Chapter 14: The Wall Slam (Kabedon) Grind

The app notification hit my screen like a lightning bolt.

LIMITED TIME QUEST AVAILABLE

Quest Name: Assert Dominance: The Kabedon

Objective: Perform a wall slam on hypnotized target

Reward: 100 CP (FLASH SALE: 2x Normal Value)

Time Limit: 60 Minutes

Warning: High difficulty. Proximity required. Confidence mandatory.

My brain processed the numbers immediately. One hundred CP for a single action. That was insane value. That was speedrun territory. That would push me past four hundred total.

But the warning gave me pause. High difficulty meant high risk. Proximity meant close contact. Confidence mandatory meant I couldn’t half-commit.

The kabedon was legendary in anime culture. The ultimate alpha move. Cornering your target against a wall, hand slamming beside their head, asserting total dominance through body language alone.

I’d studied this trope extensively. Analyzed camera angles. Memorized optimal hand placement. Calculated the physics of looking intimidating without actual threat.

Theory was solid. Practice would be fine. Probably.

The library stretched quiet and mostly empty around me. Perfect grinding location. Neutral territory. Witnesses but not crowds. Escape routes clearly marked.

I spotted Seda two aisles over, browsing the literature section. Alone. Vulnerable. Ideal target parameters.

My palms started sweating immediately.

No. Focus. This was just another quest. Just another CP gain. I’d fed her food in public. I’d held her hand in the hallway. A wall slam was just the next logical progression.

Standard Japanese greeting for alphas. Totally normal social interaction.

I approached slowly, footsteps silent on the carpeted floor. She was reading book covers, oblivious to my tactical positioning.

The aisle ended in a corner. Concrete wall painted institutional beige. Perfect kabedon surface.

My heart hammered against my ribs. The quest timer ticked down. Fifty-eight minutes. Fifty-seven. Every second wasted was CP lost.

“Seda.”

She turned, book in hand, eyebrows raised slightly.

“Alfred. Need something?”

Now or never. Commit to the bit. Channel every ounce of fake confidence I possessed.

I stepped forward. She stepped back. One step. Two steps. Three steps until her shoulders hit the wall.

Her eyes widened. Surprised but not scared. Curious.

My arm shot up, palm slamming against the wall beside her head. The impact echoed through the quiet library. Some student two aisles over shushed aggressively.

Perfect form. Textbook execution. My body caged hers without touching, arm creating a barrier, height advantage maximized.

I was doing it. Actually doing the legendary kabedon in real life.

“Look at me.”

The command came out lower than my normal voice. Deeper. More authoritative. Peak alpha energy.

Seda’s gaze lifted to meet mine. Her dark eyes reflected the fluorescent lights overhead. I could count her eyelashes from this distance. Could smell her shampoo. Could feel the heat radiating off her skin.

Oh no. Oh hell. I’d miscalculated proximity parameters.

We were inches apart. Maybe six inches of space between our bodies. Close enough to feel her breathing. Close enough to notice the way her chest rose and fell. Close enough to trigger every panic response in my nervous system.

My arm started shaking. Not trembling. Full shaking. The wall slam pose required holding my weight at an awkward angle and my muscles were not prepared for sustained intimidation.

Sweat beaded on my forehead. My blazer felt like it weighed forty pounds. The library temperature spiked about twenty degrees.

But I held the pose. Held eye contact. Held the command over her through sheer stubborn pride.

Seda studied my face with that unsettling intensity she always had. Like she was reading data I didn’t know I was broadcasting.

Then she leaned forward.

Not away. Not shrinking back. Forward. Toward me. Closing the six-inch gap to maybe three inches.

“You look so strong like this.”

Her voice came out soft. Breathy. The kind of tone that belonged in late-night anime episodes with mature content warnings.

My brain flatlined. Every thought process crashed simultaneously. She wasn’t supposed to lean in. The hypnotized target was supposed to look flustered or embarrassed or confused.

Not pleased. Not interested. Not moving closer like she wanted to eliminate the remaining space entirely.

“I didn’t know you had this side to you.”

Her hand touched my chest. Light pressure. Just her palm resting over my hammering heartbeat.

Abort. Abort mission. Tactical retreat necessary.

But I couldn’t retreat. I’d literally cornered myself by cornering her. My arm blocked my own exit route. Moving meant admitting defeat. Standing still meant enduring proximity that was actively killing me.

The wall slam had become a wall trap. I was the one caught. She was the one in control.

“Your heart is racing.”

Of course it was racing. We were inches apart. Her hand was on my chest. Her perfume was destroying my cognitive functions. My arm felt like it might fall off from holding this stupid pose.

“That’s just cardiovascular conditioning. I run. For health.”

The same lie I’d used before. My go-to excuse. Completely unconvincing when delivered while sweating and shaking.

Seda’s smile grew. She was enjoying this. Enjoying my panic. Enjoying the way I’d trapped myself in my own dominance display.

“You could lower your arm. Unless you want to keep me here longer.”

Was that a suggestion? A command? A test? My hypnotized target wasn’t supposed to make suggestions.

But my arm was dying. Muscles screaming. Sweat dripping. I had maybe thirty seconds before complete structural failure.

The bell rang. Shrill and piercing. Lunch period ending. Students would flood the library any second.

Perfect excuse. Divine intervention. The universe throwing me a lifeline.

“Mercy.”

I dropped my arm and stepped back fast. Distance restored. Personal space reclaimed. Oxygen returning to my brain.

“What?”

Seda looked confused. Still leaning against the wall. Still watching me with that predatory interest.

“I’m showing mercy. You’re released from the command. For now.”

Brilliant save. Tactical genius. Framing my escape as magnanimous choice rather than desperate flight.

My phone buzzed. The notification glowed through my pocket fabric.

QUEST COMPLETE

Reward: 100 CP Earned

Current Total: 425 CP

Achievement Unlocked: Faux Alpha

Description: Successfully executed kabedon despite crippling anxiety

Bonus: Target showed interest (+50% future quest efficiency)

Faux Alpha. The app was calling me out. But the CP didn’t care about my internal crisis. The numbers went up regardless.

Students started filtering into the library. Voices breaking the silence. Bodies filling the aisles.

“I need to go. Class. Punctuality. Very important.”

I backed away, maintaining eye contact, trying to look controlled instead of panicked.

Seda pushed off the wall, adjusting her blazer with deliberate slowness.

“Same time tomorrow?”

Tomorrow? She wanted daily kabedon sessions? My arm couldn’t handle that. My cardiovascular system couldn’t handle that. My sanity absolutely could not handle that.

“We’ll see.”

I turned and walked away at measured pace. Not running. Just moving with purpose toward the exit.

The hallway outside offered blessed relief. Cool air. Open space. No walls to slam. No girls leaning into my personal space.

I found an empty classroom and collapsed into a desk. My arm ached. My head throbbed. My heart still hadn’t returned to normal rhythm.

But I pulled up the app anyway. Four hundred twenty-five CP. Almost halfway to maximum power. The grind was working. The strategy was succeeding.

I just had to ignore the way Seda had leaned toward me instead of away. Had to pretend her hand on my chest was hypnotic compliance and not genuine interest. Had to convince myself I was still the one in control.

The app dashboard glowed steady and reassuring. No warnings. No errors. Just clean data confirming my dominance.

Totally fine. Everything was fine.

My reflection stared back from the blank phone screen between notifications. Same nervous expression. Same uncertainty hiding behind fake confidence.

But the numbers didn’t lie. Four hundred twenty-five CP. Faux Alpha achievement. Bonus efficiency for future quests.

I was winning. Probably. Maybe. The CP said so.

That had to count for something.

The next bell rang. Class starting. I stood on shaking legs and headed toward chemistry, phone heavy in my pocket, arm still trembling from holding that wall slam.

The grind continued. High risk. High reward. Questionable decision-making.

But the CP kept climbing. And that was all that mattered.

Right?

Current Stats:

CP: 425/1000

Quests Completed: 5

Status: Faux Alpha (Achievement: Questionable)

Arm Condition: Severely fatigued

Mental State: Declining but functional

Control Level: Debatable