The pale beauty slowly opened her eyes, instinctively rubbed her nose, and remembered what had happened with a painful groan. She looked around angrily and saw the servant practicing nearby.

«You are the worst human being in the world... Even worse, you aren’t human! I warned you, don’t you dare to kiss me. But you don’t seem to value your life at all. I will keep my promise by all means. You have two options: either you disappear from the mansion right now or you will suffer my fate, that is death, very soon.» – Her voice was full of ice and unwavering grim determination. She was ready for anything.

When Juno understood that her damned tormentor wasn’t saying anything but kept looking dispassionately at her, she bit her lip angrily, stood up from the bench and walked to the exit.

Juno’s strong-willed character was growing on Kyon. Once again, he got convinced that he could hate someone and at the same time admire something about them. Most people have unambiguous thinking: a person is either bad or good. But it is very important to understand that the world is not black and white. It’s diverse and multi-colored like a rainbow.

«Juno, don’t rush to leave. I’ve decided to change the nature of our relations, so forget your hasty words. You are a very bad and crappy girl with mediocre talent, but you have unwavering will and desire to get stronger. That’s why I decided to take you as an apprentice. If you behave yourself, obey me, don’t cause trouble anymore, and treat me as your master, I will occasionally instruct you and clear your keys.»

At first, Juno thought he was mentally ill, then she threw her head back and laughed like a myriad of silver bells scattering across the ground. Hatred and contempt, spite and malice sounded in her laughter. Her face distorted in disgust:

«You are mad. You are the most insane person in the world, and you deserve to die. You don’t need money or freedom... Oh, please, I am sick to hear your dirty lies. They turn me inside out. Either get ready for your imminent death or disappear from my life. I will be sincerely grateful to you. My gratitude is worth a lot, believe me.»

Kyon frowned, displeased. He had an urge to punch her arrogant brazen cute face a couple of times. He wanted it very very much... But it was reassuring to know that the truth was on his side.

A mysterious smile appeared on his face.

«Hit that dummy with all your might using pure energy.»

Juno started to object:

«Oh please… Stop it… I’m still in pain…»

«I said hit the dummy, or I’ll hit you!» – Kyon shouted at her with his sternest voice.

Juno moaned with unbearable mental pain. She wanted to cry, but she had no more tears. Juno wished she could go back in time in those happy days when she hadn’t connected with her soul yet. She’d better envy her sister for eternity than be a slave to this monster.

Juno went to the dummy and crashed it with all her might. A rather solid doll noticeably bent aside from her powerful blow, then it returned to its previous position.

«And now come to me, please.» – Kyon beckoned her toward him with a finger.

Juno obeyed and came up to him. There was no point in resisting and asking for trouble. When she approached him, she turned her eyes away squeamishly, avoiding to look at her despised master. Juno's breath was intermittent, her emotional state depressed, her mood - she’d better die. She wanted to lie down on the ground and lose herself in a dreamless sleep.

Kyon put one finger under her blouse, the other across from her belly button where he poured in Synergy, providing it with directions to clean her key by 10%. He had never been his intention to please the girl with such a priceless gift, but he made his decision. He could put his emotions aside. First things first, he had to put things right and rub along with the little brat.

«You are free to go.»

Before he finished his phrase, the slave girl briskly stepped back, shot almost tangible fire from her eyes, and silently went to the exit. {Please... Just don’t say anything... I don’t want to hear anything from you, please...}

«You could at least check what has changed, little fool. Go and hit the dummy again, and then, if you don’t feel any changes, you can go to your room and think about ways to kill yourself elegantly and painlessly.» – Kyon said in a mocking voice.

Juno spun around. Her look was so intense that a little more and she would explode. She approached the dummy again and struck it with all her strength.

*bang*

The dummy bent much further this time.

Juno frowned at Kyon.

«Are you happy, crazy freak? Who do you think you are… you are…» – She slowly turned back to the dummy. Something was wrong... It seemed… Was her blow was much stronger than before, or did she imagine things?

«…» – Juno was speechless.

Kyon was on the verge of laughter. It felt so good to watch the deceived expectations of the wretched girl. The expression on her face was priceless.

Juno slowly clenched her fist and struck again... And again…

*bang* *bang* *bang*

With each next blow, the situation seemed more absurd. Her head was spinning, but she continued to batter the dummy.

She hits dummies hundreds and hundreds of times every day. She knows the limit of her power perfectly well. It was different now... By about one fifth.

The purity of her pure energy key had always been 49%.

Juno painfully pinched herself on the wrist, squealed but couldn’t wake up. The reality wasn’t changing.

Punch-punch-punch... Her face expressed total confusion, her eyebrows were about to crawl somewhere behind her head.

Juno clenched her fists, closed her eyes, whispered something three times, and stared at the dummy. Then she punched it again.

«Gods, what’s going on?! Mamma mia!» – The happy girl squealed with emotions overwhelming her. The unexpected upgrade filled her with joy while just a minute ago, she was darker than a storm cloud.

Kyon couldn't help laughing, and it got her attention.

The wary slave girl slowly turned around. Her big green eyes expressed fright and shock as if she had noticed a sneaking predator.

«Alright, you played it out very well! Haha very funny! Now tell me kindly what this trick is about?»

«It’s not a trick. I’ve just cleaned your pure energy key by 10%.»

«You're lying!!» – Juno interrupted him, her arms crossed stubbornly over her chest. – «I don’t believe you for a second! You are deceiving me for some reason!»

Kyon shrugged indifferently.

«Maybe I am... Oh, by the way, I order you never to say anything about the purity of your keys. If someone finds out about it or about my ability to clean them because of your intentional actions, I order you to kill yourself at once. I order you to avoid check-ups on the purity of your keys. If it happens against your will, I order to call me and wait for my instructions. I advise you to use the device and check the purity of your key now. When you find out that I am telling the truth, come to my room, kneel before me and swear to do everything that I have enumerated earlier. Then I will take you as my apprentice and might purify your keys from time to time. Who knows, you could become the bender of all the elements. I doubt it, though.» - He had no intention to make her so talented.

When she heard that, Juno nearly choked in amazement. Her legs turned numb, she had to lean against the nearest wall.

«You are crazy, indeed. I just asked what trick was that, and you’re pulling my leg again! My ears hurt to hear your nonsense. If you don’t want to tell me the truth, then don’t! I need it like a hole in my head.» – The arrogant girl turned up her nose to show how little she cared.

Kyon decided it was pointless to prove anything to her. He turned around and went to his room to have dinner.

With a puzzled look, Juno watched her “master” go. Then she looked at her hand that was trembling with excitement, squeezed it into a fist, and began to beat the dummy again. There could be no mistake... The gain was significant. Anybody who cared to look would see that!

{How… How is that even possible?!} – The bewildered girl asked herself again and again, beating the dummy with unprecedented joy mixed with confusion.

She heard there existed medicine and special formations that could enhance the soul, but the effect lasted a short time only. Anyway, if Juno had taken medicine, she would have been immediately aware of it. The process resulted in the rebound that only intensified over time.

A shocking, impossible thought popped into her head. What if the “master" didn’t lie! {No... It’s bullshit! Nonsense! I'm losing my mind! That’s impossible!}

Juno knew pretty well how the world worked. The purity of keys was something bestowed at birth, a natural talent. Those who were born with impure keys belonged with mediocrity. The purer the keys, the bigger chances to succeed in life. Add to that a talent for development and you can conquer the whole empire. As a rule, there are no absolutely pure or impure keys. The more complex the element, the dirtier the key. In Juno’s empire, the average indicator of purity is 250%, she has 300% but even with that, she lags behind Elsa.

It’s possible to clean the keys but only a tad, and this drop, this crumb would cost an insane amount of money. Moreover, it’s one-time procedure. The next cleaning with the same method won’t be successful. You’ll have to look for another way.

If the Stone family sold out all their property and resources, they could get Juno’s key purified by 2-3%. The price of enhancing innate talent is immeasurable. The world is cruel to those who are born mediocre. Only goddess Danna can bless the worthy ones, cleaning their keys by a couple of dozens percent. Or so the legend goes. Now, it turns out that he is a god? A slave god. It’s ridiculous.

«Ha-ha-ha-ha!» – Juno burst into hysterical laughter. Not so long ago, she wanted to die. Now she was like a different person. She did not understand what was happening to her. Delighted in the heart, confused in the head.

The harmful, meaningless, absurd idea was haunting her. What if the slave was telling the truth? And once again, she wanted to hit herself for being so stupid. It was impossible... It just couldn’t be! The sky cannot change places with the earth!

After a while, Juno decided that she could easily refute his words just the way he had advised her to prove him right. She went to the room where all the devices were stored. She took a rounded thing with a vacuum cup, put it to her belly button and pressed hard.

The device generated pulsations. Juno counted 59 of them. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head. She remembered perfectly well that the purity of her pure energy key was 49%! She took another device and repeated the procedure. The result shocked her to the core. The instrument fell out of her hands and rolled under the shelf. Juno collapsed to the floor. Her whole world had just turned upside down.

{He… purified… didn’t he…} – Her heart drummed frantically in her chest. She remembered Kyon mention she could be the bender of all the elements with his help. It sounded extremely ridiculous back then. It just didn’t make any sense. What if it’s true... Wondrous fantasies, so impossible in the real world, captivated her mind.

Juno imagined the energy fill her soul and body. It was her life long dream that finally had come true. She pictured herself as a super genius capable of conquering all the distant lands. She dreamed that Elsa was creeping at her feet, asking how many cubes of sugar to put in her tea. Juno would kick in her face and say with contempt: “It's time for you to stop asking stupid questions! It's time to remember that I take four!”

The beautiful face of the charming young lady blushed. Bliss splashed in her eyes. For the first time, her dreams were so real and close, within arm’s reach. She could almost touch them. Juno could feel the wings growing on her back from the mere thought that she would be the bender of all the elements. The gloomy idea that she was nothing but a mediocrity had been haunting Juno since the very moment of her connection with the soul. Her persistence to move towards her goal didn’t help. And then, all of a sudden, she found a way to overcome the biggest obstacle on the way to her dream.

Juno was so overwhelmed with indescribable happiness that she wanted to cry. But then another thought entered her mind like an annoying buzzing fly. It reminded her of the status of the boy who was going to clean her key. Could scum like him have a divine ability? According to the legend, only goddess Danna could do it! Does it mean that her miserable slave who she would gladly kill, or better torture to death, had the power to plunge the entire empire into chaos?! She remembered their last battle when he kept crushing her down with his fists. It confirmed all her guesses! He could really be the bender of pure energy! An unspeakable feeling of envy washed over the arrogant girl. She was inferior to him... The matter wasn’t in her mediocrity. The point is that he is extremely talented! No one born in the slums could be higher than her. This thought calmed her down a bit.

Juno had finally come to an important decision. {My slave... He... He is not a slave... Now he is no slave... From now on, he is my servant! Miserable, insignificant, flawed, but he is my servant!}