Six months passed quickly. During that time, Nicolas hadn't slowed down his training, not even for a single day.
Paf, paf, tack!
In the courtyard of the manor, which had now become his personal training ground, he was engaged in a hand-to-hand fight with the butler. Both men were drenched in sweat, trading blows every second and dodging each other's attacks with precision.
Suddenly, the butler caught one of Nicolas's kicks aimed at his ribs and sent him flying several meters.
Nicolas stabilized himself mid-air and landed neatly on both feet. When he hit the ground, a small crater formed beneath him, the weights he was wearing had become incredibly heavy.
"All right, let's wrap it up for today. The master and I have business to attend to," the butler said, slightly out of breath.
Nicolas nodded and calmly stood up. Over the past six months, his body had changed drastically. He had shed every ounce of fat and now looked athletic and healthy. His black hair had also grown longer, falling just above his eyes.
"How long will you be gone?" he asked, walking toward the manor.
Adjusting his suit, the butler replied, "About a week. I expect you to keep up your daily training in the meantime. By the way, it might be time to increase your weights again."
Nicolas glanced at his arms, each one strapped with an 80-kilogram weight. He had fully adapted to the load, and increasing it didn't seem like a bad idea.
The two approached the entrance of the manor, where a black sedan with tinted windows was waiting. Standing beside the car was François, dressed in a black suit and puffing on a large cigar.
"Finally done? In any case, we're off for the week. We'll see each other soon, son."
As he spoke, he opened the rear door and sat down. His massive frame caused the car to lean slightly to the side.
The butler turned to Nicolas and gave him a slight bow. "See you next week, sir."
Nicolas nodded in response and watched the car drive off. A short distance away, three more identical vehicles filled with armed bodyguards awaited them.
Over the past six months, it had become clear that the family's business wasn't entirely legal. In fact, Nicolas suspected that François was involved in the mafia.
Watching the cars disappear into the distance, Nicolas walked back to his room with a broad smile. He had been waiting for nearly two weeks for a chance like this.
In his room, he didn't even bother to change. He sat down cross-legged next to his bed, entering a meditative position.
After many attempts, three weeks ago he had finally figured out how to unlock his aura nodes. Within a week and a half, he had managed to open all but one.
It wasn't due to a lack of ability. In truth, he had simply hesitated, deciding it was better to wait until the butler was away, especially since he still hadn't confirmed whether the man was a Nen user.
Finally, the long-awaited day had arrived. With his eyes closed, Nicolas focused his energy on the last aura node, and ten minutes later, he unlocked it.
A sudden energy surged through him, as if a light liquid surrounded his body. He remained stunned for a moment, observing the strange force orbiting him.
So this is Nen… It's way more impressive in real life than in the manga.
Since he hadn't gone through a forced awakening, it was easy for him to control this new energy. In an instant, he calmed his excitement and centered his Nen.
The previously frantic aura, which had been leaking in every direction, suddenly flowed smoothly around him like a warm river. This was Ten.
He observed his aura for a while, then got up and walked around the room, admiring how Nen affected his body. It felt magical, like a second skin. He felt stronger, more alive.
After marveling at and practicing Ten for about thirty minutes, he decided it was time to try another fundamental Nen technique.
I absolutely need to master this one before the butler returns.
Closing his eyes, he focused on each of his aura nodes. Since he had opened them himself, it wasn't hard to locate them. In under a minute, he forcibly closed them all.
"Zetsu."
His aura vanished completely. To the eyes of an untrained Nen user, he would appear like a normal human. To test it, he walked around the room again. However, after a few steps, some aura leaked from his left knee. He had to focus again to return to full Zetsu.
Zetsu is harder than Ten. I guess I'll need to train hard if I want to maintain it even during a fight with the butler.
All right, after Ten and Zetsu, the next step is Ren.
From the start, Nicolas had trained without a master. He had no way of knowing whether his progress was good or not, he was relying entirely on his memories of the manga.
"If I remember right, Ren involves projecting your energy outward to dramatically boost your physical capabilities."
Standing in the center of the room, he concentrated for a few moments, then forced all his aura outward.
"Ren!"
His Nen exploded around him. The sensation was completely different from Ten — he felt an infinite power surge through his muscles and movements. In that moment, he was convinced he could easily defeat the butler… if the man wasn't also a Nen user.
Even the weights strapped to his limbs now felt no heavier than regular clothes.
A smile crossed his lips. Now that he had mastered Ren, he wanted to test his limits. Without wasting time, he started a stopwatch he had prepared in advance and maintained Ren for as long as possible.
He managed to hold it for about ten minutes before his stamina began to plummet. He deactivated Ren right before passing out.
He glanced at the stopwatch: "Twelve minutes and twenty-six seconds," he muttered with a tired sigh.
Is that a good time? Well, whatever, I'm exhausted. I remember Gon and Killua had to maintain it for three hours before the assault on the King's palace… I should make that my goal. If I can reach it, I'll already be among the elites.
Worn out from all the tests, Nicolas collapsed into his bed and didn't wake up until nightfall. Thanks to his constantly active Ten, he recovered far faster than usual.
Such a magical effect…
A quick glance at the clock showed it was 7:30 p.m. He got up slowly and grabbed a glass of clear water he had prepared earlier, placing a leaf inside.
It's time to determine my Nen type. It's not urgent right now, but eventually, it'll define my fighting style.
Indeed, in the near future, he planned to develop his core Nen skills rather than creating custom abilities.
He placed a towel under the glass just in case, then activated his Ren at full strength while holding the glass with both hands.
After a few seconds, the leaf began to move gently from side to side.
"The leaf is moving… I'm a Manipulator."