrong.
I chuckled from the side. She was defeated once, and now everything she said seemed like she was just putting up a brave front. No matter what method Jayad used, winning was winning.
“Let’s continue practicing. I won’t hold back from now on. Remember, even if you can consistently defeat me, it’s only the standard for a newly qualified Holy Knight,” Leo Man picked up her page hammer and started practicing again.
As expected, the subsequent practice returned to being one-sided. After getting used to Jayad’s increased strength, Leo Man no longer underestimated him, allowing Jayad to find an opening.
This was also within my expectations. After all, Leo Man’s actual strength and experience were still far superior to Jayad’s. Just as I couldn’t surpass Jayad by relying on a Strengthening Potion, Jayad couldn’t surpass Leo Man with just one bottle of potion. He had just caught her by surprise.
It was precisely because she knew this point clearly that Leo Man didn’t get angry or accuse him. She merely offered advice and continued practicing. External means were also part of strength, and this was a common consensus.
This was because when fighting various terrifying monsters, they wouldn’t care if you relied on your own strength or not; they would kill you regardless. If it hadn’t been Jayad just now, but some weak monster that suddenly became stronger, Leo Man would have died due to her carelessness.
