《The Lone Wanderer》


 Chapter 1: A strange experience

    The last thing Percy remembered was the thrill of finally reaching Orange after a decade of relentless effort. The jeers and sneers from his cousins and uncles had only pushed him onward. He¡¯d done it ¨C tripled his remaining lifespan and achieved a new level of power. He¡¯d made it!His first act had been to try tapping into his family''s bloodline once more. The Clone ability had always eluded him, but perhaps now, with his newly strengthened core, things would be different. He remembered the initial rush of mana and then... pain. A lot of pain. A world of pain. Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    As he fought to open his eyes, he was greeted by a strange sight. A creature with humanoid features ¨C but certainly not human ¨C stood before him. Its skin was pale as milk, its eyes pitch black, resembling obsidian orbs that glimmered with an emotion Percy couldn''t quite discern. , perhaps? The creature''s strained smile and tightly clenched fists at the edge of the crib betrayed its concern.


    There was another standing opposite the first, this one bulkier. A male? It was hard to tell. Both were hairless and wore baggy robes concealing any distinguishing traits. Percy raised his hands with difficulty, noticing they were tiny and the same pale colour as the giants around him. His skin was smooth as porcelain.


    He tried to speak, to ask a question, but no sound emerged. To his horror, he realized he couldn''t breathe. The female ¨C at least, he thought it was female ¨C panicked, moving a device to his mouth and casting an air spell. A breath was forced into his lungs and, though it hurt, it kept him conscious. .


    Scanning his surroundings, he noticed the walls were sleek, made of some polished material. They definitely didn¡¯t have anything of the sort back on Remior. Strange decorations adorned the room ¨C there was a painting that seemed to have been drawn in three directions, ! Through the window, he glimpsed three suns ¨C green, yellow, and blue ¨C illuminating a turquoise sky.


    At any other time, Percy might have appreciated the novelty of the situation. Right now, however, it only brought him unease. Desperately, he turned to the only source of familiarity he could think of. His Status tab. He summoned it, hoping it still worked.


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    Guhat (Percival''s clone)


    His relief at being able to check his Status was quickly replaced by shock. Guhat was probably the name given to this body, but what did it mean by ¡®Percival''s clone¡¯? Wasn''t he the real Percy?


    ¡¯


    Under other circumstances, he would be ecstatic. His family had given him a ton of grief over his inability to use it. Everyone, Percy included, thought he simply hadn''t inherited it.


    But this wasn''t how it was supposed to work. Fuelled by their life affinity, the Avalon House''s bloodline allowed them to cultivate a biological copy of themselves to delegate dangerous or tedious tasks to.


    ¡¯


    Percy had never been sure of his affinity. The standard test at age five had shown nothing, but there was a slim chance he had a rare affinity it couldn''t detect. Of course, better tests existed, but his family hadn''t thought it worth the resources on a Red core like him.


    he thought, focusing on his Status once more.


    Guhat (Percival''s clone)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Red ¨C ???][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C ???]


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    Losing his Orange core stung given how long it took to get there. But it made sense since he was in a new, infant body. cores, on the other hand?!? He¡¯d never heard of anyone possessing more than one. Well, that wasn¡¯t quite right. Percy had never heard of a possessing multiple cores, but he did vaguely recall a rumour of an alien race famous for precisely that.


    He couldn''t remember the exact name, but they stood out even among the countless species the Divine Order protected his world from.


    I


    His eyes almost sparkled with hope, but he quickly quashed the optimism. What was he thinking? He was just a botched clone who wouldn''t survive much longer. His new body barely functioned. He couldn''t even breathe without assistance. Everything hurt, and he felt himself beginning to collapse. Even if he survived, both his cores were Red, leaving him at the bottom of the pecking order here as well.


    He clawed desperately at his fading consciousness. The pain was excruciating, as if he were being ground to dust, but he refused to give up. He didn''t care he was just a clone. He didn''t care his cores were Red. He had to fight with what he had. To live with what he had. To make the most of what he had.


    But sometimes sheer will wasn''t enough.


    The air affinity spell was beginning to hurt more than it helped. His heart felt like it was about to burst, darkness seeping into his vision. At the same time, an inescapable force pulled him, slowly prying him out of the broken body. As Guhat¡¯s eyes closed, the blurry silhouettes of the couple he guessed were his parents faded, their distraught cries replaced by silence.


    His final thought was a bitter one.

 Chapter 2: Alive

    Percy was pulled towards a certain direction. It was as if a tight rope was glued to his back, forcing him to travel, to plunge through a seemingly infinite darkness, unable to resist. He couldn¡¯t tell how long it took. Maybe a week? A year? A century? Either way, his mind was murky, his thoughts failing to fully form.Perhaps, this was purgatory, his punishment for casting that ability. It¡¯s not like he¡¯d known what it would bring, but he appeared destined to pay the price all the same. At least it wasn¡¯t so bad. He was at peace. The pain was gone.


    Until it wasn¡¯t.


    A throbbing headache was the first new sensation, followed by warmth. He instinctively took a breath and then another, and a third, ecstatic to have functioning lungs again.


    Next, he tried prying his eyes open, but his sight was blocked by something wet. A towel? He tried lifting his hands, but his limbs were weak. In the end, he shrugged. Or he would have if he could. Instead, he just remained in that position, enjoying the rhythmic sound of his own heartbeat.


    He opened his Status again, but what greeted him wasn¡¯t at all what he expected.


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C ???][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]Bloodline:[Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[??? (Fractured)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life and mind mana to germinate.


    The shock somehow gave him the energy to sit up, the wet towel falling from his face. Glancing around, he found he was back in his room. His room. His .


    He exhaled in relief. Not only was he somehow still alive, but it appeared he wouldn¡¯t be condemning a version of him to a horrible fate every time he used his bloodline. More importantly¡­


    This was Percy¡¯s first time seeing his bloodline listed in his Status. Not because he didn¡¯t have it before now. Both bloodlines and core affinities were fixed from birth. Naturally, he had had Clone his whole life. He just hadn¡¯t known.


    The Status page wasn¡¯t omniscient. The only things it could detect through the simple test most kids underwent at age five were the starting grade of one¡¯s mana core and the common elemental affinities. As for rarer affinities and bloodlines, those required a more specialized investigation, which was only reserved for kids lucky to be born at Orange or higher. The rest had to either earn enough money to pay for the test, or to slowly discover their affinities and bloodline ¨C if they even had any ¨C on their own.


    He frowned. He had never seen or heard of anything like that. Still, most of its contents weren¡¯t new. This section seemed to contain three separate items. One was access to the Status itself, which everyone had. Another was the access to his bloodline. It appeared to be like a hidden section.


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    Percy wasn¡¯t sure what to make of this. He seemed to have partially retained the unique trait of the alien body, but not the complete version. His second core was in a dormant state, at a grade below even Red. He wasn¡¯t sure if it could be salvaged.


    His core had advanced to Orange. And it turned out he have Clonedespite what everyone told him. Finally, he probably had a rare affinity too. At least, he couldn¡¯t imagine doing what he¡¯d done with pure mana.


    Not that he wouldn¡¯t try of course.


    He was about to make a mental checklist of things he needed to do, when the door opened.


    ¡°PERCY!!¡± a female voice yelled.


    His ears were sensitive, the shout giving him a buzz. Still, he barely raised his arms to shield himself from the incoming aquamarine-haired missile.


    THUMP


    A silhouette leapt on top of him, the two bouncing on the mattress. She hugged him tightly, as if he was about to disappear.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright Elaine¡­ I¡¯m alright.¡±


    The girl hugging him, Elaine, was the only member of his family who didn¡¯t treat him like shit. In fact, the only reason he hadn¡¯t been kicked out entirely was probably because Elaine had been born at Yellow, which made her one of the more talented members of the House. Naturally, it gave her some sway with their grandpa.


    ¡°What do you mean you¡¯re alright?!?!¡± she yelled. ¡°I found you on the floor! You¡¯ve been out cold for a week! I had to use my water magic to feed you soup!¡±


    Percy raised an eyebrow. He hadn¡¯t quite realised he¡¯d been unconscious for so long. He felt a pang of guilt for worrying her, but also a fuzzy feeling in his chest. If it wasn¡¯t for Elaine, they¡¯d have probably left him alone to die. That¡¯s assuming they even realized he was missing.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I tried to use Clone upon advancing and it had a weird interaction with my affinity¡­¡±


    Elaine let go of him, covering her mouth in surprise.


    ¡°Advancing?!?¡± she asked as she closed her eyes, trying to sense his mana. ¡°Oh my god! You¡¯ve reached Orange!¡±


    Percy rolled his eyes at her reaction. He knew she was just happy for him, but it wasn¡¯t that strange he had advanced. Most people took about 10 years for their first promotion, so reaching Orange at 15 was pretty much expected of him. If anything, nobles typically had access to resources doubling their purification speed. All his cousins had advanced at 10. Sadly, those resources weren¡¯t abundant enough to be wasted on lowly Reds. The world of Remior was a cruel one, where the talented were showered with resources, letting them grow even faster, while the rest were left in the dust. Elaine who was roughly the same age as him had already advanced to Green years ago.


    In any case, it was only a few seconds later that she seemed to grasp the rest of what he¡¯d said.


    ¡°Wait, you said you have Clone?! And an affinity?! I told grandpa to test you properly before writing you off!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, right. As if baldy would waste a copper on his worst grandkid.¡± Percy chuckled.


    Elaine flicked his forehead, causing him to wince.


    ¡°Stop calling him that! I know he needs to start treating you better, but this isn¡¯t helping!¡±


    Percy wanted to protest that it was just a shorthand for the guy¡¯s name. Archibald. Baldy. Also, he didn¡¯t have a single hair on his head, so it fit. But they¡¯d had that conversation before, and he was too tired to get into it again. In the end, he shrugged.


    ¡°Well, this is all wonderful news. Have you figured out what your affinity is?¡± she spoke again.


    Percy shook his head.


    ¡°No, but I¡¯m 100% sure I have one.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t just optimism speaking.


    Bloodlines were hereditary. Occasionally, somebody would fail to inherit one from their parents and on even rarer occasions their bloodline would mutate into a new direction. Still, for the most part they were passed along intact. Sear?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Affinities were hereditary. Sometimes, one would inherit one from their parents. Other times they wouldn¡¯t. But there were exceptions. The Clone bloodline his family possessed was strongly correlated with the rare life affinity. Most members of the Avalon House tended to inherit both, while few got neither. It was a potent combination which made their family one of the stronger noble Houses, even though they lacked a White core.


    Still, there had been instances over the centuries when individuals would be born with the Clone bloodline and a different affinity. And there had even been cases where people had the bloodline and no affinity. But no other combination ever did anything noteworthy. The only explanation for Percy¡¯s misadventure was that he had an affinity never before seen in his family.


    ¡°Then we need to ask grandpa to get you a proper test!¡± Elaine said, grabbing him by the forearm.


    He nearly stumbled as he was pulled, his legs still a bit wobbly, but he managed to follow her without falling.


    Truth be told, Percy wasn¡¯t exactly thrilled at the prospect of asking his grandpa for a favour. The man had never deigned to give him anything, despite the rosier version of him in Elaine¡¯s head.


    Still, he needed to figure out what his affinity was before he could even begin to understand how to use it. If he had to pay for the test himself it would take him several more years as he had already used up his savings for his advancement. So, in the end, he swallowed his pride and hoped his cousin would help advocate his case for him.


    Besides, baldy had something else he needed.

 Chapter 3: A meeting with baldy

    ¡°Come in.¡± an authoritative voice said.Elaine opened the door, dragging Percy behind her. The two found a man sitting at his desk, the afternoon sun reflected off the top of his head. Despite his shaved scalp, he didn¡¯t look old, his appearance was that of a burly man still in his late twenties, even though he had lived for centuries.


    ¡°Grandpa!¡± the girl said, clearly eager to share the good news.


    Archibald lifted his eyes, his gaze briefly lingering on Percy, before it returned to the documents he was reading. The latter rolled his eyes, realizing this was already a lost cause, but his cheerful cousin didn¡¯t seem ready to give up just yet. She bit her lower lip for a moment before speaking again.


    ¡°Grandpa, Percy is ok! He¨C¡±


    ¡°The answer is no.¡± the man cut her short.


    ¡°Just hear me out. He has managed to¨C¡±


    ¡°Elaine.¡± Archibald stopped her again. ¡°I can tell he¡¯s at Orange. It doesn¡¯t matter. It doesn¡¯t change anything. You know that already.¡±


    The girl deflated, looking down at her feet.


    On Remior, the most important trait determining one¡¯s achievements in life was the grade of their mana core at birth. Sure, one could continue to advance throughout their lives, but each promotion was exponentially more difficult than the one before. The first typically required about a decade, the second a century, the third a millennium and so on. Having access to more valuable resources could halve each of those milestones of course, but that didn¡¯t affect the way they scaled.


    At the same time, each subsequent grade typically tripled one¡¯s physical and magical ability as well as their remaining lifespan. Somebody who spent their whole life at Red would only live about 80 years at most, while somebody at Orange would get 240. Naturally, this meant that somebody like Percy would never get to Green in his life. Having reached Orange at 15, he could maybe hope to reach Yellow by 115 and then remain stuck at that level until he died of old age at 400.


    Even if his grandpa decided to treat him to the same resources his cousins had access to and he reached Yellow by 65, he would only live to about 500, which wouldn¡¯t be enough for the next grade. By comparison, somebody born at Orange ¨C just one grade above Percy ¨C could potentially live for thousands of years and reach all the way to Blue ¨C two grades above him.


    As for those born at Yellow like Elaine and Archibald, they could even reach Violet and White, living up to 40000 years! Percy¡¯s grandpa was already at Violet, having lived for over 700 years, but he still had several millennia of lifespan left as well as the hope of reaching White.


    Elaine clenched her fists.


    ¡°He can still be of value to the family. His mana core and lifespan may be capped at Yellow, but he can still pass his bloodline and affinity on!¡± she said.


    For the first time since the two walked into the room, Archibald raised his eyebrows. He tossed another look at his grandson, this time not so quick to dismiss him.


    ¡°You¡¯ve used Clone?¡± he asked.


    Percy nodded.


    ¡°Actually it? There have been others without the life affinity in the past, but water clones and pure clones just disperse.¡± Archibald asked again.


    ¡°It definitely did interesting. As for what exactly, I don¡¯t fully understand it yet.¡±


    His grandpa furrowed his brow at the implications. Noticing that, Elaine was over the moon.


    ¡°See? Even if Percy can¡¯t become too powerful himself, his could start a new branch of the family! We should invest in him!¡±


    Archibald tapped his fingers on the mahogany desk for a few seconds, seemingly lost in thought.


    ¡°What you said makes some sense. We¡¯ve never had another useful affinity paired with Clone. If the new bundle is truly useful and easy to pass on, it could indeed be good for the family.¡± he said.


    Elaine clapped her hands, excited to receive a positive response, but her grandpa spoke again.


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    ¡°However, that doesn¡¯t mean we should spend cultivation resources on Percy. 400 years are more than enough for him to sire plenty of children. He doesn¡¯t need to be stronger to do that.¡±


    Percy gritted his teeth. As much as he would have liked those resources, he was more annoyed by the callousness of his grandpa, treating him more like an asset than family. Still, he had agreed to follow Elaine here for a reason, so he didn¡¯t let it get to him as he spoke again. S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want your cultivation resources. I¡¯m only asking for a better affinity test. After all, that can help us both figure out how the bloodline works in my case.¡±


    The man looked him in the eyes for a while.


    ¡°Very well. Gawain will accompany you for the trip. Elaine too. She can use some experience.¡±


    Archibald turned back to the scroll, not leaving much room for debate. Still, this worked for Percy and Elaine too, so they rushed out of the office before their grandpa changed his mind.


    As they walked back to his room, he replayed the conversation in his mind, his hands balled into fists, drained of all colour. Faced with his grandfather¡¯s coldness, Percy had come this close to spilling the beans on his second mana core. He wanted to see baldy¡¯s face twist as he learned the grandson he treated like trash had achieved something no human ever had. Not the White cores. Not even the lofty existences in the Divine Order could boast of such a feat.


    had stolen the most important secret of one of the strongest races in the universe! had done that! With a worthless Orange core.


    But he¡¯d held himself back. First of all, it sounded quite unbelievable, and he couldn¡¯t exactly prove it. Speaking of the event might have made his grandpa think he was lying about the whole thing and robbed him of the affinity test. More importantly, he owed him nothing. If it wasn¡¯t for Elaine, he would have left this shitty family already. Whatever his second core meant for him, he would discover on his own and forge his own path.


    His biggest regret was that he needed to get close to his grandpa¡¯s treasured tree. It was his family¡¯s most prized possession, and he hoped it was precisely the potent source of life mana he needed to germinate the seed.


    But it didn¡¯t matter. He knew where it was. He could figure out a way to sneak there later. Besides, he still needed to find a source of mind mana for this to work. Thinking of something, he grinned. As it so happened, the advanced affinity test would be held at precisely such a place.


    The duo were about to enter Percy¡¯s room, but he stopped at the entrance. This caused Elaine to look at him in concern.


    ¡°Percy¡­ Don¡¯t let this get to you¡­ If your affinity is really useful, we can convince him to give you more resources later.¡±


    He chuckled.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that. I¡¯ve just realized that I haven¡¯t even tried practicing with my core since it evolved. Between everything that happened with the bloodline, I never got the chance.¡±


    As he was about to head to the training grounds, she grabbed his arm again.


    ¡°Seriously?! You were in a coma for a week, and we are about to head out in a couple of days. What you need right now is to get some rest.¡±


    Percy looked her in the eyes as his lips curled and parted. Smiling he said, ¡°thanks.¡±


    Seeing her forehead crease in confusion, he hurriedly added, ¡°for caring. You¡¯re the only one who does. But I still need to do this.¡±


    Then he walked away, leaving her behind.


    It was true he could use some sleep. His mind was still exhausted, his body weak. But he had to get stronger soon. He understood there weren¡¯t many people he could rely on. No handouts for him. Everything he needed, he had to fight for.


    Soon, he reached the training grounds. Just a section of the garden really. He briefly paused to appreciate the birds chirping on the trees, and the squirrels bolting up and down their trunks. Then, he walked to the middle of the grass, facing a wide, dead oak tree that people typically used for target practice. Nobody else was around right now. His cousins rarely trained. They were mostly content lazing around and gulping expensive elixirs that cleansed their cores and lengthened their lives. They didn¡¯t need to practice their magic to be stronger than the likes of .


    Shaking the irritating thoughts away, he raised his palm towards the aged trunk and willed his mana to accumulate in his hand. He held it, until the pressure in both his core and mind became unbearable and then he released it.


    A faint distortion phased through the tree but didn¡¯t do much else.


    Percy wasn¡¯t exactly surprised. His unknown affinity had done nothing back at Red, besides giving people a slight chilling sensation. It was to the point that nobody was sure he even had an affinity back then. But he now knew he did, so he was determined to make it count.


    He gathered more mana, this time holding it a moment longer and trying to condense it even further before firing. It still didn¡¯t do anything, but he didn¡¯t care.


    He kept firing, bolt after bolt, minute after minute, hour after hour. Every so often, he would take a break to refill his core, before resuming his practice. By the time he fell to his knees, the sun had already set. He had practiced as long as he could. And then some. But it wasn¡¯t enough. Not nearly enough.


    They all looked down on him. He didn¡¯t care about most of them. He was used to it by now. But he cared that looked down on him. Unlike the others, she didn¡¯t do it on purpose. She didn¡¯t do it maliciously. But she did it all the same. She had been he had reached at . As if it was some great achievement. She had pushed him to beg for scraps from their grandpa. .


    But ¡¯d never given up on . He was the only one who knew. His heart too thrummed with ambition. And one day he would show them.

 Chapter 4: Whistling Woods

    SIGH¡°Let¡¯s just get this over with.¡± a man seemingly in his twenties said as he climbed on his horse. S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    His hair was a light blue colour, like Elaine¡¯s. His face sported eight or nine points of similarity to hers too. He was Gawain, her father. Funnily enough, he had reached Green about the same time as his daughter, despite being around fifty years older. It was the inevitable consequence of being born at Orange and having a child more talented than he was. That, coupled with the fact his branch of the family hadn¡¯t inherited the bloodline, meant his status had only ever been slightly higher than the likes of Percy. At least until Elaine came along.


    ¡°Sure.¡± Percy nodded, getting on a second horse, with his cousin right behind them on a third.


    He didn¡¯t dislike this uncle of his like the others. They¡¯d never talked much, and it wasn¡¯t like Gawain had ever particularly shown any care for him, but at least he wasn¡¯t among the crowd mistreating him either. If he to be escorted to the temple ¨C and he have to, it was a long and dangerous trip ¨C then he wouldn¡¯t have picked anyone else.


    The horses galloped forward, Percy already feeling excited about their destination. He was still tired of course, having trained relentlessly over the last three days, but the thought of finally learning his affinity after being in the dark his whole life was invigorating.


    he grinned.


    ¡°You seem to be in good spirits today.¡± Elaine chirped as her horse neared his.


    ¡°Well, . Us don¡¯t get to leave the House very often.¡± he chuckled.


    This earned him a casual punch in the shoulder.


    He rubbed the ¡®injured¡¯ area in an exaggerated manner. He made it seem like a joke but truth be told, it did hurt some. Elaine had two grades on him, which translated to a ninefold advantage in physical strength. Even a light tap from her felt heavier than she realized.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see if you¡¯re still as cheery after two weeks on horseback.¡± she replied with a smile of her own.


    The trio pressed onward for several more hours, with Elaine and Percy chatting at the back, while Gawain ignored them, riding a few paces ahead.


    Soon, they entered a forest. It smelled fresh, especially to Percy who hadn¡¯t ever breathed anything other than the stale air of the mansion. On each side of the path, he saw rows upon rows of tall and wide pine trees, their cones a strange oblong shape, their surface filled with small holes. Every now and then, a gentle breeze would blow, causing them to emit soft high-pitched sounds. It was precisely this unique variety of trees which made the ¡°Whistling Woods¡± famous in the region.


    Only when the sun began to set did Gawain stop, gesturing at them to help him set up camp. They¡¯d have to spend four nights in the forest, and another two along the grasslands on the other side, before reaching the foot of the mountain where the temple was located on the seventh.


    ¡°Uncle, how safe are these woods even?¡± Percy asked, as he gazed at the imposing trees which already looked much scarier than they had just minutes ago.


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    Gawain chuckled.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry kid. The most dangerous thing we can run into is a pack of wood goblins. A simple Crude spell from a Green core can easily kill a whole bunch of them.¡±


    Percy looked at his grinning cousin, his uncle¡¯s words reminding him that the innocent-looking girl was really a little monster in disguise.


    Shrugging, he finished preparing his tent, before sitting by the campfire with the others and eating some dried rations. The group dined in silence, as he and Elaine had already spent all day chatting.


    Next, his uncle went to sleep, leaving the two to take the first watch together. Percy was too weak to take a shift by himself. If they were ambushed, he might not be able to do much before waking the others. Consequently, Gawain and Elaine had to split the night between themselves, with Percy simply serving as a second pair of eyes for his cousin.


    In the end, their first night at the Whistling Woods passed uneventfully, as did the one after. It wasn¡¯t until the third day they stumbled upon a grizzly bear, but it actually fled from them on sight. Most animals on Remior ¨C even the ones which didn¡¯t possess magic of their own ¨C had evolved the ability to sense another¡¯s mana core, mostly to avoid danger.


    ***


    Percy rolled his eyes.


    While Elaine had been a bit tense at the beginning, she had noticeably relaxed over the past few nights. This was the second time she dozed off an hour before their shift ended. He felt bad waking her up, especially since nothing would happen most likely. Still, he knew he couldn¡¯t protect the group by himself on the off chance it did.


    ¡°Elaine.¡± he muttered, trying to get her to hear him, without waking his uncle who was sleeping just a dozen yards further.


    Yet, he didn¡¯t even hear his own voice. Come to think of it, even the whistling sound of the wind passing through the trees seemed to have gone silent.


    He frowned.


    ¡°ELAINE!!!¡± he yelled again, this time not caring about waking Gawain by accident.


    Nothing. He felt his vocal cords vibrate, but not a sound came out of his mouth. Paling, he darted towards her, hoping to shake his cousin awake.


    An arrow landed soundlessly just in front of his foot, stopping him in his tracks. Another soon followed, this one whizzing by him, nicking him in the shoulder. Turning to look in the direction the projectiles had been fired from, he only spotted several pairs of bright yellow eyes glinting in the darkness.


    he thought, right as a third arrow hit him in the thigh.


    Gritting his teeth, he resumed his dash to Elaine. She was only four meters away, though they now felt longer as he limped, barely dodging the fourth arrow by accident.


    He was about to reach her, when the fifth arrow hit his other calf, sending him tumbling on the dirt. Normally, the sound should have woken her up as he was only half a meter away, but something was still muting all noise in the area.


    Percy stretched his arm, trying to reach her foot as he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye.


    Turning his head, he saw a silhouette standing over him. It wasn¡¯t very tall, probably shorter than he was. Still, the savage look in its eyes, coupled with the glint of its weapon¡¯s edge ¨C some kind of hatchet most likely ¨C were enough to convince him of the danger it posed.


    As if by instinct, he turned his palm the way of the creature, repeating the same move he¡¯d been practicing over the days leading to the trip. He hurled the mana a second sooner than he would have liked. While he could have charged it some more, he had to stop his assailant before it swung its weapon.


    Not even waiting to see if it had any effect, he reached for his cousin, this time succeeding. The girl¡¯s eyes snapped open, as did her mouth. She tried to scream, but he couldn¡¯t hear her.


    Luckily, she regained her wits a moment later. Just in time too, as she was already surrounded by three more of the fiends. A quick flash of azure later, and the upper bodies of all four of the goblins ¨C including the one still standing motionless over Percy ¨C were cleanly separated from their legs.


    Another spell sent a bucketful of water splashing over her father, waking him up.


    PHEW


    Percy let out a breath he hadn¡¯t even noticed he was holding, as his relatives rounded up the remaining goblins. The creatures tried to run away of course, but their short legs couldn¡¯t possibly outrun a Green cored human¡¯s.


    Only now did he take the time to examine the arrows sticking out of his flesh.


    so much

 Chapter 5: Affinities

    A young man rode his horse, his short black hair glistening with sweat.His forehead creased as he tried to keep his mind off the discomfort, focusing on the feeling in his palms. Every few seconds, he released the gathered mana, trying to gather a bit more of it with each attempt and to compress it to an even tighter ball before letting go. Riding made concentrating a challenge, but it was the only way he¡¯d found to keep his thoughts occupied. And he managed to pull it off ¨C for the most part. At least until his horse stepped on something and the bump made him wince.


    Elaine hadn¡¯t said much over the last couple of days. Well, if he excluded her frequent apologies. She¡¯d already told him how sorry she was over falling asleep a million times. And here she was, approaching him for the million-and-first.


    SPLASH


    A beautiful azure ribbon snaked towards him, gently caressing the wounds on his legs. It felt cool and soft, soothing the sting briefly. Still, it couldn¡¯t heal him. Back at home, life users were a copper a dozen, and any one of them could patch him up rather easily. Hell, it would take baldy less than a second if he deigned to waste his mana on him. Sadly, both of his escorts for this trip had the water affinity instead. Such was the cruelty of genetics. He¡¯d have to put up with this for another week.


    ¡°Percy¡­ I¡¯m so so, sorry!¡± she said again, as he raised his hand to stop her.


    By now he felt a bit bad seeing her squirm. He was tempted to undersell his injuries to make her feel better. After all, the only reason she and her dad were accompanying him in the first place was because had pleaded to their grandpa for sake. But Percy wasn¡¯t the best actor. He couldn¡¯t downplay the pain. Besides, learning from this mistake would serve her well in the future. Even prodigies couldn¡¯t be careless in the wilderness.


    ¡°Just be careful from now on.¡± is what he ended up saying.


    However, upon seeing her downtrodden expression, he couldn¡¯t help himself.


    ¡°It was an accident anyway. Who would¡¯ve thought we¡¯d run into a goblin mage of all things.¡± he added.


    Most of the creatures were born at Red which was one of the reasons his cousins had often called him ¡°goblin¡± among other names. A goblin born at Orange was actually rarer than a human born at Yellow. Even then, they wouldn¡¯t necessarily figure out how to use their magic.


    he chuckled.


    Still, the most surprising part about the attack was the affinity it had used. According to Gawain, the silencing effect had most likely been the result of a Crude sound spell.


    Mana affinities typically came in four flavours. The five elemental affinities were the most common. About eighty percent of humans on Remior were born with fire, water, air, earth or lightning cores. Next were those born without an affinity. About one in five fell into this category. . Not that pure mana was entirely useless. Concentrated, it could still pack a punch. Still, a blast of pure mana was typically about a full grade weaker than it was supposed to be.


    Less than 1% of the population was born with anything else. This number was further split into two groups. One included the rare affinities such as space, time, life, mind and so on. Those were generally difficult to pass on. His family was an exception, as their Clone bloodline allowed nearly half of them to be born with a life core. It was one of the reasons the Avalon House was so respected. The final group were those born with a composite affinity. It was nothing more than the combination of two elemental ones. The sound affinity the goblin had used was a result of air and lightning mana mixing.


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    As for anything else?


    Well, nobody had ever heard of a triple elemental affinity or a double rare affinity.


    In any case, Elaine nodded, letting him return to his practice. Percy willed the mana to gather in his hand once more, as he recalled the moment he used it against the goblin.


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    The blast hadn¡¯t left any visible injuries on the creature¡¯s body, but it had stopped it in its tracks for an abnormal amount of time. It had just stood still, waiting for Elaine to bisect it several seconds later.


    SIGH


    He¡¯d already waited fifteen years. He could wait another day. For now, he was better off just learning how to shape his magic. Bolt after bolt, he kept firing his mana randomly, working on both his cast time and potency. It wasn¡¯t until they rode up a hill that Elaine pulled him out of the trance again.


    ¡°Percy! Look!¡±


    Lifting his eyes, he saw it. A colossal shadow stretched across the horizon. It was faintly obscured by a strange rosy mist, but there was no mistaking it.


    This was their destination. Or well, the temple located somewhere at its base was.


    The trio pressed on for another few hours, before setting camp at night. Elaine was visibly tense, hawking their surroundings as if her life depended on it.


    Percy chuckled at the sight.


    The grasslands be more dangerous than the forest, as bandits typically roamed them, looking for easy targets. But not this close to the temple. According to Gawain, even the dumbest lowlifes knew not to provoke the affiliates of the Divine Order. His cousin didn¡¯t seem to know that, however. Her dad hadn¡¯t told her, probably still punishing her. Percy wouldn¡¯t interfere in their family matters.


    Looking back towards the mountain, he tried to make out the layer of mist surrounding it. But he couldn¡¯t see it. He knew it was still there, but it was invisible against the dark blanket of the night.


    He rubbed his hands in anticipation. Even though he¡¯d never had the opportunity to travel much, he¡¯d spent a lot of time in the House¡¯s library, reading all sorts of things about Remior and the upper echelons of the world. Those were the heights of magic he dreamt of reaching one day!


    The weirdly coloured fog was one of his targets for the trip. Supposedly, it was a gift from the titaness, Phoebe, the current leader of the Divine Order. Showering the mountain range, it trickled down the rocky slopes and accumulated at a basin, where it was used by the temple as fuel for the affinity test. Similar locations existed all around Remior. As far as he knew, the Order was interested in getting children evaluated early on, to fish out the talents among them, replenishing their ranks. But more importantly, Percy was interested in the rosy mist was.


    Mind mana.


    And in just a few hours he would practically be bathing in it. Swimming inside a sea of it. Inhaling it with every breath. If this wasn¡¯t enough for his second core, he genuinely had no clue where to find a better source.


    He was almost tempted to jump on his horse and ride towards it right then and there. But he didn¡¯t feel like explaining to his cousin and uncle why he was so eager. It wasn¡¯t like the priests performed appraisals during the night. Plus, horseback rather painful for him.


    In the end, he shrugged, resuming his practice as he formed a colourless blob of mana in his hand, squeezing it down into a transparent ball, about the size of a tangerine.


    He wasn¡¯t sure if he had improved at all. One typically needed weeks if not months of work before they noticed a difference. Not days. At least, he could train a lot more since his advancement. He was able to store more mana than before and to recover it much faster. Still, despite all his efforts, his Status page had not bothered to register his magic. Apparently, he hadn¡¯t even crossed the threshold of a Crude spell yet.


    Of course, Percy knew that if his magic hadn¡¯t registered yet, it probably meant he was using it incorrectly. It certainly didn¡¯t seem to have any physical effect, so he¡¯d considered it might be mind mana. That would explain how the blast had disoriented the creature. But that didn¡¯t sound right. His colourless mana didn¡¯t look anything like the rosy mist surrounding the mountain¡­

 Chapter 6: Pilgrimage

    Waiting in a queue must have been a novel experience for Elaine.There weren¡¯t that many people in their House. Being one of the chosen ones, she was generally given priority for most things. Strictly speaking, the same was true here. Just like everywhere else on Remior. . Still, the sheer number of people waiting their turn was simply staggering. Even the lucky groups who had a Yellow-born among them easily numbered in the triple digits, which meant the trio would have to spend the better part of the morning in the line.


    Percy on the other hand was amazed he got to skip of the wait for a change. He flashed the Orange-borns behind him an apologetic expression, not too comfortable cutting in line. It wasn¡¯t like he particularly minded waiting at the back either. For one, he was already used to such things by now.


    More importantly, this was perhaps the only time he he could stay here longer. Well, ok. He was naturally eager to find out his affinity, plus his legs were killing him. Elaine was propping him up right now which wasn¡¯t exactly ideal. Still, he had another reason for taking his sweet time.


    Soon after entering the valley, he quickly verified his guess had been correct. Once the density of mind mana around him increased to the point where each breath carried with it a sliver of the rosy mist, he felt a part of his body stir. It wasn¡¯t his sternum, where his original core ¨C everyone¡¯s core ¨C was located. Instead, this was happening in his abdomen. He hadn¡¯t been able to examine his temporary alien body for long enough, but it seemed that¡¯s where the second mana core took root.


    In any case, he¡¯d be happy to get one on his if it meant giving him an edge.


    [??? (Fractured)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life and mind mana to germinate.


    The text in his Status read the same, as his abdomen continued to suck the mind mana like a gluttonous vortex. Percy even made a conscious effort to take deeper, more frequent breaths. He didn¡¯t know if it would help, but it couldn¡¯t hurt. ? He had no idea how much mana the seed needed to ¡®germinate¡¯, although he hoped he would manage to collect enough by the time they had to leave. sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    But he shook his head. This was too important to leave up to chance.


    If necessary, he¡¯d make up some excuse to get Gawain to wait here for a couple more days. He knew his uncle wouldn¡¯t be thrilled, but if he told him his injuries were acting up, the man would listen. .


    Percy then looked around to pass the time. There were two types of people standing in the queue.


    Some wore finer clothes, much like them. They were nobles of various Houses. And he recognized many of their insignias, having stumbled upon them in his studies. All in all, there weren¡¯t too many prominent Houses on Remior, only about a thousand. Each required a Violet core at minimum to survive, and they didn¡¯t exactly grow on trees. Even Yellow-borns had to guzzle down expensive elixirs for several centuries and survive countless assassination attempts to get to that point. Only 1% of them did.


    The second group were dressed in simpler clothes, ranging from worn linen outfits to dirty rags. Those were the commoners. They rarely had a bloodline of their own, and even the few who had one didn¡¯t particularly stand out, as it was obviously not powerful enough to help them establish a House. Still, even the poorest commoner could give birth to a Yellow cored baby. And the Divine Order made sure that all the talented kids were given a chance to rise in the world.


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    he sneered.


    Both the nobles and the peasants had a few things in common. First, every group escorted at least one toddler, about five years old. Furthermore, all of those kids were Orange-born at a minimum. Percy¡¯s was the only group who escorted a Red-born teenager, earning him no small number of disdainful stares.


    As annoying as it was, it made sense really. Phoebe was powerful, but she couldn¡¯t fill the whole world with mind mana. Instead, she mostly focused it on places such as this temple which administrated the more advanced test.


    Beyond that, she also mass-produced a lot of trinkets, which smaller temples used for a more basic version of the test. Kids were typically brought to one of the minor sites at 5, where their Status was awakened, and the grade of the core measured. From there, all the promising kids would be brought to temples like this by their parents, to be tested further.


    It was possible for a Red-born to pay for an advanced test of course, but most of them didn¡¯t bother. After all, few had a rare affinity or a bloodline they couldn¡¯t identify on their own. Even fewer had the disposable income to waste on such a pointless endeavour.


    Sadly, Percy was out of luck in that department too. First of all, both his parents had been Red-born like him. Secondly, they had both been killed along with most of the other Red-borns of the family in a nasty attack from a rival House, only a couple years after his birth.


    He was only brought out of his thoughts when it was their turn to enter the temple. The structure looked even more grand from up close. It had a strange shape, its roof like a staircase of progressively smaller concentric rings, rising about a hundred meters to the sky. Each of those steps were lined with rows of marble statues, depicting various men and women, their features more beautiful than any mortal he had ever seen. The figures were polished and immaculate, clearly enchanted to weather dust and rain alike.


    Each of the temples supposedly depicted statues of every single god that had ever risen in the history of Remior. Apparently, whenever a new one emerged, another statue was added. Not that it happened often.


    ¡°The test is only free for Orange-borns and above.¡± a male voice said.


    Percy looked at the guard who had just spoken. He was a tall blond guy appearing to be in his late twenties, possessing a Green core like his uncle. He wore a funny-looking toga and a pair of sandals, holding an intricate spear that looked more decorative than suited for combat, as did the other guard opposite him. The two had crossed their weapons, blocking the way to the tall golden gate of the temple.


    ¡°Naturally.¡± said Gawain, handing him a heavy pouch filled with coins.


    The guard opened it to check its contents, allowing Percy to partially glimpse at their golden lustre.


    GULP


    At that point, he realized the test was even more expensive than he¡¯d thought. If he hadn¡¯t convinced baldy to subsidize him, gods-knew how long he would have needed to pay his own way.


    A few steps into the temple, Elaine spoke.


    ¡°Dad, why do they charge so much for a simple test? Aren¡¯t they just making things difficult for Red-borns?¡±


    Gawain shook his head.


    ¡°Listen, Elaine. I know it seems unfair, but the Divine Order genuinely wants what¡¯s best for Remior.¡±


    ¡°But then why?! Isn¡¯t it best to help everyone figure out their affinity?!¡±


    ¡°In a perfect world, yes. But it takes a tremendous amount of mind mana to perform the test and Red-borns are 60% of the population. There just isn¡¯t enough for everyone.¡±


    Percy who was only partially listening to their conversation felt cold sweat trickle down his back.


    The density of the mist had already tripled by the time they reached the temple, but that wasn¡¯t even worth mentioning compared to the changes upon entering it. Inside, it was easily a dozen times thicker, to the point where they could barely watch where they stepped. And even worse, the seed in Percy¡¯s abdomen didn¡¯t seem to care about optics, only doubling its efforts to absorb it. By now, he could even see the mist spiral around his mouth if he paid close attention. He was forced to slow down his breaths, trying to hide what was happening.


    So focused was he on doing so, that he failed to notice when Gawain stopped walking, crashing into his uncle.


    ¡°Ouch!¡± he said, rubbing his forehead.


    It felt more like he¡¯d bumped into a wall than a person.


    Gawain tossed a glare his way to shut him up, when Percy realized they weren¡¯t alone.

 Chapter 7: The most ancient art

    A beautiful woman stood in front of them, dressed in elegant red clothes, wearing a tiara adorned with rubies on her head. Percy¡¯s Mana Sense revealed her core thrumming with an intimidating Blue colour ¨C a grade higher than the two attendants by her side. The High Priestess didn¡¯t seem to mind his previous lack of attentiveness, flashing him a bright smile, before gesturing at another golden door. It was half as tall as the other one.¡°Please enter the pool inside and extract some mana out of your core. The enchantments will take care of the rest.¡±


    Percy frowned.


    ¡°Alone? Don¡¯t you have to¡­ I don¡¯t know, supervise people?¡±


    Gawain shook his head as the High Priestess tilted hers.


    ¡°Why? Are you planning to damage the sacred pool?¡± she asked.


    GULP


    ¡°Er, no? I mean, definitely not! I just thought¡­ Isn¡¯t it too precious to leave unattended?¡±


    She chuckled.


    ¡°I¡¯m just messing with you. The evaluation is a private affair. Nobody can force you to disclose the results against your will. As for the integrity of the pool, you don¡¯t need to worry about it. Even I can¡¯t put a scratch on the materials and nobody below Violet could possibly snatch any of the concentrated mana in there.¡±


    Outwardly, he only nodded before limping towards the door.


    ¡°Do you need somebody to accompany you?¡± the High Priestess asked again as she saw his injuries.


    But he shook his head, cupping his fists politely. He really didn¡¯t want anybody watching¡­ whatever was about to go down in there.


    He rushed forward, as quickly as he could manage, wincing with every step. Luckily, nobody seemed to notice anything was off. It was probably normal for those undertaking the test to be excited. It was a significant turning point in their lives after all. However, that wasn¡¯t what Percy was thinking. He was holding his breath, trying to mask the suspicious flow of mist.


    As soon as the golden doors closed behind him, he looked at the only thing in the room. It was a circular basin, with a diameter of about 20 feet, filled to the brim with a dense red liquid that looked a bit like glowing blood.


    DRIP


    The liquid rippled as something fell in the middle of the pool. Looking up, Percy saw the mist swirl and gather at the ceiling. A decorated stalagmite-like structure appeared to collect and condense it. Its edge was shaped like the beak of a large bird, as a droplet enlarged, held in the tiny gap between its two points. Once it grew large enough, it fell.


    DRIP


    he thought as he undressed.


    Sadly, that was nothing but wishful thinking.


    Not even a moment after he dipped his toes into the pool, all hell broke loose. The seed in his abdomen didn¡¯t bother waiting for him to inhale the mist anymore. A violent suction force emerged from his belly, directly causing the liquid to flow up his skin, making its way to it.


    Percy panicked. The commotion could easily draw the attention of the High Priestess. He tried to step back, but his foot was stuck in the flowing liquid. He put more strength, trying to extricate his body, causing the red material to stretch like rubber, before snapping back, pulling him into the pool.


    SPLASH


    The sound was muted, as the fluid was already coiling around him.


    Not only was it travelling up and through his skin, but also down his throat.


    Percy used all his strength to stand up. It was hard and it took him several seconds to right himself. Even when he did, he couldn¡¯t bring his head out of the liquid, as he was covered from top to bottom like a crimson snowman. He tried to claw the material out of his face, but it didn¡¯t help. More kept flowing to replace it. Dizzy, he fell to his knees, his consciousness slipping. Percy thought he was a goner, when the flow suddenly eased up. It quickly lost its viscosity, falling back into the pool, trickling down his skin.


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    But he wasn¡¯t out of the woods just yet. His second core was clearly a sloppy eater, having failed to clean up after its mess. The liquid outside his body had stopped hugging him, but that didn¡¯t help with the part still in his lungs. Percy desperately hit his chest, trying to cough the substance out, with limited success.


    That would be such a dumb way to die.


    Thinking of something, he climbed out of the pool, feeling an attractive force tugging at the liquid in his lungs. The High Priestess wasn¡¯t kidding when she said nobody could steal it from this place. He opened his mouth, letting it flow out. But it was still slow, and he was running out of time.


    Suddenly, he had another bright idea. Reaching for the mana inside his core, he followed the High Priestess¡¯s instructions, beginning the assessment in earnest. This was what he was actually here for after all. Soon, a few runes lit up on the walls and on the floor of the room, as the volume of the liquid still in his lungs began to decrease and the mana in his core to drain.


    PANT, PANT, PANT


    The taste of air was so sweet when he could finally breathe properly again.


    KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK


    ¡°What¡¯s taking so long?! Are you ok in there?!¡± a female voice asked.


    Percy didn¡¯t recognize it. He guessed she was one of the attendants.


    ¡°Yeah, everything is fine! Sorry! It took me a while to figure it out!¡±


    The voice remained silent for a couple of seconds. Percy wasn¡¯t sure if she had bought his lousy excuse or if she was still trying to process it. .


    ¡°What¡¯s there to figure out?!?! Please tell me you haven¡¯t pissed inside the sacred pool!!¡± she yelled again, this time a hint of anger seeping through.


    He scratched his head, unsure what to say.


    ¡°What?! Of course not! Who do you take me for?!¡± was what he ended up going with.


    Next, he took another look at the pool. Its surface was a couple feet deeper than before. Evidently, he¡¯d already drained about a third of the volume.


    he chuckled awkwardly.


    Then he raised an eyebrow.


    But he shook his head. He had desecrated the holy goo enough for a day.


    Next, he picked up his clothes, pulling up his Status as he dressed. Maybe he should have waited until he was safely out of this place before worrying about it, but he figured he might as well check it now in case they murdered him and he never got the chance.


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[??? (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.


    The changes were small but important. Not only had he finally learned he possessed the soul affinity, but the trait granting him the second mana core had graduated from ¡°Fractured¡± to ¡°Incomplete¡±. It now only needed life mana, which meant Percy was merely a step away! Now he just had to make it out of the temple in one piece.


    Exiting the room, he found all five people giving him strange looks.


    ¡°What?! I¡¯m injured, it took me ages to undress.¡± he shrugged.


    The attendants eyed him suspiciously, but luckily the person who had the final word ¨C the High Priestess ¨C didn¡¯t dwell on it.


    ¡°Alright. I trust everything went well then?¡± she asked.


    Percy nodded.


    ¡°Great! As I said before, you don¡¯t have to disclose your affinity if you don¡¯t want to. Still, if you are willing to share it, we can give you some basic guidance.¡±


    Hearing that, he raised an eyebrow. It was indeed a tempting offer. A soul affinity was even rarer than others and he doubted he could learn much from the library. He opened his mouth to speak, when one of the attendants beat him to it.


    ¡°Mother! He¡¯s already wasted more than enough time!¡±


    Percy recognized the voice as the one that had spoken to him earlier.


    ¡°Erythea.¡± the High Priestess said in a stern tone. ¡°Basic guidance is a part of the service.¡±


    The attendant gritted her teeth.


    ¡°But he¡¯s just a Red-born! There are hundreds of kids waiting outside!¡± she protested.


    The second attendant didn¡¯t say anything, but Percy guessed he agreed with his colleague based on his expression. Luckily for Percy, the High Priestess didn¡¯t.


    ¡°And that¡¯s why he had to pay a hefty sum to be tested. Now that he has, he deserves the same treatment as everyone else.¡±


    Her daughter, or subordinate, or whatever Erythea was, clearly didn¡¯t like the response, storming off to the room he¡¯d just exited.


    Though the High Priestess didn¡¯t seem to pay her any heed. She turned to him, evidently still waiting for his answer. Percy looked at his uncle, wondering if it would be ok to reveal this information. After all, depending on how things went, it could easily become a secret of House Avalon.


    ¡°Go on. The High Priestess can be trusted.¡± Gawain said.


    He nodded at his uncle before speaking.


    ¡°Eh, yes. Some guidance sounds peachy. I have a soul affinity.¡±


    Everyone seemed surprised to hear that.


    ¡°Interesting.¡± the High Priestess said, before turning to Gawain. ¡°And I take it Archibald wouldn¡¯t have sent him here if he hadn¡¯t inherited the bloodline too¡­ Is House Avalon about to develop a new branch?¡±


    ¡°That is very much our patriarch¡¯s hope.¡± Gawain said.


    Percy was surprised his uncle hadn¡¯t hesitated for even a moment before replying. He couldn¡¯t tell if he knew her personally, or if all the Order¡¯s clergy deserved such trust. She seemed ready to offer a few words of advice, when a shriek came out of the room.


    THUD


    The gates slammed open, Erythea storming out, her face red like a ripe tomato.


    ¡°WHAT DID YOU DO?!?¡± she grabbed Percy by the collar, shaking him like a doll.


    The High Priestess grabbed her wrist to calm her down, but didn¡¯t speak, only flashing her a questioning gaze.


    ¡°Half the condensed mana is gone!!!¡± Erythea yelled, causing everyone¡¯s faces to fall. They all looked at Percy, demanding an explanation.


    GULP


    Knowing he didn¡¯t exactly have that many options, he fell back to the most ancient art invented by mankind. sea??h th§× n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°I found it like that.¡±

 Chapter 8: Soul

    Percy and his relatives barely managed to escape with their lives, leaping out of the wolves¡¯ den by the skin of their teeth. Ok, maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration. The High Priestess let them go. Not that Percy¡¯s hastily constructed lie was particularly believable, but at the end of the day there wasn¡¯t any evidence incriminating him. After all, she had said it herself. Nobody below Violet could steal the dense mind mana, let alone an Orange cored teenager.


    While she had certainly seemed somewhat colder during their subsequent interactions, in the end she did give him some tips on how to train with his affinity like she had promised.


    That was why he was squinting really hard right now, trying to peer into Elaine¡¯s soul.


    ¡°Cut it out, will you?!¡± she grunted in annoyance. ¡°What did you even do in there?¡±


    ¡°I tested for my affinity.¡± he shrugged.


    His cousin rolled her eyes.


    ¡°Fine, keep your secrets. Just try not to get us all killed next time.¡±


    Percy was about to comment on the irony of her statement, but in the end, he chose to let it slide. He was too busy to walk into another argument.


    The High Priestess had explained that the soul affinity be used for offense. Even though it wasn¡¯t good at affecting physical objects, there were ways to shape it into a potent weapon against living things. What he had done to that goblin was proof enough it was possible, but it still didn¡¯t explain why Percy was so bad at it. After all, even a Red core could easily injure somebody with a fireball or a stone shard. Why had he needed to advance to Orange before he could stun a single goblin temporarily?


    Hearing his worries, she had advised him to start by developing something called a Soul Vision. Simply put, it was just a specialised version of the basic Mana Sense that everyone had upon awakening their core. Soul Vision made use of his affinity to observe another¡¯s soul directly. Once he managed to pull that off, he could more easily understand what he had been doing wrong with his magic.


    The trio finally made it to their horses, much to Percy¡¯s relief. As painful as riding was, it was several times better than walking. Only after they headed off did he resume training, willing the soul mana to build up in his eyes. This time, he focused on his uncle, to avoid his cousin¡¯s complaints.


    Getting rudimentary version of Soul Vision to work wasn¡¯t too difficult. Even the slightest trickle of mana allowed him to see things he couldn¡¯t previously. The main challenge was fine-tuning the process, to make this new sense of his as effective as possible.


    If he used too little mana, Gawain¡¯s soul was barely visible, appearing as a few faint wisps of silver swirling around his chest. Using more than necessary on the other hand was like pulling wool in front of his eyes, as the excess soul mana itself obscured his sight. The trick was to get used to exactly the right amount, so that he could discern his uncle¡¯s soul without obstructing it.


    He knew it was just a matter of practice until he nailed it, but he did hope he could get it done by the time they returned to the Whistling Woods. He would need it for the next part of his training after all.


    ***


    Percy sent another clump of mana to his right eye.


    As that happened, Gawain¡¯s soul came into focus, letting his nephew spy on it more clearly. To Percy, human souls appeared like semi-amorphous flames contained inside one¡¯s body, spreading to roughly cover its entire volume. They did flicker a bit, so their shape constantly diverged from that of the person¡¯s flesh. Also, he had no idea what happened to somebody¡¯s soul after they died.


    Still, this was good progress in his book. And the best part was that he only needed a few seconds to fine-tune his Soul Vision by now. Not to say there wasn¡¯t any room for improvement though.


    PANT, PANT, PANT


    Percy breathed hard as the mana dispersed from his eyes, returning his sight to normal. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t keep his new trick up for too long before having to stop. It took quite a mental toll, plus it did cost a fair amount of mana to maintain. That said, he figured both would improve over time. Perhaps, one day he would even be able to keep Soul Vision up indefinitely, although that was more of a long-term project.


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    He looked up, at the rows of pine trees appearing in the distance. He had trained relentlessly over the last three days, and luckily, it had paid off. He had managed to get his Soul Vision to an acceptable level by the time they returned to the forest.


    It took some begging, but he had convinced Gawain to help him find some more goblins to practice on, now that he finally had the tool to figure out what was going on. His uncle had initially been resistant to the idea, but he¡¯d eventually relented. Percy wasn¡¯t sure if the man had warmed up to him, or if he was doing this because his daughter had asked him to. The young man appreciated it all the same.


    ¡°Just remember, we won¡¯t spend more than a week here.¡± Gawain reminded him.


    ¡°Have I mentioned you¡¯re my favourite uncle?¡± Percy asked.


    ¡°We both know that¡¯s a low bar.¡± Gawain rolled his eyes.


    ¡°And you¡¯ve passed it with flying colours!¡± Percy didn¡¯t let up.


    SIGH


    ***


    So, it turned out wood goblins were a lot tougher to find when one was actively looking for them. Well, either that or the trio had just been unlucky last week. In any case, it took them six full days to find one this time around. And that¡¯s only because they stumbled across an injured loner abandoned by its pack.


    Percy would have liked to put the poor thing out of its misery, but truth be told, the creature¡¯s misery was only about to begin. He did feel a little bad doing this, but he had to test his soul magic on . Inanimate objects obviously wouldn¡¯t work, which left humans, innocent animals, or ugly goblins. And sadly, Percy¡¯s green pal was the most disposable of those targets.


    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that. I¡¯ll start easy.¡± he told the creature tied to a tree.


    Activating Soul Vision, he spent a few moments calibrating it, as the goblin¡¯s soul came into focus. It looked disturbingly similar to his uncle¡¯s, only slightly shorter. Percy didn¡¯t know if goblin souls were fundamentally different to those of humans, or if they only looked smaller due to having less space to expand to.


    Or maybe not. His clone fallen apart rather quickly. But he shook the philosophical thoughts out of his head. He couldn¡¯t keep his Soul Vision up for too long, so he had to make it count.


    Pulling some more soul mana out of his core, this time he gathered it in his palm. Normally, it appeared colourless, to the point he could barely see it with the naked eye. . Through Soul Vision, it appeared like a bright silver orb, about the size of a cherry.


    Soon, he fired the bolt towards the goblin, carefully paying attention to the changes. As the projectile slammed into the similarly coloured silhouette of the creature, he saw it bend backwards and distort, its shape clearly rattled.


    Dispersing the mana in his eyes, he watched the goblin¡¯s physical form, curious to see what would happen to it. Percy¡¯s prisoner looked disoriented for a while, but its eyes regained their focus after a few seconds.


    He nodded.


    He¡¯d held back with the last attack, partly to conserve his mana and partly to avoid dealing permanent damage to the creature too early. The last blast had only been at the level of what a Red core would be capable of.


    Next, he repeated the process, this time charging the orb as long as possible, letting it reach the size of a tangerine before shooting it at the creature. The impact was a lot more violent than before, causing the goblin¡¯s soul to stretch, almost leaving its body. Then, it snapped back, shaking intensely for a few seconds, like a boat trapped in a storm.


    Still, it settled down eventually, without any permanent damage visible on the surface. Percy switched to his regular vision and observed the changes to the goblin. This time it remained out of it for longer than an hour, before eventually regaining its senses. It still appeared somewhat dizzy afterwards, but it didn¡¯t look like something a few hours of sleep couldn¡¯t fix.


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    He frowned, trying to work a way around the issue.


    The problem was that the goblin¡¯s soul was surprisingly resilient. And judging from his experiences growing up, human souls were even more so. Anyone he¡¯d ever tossed his mana against had shrugged it off without feeling more than a simple chill.


    Thinking back to his attacks, it was a bit like trying to punch a sandbag. No matter how much strength he put behind the blast, it would just deform to absorb it.


    Percy willed his mana to gather in his hand again. This time, rather than shaping it into a ball, he focused it on his index and middle fingers, trying to make it as pointy as possible. This was his first attempt at something like that, so it took a while. The construct crumbled a few times, and he couldn¡¯t make it too sharp without it falling apart, but eventually he managed to get something about as pointy as a spoon¡¯s handle.


    He activated his Soul Vision once more as he walked up to the goblin. As much as he would have liked to throw the new projectile, he knew it wouldn¡¯t survive the flight. He pointed his augmented fingers towards the goblin¡¯s chest and stabbed forward. His actual fingers stopped on the creature¡¯s skin, but the surrounding mana dug an inch deeper.


    ¡°EEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHHHHH!!!¡± the goblin shrieked loudly, the sheer agony contained in its voice making Percy¡¯s hair stand on end.


    Covering his ears, he took a few steps back, but kept his Soul Vision active, trying to figure out what was going on.


    There was a small scar on the creature¡¯s soul. It was tiny, as if it had been nicked by a fingernail, but unlike the blunt damage from before, it wasn¡¯t recovering. Percy didn¡¯t know if it would, given enough time, but he could tell the goblin would be in a world of pain until then.


    The creature¡¯s cries instantly reminded him of his experience possessing the alien body. What the goblin was feeling right now appeared to be similar to what he¡¯d felt back when his clone fell apart. Maybe not quite as intense, but of a similar sort.


    BLURG


    He turned around just in time to catch Elaine heaving out her lunch, her father looking at her with concern. The two had been observing him during his experiments, also curious about his soul affinity.


    Percy walked back to the goblin. Even though the little buggers had shot him full of holes just days ago, watching the creature squirm churned up his own stomach. Besides, he''d learned more than enough to plan out the next phase of his training. Pulling a knife out, he plunged it into the goblin¡¯s neck, putting an end to its suffering.

 Chapter 9: Family

    Elaine helped Percy walk as they passed through the corridor leading to baldy¡¯s office. She hadn¡¯t spoken to him much during the last stretch of their journey, still shaken after watching him torture the goblin.He didn¡¯t think she held it against him or anything. Hell, he¡¯d watched her butcher plenty of goblins herself just days ago. Still, she¡¯d kept her distance from him every time he practiced since then, clearly having some newfound appreciation for the danger his affinity posed. And he didn¡¯t exactly blame her for it.


    Truth be told, his mood hadn¡¯t been much better, but that didn¡¯t mean he could take a day off training. Those at the bottom of the ladder didn¡¯t have the luxury to stop climbing. Whenever they did, the rising tide drowned them.


    Consequently, he¡¯d spent the last few hours of their trip honing his projectiles into knives. They already looked much better than what he had stabbed the goblin with, and he could even throw them a short distance before they crumbled. Though they weren¡¯t ready for combat.


    KNOCK, KNOCK


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    The two entered, finding their grandpa much like they had left him.


    ¡°Thanks Elaine. You may go.¡±


    Percy wasn¡¯t sure why his grandpa wanted to speak with him alone. Even stranger was how Elaine did as she was told, leaving the room without any protest.


    He shook his head. He would talk to her later, but for now he had to figure out how to snatch baldy¡¯s magic tree.


    ¡°Come closer.¡± his grandpa spoke.


    He frowned, but ultimately obliged, curious to see what the man wanted.


    Archibald placed a hand on Percy¡¯s shoulder, as the latter felt a suffocating pressure emerge from the former¡¯s sternum. Activating his Mana Sense, he saw a bright Violet star thrum with activity in his grandpa¡¯s chest, as a film of vibrant green covered the man¡¯s arm in his regular vision. Percy instinctively tried to step back as he saw the life mana flow towards him, still not completely over the trauma from the temple, but Archibald¡¯s firm grip kept him in place.


    As the mana trickled down his body, the seed of his second core awakened once more, trying to pull it, making Percy fear the worst. He didn¡¯t think his grandpa had enough mana to suffocate him, nor was it nearly dense enough to do so, but the man could still notice something was off.


    Luckily, that didn¡¯t happen. Unlike the red liquid that had been kept in the pool for Phoebe-knew how long, baldy¡¯s mana was filled with his intent, rendering Percy¡¯s second core powerless to affect it. Ignoring the weak pull, the green river continued past his abdomen, reaching his legs, as Percy felt his wounds itch.


    And just a moment later, it was over. Archibald let go of him, as Percy tried moving his feet, finding not only the pain but even the soreness from the trip gone. He almost thanked his grandpa. He wasn¡¯t used to receiving much from him, but this was the second time in a few days. First, the hefty sum baldy had spent for his affinity test. Now this. Not that it seemed to take much effort to heal him, but it would save Percy weeks of annoyance all the same.


    Still, he bit his tongue. Archibald had only begun to give him stuff upon learning there was value in him. It was all a transaction.


    ¡°It¡¯s a handy trick.¡± is what he said in the end.


    Baldy nodded, looking at him silently for a few seconds. sea??h th§× N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°My son told me you have the soul affinity. Is there anything more I can help you with?¡±


    Percy suppressed a chuckle.


    Naturally, he kept those thoughts to himself.


    ¡°No.¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ll practice with my soul mana on my own for a few days and then I¡¯ll test Clone again.¡±


    Maybe his grandpa could offer a few words of advice, but it wouldn¡¯t amount to much. Percy was pretty much in uncharted territory. He would have to figure out how his bloodline interacted with his affinity by himself. Hopefully his new Soul Vision would help with that.


    The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    ¡°Very well. Let me know once you learn more.¡±


    Percy nodded as well, walking out of the office.


    ***


    The young man looked at the tall oak tree, which honestly resembled a jade statue more than a plant. It exuded a thick green mist, reminding him of the mana around the temple. But it nice. The mind mana had been odourless, while this gave each breath a fresh minty undertone.


    It had taken him about a week of planning to figure out how to make it here. Baldy clearly went above and beyond to keep it safe. It obviously hadn¡¯t been planted in the garden outside, as anybody could steal or damage it there. Instead, he had carved out a special location inside the mansion, for an inner garden. It was designed to only have a single entrance.


    Luckily, it had been several decades since the last time anybody tried anything funny, so some chinks had appeared in the tight security. From there, Percy only had to wait for his uncles Gareth and Balin to be paired on the same shift, which took a few days longer than he had hoped, but did happen eventually. The two idiots were among the laziest in the family, so they often left their post a few minutes earlier than they were meant to.


    Percy approached the tree, already feeling the seed in his abdomen beginning to draw in the mana. Standing next to the trunk, he stretched his hand, but paused just an inch from it.


    Once he started, there was no going back. If this was anything like what had happened during the affinity test, he wouldn¡¯t be able to stop until his second core was satisfied. And Percy wasn¡¯t sure the tree even contained enough for that. It had a lot, but could it compare to the condensed mana of a titaness?


    One thing was certain though. Whether it was enough or not, the tree wouldn¡¯t survive. Based on what he¡¯d heard, this tree was actually a treasure gifted to his family by the Divine Order! It was a great help for life users honing their spells. Even his grandpa regularly used it.


    They were actually lucky none of the White cores leading the Great Houses had a life affinity, otherwise they would have long destroyed House Avalon to seize the tree by force. If Percy ruined it here, he¡¯d be dealing a severe blow to his own family. Even if he managed to escape their wrath, all his relatives might end up dying a few years from now, crushed by a rival House. All because of .


    certainly didn¡¯t care about . Percy needed to awaken his second core if he was to ever be more than cannon fodder. It¡¯s not like he had a choice. Did he?


    He gritted his teeth. He had to do this.


    ***


    Percy entered his grandpa¡¯s office, not bothering to knock. His fists were clenched tightly, drained of all colour. He had been so close last night. Just a tap away from completing his new core. But he couldn¡¯t bring himself to do it. Even now, he wasn¡¯t sure why.


    Archibald raised an eyebrow at his grandson¡¯s intrusion. Though he didn¡¯t say anything, waiting for him to speak first.


    ¡°I want the jade tree. It won¡¯t survive.¡± Percy said, fully expecting baldy to laugh him out of the room. .


    He didn¡¯t really think there was a chance baldy would agree. Still, he didn¡¯t dare to steal it, so asking for it was the only path left. Contrary to his expectations however, his grandpa wasn¡¯t outraged. He didn¡¯t laugh at him either. Instead, his response shocked Percy even more.


    ¡°I figured out that much.¡±


    Taken aback, the young man stared at him in confusion, before baldy gestured at a chair across him.


    ¡°How?¡± Percy asked upon sitting.


    ¡°Gawain told me what happened at the temple. You think he didn¡¯t notice how the mind mana was swirling around you? My daughter did too. You¡¯re lucky her attendants didn¡¯t, otherwise she wouldn¡¯t have managed to cover your ass.¡±


    ¡°Your ? The High Priestess?!¡± Percy asked.


    Archibald nodded.


    ¡°She¡¯s your aunt, Guinevere. She¡¯s only a few years older than Gawain, but she¡¯s a Yellow-born.¡±


    ¡°I thought you needed as many Yellow-borns as possible, to increase the chances of getting more Violet cores for the family. Why would you send her away?¡±


    SIGH


    ¡°We need every Yellow-born we can get. Even then, there¡¯s no guarantee one will be ready to succeed me if I die. But having strong ties to the Divine Order is just as important.¡±


    Well¡­ this was all fascinating, but Percy had more pressing concerns at the moment.


    ¡°That still doesn¡¯t explain how you knew I needed life mana.¡±


    Baldy chuckled.


    ¡°Please. I¡¯m 50 times your age. You think I wouldn¡¯t notice you trying to snatch my own mana right in front of me?¡±


    Percy smiled awkwardly. He really was out of his depth here.


    ¡°I still have no clue what you needed all the mind mana for, but as soon as I healed you, I knew you weren¡¯t done. I paid closer attention to you since, and you didn¡¯t disappoint.¡±


    The young man fell back weakly, letting his neck sink into the silky headrest as he stared up at the ceiling. He had been so foolish to think he could outsmart the old fox.


    ¡°Why are we even having this conversation then? Just execute me, or banish me, or whatever.¡±


    Baldy fell back as well, his own expression morphing into something Percy didn¡¯t quite recognize. His grandpa almost looked sad, but he¡¯d never seen him like that, so he wasn¡¯t sure.


    ¡°Percy. Do you hate our family?¡±


    The young man frowned. Where was coming from all of a sudden? His first thought was to reply ¡°obviously¡±, but he figured he could take his time answering.


    Most of the people in his House were, frankly, . Present company included. But then there was Elaine who he got along with. And his parents who he didn¡¯t really remember. Was it fair to hate his parents, just because of their surname, without even knowing them? Hell, was part of the family too. Did he hate ?


    Perhaps, it was its management he hated. . But the man was pragmatic, and honestly, not a bad leader. His decisions were always calculated.


    math


    Still, it wasn¡¯t like he never got anything from them. At least, he had food and a roof over his head. He even had his own room. Was he supposed to just forget everything else? To forgive them? To them?


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± he said after a long time.


    Archibald nodded again.


    ¡°Here¡¯s an easier one then. Do you resent ?¡±

 Chapter 10: Archibald

    ¡°Who is asking? The head of the family? Or my grandpa?¡±¡°Does it matter?¡± baldy asked.


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°Percy¡­ I am the head of the House. I¡¯ve been in charge for less than 200 years. Our family has existed for nearly ten times as long.¡±


    This wasn¡¯t exactly news to the young man. He had read about the family¡¯s history. So, he just waited to see what the man was getting at.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you knew most of that already, but what you might have not read about in your books, was that the second head ¨C my great-grandpa ¨C died about 20 years before I advanced to Violet.¡±


    GULP


    Percy swallowed a mouthful of saliva. On Remior, a noble House without a Violet core at the helm was like a tasty meal lying on the ground. He could imagine all the alliances, conflicts and betrayals that must have happened during those two decades. They had probably been some of his family¡¯s darkest years.


    ¡°Why are you telling me this?¡±


    ¡°I want you to appreciate how precarious our situation is. How it has always been. Out of the 1000 Violet cores on Remior, how many do you think will make it to White?¡±


    ¡°You tell me. 20? 50?¡± Percy threw a guess.


    Archibald chuckled bitterly.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be lucky if one or two do. The rest are mostly hoping they can get another Violet in their family before they die, otherwise they¡¯re screwed. Every time I make a choice, every time I allocate resources, it can make the difference between our House surviving or dying out.¡±


    This time Percy lost his patience.


    ¡°Look, I get it! You don¡¯t have to explain that at this late stage. But why couldn¡¯t you just me like a ?!¡±


    Archibald¡¯s eyes wavered for a moment. Who would have thought that emotionless prick could even things?


    ¡°Because it¡¯s easier that way.¡±


    SIGH


    ¡°Have you any idea how many people I¡¯ve buried? Uncles, brothers, cousins, children, grandchildren¡­ The less attached I am, the more impartial I can be.¡± his voice was soft. It cracked many times, as the powerful Violet core struggled to form his words.


    Percy looked at his grandpa for the first time. What was he even supposed to say to ?


    ¡°, will you tell me what you need all that mana for?¡± Archibald asked.


    Percy smiled. It wasn¡¯t like their brief chat could magically erase a lifetime of bitterness, but he saw no point in hiding the truth either.


    ¡°Remember how I said my version of Clone did something interesting? I may have undersold interesting it was.¡± he chuckled, before elaborating. ¡°I didn¡¯t understand it at the time, but I believe it allowed me to send a fragment of my soul to possess somebody .¡±


    ¡°¡± he added after a second.


    Archibald¡¯s eyebrows would have hit the ceiling if they weren¡¯t attached to his face.


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    ¡°The Moirai!!!¡± he exclaimed.


    ¡°In any case, my clone brought back whatever it is that gives them their second core, although it was broken, and it needed fixing.¡±


    Archibald remained silent for a few minutes. Percy didn¡¯t rush him either.


    ¡°And how close are you to fixing it?¡± he eventually asked.


    ¡°If the jade tree has enough mana¡­ 5 minutes.¡± the young man replied.


    Archibald nodded.


    ¡°Wait, what?! Are you actually giving me the tree?! Just like that?!¡± Percy couldn¡¯t conceal the shock in his voice.


    Baldy looked him in the eyes before replying.


    ¡°Absolutely not.¡±


    Percy would have strangled him if he could. Why was he playing with his feelings like that?! Yet Archibald wasn¡¯t done.


    ¡°Listen, Percy.¡± he said in a serious tone. ¡°A human having two cores is . And who knows what else you can get through your bloodline? Even though it might not be enough to bridge the gap between you and an Orange-born right now, I¡¯m willing to invest in your potential. From now on, you will have access to the advanced elixirs.¡±


    The young man¡¯s heart skipped a beat. The advanced elixirs would let him reach Yellow in 50 years. That¡¯s saved! If it was one month ago, he would be jumping up and down. However, there were other things he wanted more now.


    ¡°But I can¡¯t even use my second core without the tree.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t give up the tree on a gamble. Let alone you, even if it was Elaine having a second core, I couldn¡¯t do that. The tree might help me protect our family next year. Your second core might need centuries to pay off, if it ever does.¡±


    Percy deflated as he listened to his grandpa. Still, he couldn¡¯t argue with his logic.


    ¡°But¡­ that doesn¡¯t mean we¡¯re giving up on it either.¡± baldy added, rekindling a spark of hope in his grandson¡¯s eyes. ¡°I will get you a different source of life mana.¡±


    ***


    KNOCK, KNOCK


    Percy reluctantly opened his eyes, not fully awake yet. He was tempted to tell his visitor to piss off, whoever it was. But he didn¡¯t. Few people ever wanted anything from him, so it could be important.


    YAWN


    Getting up, he slowly made his way to the door. On the way, he glanced out the window. It was still dark.


    Turning the handle, he pulled the door open, seeing nobody but his grandpa standing at the entrance. Percy blinked a couple of times. Then, he massaged his eyelids. Baldy was still there when he was done. The realization jolted the last traces of sleep out of the young man¡¯s system.


    ¡°You brought it?! The life source?!¡±


    Archibald wasn¡¯t holding anything. Percy looked behind him, trying to see if there was an attendant carrying something. Yet the corridor was empty, other than his grandpa who was dressed in his training robes.


    ¡°Are you done?¡± the man asked in irritation. ¡°May I come in?¡±


    Percy shrugged, making way for him. He gestured towards his bed as he didn¡¯t have any other furniture to offer. Archibald sat there, patting the space next to him. The young man joined his grandfather, still curious to see what he wanted.


    ¡°We don¡¯t have any other potent life treasures in the family.¡± baldy said.


    Percy was about to voice a protest, but Archibald stopped him, patting his shoulder.


    ¡°Instead, ¡¯ll be your life source.¡±


    Then, he repeated his actions from last week, sending the potent mana in his grandson¡¯s body. Only this time, he didn¡¯t target Percy¡¯s legs, but directly focused it on the young man¡¯s abdomen, relinquishing control over it as the seed absorbed it. Percy creased his forehead. Truth be told, his feelings were mixed.


    It wasn¡¯t like he didn¡¯t appreciate the elixirs and this gesture. That was a lot more than he¡¯d ever expected from his grandpa. Still, how would it help him?


    Not that Archibald was weak. Not even close. A Violet core was 4 grades above Orange. This meant the man possessed about 81 times as much mana as him. .


    Forget about the liquid in the sacred pool. That was the concentrated mana of a titaness. Even the tree contained within it countless times more than his grandpa¡¯s core. In fact, Archibald would be hard-pressed to produce as much mana as a single leaf.


    And sure enough, five minutes later baldy was completely tapped out, breathing heavily. Had this been before their meeting, Percy might have voiced a snarky comment, but right now he wasn¡¯t in the mood.


    ¡°Thanks¡­¡± he said. ¡°For trying, at least.¡±


    Archibald gave him a strange look as the corner of his lips twitched.


    ¡°Huh? How little do you think of me? You think I¡¯m trying to cheat you out of our deal?!¡±


    He chuckled. S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Of course I can¡¯t match Phoebe¡¯s pinkie toe in mana capacity, but that¡¯s only if we compete fairly.¡± he said. ¡°But what if I keep emptying and refilling my core? 10 times? 100 times? 1000 times?!¡±


    Baldy flashed his grandson a resolute look.


    ¡°Percy¡­ I¡¯ll repair your second core no matter how long it takes.¡±

 Chapter 11: Cracks

    Percy sat on his bed, next to his grandpa. It had been two weeks since baldy started filling his second core. Sadly, they didn¡¯t have anything to show for it yet, not even a hint they were getting closer.Still, the young man was feeling some newfound appreciation for his grandpa. Not only because he was practically showering him with affection for the first time in his life, but also due to his sheer dedication and discipline. Frankly, the man was a monster. Every day, he showed up before sunrise, and didn¡¯t leave his room until hours past sunset. Well, besides a few mandatory breaks of course.


    Having delegated the family¡¯s management to his sons and daughters, baldy didn¡¯t slack at all. It took him nearly five minutes to empty his core and about twenty to refill it. He spent over 18 hours per day in Percy¡¯s room and the young man once counted a total of 42 refills. Percy had almost expected him to give up after the first week, but Archibald showed no intention of doing that. Pressing on, he seemed determined to follow his words through to the end.


    And watching him work hard, Percy was also motivated to keep his training up.


    For the first few days, he¡¯d continued honing the sharpness and integrity of his constructs. When he began experiencing diminishing returns, he switched to increasing their range. That said, his room wasn¡¯t that large, so he had to stop when they reached the walls. Naturally, his soul mana could phase through, but he didn¡¯t want to hit somebody on the other side by accident.


    However, the weirdest thing was how his grandpa had started talking to him since the second day. In hindsight, it shouldn¡¯t have surprised Percy. After all, the two would be stuck spending all their time together for who-knew how long. It would be stranger if they never talked. Still, he wasn¡¯t used to casual chats with baldy, the two having limited their past interactions to the bare minimum.


    As for what they talked about?


    Well, at first his grandpa offered him tips and guidance on how to better manipulate and recover his mana. A few days later, however, they graduated to more idle chatter, even gossiping about Percy¡¯s aunts and uncles, or teaching the young man about the other families on Remior. .


    Percy knew the man was overcompensating, largely because of the harsh things he had spoken during their meeting, but he didn¡¯t say anything to stop it. It was embarrassing to admit, but this felt¡­ .


    ***


    He formed the daggers in his hand for the billionth time.


    They didn¡¯t look very elegant. Their shape was irregular, closer to sharpened stones than finely crafted knives. Percy wouldn¡¯t be winning any art competition with them, that was for sure. Still, they were sturdy, and he was confident they would be useful in a fight.


    Having reached an acceptable shape and range, he¡¯d even learned to produce two of them with each hand at once. Today, he was planning to try forming a third, when his grandpa suggested something different.


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    ¡°Maybe you should figure out how your bloodline works.¡±


    GULP


    Percy knew he was right.


    Creating that soul clone had been the greatest turning point in his life. If it hadn¡¯t been for that, he might have never found out his affinity or gained access to better elixirs. He certainly wouldn¡¯t have a second core to work towards and he might have never gotten to know his grandpa better. And that was just the start. How many more mysteries lied out there in the cosmos? What else could he bring back to Remior?


    The reason he¡¯d been so hesitant, was because he wasn¡¯t keen on experiencing the agony of splitting his soul again. Frankly, it was something he wouldn¡¯t wish on his worst enemy. Yet, it was the only way forward¡­


    SIGH


    He activated Soul Vision, this time glancing down at his own soul. After all, that was the starting point for everything else. A sea of silver blinded him, causing him to shut his eyes. He reduced the concentration of mana before opening them again.


    Fine-tuning the ability to work at such a close distance took him about an hour. This was because he also wanted more detail than he usually got, to more closely examine his soul. As the flame underneath his flesh came into focus, Percy¡¯s eyes widened. For the most part, it was similar to every other he had looked at. S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    However, there was one important difference which sent shivers down his spine.


    The semi-amorphous silhouette flowing under his skin was covered in countless cracks! Each was far narrower than the one he had inflicted on the goblin, their thickness akin to a hair¡¯s. However, they were many times longer, one even stretching across his entire forearm.


    His soul was like a broken vase, held together by spit and wishes!


    ¡°Is everything alright?¡± Archibald asked in concern.


    Percy explained the situation.


    ¡°I see. You must have really messed your soul up. It¡¯s lucky you survived.¡±


    The young man nodded, his expression grim.


    ¡°What now? Do souls recover over time?¡± he asked.


    He didn¡¯t even know why it didn¡¯t hurt right now. Maybe it was because the cracks were too narrow, or perhaps it was all relative. Experiencing his soul clone crumbling apart might have raised his tolerance to the point his current state didn¡¯t bother him.


    Either way, he wouldn¡¯t risk using his bloodline like this.


    ¡°Hmmm¡­ For the time being, I suggest you observe your soul for a few days to see if it can heal by itself. Also, check if you can speed up the process with your mana.¡±


    ***


    Another two weeks passed by in a flash.


    During this time, Archibald had continued pouring mana into his grandson¡¯s abdomen, with no end in sight. Calculating everything, he should have already passed 1000 refills a while ago, but the seed showed no signs of being satiated.


    Luckily, Percy had found more success with regards to his cracked soul. Fortunately, it turned out it recover by itself, albeit slowly. Adding the weeks before he began observing it, Percy estimated it would have needed a total of about three months to fully recover.


    Even better, focusing his soul mana on the wounds had proven exceptionally effective, accelerating the process threefold. In a couple more days, it should be as good as new!


    Indeed, the only downside was that this approach seemed to agitate the injuries. It was a bit like rubbing salt in a wound, only a hundred times worse. Suffice to say, the last couple of weeks had been far from pleasant. Still, it was a small price to pay if it meant he could use his bloodline again that much sooner.


    ¡°Next time you shouldn¡¯t activate it randomly.¡± his grandpa said.


    Percy frowned.


    ¡°Well, how else am I supposed to do it?¡±


    Baldy appeared to think for a few minutes before replying.


    ¡°I can¡¯t tell you that. The bloodline works differently in your case. Nobody but you can answer that question. However, what I do, is to give you some inspiration. Tomorrow, I¡¯ll take a break from pouring mana into your core.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Percy asked.


    ¡°I¡¯ll need it for something else. I¡¯m going to demonstrate our family¡¯s most fundamental technique. It has been passed down and refined for over 1700 years.¡±


    GULP


    ¡°You mean¡­¡±


    Archibald nodded.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to show you how to efficiently cultivate a life clone.¡±

 Chapter 12: Clone

    KNOCK, KNOCKPercy opened the door, finding his grandpa outside as usual.


    This time, however, baldy wasn¡¯t alone. He was accompanied by somebody who looked almost identical to him. Like a twin brother. The only differences to the naked eye were that the second baldy wore different robes and had a vacant expression.


    Percy made way for the two to enter, but his grandpa shook his head. Instead, he gestured for the young man to follow him to the garden. As soon as they reached the training grounds, baldy and his clone stopped at the same time, which looked a bit creepy.


    ¡°What do you know about the Clone bloodline?¡± Archibald asked. ¡°The normal version, I mean.¡± S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy dug through his memories for all the information about the ability. Truth be told, his understanding of it was quite comprehensive. After all, it wasn¡¯t exactly a great secret that his family had it. Plus, his cousins never stopped boasting about it.


    ¡°They take a while to make, but that decreases with one¡¯s grade, so I suppose it should be much faster for you. The clones can¡¯t think for themselves, and they can¡¯t even use magic, but they can be given simple commands. Supposedly, they make great labourers.¡±


    Baldy nodded.


    ¡°That¡¯s the gist of it, but there are a few more key points to consider. First, use your other senses to examine it.¡±


    Following his grandpa¡¯s instructions, Percy activated Mana Sense. While there was some life mana flowing through the clone¡¯s body, it didn¡¯t have a core whatsoever. There was nothing but a slightly denser concentration of mana in its sternum. This pretty much aligned with what he expected.


    Next, he switched to Soul Vision. He should have probably seen this coming too, but the clone didn¡¯t have a normal soul either. There was only a small silvery wisp burning in its chest. It looked like a gentle breeze could blow it out at any moment.


    Percy had a lot of questions now.


    ¡°Are they even useful?¡±


    If it couldn¡¯t use magic, why invest so much time and mana to make one?


    Archibald smiled.


    The clone walked to the oak tree by the centre of the garden and threw out a punch.


    BOOOOOOM


    Percy¡¯s ears buzzed as he stared at the devastation in shock. A large circular hole now pierced through the trunk, its diameter about half the width of the tree. The clone pointed its fist towards Percy, showing him that there wasn¡¯t even a scratch on it.


    ¡°As you can see, the clones inherit the physical capabilities of their creator. At Violet, each of my clones has over 240 times the speed, strength and durability of somebody at Red.¡± Archibald explained.


    ¡°Not just that, but the number of clones one can have also scales similarly. I can have 243 of them active at the same time. Although they drain my mana constantly to exist. Normally, I only keep about 60 of them, so that I still have enough for other things.¡±


    GULP


    Percy swallowed hard.


    His grandpa was even scarier than he realized.


    ¡°But we aren¡¯t here for me to brag. What we want is for you to watch me make one.¡±


    Then, Archibald stretched his palm towards the clone, visibly draining his mana back. As the green ribbons flowed out of its orifices, its visage shrivelled like a mummy. Soon, it collapsed on the ground, its flesh desiccating at an alarming rate. It wasn¡¯t long before it was nothing but a sack of skin and bones. And moments later, even that collapsed into a pile of fine dust.


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    Percy wasn¡¯t generally squeamish, but watching what looked like his grandpa wither into nothingness like that was more than a little disturbing.


    Archibald chuckled.


    ¡°Why are you looking at me like that? Do you think your version is going to end up much prettier?¡±


    . Percy had to figure out how to keep the worst of that from happening to his .


    ¡°Before we begin, do you have any other questions?¡± baldy asked.


    The young man looked back to where the clone had stood just moments ago.


    ¡°Please tell me you¡¯re going to burn those robes.¡±


    ***


    The two had returned to Archibald¡¯s office. Baldy would rather sit while doing this and Percy wanted none of this taking place inside his room.


    Currently, the young man had Mana Sense active, carefully observing everything happening between his grandpa¡¯s hands. There, a green bubble was suspended, pulsing like a heart at regular intervals. A dark silhouette was faintly visible beneath its surface, its shape resembling that of a fetus.


    And it was growing fast. .


    It had only been about 10 minutes since baldy began his demonstration. At the start, the glowing sphere had only been about as large as a pea, but it had already reached the size of a tangerine. According to his grandpa, it would only take about an hour for it to grow to a baby, at which point the bubble wouldn¡¯t be necessary anymore.


    This was all bizarre.


    Percy had seen other clones in the past, but this was his first time watching the gestation process. As much as his cousins loved to parade them around, nobody had time to show him how they were made.


    A Red core had to spend nine months to grow a clone, not unlike a normal pregnancy. From there, each grade cut that time to about a third. This meant most of his relatives needed anywhere between a little over a week to a full month to do this!


    Luckily, his grandpa would be done by tomorrow, so he could resume the arduous task of filling his second core up.


    ¡°Percy. I suggest you focus on what I¡¯m doing, as I¡¯m not repeating this for you.¡± baldy snapped.


    ¡°Right.¡± the young man agreed, tapping into his Mana Sense again.


    This time, he didn¡¯t look at the bubble but focused on his grandpa¡¯s body instead. That¡¯s where all the interesting things were happening. Baldy¡¯s core thrummed, sending waves of mana rippling through every muscle, every bone, every vein. Once they reached the man¡¯s skin, they bounced back, but they did so at an angle. This seemed to create another stream of waves of a different shape, which flowed towards his hands.


    Percy spent a couple more hours carefully observing his grandpa¡¯s handiwork, marvelling at the sheer elegance and refinement of the technique. Only after the clone had already reached the size of a toddler did he deactivate his Mana Sense. Not that he was bored. He could have kept watching this for ages. Plus, he didn¡¯t want to waste his grandpa¡¯s efforts.


    The reason he had stopped was because at some point, an idea took root in his head.


    Gathering the mana in his eyes, Percy activated Soul Vision. He watched the clone carefully, searching for something specific. Even though the clone lacked a complete soul, he remembered spotting a faint wisp in the one earlier. The young man knew life users didn¡¯t create them intentionally. After all, not even his grandpa had any way of manipulating soul mana.


    Watching the flow of life mana had certainly been informative, but if he could also observe how that silvery wisp came into being, it could give him some more insight into his own version.


    ***


    Percy was back in his room, resting on his bed.


    The sun was still out, as the duo had stayed up all night, his grandpa not finishing the demonstration until late in the following morning. Apparently, it was possible to pause the process and resume later, which other people had to do, as they couldn¡¯t keep it up for several months at a time. Archibald on the other hand, preferred to make each clone in a single session. He said it helped minimize the mana losses.


    Either way, his grandpa¡¯s habits weren¡¯t what was going through the young man¡¯s head right now.


    Percy had devoted the last 15 or so hours of the demonstration trying to figure out how that tiny soul wisp had formed.


    And he did have an answer. He just struggled accepting it. The formation of the clone¡¯s had been straightforward. The life mana had first travelled through baldy, embedding all the necessary information before being passed to the clone. Once there, it had turned into the building blocks making up its flesh, guided by the accompanying information.


    There was a clear link between Archibald and the clone¡¯s bodies!


    But that wasn¡¯t the case when it came to their souls. At no point had Percy seen any soul mana leaving his grandpa. Yet, the clone¡¯s tiny soul had kept growing regardless. It was as if the two were entirely independent entities. As if the clone had developed its own soul, as a natural consequence of being .


    Percy didn¡¯t want his own clones to be dumb as bricks. His affinity clearly didn¡¯t want that either, which was why his version of the ability involved splitting up his own soul.


    But that was tomorrow¡¯s problem.


    For now, what he needed was some sleep.

 Chapter 13: Cousins

    Percy marvelled at the intricate vial pinched between his thumb and index finger. For something so valuable, it wasn¡¯t that large, its height and thickness not exceeding that of his pinkie.At least, he didn¡¯t have to worry about breaking it if he dropped it by accident. Its hardness wasn¡¯t a joke. It was made of a hollowed-out sapphire shard. A bit overkill in his opinion, using such a precious material for a simple container, but at the end of the day it didn¡¯t really matter. After all, the vial¡¯s contents were easily fifty times more expensive than the gemstone. .


    He shrugged, downing the elixir. The liquid was cool and soft as it trickled over his tongue and through his throat, giving him a refreshing feeling. It was bitter, though a hint of apple had clearly been added, to make it easier to swallow for the stereotypical noble able to afford it.


    Percy chuckled.


    Next, he pulled some mana from his sternum, gathering it in his stomach. Only after allowing it to simmer there for a few minutes did he move it back to his core. It stung every time he reabsorbed it, but he gritted his teeth and kept going, repeating the process over a dozen times before stopping. S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The whole cleansing took about half an hour, and his core burned when he was done, as if he had dipped it into a vat of acid.


    Percy was still getting used to the new elixirs, despite having used them for the past month. They hurt more than the heavily diluted version he¡¯d drunk growing up, but they were more potent too. The good news was, they couldn¡¯t be used more than once a day, to avoid injuring oneself, which was great for his sanity.


    Supposedly, it possible to advance one¡¯s grade via other means, but nobody did that, as it took way too long for it to be worth it. Plus, the cheap elixirs were essentially the same substance as the expensive ones but mixed with water in a ratio of 1:100, which just about made them affordable even for commoners. Well, assuming they didn¡¯t horribly mismanage their finances.


    Either way, thanks to his grandpa¡¯s generosity, Percy could now hopefully cut down the time needed before his next advancement in half, although fifty years were still nothing to scoff at. Perhaps, his second core would benefit from this treatment sooner.


    The young man stood up, stretching his limbs.


    Baldy wasn¡¯t going to visit him today. Even though the plan had been to resume their sessions after the demonstration, it turned out he had shirked his responsibilities for a bit too long. Thus, he had told Percy he¡¯d be extending their break by another day or two, to get everything back in order.


    If this was a month ago, he might have thought his grandpa was only making excuses to bail on him, but right now he wasn¡¯t concerned about that, seeing Archibald in a new light.


    Walking out of his room, he headed towards the main hall. That was where his family members picked and turned in missions. The same was true for Red cores, although they could only select low-level missions that involved cleaning or doing other chores inside the House, as they weren¡¯t strong enough to survive outside.


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    If it was up to Archibald, he wouldn¡¯t have let the Yellow-borns out either, as they were too important to risk something happening to them. Still, he understood they wouldn¡¯t grow without adversity.


    In any case, Percy wasn¡¯t going there to pick a mission. He wouldn¡¯t have enough time to finish it before his training resumed anyway. No, the young man just wanted to meet people. Anybody would do.


    Not that he was particularly fond of his cousins, but after staring at baldy for every waking moment over the past month, he itched to look at a different face.


    Perhaps, he should have been more careful of what he wished for, however. Soon after entering the hall, his attention was drawn to two loud voices joking and laughing by the counter. And he recognized them.


    them


    Hector and Tristan were only a couple years older than him, but they were both Orange-borns, having advanced to Yellow a long time ago. At least, he had slightly closed the gap ¨C ¨C but he didn¡¯t think that would stop them from giving him crap.


    Each of his cousins was accompanied by two identical copies of themselves, dressed in simpler, more practical clothes. Last time he¡¯d seen them, they¡¯d only had one.


    they


    Part of him wanted to bolt back to his room. Percy wasn¡¯t of them, but he wasn¡¯t in the mood to deal with this right now. Still, it would look pathetic if he did that. Plus, he did want to get some fresh air for a change. In the end, he shrunk to a corner of the room, trying not to draw much attention.


    His cousins were chatting with their older sister, Laudin, who worked behind the counter. Percy didn¡¯t know if they were there to pick or turn in a mission, but they sure took their sweet time either way.


    There were others in the hall, but not too many. It was late in the morning so the ones heading out had already left, while the ones coming back wouldn¡¯t be here until later. He was about to pick one of the least annoying relatives to approach, when his luck ran out.


    ¡°Well, well¡­ If it isn¡¯t the little goblin!¡± Hector said, keeping his voice loud enough to make sure everyone heard it.


    Percy rolled his eyes, pretending he didn¡¯t hear him.


    ¡°What?! He¡¯s still alive?!¡± Tristan played along. ¡°I heard he passed out during his promotion! I haven¡¯t seen him for a couple of months, so I thought he died in his sleep!¡±


    Turning to face them, Percy activated Soul Vision and imagined himself testing his new spell on his idiot cousins. Yellow or not, the buffoons wouldn¡¯t even see the knives coming before they pierced some nasty holes through their souls. Of course, he wasn¡¯t petty enough to somebody over some teasing. Not even . Still, he wasn¡¯t above entertaining himself with the thought.


    ¡°Seriously?! Who even faints when advancing to ?!¡± Hector emphasized his grade on purpose.


    Percy heard a few chuckles from the others in the room, but he didn¡¯t look. .


    ¡°Morning assholes.¡± he said as he approached the duo. ¡°I see you haven¡¯t been slacking off yourselves.¡± he added, pointing at the clones with his chin.


    ¡°Of course. This is family¡¯s prized bloodline, after all. The pride of House.¡±


    Had this come from somebody else, Percy might have thought it was a joke, but seeing Tristan inflate like a pufferfish, he knew the guy meant his words. He shook his head, suppressing a chuckle.


    Passing by them, he walked to the board, wanting to browse through the missions, partly to extricate himself from the situation and partly out of genuine curiosity. But his cousins weren¡¯t done with him yet, it seemed. Four silhouettes approached him from behind, nearing him uncomfortably. Turning to face them, he noted the clones¡¯ soulless gazes were even more creepy from up close.


    ¡°Percy! We have the perfect mission for you. One suitable for your .¡± Hector sneered.


    ¡°Right. Help us test out our new clones in the garden. We tried to hunt some goblins in our last mission, but they were too weak. Maybe you can do better.¡± Tristan added.


    The corner of Percy¡¯s eye twitched. He¡¯d been trying to not let them bother him too much, but they were starting to grate on his nerves.


    He wasn¡¯t going to seriously harm them over something this trivial, but perhaps they did deserve to be taught a lesson. The dysfunctional soul wisps burning in the clones¡¯ chests should be easy to snuff out, setting his cousins back by a couple of months. Maybe they would think twice before annoying him in the future.


    However, the soul mana had only begun to coalesce in his fists when he caught a bright flash of azure from the corner of his eyes.


    SPLASH

 Chapter 14: Elaine

    The four clones fell like marionettes with their strings cut, awkwardly hitting the floor.THUMP, THUMP, THUMP, THUMP


    If these were normal people, they might have ended up with some nasty bruises, but their bodies were at Yellow. Plus, healing them wasn¡¯t that hard.


    ¡°Why do you keep messing with others?!¡± Elaine yelled.


    She let the glowing whip fizzle out into a harmless spray of water, soon forming a faint puddle on the marble tiles. Then, she glared at her cousins, scoffing when they took a step back. The cowards only dared to bully those weaker than them.


    Turning to Percy, she dragged him out of the hall as he looked at her in amusement. He wasn¡¯t as defenceless as he used to be. . Still, seeing those morons treating him as their lesser irked her to no end.


    me.


    So absorbed was she in her thoughts that she was taken by surprise when Percy stopped abruptly.


    ¡°Where have you been over the last month?¡± he asked, scanning her.


    She looked down at her body too. Her arms were covered in bandages, a few scrapes and bruises visible on her skin.


    ¡°I was out doing missions.¡±


    ¡°For a whole ?!¡± he frowned.


    Then, he winced. That¡¯s when Elaine remembered she was still holding him. Letting go, she quickly noticed the skin on his wrist was pink.


    ¡°I took a bunch of them at once to save time.¡± she answered.


    He nodded.


    ¡°I see. Must be convenient, serving as target practice for archers right after trekking through a jungle. I¡¯ll try it sometime too. Why waste time in between?¡±


    She chuckled.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t bad. Grandpa will fix me up in no time.¡±


    Percy turned around, gesturing at her to follow. Only after they¡¯d made a quick stop by Archibald¡¯s office to get her patched up did they head back towards the garden.


    ¡°Grandpa seemed really swamped today. Has anything happened while I was gone?¡± she asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe he needs to manage his time better.¡± Percy scratched his head, looking at her rather awkwardly.


    Elaine narrowed her eyes but didn¡¯t say anything else.


    After exiting the mansion, they found a nice spot on the grass to sit. It was calming, listening to the crickets chirping, as faint shadows of clouds brushed over their heads. The garden was admittedly less exotic than the vibrant forests and swamps she''d recently travelled through, but she didn¡¯t have to worry about an ogre or a basilisk sneaking up on her here.


    ¡°Care to tell me what happened?¡± he asked.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I know testing my magic on that goblin wasn¡¯t the prettiest sight, but you could have talked to me instead of avoiding me.¡±


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    She frowned.


    ¡°I¡¯m not avoiding you¡­¡± she muttered weakly.


    ¡°Really?¡± he raised an eyebrow. ¡°Because you barely said anything on the way back. Then you vanished for a month, putting yourself through a mission gauntlet.¡±


    SIGH


    That wasn¡¯t it. .


    But she couldn¡¯t tell him. What was she supposed to say? That she felt guilty watching him struggle? Did that even make sense?


    Back when she found him on the floor, she took care of him for a week. She¡¯d known he¡¯d done something dangerous with his ability, but she didn¡¯t realize just dangerous until the test.


    Percy had ripped his very apart! The mere thought made her skin crawl.


    Still, it wasn¡¯t until she heard the goblin¡¯s shriek that she truly came to terms with the severity of the situation. Watching the creature squirm over the tiniest scratch, she couldn¡¯t fathom what Percy had experienced after tearing the whole thing up.


    Yet, after waking up, he spent the next few days ! Even while travelling, he kept practicing ! Even his injuries!


    I


    Despite all the odds stacked against him, he never stopped pushing forward, doing everything he could to get stronger. Meanwhile, here she was, with her Green core, everything handed to her on a silver platter, getting treated like royalty by her whole family just because she¡¯d been born lucky.


    The irony made her sick to her stomach.


    ¡°Elaine?¡± Percy looked at her with concern. She might have stayed silent for too long.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I just figured I should train a bit harder. To live up to grandpa¡¯s expectations.¡±


    He nodded.


    ¡°You were right, you know.¡± Percy said. S~ea??h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    She tilted her head.


    ¡°About baldy. He¡¯s not that bad once you get to know him.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve been spending time together!¡± she raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Some.¡± he grinned.


    ¡°That¡¯s great! What do you talk about?¡±


    He fell back, resting his head on the grass before replying. ¡°All sorts of things really. Like how many times he caught uncle Gareth skipping on his shift. Or more recently, he¡¯s helping me figure out how to use my bloodline.¡±


    Elaine felt her jaw tighten upon hearing that, clenching some dirt in her hand.


    ¡°Don¡¯t¡­¡± she muttered.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°Please, don¡¯t use your ability again.¡± she struggled to get the words out, her voice cracking.


    Percy gave her an odd look.


    ¡°Elaine¡­ My ability is all I have. I can¡¯t give it up.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s even the point?!¡± she snapped. ¡°I don¡¯t want to sound harsh! I really, don¡¯t! I don¡¯t want to sound like ¡±


    She felt hot streams trickle down her cheeks.


    ¡°But why do all this to yourself?! Even if you become the Yellow core on Remior, it won¡¯t mean a damn thing!!!¡±


    The moment the last word left her mouth, she felt her gut churn. She¡¯d always hated herself just for those things.


    Elaine kept her gaze fixed on the ground, absentmindedly tracking a ladybug as it walked up a blade of grass. She didn¡¯t look at him. . She knew what she¡¯d just said was plain Maybe Percy would never speak to her again.


    The thought hurt, but it was ok.


    The silence stretched on for a couple of minutes, even the crickets¡¯ chirps now sounding muted, as if they understood they should pipe down a notch.


    ¡°If that¡¯s all I ever amount to be¡­ then so be it.¡± Percy said, his voice calm.


    Elaine lifted her eyes. He was looking up at the sky. No. His gaze seemed to pierce through it, searching for something beyond. He wasn¡¯t upset or angry.


    Then his eyes met hers.


    He smiled.


    ¡°Either way, I won¡¯t be satisfied until I¡¯ve done everything I can.¡±


    ***


    Elaine was in her room, her eyes closed. Resting on a proper bed after a month in the wilderness was nice, but her thoughts were locked in her earlier conversation with Percy. By now she¡¯d be a fool to believe she stood a chance of changing his mind. Still, it was comforting to know their relationship hadn¡¯t soured.


    In any case, there wasn¡¯t much point in ruminating over things she couldn¡¯t change. Instead, she should focus on those she .


    She opened her eyes, staring up at the ceiling with resolve. Elaine was a Yellow-born. She reach Violet, no matter the cost, to support her grandpa and her family.


    But she shook her head.


    Not good enough. If it was Percy in her shoes, he wouldn¡¯t be satisfied with that little.


    Percy wouldn¡¯t live long enough to see her reach Violet, let alone White. The thought made a lump form in her throat. . She could at least take care of others like him.


    Having made up her mind, she closed her eyes again. She would give herself this one night¡¯s sleep. She also had to restock her supply of elixirs before heading out.


    Training and missions couldn¡¯t speed up her advancement, but she could still hone her spells. It had been a long time since her Status registered her Crude magic.

 Chapter 15: Soul clone

    Percy had no idea what had brought on that outburst from Elaine yesterday. At least she¡¯d seemed more concerned than hostile, which was good news.Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t heed her plea to stop using his bloodline. Especially now that he¡¯d finished mending the cracks and could finally begin cultivating his first proper clone in earnest.


    Using Soul Vision, he scanned his soul carefully, willing his ability to activate. Unlike the previous time, he held back significantly, only allowing the tiniest strand of mana to seep out of his core.


    ¡°Careful.¡± said baldy, sitting next to him.


    Starting today, the two had resumed their training sessions, though his grandpa was currently focused on Percy¡¯s experiment, ready to intervene if necessary.


    Under the influence of his bloodline, the mana leapt out of his core more violently than usual, like a claw grasping everything in its path, pushing itself out of Percy¡¯s chest. The sudden pain made him wince, causing him to grab the mattress tightly, nearly ripping a hole in his bedsheets. Despite his preparations, he wasn¡¯t quite ready for this.


    He hurriedly deactivated his ability before it did any further damage.


    PANT, PANT, PANT


    ¡°Are you ok?¡± baldy asked.


    It was only a few minutes later that the young man steadied his breath, calming down enough to answer.


    ¡°No wonder I passed out last time. Back then, I pushed all my mana into it like an idiot.¡± S~ea??h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    He shook his head, reactivating Soul Vision to assess the situation. His soul was in much better shape than his previous attempt, but it hadn¡¯t exactly made it out scot-free either. A few new cracks had appeared near his chest, where the ghostly claw had tried piercing out of his body.


    They would only take a couple more days to heal, but it meant he had to slow things down again. At least, that gave him the chance to come up with a better plan.


    ***


    Three days later, Percy pushed mana out of his core, letting it ripple through his soul. He¡¯d already mended the new batch of cracks, but he wasn¡¯t ready to tap into his ability just yet.


    Instead, he was trying to replicate his family¡¯s technique, to see what effect it might have in his case. His grandpa had made it look easy during his demonstration, but Percy quickly discovered that getting the waves of mana to flow properly was rather tricky.


    Where almost all of baldy¡¯s mana had reflected uniformly off his skin and towards his hands, Percy¡¯s instead bounced randomly from one corner of his soul to the other. He struggled to get even a tenth of it to head in the correct direction. Whenever he adjusted the intensity or the angle of the flow to make one side of his soul work, the rest fell out of phase.


    Though Percy wasn¡¯t deterred, knowing a lot of it came down to practice. After all, Archibald had been using this technique for centuries.


    Still, there was another issue. Life mana was meant to flow through one¡¯s physical body, which was relatively rigid. This wasn¡¯t the case for Percy, who was channelling it through his soul, flickering around like an amorphous flame.


    That said, it wasn¡¯t all gloom and doom.


    He and Archibald had modified the technique slightly, hoping to make it more suitable for him. Rather than gathering the mana in his hands, forming the clone between his palms, they figured it would be easier to concentrate it near his chest, just an inch from his sternum. After all, that was clearly where his ability wanted it to go.


    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    Percy pulled mana from his core, sending it randomly in all directions. Some was reflected towards his sternum right away, while the rest bounced around a few times. Overall, about a quarter eventually made it to his chest where he wanted it, albeit at different intervals. Most of it, however, either leaked from his pores, or got reabsorbed into his core.


    ¡°Hmmm¡­ We might be on to something. Try playing with the timing until the waves converge.¡± his grandpa advised after being brought up to speed.


    Percy nodded.


    ***


    The young man stared intently at the small silvery bump right in front of his core. He¡¯d spent a long time observing how the mana got reflected, playing with it as he fired it in various directions, eventually managing to gather about 40% of it at once.


    It had taken him another week to get here, and he didn¡¯t think he¡¯d be able to improve much more in the short term. Thus, he and Archibald had agreed to try and make do with this current version of the technique.


    Percy repeated his actions, observing the changes. As soon as the waves gathered, they caused his soul to swell in that spot for an instant.


    Except he wasn¡¯t a lady. Plus, the bump was in his chest, not his belly. And in his soul, not his flesh. It also didn¡¯t last long before deflating. Ah, and he wasn¡¯t trying to carry a baby, but a ghostly clone he could send out to uncover the secrets of the universe. Still, .


    ¡°The biggest problem is that it reverts right away, so I don¡¯t have enough time to make progress. If only I could hold it there for a moment¡­¡±


    Baldy scratched his chin.


    ¡°Well, why can¡¯t you?¡±


    The young man pondered over his grandpa¡¯s question. It wasn¡¯t like he hadn¡¯t considered it, but there were a few issues with that. The first was that his soul flowed about an inch under his skin, so it was harder to grab a hold of.


    The other problem wasn¡¯t as easy to solve, however. He¡¯d need to use his mana to interact with his soul, which was dangerous. If he wasn¡¯t careful, he might injure himself.


    SIGH


    ¡°No pain, no gain¡­¡±


    ***


    Once more, Percy fired the mana from his core, letting it bounce all over. At the same time, his eyes remained glued to the area right in front of his sternum. The moment his soul bulged, he closed his fingers around it, grabbing the protrusion as softly as he could.


    Over the past five days, the young man had learned to coat his hand in a layer of soul mana. At first, it had looked like a glove, though it hadn¡¯t taken him long to realize he didn¡¯t need to cover his whole palm. Only his fingertips ever came in contact with his soul.


    Right now, his right hand looked like he had stabbed five silver cherries with his fingers. It was a bit silly, but he didn¡¯t care about optics.


    Percy pulled his soul gently, letting it stretch like an elastic fabric. Everything was going well, at least while the silver flame remained within the confines of his flesh. The moment part of it exited his skin, however, all hell broke loose.


    ¡°AAAAARRGGGHHH!!!¡±


    His soul squirmed, frantically struggling to return inside his body where it belonged, plunging Percy into a world of agony in the process.


    Soldiering through it, he held on to the bump, as tears formed not only where he touched it, but in other parts of his soul. At least it wasn¡¯t his first time going through something like this.


    Though souls were surprisingly resistant to blunt damage, that only seemed to be the case while they remained within the safety of their body. Once removed, they apparently turned a lot more fragile. Still, Percy had never expected to use his bloodline painlessly. His only goal had been to optimize the process as much as possible, to minimize the risks involved.


    A few seconds later, the young man¡¯s lips curled up as the situation stabilized somewhat, the pain becoming more bearable. A few tears continued to form, but not as quickly as before.


    Next, he used his family¡¯s technique again, sending more waves of mana around his soul. This time, he allowed the new cracks to absorb whatever mana they could, to offset some of the damage.


    Percy remained in that position for several hours, slowly feeding the nascent clone while struggling to keep his soul from falling apart. The trickiest part was that he ran out of mana every so often, forcing him to hold everything still until he recovered enough to continue.


    The bump in his hand had already quadrupled in size, though he wasn¡¯t sure how much he needed for a functioning clone.


    Shrugging, he let go of his soul, watching it snap back into his body. It sucked to give up on the last five hours of work, but he wouldn¡¯t be able to complete his clone during this session. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t pause and resume his progress like the others, which meant he¡¯d have to do the whole thing in one go.


    Next, he wiped the sweat off his brow before turning to baldy. He was about to explain his thought process, when he found his grandpa staring at him with a shit-eating grin plastered all over his face.


    ¡°What¡¯s up with the creepy look?¡±


    ¡°Percy. I didn¡¯t want to interrupt you earlier, but your second core stopped accepting mana two hours ago.¡±

 Chapter 16: Second core

    It took him a few moments to truly register baldy¡¯s words. Then, it was as if the floodgates opened, a wave of vigour washing away his fatigue. His heartbeat sped up, as he willed his Status to appear.Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C ???]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[???] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    It had taken months ¨C although they¡¯d felt closer to centuries ¨C but it was finally over!


    Of course, Percy would be lying if he said he wasn¡¯t slightly disappointed. He had secretly harboured hope of the new core awakening at a higher grade. If only it could have started off at Yellow, it would have changed .


    But alas, there was no point letting his greed spoil an otherwise good thing.


    ¡°Well?¡± baldy asked.


    Percy looked at his grandpa. His expression was also bright, painted with curiosity and excitement.


    He wouldn¡¯t forget the countless hours Archibald had spent filling his core up, one drop at a time. ? The man had competed with a And


    Well, ok... It was more of a tie. And he cheated. . Few could boast of the same!


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Percy said. ¡°For everything.¡±


    Some moisture gathered in the corner of his grandpa¡¯s eyes. But then he blinked, and it was gone. Next, he raised his hand towards Percy¡¯s forehead and¡­ flicked him.


    ¡°Ouch!¡± the young man exclaimed. ¡°What was that for?!¡±


    ¡°If you want to thank me, stop torturing me and tell me what your Status says.¡±


    Percy rolled his eyes.


    ¡°What is there to say? It¡¯s at Red which . The affinity has question marks.¡±


    Baldy nodded. Then, he took something out of his robe. It was a long bandage, covered in all sorts of strange glyphs.


    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Percy frowned.


    ¡°It¡¯s warded to conceal mana. From now on, make sure to always have it around your waist. It will hide your second core from Mana Sense, although only while it¡¯s idle. Don¡¯t use it in front of others.¡±


    Percy accepted it, before wrapping it as per his grandpa¡¯s instructions.


    ¡°Well then¡­ Can you feel it inside your body?¡± baldy asked. ¡°Try using it.¡±


    The young man didn¡¯t need to be told twice, also eager to put his new toy in action. Closing his eyes, he recalled his experience sensing his original core for the first time, right after his awakening. Turning his senses inward, he scanned the area around his abdomen, searching for the new organ.


    Perhaps, he could have used Mana Sense to speed up the process, but he didn¡¯t mind taking a bit longer. Frankly, this all felt nostalgic, and he wanted to savour it.


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    Pinpointing the core¡¯s location with any certainty took a few minutes. The new vessel was empty, without a hint of mana flowing in or out, making it hard to spot.


    Percy¡¯s first course of action would be to fill it.


    With some mental prodding, he managed to stir it up. Repeating the exercises he had been taught as a child, he tried to pull the first strand of ambient mana into it. It was difficult. Like pushing honey through a blocked pipe.


    Of course, the young man wasn¡¯t a novice in mana manipulation, having done this daily for the last decade. Still, he normally used the core in his sternum for that, and an entirely different set of mana channels. Learning everything again would take some time.


    ¡°I¡¯ll need a couple of days to get it to a useable state.¡±


    ***


    A week passed, which was a bit longer than his estimates. Having gone through all of this before certainly helped, but it wasn¡¯t exactly smooth sailing either. It was like learning to write with his left hand.


    That said, he eventually got there. He could now reliably draw mana into his new core ¨C albeit clumsily. Catching up to the other one would take longer though.


    In any case, he had finally filled it up. Its capacity was a bit lacking due to its grade, but that didn¡¯t mean he was without gains. As soon as Percy drew the first sliver of mana, he noticed an immediate change in his body. His muscles surged with strength, his senses sharpening as he felt more¡­ .


    He¡¯d expected this, having experienced something similar during his recent promotion. The changes were more subtle this time around, but it did confirm his second core would also influence his body and ¨C ¨C his lifespan.


    While he didn¡¯t know how it would all scale, he guessed raising both to Yellow might even let him live long enough to reach Green.


    During the past week, Percy hadn¡¯t pulled any mana out of his second core. He had only focused on clearing the first few channels and filling it up. It was finally time for the main event.


    ¡°Hopefully we can figure out its type without another assessment.¡± baldy said.


    Hearing his grandpa, Percy¡¯s feelings on the topic were complicated. Having another rare affinity would be amazing, but it would indeed raise some complications. He couldn¡¯t exactly go back to the temple, could he? How would he explain it?


    ¡°Fingers crossed for a life affinity.¡±


    It was one of the few rare affinities they wouldn¡¯t have trouble identifying on their own. Also, it would let him use the regular form of his bloodline too.


    The duo activated Mana Sense, as Percy pulled some mana towards his hand. The flow was partially obstructed ¨C another channel he would have to clear later ¨C but not right now.


    A blob of cyan soon coalesced inside his palm.


    It felt nothing like soul mana. First, it was visible to the naked eye, its colour close to Elaine¡¯s. But it wasn¡¯t a water affinity, this was a couple shades paler.


    Another difference was that it had substance. Unlike the ethereal wisps of soul mana which he now knew he could only hold with his soul, he could feel this new energy pressing against his skin as he squished it in his fist.


    His expression stiffened, a bad premonition bubbling up. He turned to baldy, only to see his smile had also soured.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Percy.¡±


    The young man¡¯s heart sank as he opened his Status once more, reading the new word that had appeared next to his second core¡¯s grade.


    [Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Pure]


    The Status was a strange thing.


    While the affinity tests were a guaranteed way to fill in many of the blanks, a lot of the information could also be revealed based on one¡¯s comprehension. It was why common affinities were so easy to identify, as everyone was familiar with them. Had Percy known more about soul mana, he could have even recognized it on his own, saving him the trip.


    For the same reason, it wasn¡¯t very difficult to identify his newest mana type. Not that he was particularly happy about that¡­


    Somehow, his second core had ended up at an even lower starting point than his first! Not only at Red, but also lacking an affinity! Percy doubted he¡¯d get much use out of it. Even when he raised it to Orange ¨C five years from now ¨C it would at most let him produce some weak attacks at the level of a Red core.


    Baldy placed his hand on his shoulder, squeezing it gently.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let this get to you. It¡¯s still a good thing.¡±


    The young man remained silent for a minute.


    ¡°Grandpa, have you ever heard of a way to change one¡¯s affinity? Or to raise one¡¯s grade faster?¡±


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    ¡°Neither of those things exist on Remior¡­ But I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if they do on some distant world. The universe is vast.¡±


    Percy¡¯s eyes regained some lustre, though baldy¡¯s subsequent words quashed the rising hope.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t count on that.¡± Archibald shook his head. ¡°Even bringing back a second core from the Moirai was an exceptional stroke of luck. You may never stumble on another treasure on that level.¡±


    The young man clenched his fists as he read his Status once more. At least the physical enhancements from his second core would help. Also, his soul projectiles should be close to registering as a proper Crude spell.


    But he was still a long way from bridging the gap with his peers. There was only one way forward, albeit riddled with uncertainties.


    ¡°I¡¯ll send out my next clone ¡­ I¡¯ll comb the ends of the universe if I have to, until I find another way to get stronger¡­¡±

 Chapter 17: A painful endeavour

    Today was the day.Percy had finished mending the new cracks, restoring his soul to a pristine condition. He¡¯d also refilled both cores and got a good night¡¯s sleep. Adding to that, baldy had arranged for his children to manage the family, freeing himself to oversee his grandson¡¯s venture.


    Admittedly, Percy felt a little guilty over it.


    Somehow, their strained relationship had evolved to the point of him monopolizing his grandpa¡¯s time, which he knew was precious. The man was a Violet with an entire House to run and hundreds of people to look after, yet here he was, focusing his efforts on a Red-born teenager.


    Even if he couldn¡¯t find a way to get stronger, he had to bring back for his family.


    Going over all the steps in his mind once more, Percy cleared his thoughts, beginning the process. First, he activated Soul Vision, tuning it to look at his own soul. Gathering mana on his fingertips, he placed his hand right in front of his sternum.


    Next, he sent a pulse of mana through his soul, letting it reflect off its edges. The moment it all returned to his chest, he seized the opportunity to grab the newly formed bump. He slowly pulled it outwards, ignoring the painful tears that started to form as the silver flame left the boundary of his flesh.


    Only after it stabilized did he send another pulse of mana from his core, trying to reinforce the damaged regions as he forced the protrusion to enlarge.


    ***


    Wave after wave, refill after refill, hour after hour, Percy continued to cultivate the ethereal substance in his hand. It was the very fabric he would craft his clone from.


    Soon after starting, he¡¯d been elated to discover his soul was more durable than last time! He guessed the awakening of his second core had influenced it. Neither Percy nor Archibald had ever heard that one¡¯s grade affected their soul, but then again, they hardly knew much about soul affinities to begin with.


    In hindsight, it wasn¡¯t that odd either. The fact that promotions strengthened one¡¯s body was common knowledge. It would be stranger if they didn¡¯t have a similar impact on other aspects of one¡¯s existence. If this hadn¡¯t been the case, a Red core with a soul affinity would be able to kill a White with a sneaky spell, which was absurd to imagine.


    Either way, the young man gladly welcomed all the help he could get. And it help, as his soul was noticeably more resilient, the tears forming just a touch more slowly.


    Waiting for his core to refill for the umpteenth time, he tossed a quick glance out the window.


    Apparently, he¡¯d been at it for over twelve hours. The orb in his hand was already larger than an apple. He was getting tired too, the concentration and pain taking a toll on his mind. His original plan had been to pull an all-nighter, gathering as much of his soul as possible before cutting out the clone.


    But that didn¡¯t seem very realistic now. While he push himself to go on, it appeared there was a limit to how much of his soul he could pull out at once. The more he accumulated, the greater the pressure was, causing the cracks to appear faster. Right now, the damage was piling up more quickly than his newly strengthened soul and his manual reinforcement could handle.


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    As soon as his core was refilled, he pulled the soul mana again. Unlike before, he didn¡¯t send another pulse, instead gathering it manually inside the blob. For the next two hours, Percy filled the orb with as much mana as he could manage, causing it to glow more brightly, until even baldy could faintly see it.


    Moving the mana directly into it resulted in fewer losses, but the bump didn¡¯t grow in size. Unless the mana travelled through his soul first, it didn¡¯t have that effect. That was clearly an aspect of his bloodline he¡¯d inherited from his family.


    The reason he was adding more mana to the orb was to give his clone some means of protecting himself later. He didn¡¯t know what circumstances he¡¯d find himself in, but he figured having a stockpile of mana to fall back to might be handy.


    he shrugged. ¡®


    Finally, he refilled his core one last time and ¨C after giving his grandpa a resolute look ¨C he fully activated his ability.


    The ghostly claw violently bolted out of his sternum, heading straight towards the thrumming blob. Wherever it passed, it carved nasty gouges in the silver flame, causing Percy to experience a world of agony. Not just that, but the tears that already existed widened, making the situation worse.


    Only after the claw entered the blob did something change, as it began to sizzle, the orb swelling and contracting around it a couple of times. Then¡­


    SNAP


    A loud shockwave rippled through Percy. The last thing he saw before his eyelids fell shut was a silver comet blasting out of his bedroom¡¯s wall.


    ***


    ¡°Fuck.¡± was the first word that came out of his mouth.


    The original Percy¡¯s that was ¨C not the clone¡¯s. His head ached as if it had been split in half. And if not, perhaps he should consider it. . He was lying on his bed, in a pool of sweat, the sheets sticking to his back.


    ¡°How are you feeling?¡± baldy asked, sitting on a chair next to him. S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The man¡¯s hand was raised, a gentle green glow radiating from it. Not that it did much, as the source of Percy¡¯s pain wasn¡¯t something life mana could help with. Still, he did appreciate the gesture.


    ¡°Like I¡¯ve torn out a part of my soul.¡± the young man grinned. ¡°How long was I out this time?¡±


    ¡°Just the night.¡±


    Percy exhaled in relief. . Not only had he recovered much sooner, but he¡¯d done so before his clone returned ¨C which was progress. Evidently, his efforts over the past few weeks hadn¡¯t been for naught.


    But thinking of a possibility, he paled.


    Panicking, he tried pulling some mana to his eyes, to check his soul¡¯s condition. He frowned. His core was surprisingly empty. It should have recovered on its own by now, since he¡¯d slept for a long time¡­


    Over the next few minutes, he meditated to speed up his regeneration, managing to manually gather some mana, eventually.


    Turning Soul Vision on, he examined himself, his features soon twisting at the sight. His soul was in even worse shape than the first time he¡¯d ever laid eyes on it. Technically, it wasn¡¯t too surprising. Back then, it had already had weeks to heal on its own before he learned about his affinity.


    Still, the sight was unsettling to behold. The tears were too wide and too deep to be described as anymore. Some regions looked like they were held together by a few scant strands, about to break off any moment now. But the worst part was the hole in his chest. It was as if a giant had scooped out a huge chunk of his soul with an oversized spoon, as the edges in the crater squirmed, leaking mana.


    Apparently, his soul was frantically sucking the mana out of his sternum, trying to hold itself together.


    Yet, it wasn¡¯t all bad news. Stretching out of the hole in his chest, Percy felt something extending into the distance. It was invisible even to Soul Vision, somehow even corporeal than soul mana. If he had to describe it, it was as if somebody had grabbed an and rolled it up into a rope. Like an umbilical cord, letting him sense that his soul clone was still out there, .


    PHEW


    Only then did he let out the turbid breath he¡¯d been holding.


    He sure hoped his clone would survive longer than the other one. And if he was lucky, even bring back something useful when it was done. For now, he could find comfort in the fact he was awake and could do other things while waiting.


    It didn¡¯t seem he could practice his soul magic, as his mana was still busy trying to keep his soul together, but perhaps he could feed his second core elixirs and get a bit more used to it over the next few days.

 Chapter 18: Wanderer

    His thoughts were groggy, taking ages to form. Or maybe seconds? He couldn¡¯t tell. Actually, Percy couldn¡¯t tell much of anything at the moment. He was blind and deaf. His sense of touch was gone too. The last thing he remembered was activating his bloodline, watching it tear his soul up.Both conclusions sounded possible, though he felt it was more productive to assume the latter.


    At least, it was good he retained some sense of self this time. On his previous attempt, this had only happened on the way It was certainly nice to have some control over the process. Well, assuming he could figure out what was going on¡­


    can


    The most prominent feeling was something attached to him, pulling him towards a certain direction. The force it exerted was currently weak, but it was strengthening very, slowly. For now, it didn¡¯t affect him much, but he knew it would become irresistible eventually. Perhaps it had to do with how much strength the clone ¨C ¨C had left? Or maybe with how badly his main body wanted him back? Or something else entirely?


    Either way, he should try finding a vessel before that happened.


    His normal senses didn¡¯t work, but there had to be he could do. Concentrating outwards, he filtered out the attraction of his body, trying to grasp at anything else. For a long time, there was nothing.


    Then, something appeared at the edge of his consciousness. Curious, he focused on it, causing it to expand and expand until¡­


    BUMP


    Percy felt an impact, shaking his very existence.


    Whatever it was, it was now getting more distant. Making a mental note to approach things more slowly in the future, he wondered why he¡¯d been rejected. Was there a reason he couldn¡¯t possess that person?


    Unable to tell, he resumed the experimentation. He repeated the same steps for some time, until another object appeared. Proceeding with more caution, he limited himself to fleeting glimpses. Each time he looked, it grew larger. Stopping when he was close enough, he went over what he understood about it, making sure not to focus too hard, to avoid crashing into it again.


    It like a soul, although it was his first time encountering one in his present state. He¡¯d plenty of them before via Soul Vision, but that was nothing like his current perspective. That said, this object gave him a conflicting mix of familiarity and strangeness. On one hand, it resembled his original self, still tugging at him through the connection. On the other, this was clearly somebody else.


    Also, there was a sense of rejection. Whenever he stopped ¡®looking¡¯, he felt himself drift further and further¡­


    Nor did he want to do that to somebody else, actually. He still felt guilty over possessing that baby. He¡¯d rather approach things differently this time if he could help it.


    Once more, he scanned his surroundings, struggling a little as the soul obstructed his senses. Instinctively, he wished to move away from it, which seemed to work, the object shrinking in his ¡®vision¡¯. Percy continued until he was satisfied with the distance. It only took a second.


    Come to think of it, he hadn¡¯t a clue how long it had been, nor how far he¡¯d travelled. But he guessed it should be measured at a scale. After all, he¡¯d essentially sleepwalked out of Remior last time.


    The young man ¨C or perhaps the even younger soul fragment ¨C felt the pull of his main body growing stronger. He still had time ¨C relatively speaking ¨C but he needed to make some progress.


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    He reached outwards once more. A third soul appeared, but he didn¡¯t approach it just yet. He kept concentrating until a fourth and a fifth joined it. Before long ¨C or maybe after long ¨C a sea of souls surrounded him from every direction.


    It was nice to have some choice, assuming he could pick from those of course. Still, it was annoying he couldn¡¯t examine them too closely, lest he approached one by accident. Instead, he had to tiptoe around the swarm, trying to learn about them without looking directly.


    As he allowed his senses to softly brush over the myriad lights, a strange thought crossed his mind.


    He didn¡¯t fully understand what laid in front of him, but he suddenly realized he didn¡¯t want to rush things. Perhaps no human had ever experienced anything like this. Percy felt a bubbling urge to take his time, appreciating the exotic scenery. To truly understand it. Even if he failed to find a body today, he would learn a lot for his next attempt.


    Thus, he relaxed, letting go of his previous urgency.


    The ¡®lights¡¯ came in all shapes and sizes. Lacking anything to measure them with, he could only compare them to one another. Some were tiny. There were countless of them clustered together, and he felt they were so weak he could snuff them out even in his current state.


    The brightest of them outshone the sun, the mere thought of approaching sending a wave of terror through his splintered consciousness.


    Still numerous ¨C given the scale of the universe ¨C but far scarcer than the other types.Percy had never seen a god in person. Not even back on Remior. Though he¡¯d seen plenty of statues and illustrations.


    That said, he didn¡¯t want anything to do with these alien deities. Most of them were probably hostile to his species. Instinctively, he wished to move away, but he didn¡¯t know which way to go. There was one no matter where he looked.


    Pressing down his fear, he considered categorizing the souls using something other than their ¡®brightness¡¯. Once more, he scanned them, looking for a different way to tell them apart. That¡¯s when he sensed a rather peculiar soul. Curious, he approached. In terms of potency, it was far more powerful than the insects, and infinitely weaker than the gods.


    Sadly, that was about the extent of what he could discern. Beyond that, Reds and Whites didn¡¯t look too different. Hopefully that would change with more practice. In any case, this wasn¡¯t the aspect he was interested in. Unlike the others, this soul felt , somehow. It was fluttering erratically and dimming quickly.


    Then, Percy made a mistake. In his attempt to learn more about it, he focused on it a little more than he¡¯d meant to, causing him to approach it rapidly.


    Growing nearer, he averted his ¡®gaze¡¯, trying to stop. It was difficult! For some reason, this one wasn¡¯t rejecting him! It was pulling him in!


    Intensifying his efforts, Percy actively steered away, eventually managing to slow down. Just in time too, as he had come this close to getting sucked right in.


    A moment later, the light fizzled out of existence, disappearing forever¡­


    At least that solved the mystery of how to possess somebody. Evidently, only those on the verge of death seemed to lower their defences, allowing others to approach. Perhaps it was some desperate, last-ditch effort to survive. It was a little morbid, but it was comforting to know he hadn¡¯t taken over and killed a healthy baby. The alien he¡¯d possessed had probably been a stillborn or something.


    Suddenly, Percy was dragged out of his thoughts, as he found himself on the move again. Another soul was pulling him!


    However, this one wasn¡¯t some dying stranger. It was his main body! Apparently, his time here had ran out. The force wasn¡¯t very strong just yet. He could still resist if he wanted, but he knew that wouldn¡¯t be the case for long.


    Truth be told, he wasn¡¯t too bummed out. Even though his original mission had failed, he¡¯d learned a lot about this place, which would greatly help him in his future ventures.


    Focusing outwards once more, he decided to check one last time, to see if he could find a good target.


    The pull was somewhat distracting, but he eventually managed to peer into the sea of souls again. Having a clearer idea of what to look for, he scanned through them much faster than before. He ignored those too powerful or too weak, and he didn¡¯t spare the healthy ones a second glance either.


    Eventually, his attention landed on another dimming light. But he didn¡¯t approach it. It was dying even faster than the one before. Whatever had killed it had done a thorough job. It would suck to possess a body only to find out it had been beheaded. S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The pull from the main body grew stronger, this time forcing him to actively exert effort to resist it. Percy found a few more damaged souls, but they didn¡¯t fit. One was too powerful, three were dying too quickly, one was too tiny. It didn¡¯t seem like it was meant to be. But it was ok. At least he¡¯d tried.


    Percy was close to accepting his failure, when he suddenly spotted another dying light. It was a bit stronger than he would have liked. He didn¡¯t know if that would be a problem. Also, it was fading a touch too fast. Even if he possessed it, he¡¯d probably die again soon. An unpleasant thing to experience for nothing. Still, he didn¡¯t have much to lose.


    Mobilizing every iota of his will, he resisted his body¡¯s pull for the briefest of instants, reaching for the dying light.


    The next moment, he felt it enlarge.


    Then, he was gone.

 Chapter 19: Possessed

    Percy found himself in an odd state.He was still unable to see or hear anything, but he had finally stopped moving. His body¡¯s pull was much fainter too. It was there, yet it couldn¡¯t pry him out of¡­ wherever he was. His attempt to possess the dying light had clearly done , though he wasn¡¯t sure what.


    Well, assuming he even had limbs. Logically this body should have something of the sort, but he couldn¡¯t move a muscle just yet. Percy tried shifting around. He appeared to still be in a soul-form. His very existence slipped through the nooks and crannies of a cramped container. Suddenly¡­


    CRACK


    One of the objects he was in contact with gave way under the pressure, shattering into nothing.


    Percy tried to untangle himself from his host¡¯s spirit, feeling more pieces crumble. At the same time, the pull strengthened slightly. Apparently, he couldn¡¯t afford to damage it too much or there would be nothing left to anchor him to this place.


    that wasn¡¯t his thought.


    The words echoing through his mind were foreign, spoken in some language he¡¯d never heard of. Still, he could understand them, as they seemed to be conveyed alongside their underlying meaning. Percy would have frowned if he still had lips.


    he asked.


    A wave of amusement intruded into his mind.


    Ok, that was a dumb question. In Percy¡¯s defence, he hadn¡¯t expected he¡¯d be sharing. Nothing of the sort had happened that one other time.


    the soul yelled in outrage.


    Percy found himself at a loss for words. He hadn¡¯t meant to share that.


    This time, the other soul was the one to shift around, trying to push him out. The only thing it managed, however, was to damage itself even more. A wave of pain assaulted Percy, but it wasn¡¯t his own.


    the soul yelled. S§×ar?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy was about to swear but paused. Perhaps this was the normal reaction to getting possessed. If there was even such a thing as ¡®normal¡¯ in this situation. Still, it would be a waste to die within three minutes of getting here.


    he asked.


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    Percy focused on the most interesting piece of information his soulmate had shared.


    This time, a wave of shock hit him, giving him a bad premonition. , he¡¯d made the already precarious situation even worse.


    THAT


    The soul doubled its efforts to evict him. At this rate, it would only be a few moments until it fell apart. Even the second-hand pain reaching Percy through the connection was difficult to endure. Whatever his host was going through must¡¯ve been a dozen times worse, but it didn¡¯t seem to care.


    he said.


    Percy was about to give up. The pull was starting to pry him off the body and it didn¡¯t seem like its owner could be reasoned with. Still, he tried one last time.


    Against all odds, that did seem to slow the soul¡¯s efforts slightly, as it appeared to ponder over Percy¡¯s question. Though it didn¡¯t drop its resistance entirely.


    The soul¡¯s words were scathing, but Percy felt something more than fury behind them.


    he replied.


    This time, the spirit stopped fighting. However, many of the fragments had already shattered. Percy found it difficult to hold on. Especially as he treaded a narrow line between anchoring himself and not squeezing the pieces too tightly.


    it asked after a while.


    Percy sent what he hoped would come across as a mental shrug.


    The soul remained silent for a while. He was about to remind it they were running out of time, when it spoke.


    The spirit didn¡¯t say anything, which Percy assumed was a ¡®yes¡¯. Of course, what he had promised was easier said than done. His host had already been dying when he found it, suggesting its body and soul hadn¡¯t been in great shape to begin with. Now, it was even worse. Not to mention that he could hardly even touch the fragments without destroying them¡­


    he realised.


    Perhaps, the fact his host had tentatively agreed to work with him had somehow raised their compatibility?


    In any case, he had to work fast. Shifting his own soul around, he wrapped the shards as gently as possible. Unlike before, each time he touched one, memories flashed through his mind.


    The darkness of a damp cell, the taste of rotten meat, the sting of nasty wounds, the thrill of victory, the bitterness of defeat, the pride of a broken people, the pain of betrayal¡­ It was too much, but Percy pushed it all aside. He could ask questions later ¨C if they survived.


    For now, he kept stretching all of himself, trying to use , to fill in the gaps of what the spirit was missing. At some point, he¡¯d shrouded many of the shards, hugging them gently but firmly. They anchored him here, and he hoped he¡¯d act as a bridge between them. The result was a mixed bag. At least, the damage had stopped mounting, but his host wasn¡¯t exactly functional. Furthermore, Percy couldn¡¯t tap into the body¡¯s senses either.


    Maybe it was because the latter had lacked a will, making it more malleable, easier to meld with.


    Out of options, the young man thought back to the bundle of soul mana his main body had generously bestowed him. He hadn¡¯t used it yet. Of course, he wasn¡¯t sure it would do anything, but it wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d need it if he failed anyway.


    Allowing it to unravel, he felt the mana flow outwards. The substance eagerly rushed to the edges of his fragmented soul, beginning to do what it did best ¨C repairing it. And as luck would have it, it ran into another soul in dire need of mending at those exact spots!


    Like glue, it lodged itself between the cracks, bringing the souls closer together as the spirit¡¯s memories flooded him with greater intensity. There was way too much to sift through, though Percy focused on one thing specifically as they reached equilibrium. His new pal¡¯s

 Chapter 20: Micky

    Various senses assaulted Percy, from the external ones such as the thick odours of moss and excrement, to the internal ones like his chest heaving up and down, or the cold numbness of narrowly-missed death crawling along his limbs. His body felt unfamiliar, plus he wasn¡¯t in control. He could try taking over ¨C ¨C but he¡¯d promised not to. Besides, their soul wouldn¡¯t take another round of infighting.DRIP


    Micky blinked as a drop landed in his eye. When he next opened it, Percy paid more attention to their surroundings. It was dark, the only source of light being the fluttering flame of a mounted torch somewhere in the distance. They were in a closed space that looked a bit like a cave, only one side covered in thick metallic bars. He recognized this place! It was the cell from Micky¡¯s memories!


    Percy felt a pang of amusement seep through their connection. Then, his host stood up, the pain making both of them wince. That was when the young man remembered their body was a mess.


    Many places hurt, but none as much as a region right above their stomach. There appeared to be a gaping hole, perhaps the very wound that had claimed Micky¡¯s life. Even the slightest shift rattled their innards, making Percy sick. It was lucky he wasn¡¯t in charge, or they might have thrown up by now. The most annoying part was that his host clearly didn¡¯t give a shit, stretching his legs as if everything was fine.


    Micky made a weird guttural sound that trailed off a bit like a cackle.


    Next, he flexed his arms, shocking Percy, who just now registered they had a couple too many.


    The image of a long flute-like instrument with dozens of holes appeared in his mind. It was wide like a trumpet on one end, though two shafts lead to it. He still couldn¡¯t understand Micky¡¯s language, but their link made communication convenient at least.


    Percy asked.


    His host remained quiet for a couple moments before replying.


    Micky shook his head ¨C a universal gesture it seemed. He didn¡¯t bother explaining.


    Returning to the spot where they¡¯d woken up, he looked at a small puddle on the ground. The water dripping from the ceiling was mixed with blood, but Micky wasn¡¯t deterred, scooping some with his lower-left hand before bringing it to his face.


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    Under other circumstances, Percy might have berated his host over his lack of hygiene. Right now, however, he was too busy gawking at the guy¡¯s reflection, faintly visible on the surface of the murky water. For the most part, he resembled a human, even his skin colour not too dissimilar to his own ¨C if a couple shades tanner. Though it was covered in all sorts of tribal tattoos, some depicting various celestial objects, while others showed Micky¡¯s people in various poses.


    Not all the symbols were easy to make out, partly due to the poor lighting, and partly due to the crisscrossing scars of all shapes and sizes marring Micky¡¯s body. His build was bulky too, his muscles toned, but Percy chalked those up to the harsh life he¡¯d clearly lived.


    There were other more glaring differences too, of course. Besides the obvious mismatch in the number of limbs, Micky¡¯s nose and mouth were fused together into a long, pointy beak. While his eyes and scalp weren¡¯t very different to Percy¡¯s, his ebony hair looked a little odd, reminding the young man of the fluff he often saw in newborn birds.


    His host moved again, shaking Percy out of his thoughts, as he walked to a wall before plopping down, resting his back on the coarse stone. It was cold and hard, except for a spot that felt a little grimy ¨C Not the cosiest seat, though it still felt unbelievably sweet right now, considering how unpleasant standing had been.


    Equally unpleasant was the terrible stench that assaulted their nostrils, which only intensified as Micky grabbed its source, bringing it to his mouth!


    Percy begged.


    His host frowned, glancing at the ¡®meal¡¯ in confusion.


    It was the half-eaten corpse of some kind of rodent, twice as large as a rat. Though it also had six limbs and its face was more flat.


    Micky rolled his eyes.


    Micky made the cackly sound again. Percy wanted to strangle him damn much.


    The bastard didn¡¯t even wait for a reply before pecking a chunk off the corpse. Percy hurriedly summoned his Status. He¡¯d been itching to do that since getting here and he desperately needed a distraction from the¨C .


    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s clone)


    Micky asked, a bone snapping inside his beak.


    Percy wanted to swear.


    His annoying host shrugged, tossing the rest of his meal inside his mouth, chewing it a couple of times before guzzling it down.


    It took Percy over a minute to recover. His main body would have nightmares of the spoiled rat meat for years.


    Micky shook his head.


    Percy hadn¡¯t known it was something exclusive to Remior. Either way, he read the rest, eager to find out if there was anything of value in this place.


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Yellow ¨C ???][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[??? (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.


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    Both exclaimed at the same time.


    Percy said.


    Micky asked again.


    Indeed, why was it? Percy would have understood had it been ¡®Fractured¡¯ instead, requiring both mind and life mana like the first time. Apparently, the former part had stuck with him for whatever reason¡­


    is what he ended up saying.


    A spark of annoyance passed through their bond.


    Micky gestured at his wound.


    At the end of the day, they didn¡¯t really need to awaken their second core. They wouldn¡¯t live long enough to use it anyway. Percy was more disappointed by the lack of another of those mysterious perks he could bring back to Remior. This trip was swiftly turning into a dud.


    Micky replied proudly.


    But the young man wasn¡¯t impressed.


    he thought, before realizing his gaff.


    However, his host hadn¡¯t taken offense.


    Percy wanted to ask, but he didn¡¯t want to be insensitive.


    Micky seemed about to elaborate, when they heard footsteps. Percy felt a wave of disgust oozing from his host as soon as the figure stepped into their sight. He appeared to be of the same species as Micky, though he lacked the tattoos and scars, dressed in clean, expensive clothes. The guard stopped by the entrance, searching through the keys strapped to his belt.


    Micky said, before adding,

 Chapter 21: Dance

    As Micky followed the guard through a long corridor, Percy was reevaluating his life choices. How had he found himself hitching a ride on a walking corpse, escorted to a fight through a dungeon? Not to mention, this place had turned out even crueller than Remior. Micky might be their prisoner, but these people didn¡¯t seem to know nor care he¡¯d just died.Oblivious to his thoughts, the guard soon brought them to a large barred gate, an ominous red light seeping through the gaps. Stopping, the man made some kind of whistling sound. And a few moments later, Percy heard a loud metallic noise. It was grating, like a rusty chain grinding against something hard. At the same time, the gate was slowly lifted by the mechanism.


    Micky stepped through as the guard stayed behind. He walked into an open space, to the cacophony of jeers and boos, which only intensified upon their arrival. Percy¡¯s host scanned their surroundings slowly, which he figured was done for his sake.


    The stands surrounded them in all directions, stretching up for over a hundred meters. And they were filled to the brim with eager spectators, clearly itching to enjoy the barbaric event. Most of the crowd was too far to make out, but many of those closest appeared to be the same species as Micky, albeit lacking the tattoos again, like the guard.


    His host had a visceral reaction to that thought. Percy felt phlegm accumulate in their throat, before Micky spat out the half-chewed head of the rodent, covered in thick bile.


    Micky snapped back.


    Then he looked up at a sky painted red, reminiscent of a sunset back on Remior. Yet here, it was the middle of the day. The local sun was at its apex, bathing Huehue in a dim crimson light. The sand blanketing the arena was red too, but a different, brownish shade. Mixed with the blood of countless combatants, it was coarse and sticky, with the occasional bony shard jutting out. Micky ignored those, as they failed to pierce his calloused feet, making his way to the centre of the arena.


    His host shrugged. Then, Percy felt the muscles in their abdomen tense, forcefully closing the injury. It hurt like a bitch, causing them to wince, though it was practical.


    Next, the core in their sternum stirred, flooding their body with potent mana. Having recently acquired a pure affinity himself, the substance felt somewhat familiar to Percy. Still, it was weird coming out of his chest rather than his abdomen and at a higher grade than he was used to. Soon, it gathered on the wound, further sealing it in a film of pale cyan. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it would do.


    ROAR


    A thunderous bellow came from the other end of the arena, as faint tremors reached their feet. And they grew more fierce over the next few seconds as another gate opened, revealing their opponent. It was a large bear-like creature, taller than Micky even on all six. Its green fur was long and curly, which might have made the creature look cute, if it hadn¡¯t been for its curved claws and twisting horns. Its snout was wide, with sharp fangs protruding out of its mouth, making it resemble a crocodile¡¯s maw.


    Micky activated Mana Sense, letting the two examine its grade.


    Percy wasn¡¯t happy. Beasts were generally dumber than sentient beings, but they possessed a special affinity that made up for it. Greatly strengthening their bodies with each promotion, it turned them into fierce opponents even for somebody at their grade. And that was assuming that person had a proper affinity themselves.


    Micky pulled mana from his core again, this time to his hands, forging it into four short staves.


    CLINK, CLINK


    He hit them together a couple of times, nodding in satisfaction as he verified their hardness. Still, that did little to assuage Percy¡¯s worry.


    It wasn¡¯t like pure mana was useless. It could still form proper spells and there people who ascended all the way to godhood with it. But it hadn¡¯t earned its reputation as the weakest affinity by accident either. It was far less flexible than water or air, and not nearly as sturdy as earth, or as lethal as fire and lightning. Even calling it a jack-of-all-trades was an overstatement. Perhaps a jack-of--trades was more apt. Adding Micky¡¯s suboptimal condition and Percy wasn¡¯t optimistic about their odds. Not wanting to negatively affect his host, he tried to steer away from those thoughts, but they must¡¯ve seeped through.


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    Micky chuckled.


    Then, their calves tensed like steel coils, as Micky jolted towards the monster with shocking speed. He was quicker than a Yellow had any right to be, clearly having honed his body to its very limits. His technique was nothing to scoff at either, perfectly timing the swings of his upper arms to close into the beast¡¯s head from both sides.


    However, the croco-bear was no slouch either, raising a paw faster than its bulk should have allowed, slashing down violently.


    BOOOOM


    Percy felt their bones creak, as the shockwave sent ripples through their skin. Bent under the tremendous weight of the claws, one of the rods was already cracked.


    But Micky never gave them the chance. Having expected the parry, he stabbed forward with his lower arms, hitting the creature¡¯s chin. The impact sent its head up by a few inches, a few bloody fangs spluttering out.


    Yet, it was far from enough.


    GROWL


    Enraged, the beast swiped with a second paw, this time slashing directly at Micky¡¯s chest. Percy felt all four elbows bend, the mana flowing to reinforce the damaged weapon, as the rods moved to block the incoming blow.


    BOOOOM


    It was even heavier than the one before, but Micky loosened his footing at the last second, letting himself slide back a dozen metres to lessen the impact. . As the young man had thought, his host was at a severe disadvantage. He just couldn¡¯t see a way out of this.


    Micky pulled some more mana to repair the weapons but didn¡¯t stop there. He pushed it into his channels, keeping it in his body. Then, he took a deep breath as Percy felt the strands of ambient mana enter their lungs, swirling like water down a drain. Their core had previously been at half its capacity, Micky having already exhausted much of his reserves, though it began refilling rapidly as he continued to pump mana into his pathways. At this rate, it would take less than a minute to max out!


    Percy¡¯s eyes would¡¯ve widened had he been the one in control. The beast was already charging at them, but Micky didn¡¯t appear concerned. He continued to absorb mana as his channels swelled. Countless thin threads like veins began glowing under his skin.


    As soon as the monster was upon them, Micky pivoted on his heel, narrowly avoiding being impaled by its horns. Then, he stomped hard with his other foot, all the muscles in his body bulging ¨C . The mana burned its way through their lower arms, making the weapons glow brighter as they lunged upwards.


    CRACK


    Percy felt the beast¡¯s ribs give way under the fierce strike, the force even lifting its giant visage an inch off the ground.


    GRRRRRR


    Its maw snapped shut, droplets of boiling spittle falling in all directions as the creature seethed. This time it swiped sideways with two of its paws. Or tried to, at least.


    Micky¡¯s movements were too fast for Percy to fully track, though he seemed to have struck one of its knees with a staff, stopping it before it picked up momentum. As for the second paw, he¡¯d failed to see how his host had dodged it, as Micky tiptoed around the monster, his footwork elegant like a dance. Then, he leapt backwards, putting some distance from the disoriented beast.


    Only then did Percy realize their core was about to reach full capacity. With one last breath, it hit its limits. But still, Micky didn¡¯t stop inhaling mana. The pressure was intense, making Percy fear both the core and the channels were about to burst, when the glowing lines on their skin shone even more brightly. Percy had only managed a fleeting glance, but the mana seemed to flow in certain patterns, tracing along the tribal tattoos, hinting at the order in which they were meant to be read. A few scarce motes of cyan leaked out of their body, as the rods felt hotter to the touch.


    The beast regained its bearing, glaring at them with unconcealed fury. Though it wasn¡¯t as quick to attack this time. Instead, it was Micky who dashed forward. Before he even reached the creature, he took a few strange steps, twisting his path. The monster¡¯s attack hit empty air as Micky delivered three swift strikes from various angles.


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    Every time a rod landed, a bone shattered.


    Saying that Percy had a front row seat to the spectacle would be an understatement. Inside Micky¡¯s body, he could feel every muscle flexing, every wisp of mana moving, every pivot of their feet, every sharp swing of the weapons. But even then, he could barely track a tenth of Micky¡¯s actions.


    His host wasn¡¯t only manipulating the staves with his hands. They bounced off his elbows and even his knees, as they swished through the air erratically, stabbing and crushing and slashing at the creature from seemingly random angles. At one point, Micky even kicked the bottom of a rod with his heel, slamming the other end right onto the monster¡¯s horn, smashing it into splinters.


    Five minutes later, the beast was lying on the ground, its pained cries having softened, its breaths slowing down. It was battered, its limbs bent in all the wrong directions, countless craters tearing into its flesh.


    Percy stared at the monster in horror. A short while earlier he¡¯d been wondering how they could possibly escape its clutches, only to watch it slaughtered in such a brutal manner.


    Then, Micky spoke again.

 Chapter 22: Kik’lit

    The two were back in the cell, the foul smell of blood now dominating the earthy scents of the cave.Micky didn¡¯t seem bothered, however, as he pecked chunks off the croco-bear¡¯s severed leg. Being allowed to eat their kills was apparently one of the few joys afforded to the prisoners of the colosseum. Not that Percy particularly enjoyed the taste of the still-bleeding meal ¨C he preferred his food cooked. At least this one was fresh. A Yellow beast¡¯s flesh was supposed to be tougher, but his host had softened it quite a bit after that massacre of a bout.


    Micky nodded.


    Fighting above one¡¯s grade was certainly valuable, but if it only worked with pure mana then the advantage would be offset by its weakness. In that case, it would be priceless for the people of Huehue, yet not quite as much for others.


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    Hearing that, Percy¡¯s feelings were mixed. Part of him want it to work solely with his second core, to finally make it worth it. Stumbling upon a powerful technique that only worked of his affinity sure sounded better than one that did so it. But he shook those thoughts away, knowing they were silly.


    The only question now was whether Micky would be willing to pass his people¡¯s heritage to an outsider...


    Percy thought he¡¯d heard wrong.


    Micky shrugged.


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    The young man was at a loss for words.


    Micky chuckled.


    SIGH


    COUGH, COUGH


    Percy felt the taste of iron in their mouth, as Micky wiped something sticky off the bottom of his beak. blood wasn¡¯t from the food.


    Micky shifted in his seat, the movement sending another jolt of pain through their body. Unlike before, he had to use one of his lower hands to keep the wound closed. Despite the measures he¡¯d taken during the fight to protect it, it had still widened by about an inch. While powerful, the Dance of the Savage Gods clearly took a toll on its user.


    Carelessly tossing the naked bone away, Micky pushed himself up, walking to a different corner of the cell. The dim light of the torch didn¡¯t reach that spot, so Percy hadn¡¯t noticed there was something here earlier. Reaching down, his host picked up a strange piece of bone, crafted into some sort of intricate tool. No, not a tool. . It looked a little like an ivory flute, but it had two shafts, way too many holes and was wide like a trumpet on one end¡­


    Micky rolled his eyes.


    Next, he sat down again, moving the object to his face. That¡¯s when Percy understood that, unlike a trumpet, one was supposed to blow at the kik¡¯lit from the wide end ¨C the beak going inside the hole. Which frankly made sense, given the locals¡¯ physiology.


    The young man figured his host would have a tough time playing with one hand occupied, yet Micky seemed to manage just fine. If anything, he appeared quite skilled with it too, his fingers moving swiftly but gently, tapping some of the holes while brushing over others. Then, he blew a strained breath into the kik¡¯lit, causing it to emit a soft tune. The melody was crisp and strangely uplifting, like something a mother would play for her child to cheer them up. For a second, Percy almost forgot he was still inside a corpse, trapped in a cell atop a broken world.


    Yet, a second tune subtly underscored the first. A kid would have missed this one, and perhaps Percy might have too, if not for Micky¡¯s emotions seeping through their connection. This hidden layer spoke of struggles against adversity, and of the fight for one¡¯s place in the world. Like a people cursed without an affinity, trying to protect their home.


    Micky played for hours, the mellow notes bouncing off the cold walls. Every few minutes a cough interrupted the music, each time sounding worse. Still, it always resumed soon after, as if it would be a crime to rob Huehue of even this minor consolation.


    So absorbed was Percy in the melody, he nearly failed to register the warm trickle down his cheek. It slowly flowed down his face, before dripping off his chin.


    PIT, PIT


    The tears sputtered on his chest, curving around the wound, almost caressing it.


    Without meaning to, and for the first time since their meeting, Percy had broken his promise¡­

 Chapter 23: Circulation

    A zigzagging trail of shallow prints formed on the sticky sand. They were erratic and barely visible. Nearly soundless too. Had Percy relied on his eyes, he would have failed to track the creature. Still, the Orange orbs shimmering inside his Mana Sense made this easy. With a horizontal movement of his upper-right arm, he slammed the rod into the critter¡¯s side, feeling little resistance as he catapulted its body a dozen meters away.THUD


    A small crater formed on the ground, as the skin of the fox-like animal regained its colour.


    Micky warned.


    The young man had already noticed, swinging his left to intercept it. But his movements were clumsy. The only thing he managed to hit was his own back, fumbling with the weapon as the Orange blur streaked toward his throat. His bottom-left elbow jerked upwards at the last second, the staff¡¯s lunge sending the beast flying.


    THUD


    It didn¡¯t land until a couple seconds later, the impact sending a splash of bloody sand in every direction.


    GRRRRR, GRRRRR


    The rest of the pack growled at him, but didn¡¯t rush to attack, learning from their companions¡¯ mistakes as they circled him cautiously.


    Percy said.


    Micky replied before chuckling.


    Percy felt his cheeks heat up.


    Then, he resumed his stance, his focus returning to his opponents. A sliver of cyan leaked out of his sternum, tracing along an arm to repair one of the rods. Micky was in charge of their core, as Percy wasn¡¯t proficient enough with pure mana to form stable constructs. The second pair of arms too, as the young man didn¡¯t need to learn how to use those.


    Percy nodded. The Dance of the Savage Gods was a complex technique with many moving parts. Mastering each would be a time-consuming process, but a lot of them he could work on by himself. For example, training his body to withstand it was relatively straightforward. Forming the weapons too.


    That said, there were some aspects he couldn¡¯t learn without guidance. Micky pushed more mana out of their core, flooding their channels. Unlike the last time, he deliberately slowed down the process, making it easier for Percy to follow. The young man paid close attention to the specific pathways the mana was flowing in.


    Normally, over 95% of a mage¡¯s mana was contained in their core. Their channels weren¡¯t meant for storage, but for efficiently transmitting it outside as quickly as possible. Consequently, most people only bothered to clear out the channels that began at their sternum and spread out to their extremities.


    Micky¡¯s technique was very different. It used every channel in one¡¯s body ¨C even the seemingly useless ones looping around pointlessly. Percy would have to clear a lot of new pathways later. Not just that, but he¡¯d have to temper all of them, including the ones he normally used, until they could stretch more than normal. This would let him contain twice as much mana as before. The flow was also necessary, to keep the mana evenly spread out, so that he could draw on it quickly where it was required. The deep breaths too, which would constantly refill his pool, maintaining his strength.


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    This was news to Percy. Once more, he felt his muscles brimming with strength, as glowing cyan lines became visible on his skin. This much had already allowed Micky to utterly dominate a previously insurmountable opponent. Just how powerful was the full technique?!


    ***


    COUGH, COUGH


    Percy didn¡¯t even bother wiping the blood off their beak. There was no point ¨C they were covered all over already.


    Micky nodded. With a sudden spin, he delivered a powerful blow on one of the remaining critters, crushing its skull. Then, gathering strength in his calves, he sprung forth like an arrow, swiftly dispatching the last one too.


    Only after they were alone in the arena did he finally let go of the excess mana, falling with his back on the sand, his chest heaving up and down as the cyan lines faded from his skin. He was using both of his lower hands to keep the wound from opening more than it had to. By now, it had doubled in size and his body was much paler, having lost a ton of blood.


    Percy asked.


    He could feel the agonizing pain of course, but he figured his host had a better understanding of his own body.


    Perhaps they could have made it a couple days longer if they took things slower, but they¡¯d overexerted themselves against the invisible foxes. Normally, Micky wouldn¡¯t have needed more than a minute to slaughter them all. The only reason he¡¯d persisted for over an hour had been to show Percy the ropes. It wasn¡¯t nearly enough time for him to learn the technique, but he¡¯d at least begun to grasp the underlying concepts.


    As their breath evened out, the young man noticed the crimson sun was still at its apex, having never moved from that very spot.


    Micky raised an eyebrow.


    Percy thought he was being pranked. Still, he showed his host images of the sun setting and rising on Remior.


    Micky said after a while.


    Then he chuckled bitterly.


    ¡®Though I suppose this side isn¡¯t much better now.¡¯


    A few moments later, they pushed against the sand, struggling to stand up. Only then did Percy register the crowd¡¯s boos, startled by their intensity. Evidently, their bloodthirsty audience wasn¡¯t pleased he and Micky had dragged the fight out for so long.


    he glared.


    Micky shook his head.


    The rusty gate made a groaning sound somewhere behind them. They looked back, seeing the guards gesturing impatiently. S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    SIGH


    For some reason, the young man felt his heart clench, but didn¡¯t say anything. This was Micky¡¯s life. The tiny sliver he had left. And he¡¯d already used up much of it for his sake. Whatever he wanted to do, Percy wouldn¡¯t stop him. Receiving a tacit agreement, Micky ignored the guards¡¯ shouts, slowly trudging to the other side of the arena. The boos only grew louder as the injured gladiator stumbled his way to one of the walls.


    Next, he looked up.


    Percy examined the crowd as his host¡¯s eyes brushed over them. There were people of all ages ¨C men, women and children ¨C dressed in all kinds of clothes he¡¯d never seen before. From sleeveless shirts with silken ties, to colourful dresses that left little to the imagination, to flamboyant hats and intricate accessories¡­ Under other circumstances, he might have appreciated the exotic fashion of Huehue¡¯s locals. Right now, however, it wasn¡¯t nearly enough to suppress the sheer disgust he felt towards them.


    Eventually, Micky¡¯s gaze lingered on a man somewhere in the first row. He lacked the tribal tattoos and scars ¨C much like everyone else ¨C but, unlike the rest, his build was muscular.


    Percy realized.


    He was surrounded by a few more men like him, but Micky didn¡¯t pay them any heed. Raising his hand, he manifested a new cyan rod before pointing it at that person. Only after getting a nod back did he let the construct crumble, his arm falling weakly by his side. Finally, he turned back towards the gate, ignoring the even louder boos buzzing in his ears.


    ***


    CLUNK


    The cell¡¯s door slammed shut as the guard left with what Percy thought was the equivalent of a sneer.


    Cusping a handful of water from the puddle, Micky gulped it sloppily before plopping down on the cold stone.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened, but Micky wasn¡¯t done.

 Chapter 24: Mixcoatl

    Percy felt his features twist into a grimace.Once more, Micky reached for the kik¡¯lit. With a trembling grip, he moved it to his beak, exhaling a soft breath into the instrument. . He tried again but his fingers shook, unable to close the holes properly. His lungs hurt with every attempt too. After a few more failures, he let his arm fall, the intricate piece of bone rolling half a circle away.


    Percy could already guess the answer.


    Micky nodded.


    The young man pondered over the implications. This certainly explained the bad blood between the two sides. Still¡­


    SIGH


    The two remained silent for a while. Eventually, Percy spoke again.


    Back in the arena, he¡¯d caught a glimpse of Mixi-coco-whatever¡¯s core. The guy was at Yellow ¨C the same grade as them. Sure, Micky was injured badly¡­ but maybe if he was more skilled¡­


    Micky said.


    Percy was shocked.


    Micky replied.


    Micky closed his eyes, softly tapping the back of his head against the wall.


    Percy raised one of their eyebrows. He didn¡¯t know how long a year was on Huehue, but he figured that should be plenty of time for Micky to have advanced at least once, yet he hadn¡¯t. Who would waste precious resources on prisoners? The wardens on the other hand¡­


    Micky chuckled, but it sounded hollow.


    Micky raised an eyebrow.


    Micky said, clenching his free fists.


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    Percy was at a loss for words.


    Micky said, the skin by the base of his beak curling a touch upwards.


    ***


    They stood in the arena¡­ . Whatever the outcome of the match, Percy knew his adventure on Huehue was about to end. The horrific wound now extended all the way to Micky¡¯s chest, his flesh barely held together by the lower pair of arms and as much mana as he could spare. His legs wobbled. Even making it out of the long corridor had been a challenge.


    Percy thought the gate in front of them might have opened, but it was hard to say for sure through their blurry vision. It wasn¡¯t until Micky¡¯s opponent stood just a few yards away that they could make out his mocking expression. Their only consolation was that the ringing in their skull made it impossible to hear the crowd¡¯s jeers.


    Micky nodded.


    Both combatants took a deep breath, standing still for a couple moments. Percy felt power flood through their mana channels, though it hurt this time. Wherever it passed, muscles tore and bones creaked, as blood gushed out of their chest like a river.


    Bright cyan lines lit up on their opponent¡¯s skin as well, as the two sides summoned their weapons. Micky clenched the ill-shapen rods tightly in his free hands, one threatening to crumble already. Mixcoatl had an easier time, leisurely assuming a loose battle stance, only bothering to lift one of his four javelins to point at their throat.


    Micky dashed forward.


    Not that he could afford to move much, but waiting would only make things worse. The twin rods closed into Mixcoatl¡¯s face from either side like a pincer. But the attack was too slow. Too telegraphed. . With a swirl of his javelin, the warden sliced both staves in half, kicking Micky squarely in the chest. S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    CRACK


    Multiple bones broke as his ribcage caved in. Percy felt a wet cough escape their beak as they were sent flying back, skidding and rolling, before sliding on the dirty sand over a long distance. Luckily, their core hadn¡¯t shattered under Mixcoatl¡¯s foot, but mana still leaked out of their pores as Micky struggled to keep the technique going.


    Seeing this, the warden also allowed the glowing lines to fade away. Apparently, he deemed it unnecessary to exert the effort. Just like that, Micky had been defeated again, this time without Mixcoatl even having to resort to the full Dance!


    Percy felt his soul untangle from his host¡¯s. The makeshift patches he¡¯d hastily fashioned out of soul mana were rapidly coming undone as his connection to Micky grew more distant. Over the last couple of days, he¡¯d almost forgotten how precarious the condition of their soul was. Like two broken vases, joined together with spit and wishes, it was even more fragile than their physical form. The tether to his main body was already pulling him, trying to pry him out of Huehue.


    Micky had lived a shitty life¡­ and he¡¯d died an even shittier death¡­


    He prodded his mana again, tightening the patches, trying to restore his connection to Micky ¨C their connection to the battered body. His buddy¡¯s bitter thoughts seeped through him once more, as he barely managed to open their eyes in time to see Mixcoatl looming over them.


    The warden¡¯s beak moved, but Percy couldn¡¯t register the words. Then the man lifted his foot and stomped their knee. Just like that, one of the patches Percy had fixed with so much effort instantly fizzled out, a part of Micky¡¯s soul shattering with it.


    It was pointless. Even if he clutched onto their fading life for a moment longer, the end would be the same. There was no way Micky could fight back. So, Percy stopped trying to hold on to their life. Instead, he did something crazier. He didn¡¯t have his soul core with him, but this was still mana. His main body had bestowed it to him to use it as he pleased. It was filled with will.


    The young man allowed many of the patches to disperse, the mana to fall in line. There wasn¡¯t much of it left. His main body had charged him up with a few refills before sending him off, but most was already gone. Some had been absorbed, trying to mend their broken souls. A lot had just leaked out or drifted away.


    Mixcoatl was a full grade higher than him, but he wouldn¡¯t see this coming. The fool had even disabled the Dance.


    Commanding the mana with all his might, Percy gathered it into one of his lower hands, one of the two still keeping their organs from spilling out of the wound. The young man had spent countless hours practicing this spell, but he wasn¡¯t happy with it. It had to be sharper. . Tougher too. He¡¯d only get one shot, and he to waste it!


    The warden lifted his foot again, crushing the other knee. It didn¡¯t matter ¨C . Percy had already drained all the mana from their lower body, allowing half of Micky¡¯s remaining soul to crumble away. Then, Mixcoatl switched to the arms. Luckily, he only bothered with the upper ones ¨C the ones sprawled out on the sand by his sides ¨C not the one Percy needed. Two seconds later, they were also shattered. With a savage glint in his eyes, the warden raised his javelin, finally done torturing his prey. He pointed the tip at their neck, ready to end this.


    It was now or never.


    Percy summoned as much strength as he could and flicked his hand towards the warden¡¯s chest. His movement was slow¡­ Mixcoatl had reacted before the young man even let go of the mana. The warden stabbed Micky¡¯s throat with a javelin, the other three crossed in the projectile¡¯s path. Percy wasn¡¯t sure if the warden could see it. He should be able to ¨C if he was using Mana Sense. Either way, his hand¡¯s motion had betrayed the dagger¡¯s trajectory.


    But it didn¡¯t matter.


    The bastard should have dodged instead! The last thing Percy saw as his vision faded to black were Mixcoatl¡¯s eyes glazed over, as he plopped down, deader than dead.


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new spell: Parting Gift ¨C Crude!]

 Chapter 25: Spells

    The Status was a strange thing. It didn¡¯t notify one when they identified their affinity or a bloodline. In fact, it didn¡¯t even say a word when their grade advanced. However, there was one thing it actively inform its user of.Mastering a new spell.


    The people of Remior weren¡¯t sure why it worked like that. For the most part, the Status was just a tool of convenience, to help its users keep track of their progress. Still, that didn¡¯t explain why spells got special treatment. A widely accepted hypothesis was that it was meant to guide mages into honing their magic. Letting them know when they reached a significant milestone might be a way of doing that. Classifying spells into various ranks could be another.


    Either way, Percy had waited his whole life for his first Crude spell to be announced. He should have been ecstatic to see it finally happen. . In fact, he couldn¡¯t care less about that right now. His mind was preoccupied with something more important.


    The young man¡¯s time on Huehue had been short, but unforgettable. Despite what he¡¯d thought at first, he¡¯d even gained a lot. Mastering his first spell, understanding how his soul clones interacted with dying bodies, learning the fundamentals of the Dance¡­ However, Percy would gladly give all that up to talk to his friend one last time. To tell him they¡¯d killed the man who ruined his life. .


    But alas¡­


    Their connection had been severed, his main body already ripping him out of the battered corpse. S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The young man felt for the fallen gladiator¡¯s soul. There wasn¡¯t much of it left. Just some random pieces here and there. Percy gently wrapped himself around them, enveloping and gathering them like a satchel. He couldn¡¯t establish a link with them right now, and the last drop of soul mana had been used up in that attack. His only option was to try and take the shards back to Remior with him.


    The rope on his ¡°back¡± tightened, Percy¡¯s soul stretching like a rubber band. Still, Micky¡¯s fragments refused to budge. They were pinned in place, anchoring them both to Huehue still. Just like Percy¡¯s soul belonged on Remior, Micky¡¯s belonged here. As broken as it was, its world refused to let it go.


    SNAP


    Percy felt something tearing, followed by a wave of pure agony. Pulled between two worlds, his own soul wouldn¡¯t last long.


    Of course, his main body was probably going to be fine, safe as it was, back in the Avalon House¡¯s mansion. That said, permanently losing the clone couldn¡¯t be a good thing.


    Not seeing any way of carrying all the pieces back, Percy loosened his hold on them, letting a couple of the smaller shards slip through the gaps. The dying wisps instantly shattered upon leaving his embrace. His hope was beginning to evaporate when he felt the rest of the pile fidget slightly. But it wasn¡¯t enough.


    Percy left a few more fragments behind, until only a couple remained ¨C his friend¡¯s soul now being even tinier than his own! At least, the gamble seemed to pay off, as the young man¡¯s desperate move tipped the scales in Remior¡¯s favour. The persistent pull finally dislodged them both out of the four-armed corpse, plunging them into an infinite sea of darkness. The pressure on Percy¡¯s wisp was immense, his friend¡¯s soul feeling heavy in his grasp. Huehue might have lost the tug-of-war, but it appeared it wasn¡¯t quite ready to give up pulling!


    The young man was tempted to let go. So little of Micky remained, he doubted it could be salvaged. But he held on. Even if the odds were abysmal, he to try. He owed him that much¡­


    ***


    Percy swung the cyan dagger against the trunk.


    CH, CRCK


    He only managed to carve about an inch into the aged wood before the mana construct broke apart. Plopping down on the grass, he rested his back against the tree, breathing heavily. He considered refilling his core to try again, but it was dark already and he¡¯d been at it all day. Perhaps he should resume tomorrow.


    Using his second core wasn¡¯t as fun. Its lower grade meant he couldn¡¯t practice for nearly as long before running out. Furthermore, its lacking affinity made for flimsy constructs that shattered easily.


    Sadly, his soul mana was still being funnelled into his injuries to keep him stable. At least, many of the smaller cracks had already closed, while the rest had shrunk significantly. It was only the massive crater in his chest that looked about the same. Or well, at least he thought it did. Had there been any improvement, it was too small to notice. At this rate, it would take years to fully heal.


    Around three weeks had passed since he activated his ability. On one hand, this wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing. It meant the clone was being productive somewhere out there. Still, it did leave him a bit crippled until he returned.


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    He shook his head.


    While it wasn¡¯t very useful right now, it would be such a waste to write it off so quickly. Especially after all the trouble he¡¯d undergone to repair it. Standing up, he was about to head to his room, when he felt a tug at his chest. He looked down, but there was nothing.


    Percy frowned, not connecting the dots until a couple moments later. Actively gathering enough mana for Soul Vision took a while longer, but he got there. Normally, the thread linking him to his clone was invisible even in his augmented sight.


    However, he could clearly see his soul trembling in unrest as the ethereal cord vibrated. The pull itself wasn¡¯t much stronger than it had been just an hour ago. The attraction had been steadily rising over the past three weeks. Still, this was the first time he sensed the connection shaking, as if it was attached to a boat sailing in a storm.


    Percy was over the moon. Closing his eyes, he took a few deep breaths, manually gathering some soul mana. It was hard, as his injuries fought to drain it, but he persisted, hoping to fill his core up by the time the clone returned. Naturally, he hadn¡¯t a clue how long it would take, or even what state the clone would be in. That said, he guessed it might be handy to have some soul mana available, just in case.


    ***


    A good idea, it turned out to be. The clone hadn¡¯t returned right away. Percy had to wait a few hours, even after refilling the core. Annoyingly, he had to keep meditating to keep the mana in.


    It was tempting. For all he knew, the clone might not arrive until tomorrow. Right when he was seriously considering heading to his room, he felt a powerful impact slam onto his soul, a potent wave of vertigo nearly knocking him off his feet. At the same time, a flood of memories invaded his mind, one after another.


    A dark expanse, a sea of souls, a fight over a body, a damp cell, a blood-stained arena, an ancient dance, a heart-felt melody, a bitter story, an unlikely victory, a painful death¡­ There was plenty to sift through, but Percy brushed all of it aside, focusing on what mattered.


    Activating Soul Vision, he fought against the nausea to check his friend¡¯s condition. Upon tapping into his core, a lot more soul mana gushed out than he¡¯d intended. Only a trickle flowed to his eyes, the rest pouring into his chest by itself, trying to attach the new chunk back to the rest of his soul. But Percy pressed it back into his core, suppressing his body¡¯s instincts. He might need every last drop to save his friend!


    Examining his chest, he found three separate entities at play. One was the main part of his soul, still with a large crater right around his sternum. However, this hole was no longer empty. Inside, there was another piece, about the size of a grapefruit, already stuck to the larger section in a few spots. Finally, inside the ball representing his clone, there was a third soul ¨C . There wasn¡¯t much left, and the pieces were swiftly being assimilated.


    Back on Huehue, the two had been at an equilibrium. Both souls had been fragmented, though Percy¡¯s had his ability to back him up, while Micky¡¯s had quantity and the home advantage. Right now, however, they were in Percy¡¯s body, his soul being much healthier and ¨C for the most part ¨C intact. Sporting an overwhelming advantage, the young man watched his own soul gnaw at the last shards of Micky¡¯s, causing it to shrink at an alarming rate.


    It was easier said than done. Percy had already learned that healthy souls tended to reject others. What he needed was a . He looked around with his Soul Vision still on, though he was alone in the garden.


    Grasping for any idea he could think of, he forced more soul mana into his eyes. He¡¯d never tried this before, but it should work. His soul constructs could phase through walls, so perhaps he could see through them too, right? His guess seemed to be on point, as a few wisps of silver became visible from somewhere inside the mansion.


    Then, he slapped his forehead. He could scan his house all he wanted, but what were the odds he¡¯d find somebody dying right now? Nobody was on their deathbed as far as he knew! Of course, he wasn¡¯t very close to any of them, but he¡¯d have heard something like Plus, even on the off chance he found one, what was he going to tell the others?


    Finding a human body for Micky was obviously out of the question. Examining his surroundings again, he inspected the critters scurrying about on the grass. Shoving his friend¡¯s soul inside a caterpillar would be such a crappy move, but it was all he could think of.


    And he find a few candidates. The training grounds were teeming with ants, worms, ladybugs, butterflies, snails and all sorts of other not-so-great options. Not many of them were on the verge of death, but that could easily be arranged. The question was whether he could do better.


    Five minutes later, Percy noted he was running out of time. Micky¡¯s soul was dissolving into his own, like an ice cube dropped in a cup of tea. The largest body he¡¯d found was a praying mantis. It was healthy, so injuring it just enough would be a little tricky, yet it sounded like his best option at this point.


    He was about to go for it, when a stroke of inspiration led him to toss one last glance at the tree. A faint wisp of silver flickered somewhere atop its naked crown. It was weak, but the young man had a hunch it was worth looking into. Climbing up was a challenge considering his splitting headache and the lack of purchase on the trunk, but he made it there eventually ¨C


    Reaching the top, he spotted an old bird¡¯s nest. It was abandoned. Its owner had either died or forgotten about it. Still, it wasn¡¯t empty. Percy counted six eggs, five of them already dead. In fact, three of those were already cracked and hollow. But the last one wasn¡¯t fully gone yet!


    Percy didn¡¯t exactly know what he was doing. It had taken him ages to figure out how to craft that clone in the first place. Bringing Micky¡¯s soul back to Remior had also been a fluke.


    Stirring his bloodline again, he skipped the whole procedure. He didn¡¯t have the time to slowly grow and carve out a proper clone. The last one had just returned, so the grapefruit-sized ball was only loosely attached to its surroundings. The ghostly claw hungrily pounced upon it, snapping it violently from the rest, twisting his and, most importantly, Micky¡¯s souls into one before shooting out of his chest again.


    This time, Percy was ready for it, having angled his sternum just above the egg. With the last trace of lucidity, he fell backwards, unwilling to crush the nest under his body as he passed out. He didn¡¯t know if he had succeeded, or what the repercussions of his reckless move would be, but he¡¯d done his best...


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new spell: Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude!]

 Chapter 26: Secret Arts

    Percy opened his eyes, a flash blinding him. It soon died down into a mix of colours, but still too blurry to make out much. The off-white of his bedroom wall was predominant, although there was something else by his side. It looked like the silhouette of a person. ¡°¡­¡±


    He thought he heard them say something. It was muffled, as if they were underwater.


    ¡°¡­¡±


    The furniture-person tried a few more times ¨C with some minor permutations ¨C but Percy still couldn¡¯t understand them. Soon, they gave up, disappearing from his sight. His eyes fell shut again¡­


    ***


    Once more, he faced what he thought was his wall, this time with two silhouettes surrounding him.


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    They made more sounds, the first one chirping at a higher pitch than the second. Percy tried to shift but found himself unable to even twitch his fingers.


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    The silhouettes kept speaking to him ¨C at least, that¡¯s what he assumed was happening. However, he just couldn¡¯t filter them out of the buzz. Tired as he was, he wanted to doze off again, though he forced himself to stay awake.


    One of the blurs moved, enlarging in his vision. They tugged his chin, the touch prickling him as if he¡¯d been stabbed by needles, before pulling his mouth open. Then, something bland and lukewarm flowed down his throat. It left an aftertaste akin to chicken soup, but it was muted like the rest of his senses. It stopped after a while as they let go of him.


    The two remained with him, chatting every now and then. It took a while, yet he noticed the figures had grown a bit more defined at some point. One of them ¨C the one with the chirpy voice ¨C was aquamarine near the top. He recognized it. .


    Percy tried muttering her name, but he couldn¡¯t even open his mouth without assistance. As for the other blur? Well, the only candidates would be Gawain or Archibald, though he wasn¡¯t sure who.


    Digging through his memories, he tried to recall how he ended up in this state. He remembered training. . Practicing with his pure mana hadn¡¯t been very pleasant, but it was all he¡¯d been able to do while waiting for something¡­


    He was in the garden when it returned and then¡­


    Pain.


    Nausea.


    Panic.


    Frustration.


    Desperation. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The clone brought something with it. Something important.


    He tried to help them. Percy remembered looking around for something. A vessel to place them in. To place in.


    Right.


    A gladiator. A teacher. teacher. .


    He couldn¡¯t find a suitable body¡­ until he did.


    Percy climbed a tree, and then¡­


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    The memories sobered him up. His vision was still blurry, but he understood now. He. Once more, he tried to speak, but his mouth refused to budge. He willed his body to move. Any part of it. He needed to get Elaine¡¯s attention. . His finger twitched. Soon, the silhouettes shifted too. They must have noticed.


    ¡°¡­Percy¡­ ok?¡±


    This time, he caught a couple words. It wasn¡¯t much but it was a start. Then, he felt his strength leaving him again.


    Talking seemed impossible. His mouth wouldn¡¯t open ¨C Percy took his time bludgeoning it into shape. Pushing the air out of his lungs wasn¡¯t much easier. He wouldn¡¯t get many words out, so he had to choose them carefully. . They¡¯d have to do.


    ¡°¡­care¡­ egg¡­¡±


    Only after he was certain he saw Elaine nod did he allow himself to pass out again.


    ***


    It took a few more sessions like that until he could properly communicate with his cousin and grandpa. They appeared relieved he¡¯d woken up, but also quite pissed off at him.


    Percy didn¡¯t blame them. He¡¯d gone to great lengths to learn how to use his bloodline safely, yet he¡¯d tossed all that out of the window by activating it for the second time, not even letting his soul recover first. Right now, he couldn¡¯t even examine it, as he was unable to gather a sliver of soul mana. He¡¯d been unconscious for a whopping three weeks this time, and was still bedridden now, after waking up.


    Still, he told his relatives of his time on Huehue ¨C of the circumstances that had led him to do something so reckless. In fact, he and baldy even brought Elaine up to speed on his second core, not seeing much reason to keep it from her.


    ¡°Is the egg alright?¡± he asked.


    Baldy gestured to his granddaughter to bring something, before speaking.


    ¡°Percy¡­ I found you unconscious in front of a bird nest. Naturally, I assumed those eggs were important to you, even before you told us.¡±


    His cousin walked to a corner of the room, picking a small object up before returning. Resting atop her hands was a nest made of dried branches, filled with broken eggs and discarded shells¡­ and¡­ . There was a tiny creature, sleeping soundly in the middle of the nest. A black chick small enough to fit in his palm.


    ¡°This little guy hatched just a couple of days after you passed out. We took care of him ever since. The rest we kept just in case.¡± she explained.


    Percy nodded, gently picking the bird up.


    He didn¡¯t know if there was anything left of his friend in the creature. Even if Micky was in there, would he appreciate being shoved inside a newborn critter on a distant world?


    Percy shook his head.


    This wasn¡¯t the time for regrets. What was done was done. His priority right now was to make sure it survived. The rest, he could figure out later.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t look like it¡¯s in great shape.¡± he said.


    Even after being picked up, it remained asleep. Its breaths were soft and laboured.


    ¡°It was better when it hatched, but it¡¯s been getting worse. We¡¯ve been feeding it insects. It improves for a while every time it eats, but it never lasts long.¡± baldy explained.


    ¡°Waking it up is getting harder. The last time I managed was two days ago.¡± his cousin added.


    Percy furrowed his brow. He wasn¡¯t sure where the problem lied. It might be due to its body, as the egg had been abandoned for who-knew how long. It should¡¯ve been on the verge of death too, otherwise it wouldn¡¯t have accepted the soul. Then again, its soul was probably in a sorry state as well. Perhaps even worse than his own. After all, it was a patchwork of three different existences. The bird¡¯s, Micky¡¯s and his. And each had been through hell and back by the time they mixed inside the egg.


    It was still impossible to accumulate more than a wisp of mana in his sternum before it got drained. Percy had no idea how long this would last. Perhaps, he¡¯d crippled himself for life¡­


    The only thing that might shed some light in this situation was his Status.


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Pure]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude][Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude]


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[???] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    The only thing that had changed was the new section listing his spells. Percy had nearly forgotten about it. All his efforts in honing his soul constructs coupled with his desperation had culminated in the deadly strike he¡¯d killed Mixcoatl with. Though he¡¯d been too busy at the time to celebrate. It was the presence of a second spell that surprised him, however. This one, he didn¡¯t remember being notified about. Still, it should have happened when he pushed Micky¡¯s soul into the egg. Nothing else made sense.


    ¡°Grandpa, what¡¯s a ¡®Secret Art¡¯?¡±


    Baldy raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Have you created one?¡±


    Percy nodded, telling them of the new additions to his Status. Elaine listened too, clearly interested as well.


    ¡°I see. Well¡­ simply put, a Secret Art is like a regular spell. The only difference is that it also involves your bloodline.¡±


    The young man had suspected it was something along those lines. Strictly speaking, what he¡¯d done with the egg wasn¡¯t very different from creating a regular clone.


    It was the same kind of sensation his clones and main body experienced, linking them to one another. Though he couldn¡¯t observe his soul right now, he didn¡¯t need to. Allowing his thoughts to sink into the cord, Percy¡¯s eyes widened as a new Status page manifested in his vision.


    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s familiar)

 Chapter 27: Beast affinity

    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s familiar)Mana cores: S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Red ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    ???:


    [??? (Fractured)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life and mind mana to germinate.


    There was a lot to unpack there.


    Seeing the familiar had inherited his friend¡¯s name gave him some relief. With any luck, it meant Micky was indeed buried somewhere inside the bird. Well, it was also possible it meant nothing. Perhaps the Status had simply picked that name out of convenience, as that was how Percy thought of the creature.


    Another thing that caught his eye was how his prolific second core had spread out once more. Though it was back to Fractured again ¨C . By now, he was pretty sure this thing was glued to his soul. After all, his soul was the only thing he¡¯d brought back from the Moirai.


    However, it seemed to have more components to it as well. Perhaps one rooted in his body and one in his mind, explaining the two other types of mana needed to repair it. Once he had, his mind followed his soul to Huehue, which was why his clone had only lacked the life part. But now, his mind didn¡¯t seem to be present in the familiar, downgrading it by another step.


    The next thing he noted was that the mysterious section with the question marks was missing two of the usual culprits. It wasn¡¯t that strange the small critter didn¡¯t have a bloodline, but Percy was surprised it didn¡¯t have a Status either.


    The only answer he could come up with was that Micky¡¯s Status was currently just an extension of his own, which he could view through their connection.


    ¡°Well? Any idea what¡¯s wrong with it?¡± baldy asked, snapping him out of his thoughts.


    Percy shook his head. There wasn¡¯t enough information to identify the problem. That said, he did have an idea on how to solve it.


    ¡°Have you tried feeding it anything bigger than insects?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a newborn chick! What else could it eat?¡± Elaine asked back.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t mean the meat. Just the cores.¡± baldy explained to his granddaughter before turning to Percy. ¡°It has the beast affinity I imagine?¡±


    The young man nodded. They wouldn¡¯t be needing any tests to confirm that. Every non-sentient animal in the universe had the beast affinity by default. Beast mana was unique in that it couldn¡¯t normally leave one¡¯s body, rendering its owners incapable of casting spells. However, that didn¡¯t make it weak. In fact, it was the opposite. It had the unique property of strengthening its users to such an extent they could compete against mages of the same grade with nothing but brute force.


    And this was just the start. This affinity gave animals another colossal advantage that made sentient races envy them greatly. They could advance naturally, without having to resort to things like expensive elixirs. Beast mana was great at consuming and assimilating other mana types, which meant its users could evolve extremely quickly simply by hunting and devouring others.


    Had it not been for their general lack of intelligence, beasts might have become the dominant force in the cosmos. Well, there was also the fact that each promotion required a ton of food, which wasn¡¯t exactly sustainable. For example, merely to advance from Red to Orange required the consumption of hundreds of Red cores. This made Blue and Violet beasts extremely rare. As for White? Percy doubted there were any on Remior.


    Still, the young man didn¡¯t care about Micky¡¯s bright future prospects right now. Hearing the bird improved whenever it ate made him think better quality food might be the answer. After all, insects had Brown cores ¨C a special grade below even Red. It was exclusive to them, as larger creatures couldn¡¯t survive with something that weak. Perhaps what Micky needed were a few Red cores¡­


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    ¡°It¡¯s not like I haven¡¯t considered it. Though I don¡¯t think the issue is a lack of mana.¡± baldy said. ¡°But we can give it a shot if you want.¡±


    Percy insisted. He didn¡¯t necessarily disagree with his grandpa¡¯s assessment, yet it wasn¡¯t like they had a better option.


    ***


    Elaine opened the door, entering Percy¡¯s room.


    Suspended above her hand was a bubble of water, with something squirming inside. It was a mouse, clawing desperately to escape its liquid prison. Unfortunately for it, its efforts weren¡¯t going to bear fruit today. Still, Elaine had made sure its head was above the surface, to avoid drowning the animal a minute too soon. It had taken her a couple of hours to procure Micky¡¯s meal. The Avalon House had no shortage of meat, but mana cores tended to crumble away and dissipate shortly after one¡¯s death. They needed a fresh kill for the bird.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry it took a while. I had to search the fields for ages to find one.¡±


    A powerful Green cored mage could naturally capture vermin rather easily, but that was precisely why there weren¡¯t any inside the mansion.


    ¡°Come on buddy. You need to eat.¡± the young man said.


    Percy had been told it was getting harder to wake the bird up, but he hoped to get through to it via their connection. Focusing on the ethereal cord as he gently spoke to his friend seemed to work after a few attempts. The chick moved its head groggily. It needed help standing up.


    Elaine lowered the glowing bubble into Percy¡¯s other palm as the young man brought his hands together. The girl tightened the sphere, snuffing the life out of the mouse, closing her eyes in the process. Percy knew she didn¡¯t like doing it, which only made him appreciate her help more. Then, she pulled the mana away from the rodent, tossing the splash of water aside as the tiny corpse landed in front of Micky.


    Percy rolled the body over with his thumb, pointing at the animal¡¯s sternum. After some more prodding, the bird finally pecked at it, causing Elaine to look away again. Even Percy wrinkled his nose in disgust, though he didn¡¯t avert his gaze. Instead, he activated Mana Sense, unwilling to miss anything important. With his sixth sense, he followed the orb of Red as it rolled down the bird¡¯s throat, swiftly dissolving in its stomach. A gush of mana soon flowed through Micky¡¯s body, causing him to perk up before resuming his meal with more vigour.


    ¡°It does seem to do something.¡± baldy said.


    Percy nodded, still observing his friend, relieved to see his condition improve however briefly. He and Archibald kept watching the bird, both raising their eyebrows as it continued getting better with each peck. Micky couldn¡¯t possibly eat more than a third of the carcass in one sitting and, even then, it would take him a while to finish. Naturally, each bite was no larger than a grain of rice, yet ¨C ¨C the mana never stopped spreading out of the familiar¡¯s stomach.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Percy asked. ¡°Most of the mana should¡¯ve been inside the mouse¡¯s core. Where¡¯s the rest coming from?¡±


    His grandpa appeared just as perplexed as he was. Each bite gave Micky less mana than that first one, but still not nearly as little as they would have expected. Meanwhile, the bird¡¯s mood greatly improved, as the familiar pecked more and more frequently, like his life depended on it.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened as he harboured a guess.


    It was only a couple minutes later that Micky¡¯s condition stopped improving. The bird was still eating gluttonously, but the meat had stopped releasing mana at some point.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to need more mice.¡± Percy said, flashing his cousin a sheepish grin.


    ***


    ¡°Please tell me this is the last time I¡¯m doing this.¡± Elaine spoke with a grimace.


    Percy scarcely registered his cousin¡¯s words, his attention focused on the floor. There, Micky was skidding around happily, having already finished eating another two mice, currently heading towards the third.


    Well, ¡®finished¡¯ might not be the best word, as the bird seemed to grow disinterested in each carcass after a minute or two, consuming less than a tenth of the meat. Only after his third victim stopped providing him any mana did Micky pause. This time, he wasn¡¯t in a rush to reach the next one either.


    ¡°I think he¡¯s full.¡± baldy said.


    ¡°Micky, I know you¡¯re stuffed, but can you keep going? Just one more.¡± the young man pleaded through their connection.


    The bird tilted its head in confusion. Percy wasn¡¯t sure if it had understood his instructions. Maybe it just didn¡¯t get why it had to continue eating when it wasn¡¯t hungry. Still, it listened after a moment, walking to the fourth mouse. Though its steps were clearly a touch less eager than earlier.


    Like before, some mana was soon released inside Micky¡¯s stomach, flowing through his channels, filling his body. Unlike before, however, the bird¡¯s frame was already saturated, rendering it unable to absorb any more. The familiar looked unwell, as if he was about to be sick, having no outlet for the excess. The Red glow rose up his throat and towards his beak, about to spill out, when Micky stubbornly held it in, unwilling to throw up his food. Yet more mana manifested in his stomach, mounting up the pressure, making Percy stare at his friend in alarm.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough. Just let it g¨C¡±


    The young man was about to stop him, when something strange made him swallow his words. For seemingly no reason, a chunk of the excess mana instantly vanished from Micky¡¯s body, as a subtle flow trickled through their connection.


    It wasn¡¯t much, but Percy recognized it, his eyes widening.

 Chapter 28: A peculiar diet

    There was no mistaking it. The excess mana spilling out of Micky was soul mana!They hadn¡¯t been able to identify it earlier because Mana Sense couldn¡¯t differentiate between various affinities. The only thing that determined its appearance in that case was purity and density ¨C in other words, its . That was why everything had appeared Red previously. Only with Soul Vision could Percy have noticed the difference¡­


    The young man tried to tap into the trickle sent over by his familiar, to direct it to his eyes, but his broken soul quickly snatched it too.


    ¡°Keep going, Micky! Eat!!¡±


    He did catch the strange looks Elaine and baldy gave him, but he didn¡¯t say anything. He could explain later. Heeding his request, the bird dove back into the mouse¡¯s flesh, as Percy took a deep breath. And then another, trying to refill his first core. The mana regenerated slowly at first, but soon another stream flowed through the cord, Micky having discovered how to relieve himself of the excess pressure already.


    It took all of Percy¡¯s willpower to gather enough in his eyes, but he managed to augment his sight at last. As soon as Soul Vision activated, he tossed a quick glance down his own soul. Saying it was a mess wouldn¡¯t do it justice. The crater in his chest had greatly expanded. As for the rest, it almost resembled minced meat, held together by numerous thin threads.


    He shook his head. The priority right now was to figure out what Micky was doing. Turning to his familiar, he saw his soul wasn¡¯t much better. It was made of three distinct pieces that had been hastily twisted together like a yarn ball. At least, his body was filled to the brim with soul mana, which constantly latched onto the damaged soul to mend it. Of course, it would take ages for it to be fully repaired at this pace, but this was promising.


    Next, his attention shifted to Micky¡¯s beak. His soul was gathered there, sharpening the edges, making them glint in Percy¡¯s Soul Vision. It reminded the young man of the daggers he constructed with his soul mana. Every time the bird pecked at the dying embers of the mouse¡¯s soul, a chunk of glowing silver slid down its throat along with the flesh, dissolving into soul mana in its stomach. The sight of the hatchling gleefully devouring another¡¯s soul as if it was little more than kibble sent a chill down Percy¡¯s spine.


    His best guess was that Micky¡¯s nature as a familiar had bled into his instincts as a beast, giving rise to this frightening ability. Either way, Percy knew at this moment that this would be the key to repairing both of their souls.


    ***


    ¡°I¡¯m going to throw him!¡± Percy yelled.


    He was sitting on a branch, holding a bird with both hands. The bird was naturally Micky, who had grown twice as large as before, his feathers a slick black, absorbing the sunlight like uncut onyx.


    ¡°Go for it! I¡¯ve got him!¡± Elaine replied.


    She stood below him, an azure net fluttering in the air in front of her. Rather than rope, it seemed to be made of numerous interlocking streams of glowing water. Upon receiving a positive reply, the young man tossed the bird up. It fell rapidly, sending waves of panic through their connection. Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


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    CAW!


    Percy sent back.


    Betrayed by its only family, the bird had no option but to frantically flap its wings in a desperate attempt to right itself.


    At first, its movements were clumsy. Still, just a couple of feet before hitting the net, its speed seemed to slow, as its direction shifted slightly, letting it glide over the net, landing softly on the ground a few metres away.


    CAW! CAW!


    Percy smiled as he saw his companion turn back his direction, giving him what was probably intended as a furious glare. Still, he could tell through their link the cute look contained more pride than anger.


    It had been a month since they discovered Micky¡¯s ability.


    For the first week, Percy had relied on his cousin to bring food for the bird, as he had personally been too weak to walk. A dozen meals later, however, both their conditions had improved significantly. By then, Percy was able to move around on his own, allowing him to take care of his friend by himself.


    Every morning since then, Percy went on a stroll a couple miles away from the mansion, with Micky perched on his shoulder. The young man used those opportunities to stretch his legs, while simultaneously setting all sorts of mouse traps and rabbit snares in the surrounding fields, collecting the previous day¡¯s haul in the process. Then, he fed his familiar for an hour or two, as they both used the influx of soul mana to hasten their recovery.


    ¡°We should head back. Grandpa is waiting for us.¡± Elaine said.


    Percy nodded. Today was the day he¡¯d been looking forward to for a while now. He¡¯d finally recovered enough to add another important item to his daily routine.


    The two returned to Archibald¡¯s office where they found their grandpa dressed in training robes. He gestured them to follow him, as he led the teenagers to a spacious room somewhere inside the mansion. They had chosen this location over the outdoors training grounds as privacy was paramount for what they planned to do.


    Next, both baldy and Elaine looked at Percy expectantly. After all, he was going to be their teacher during these sessions. The young man cleared his throat, assuming the role of a sagely scholar as his relatives rolled their eyes.


    ¡°So, the first thing we need to do is straightforward strength training to push our bodies to their limits.¡±


    Without waiting for them, he dropped to the floor, beginning a set of push ups. Baldy and Elaine didn¡¯t say anything, joining him just a moment later. Of course, a simple workout wasn¡¯t nearly demanding enough for the powerful mages.


    To truly challenge themselves and benefit from the training, each of them had strapped weights all over their bodies, raising the intensity of the exercises sharply. Obviously, baldy¡¯s were by far the heaviest, as he lifted a couple tons with each repetition. Even Elaine¡¯s were no joke at a couple hundred kilos. Meanwhile, Percy¡¯s were much more modest by comparison.


    Either way, if it hadn¡¯t been for the numerous runes glowing on the floor, he was sure the wooden planks would have collapsed under the pressure, the commotion drawing the attention of the rest of his family. A lot of silencing wards covered the walls too.


    PANT, PANT, PANT


    About an hour later, all three were lying on their backs, breathing heavily, their bodies drenched with sweat. Naturally, the trio were here to practice the Dance of the Savage Gods ¨C or at least the parts that Micky had been able to show him back on Huehue.


    Percy could have kept the powerful art to himself of course, but there were many reasons why he¡¯d chosen to share it. Firstly, both Elaine and Archibald had done a lot for him, so he¡¯d decided to bring something back for them even before sending out that clone.


    Secondly, as much as Percy wished he were strong enough to survive on Remior on his own, he understood he currently had no choice but to hide under his House¡¯s insignia. For the time being, his safety hinged entirely on baldy¡¯s ability to defend their family from their enemies. Consequently, helping his grandpa grow stronger would benefit them all.


    Finally, Percy actually needed his grandpa¡¯s help once again, to practice the technique more efficiently.


    ¡°Ready to resume?¡± the young man asked.


    Physical training essentially involved breaking down and repairing one¡¯s muscles. Humans could only exercise for a few hours per day, lest they injured themselves, doing more harm than good. At least, that was the case if one didn¡¯t have a grandpa with a life affinity and a Violet core healing them.


    ¡°Alright.¡± baldy said.


    The young man felt an intense pressure radiating out of his grandpa¡¯s core, as a wave of vibrant green flashed through the room. A few seconds later, his muscles stopped burning, his stamina having fully recovered. He didn¡¯t even hesitate before restarting his workout anew.


    It was tough, of course, but the memory of the wounded gladiator¡¯s savage dance kept him going¡­

 Chapter 29: Mana channels

    ¡°Please tell me we¡¯re done for today.¡± Elaine groaned.The trio were sitting on the floor, baldy having already healed them for the dozenth time that day.


    ¡°We might as well stop here. I can help us recover again but we still need to eat properly to build muscle.¡± Archibald said.


    PHEW


    Elaine didn¡¯t even wait for the second part before waving her hand, manifesting three bubbles of water in the air. Each was about twice the size of a watermelon. They flew over their heads as she let go.


    SPLASH


    Sniffing a couple of times, she scrunched up her nose.


    ¡°Remind me to bring soap tomorrow.¡± she said, already pushing herself up.


    ¡°Is there anything else we need to be doing?¡± baldy asked.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Percy nodded. ¡°Try to spend a couple hours every night clearing your mana channels.¡±


    ¡°Any specific ones?¡±


    ¡°Nope. We need all of them. Only after our bodies have stopped improving and all our channels are cleared and tempered to their limit can we move to the next step.¡±


    The others nodded in agreement. Percy had already explained the details of the technique before, so nobody felt like complaining. They all understood what a bargain they had struck.


    As Percy was about to leave the room, he crouched to pick Micky up from the floor. The bird gave them strange looks after spending all day watching them train. The young man had brought the familiar along as he wasn¡¯t comfortable leaving him alone just yet.


    ¡°You¡¯re the one who taught me this stuff, buddy. I promise I¡¯ll do everything I can to help you remember it one day.¡±


    ***


    Percy was resting on his bed, looking up at the ceiling. It felt nice his training was finally back on track. His reckless move with Micky had cost him a lot of time, though he didn¡¯t regret it.


    he thought as he looked at the bird sleeping soundly on a cushion, in a corner of the room.


    Even if Percy put his friend¡¯s wellbeing aside and looked at everything from a pragmatic perspective, his gamble would probably pay off in the long term. Micky¡¯s potential was difficult to quantify. Right now, he was young and his core only at Red but, with a beast affinity, he would outgrow Percy in no time. The young man wouldn¡¯t be surprised if his familiar became his secret weapon at some point.


    Sure, his stunt had set him back by a few months, as he¡¯d been unable to begin practicing the Dance before now. Not just that, but his soul core was still out of order. He couldn¡¯t use it, or even feed it elixirs and it would be a while until he could send out another clone. But, all things considered, the benefits probably outweighed the costs.


    Right now, Percy had to spend a few hours each morning helping the bird out. It was terribly inefficient as they only moved as fast as he could walk, and his traps only caught a handful of meals each day. If Micky could fly around looking for food by himself, he would probably do much better. It would not only accelerate their souls¡¯ recovery but also the familiar¡¯s advancement to Orange. Plus, it would free up more of Percy¡¯s time to spend on his own magic.


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    He sat cross-legged, closing his eyes. Stirring the core in his abdomen, he pulled some mana to his arm. It flowed around his abs and then below his pectoral muscle before turning downwards at his shoulder.


    It was easy to think of mana channels as magical veins, as the former facilitated the circulation of mana much like the latter did with blood. Still, the analogy wasn¡¯t quite correct, as mana channels weren¡¯t physical tubes. It might be more accurate to describe them as the path of least resistance for the mana. Clearing a pathway involved using it repeatedly, wearing down all the obstructions over time to make the flow smoother.


    This meant one¡¯s mana channels differed depending on their affinity. After all, each type had different properties, subtly affecting how it flowed through the body. Consequently, the path of least resistance for, say, fire mana wasn¡¯t necessarily the same as that for air mana and so on. For most people, it didn¡¯t really matter. So, what if their mana channels looked slightly different to one another¡¯s? They could still clear them and use their magic all the same, right?


    Percy had two cores with different affinities. This meant he also had two entirely separate sets of mana channels. Even if he cleared all his pure pathways, he would have to do it again later for his soul ones. Not just that, but his soul affinity introduced another challenge the others wouldn¡¯t have to deal with. Most affinities interacted with one¡¯s body, meaning the corresponding mana flowed through it. Percy¡¯s soul mana however, flowed through his soul instead.


    He shook his head. This was a problem for after he was done repairing it. Right now, he could focus on mastering it for his second core. Returning his attention to the flow on his arm, he cut it off at the shoulder, instead diverting it towards his other shoulder. It now had to pass parallel to his collarbone, curving through the space between his spine and lungs. The mana resisted at first, as it wasn¡¯t used to travelling along this route. Normally, when Percy wanted to shift mana from one arm to the other, he¡¯d send it through his core first.


    It wasn¡¯t just about increasing his capacity. This was simply a faster way to move it through his body. Most people didn¡¯t bother, as the channels they normally used were only a fraction of the total. They didn¡¯t consider this minor speed-up significant enough to waste months opening the additional pathways. Though clearly, this mindset was wrong. It had blinded everyone to the possibilities Micky¡¯s people had stumbled upon.


    ***


    Percy was broken out of his concentration by the gentle rays of the morning sun seeping through the window, brushing softly along his face.


    So focused had he been on clearing his channels, that he¡¯d lost track of time. At least, he¡¯d discovered and opened over a dozen new ones. Still, plenty remained in his body.


    CAW! CAW!


    Guessing his thoughts, Micky ¨C ¨C flapped his wings angrily as he leapt on the bed.


    ¡°Fine! We¡¯ll go get your breakfast! Just let me drink my elixir first.¡±


    Percy uncorked the elegant vial, gulping its contents in one go. He began the daily ritual of cycling his pure mana between his stomach and core as he fought to keep his eyes open. He sure wasn¡¯t looking forward to another twelve hours of physical training with baldy after an all-nighter.


    CAW!


    ¡°Right! Right! I¡¯m awake!¡± the young man said, having totally fallen asleep at some point.


    Getting up, he opened the door, dragging his feet outside the mansion. The morning breeze gave him goosebumps. It wasn¡¯t pleasant, but at least the chill and the fresh air helped flush the last traces of sleep out of his system, leaving only the exhaustion behind. Micky jumped onto his shoulder, content with enjoying his free ride as Percy prepared his food for him. That¡¯s when the young man paused, flashing the bird a mischievous grin.


    ¡°Starting from today, you¡¯ll be flying alongside me, looking for more mice.¡±


    His familiar tilted its head, playing dumb, but Percy knew Micky understood him.


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    The bird continued to protest, but Percy refused to take another step until it began pulling its own weight. It took another ten minutes of arguing, but Micky eventually took off, resigned to his fate. He hadn¡¯t stopped mouthing off what Percy could only assume were curses though.


    Only then did the young man resume his stroll, gathering some pure mana in his hand, trying to form it into a solid shape. This was pretty much the only time he had during the day to practice his magic, so he wouldn¡¯t waste it.


    He might have been born at Red, but now he¡¯d finally accumulated a few advantages of his own. Unlike his peers who only had a single core to worry about, he essentially had between himself and his familiar. He couldn¡¯t afford to slack.


    SIGH

 Chapter 30: One year

    Micky sent an image of a shadow sneaking through the bushes. He was perched atop a branch, gazing at their surroundings from the high vantage point, scouting the area. The crow was already fully grown by now. Percy felt it practically salivating through their bond as it eyed their misguided ambushers.Percy pulled most of his mana to his channels, nearly emptying his core before taking a deep breath to refill it. The motes spiralled into his lungs like a vortex, as an even denser river gushed through his body. But he wasn¡¯t done yet. He pumped even more mana through his pathways, feeling them swell and burn, his muscles brimming with strength, his frame threatening to pop like a pufferfish.


    SWOOSH


    An arrow shot out from behind him. The young man only tilted his head slightly, dodging the projectile as the wind brushed harmlessly by his ear.


    Another mouthful of mana later, he saw faint cyan lines glow under his skin. The pattern wasn¡¯t exactly the same as Micky¡¯s. Even though they shared their affinity, their cores were located at different points, forcing Percy to modify the technique slightly. They shone less brightly too. There was definitely some room for improvement, but the Status had still been kind enough to register the technique a couple months back.


    Percy smirked.


    Then, he stomped hard, his foot making a loud sound as it cracked the dried dirt, catapulting him towards the goblins.


    SWOOSH, SWOOSH


    More arrows flew his way, but he easily weaved out of their path, causing the goblins¡¯ eyes to widen. They switched to their melee weapons in a hurry. Their knives and hatchets had all been crafted out of bone. .


    Percy¡¯s core had nearly refilled already, but he drained it again, this time gathering the mana into his right hand, squishing the blob of cyan into something solid. By the time he reached his opponents, his weapon had fully formed. It was a staff, about as tall as he was, its thickness the same as his thumb¡¯s.


    He spun it through the air as his momentum carried him between two of the creatures, where he hit each with a different end of the staff, slamming one to the ground while sending the other flying. Of the remaining five goblins, only three were brave enough to gang up on him, as the other two fled in terror.


    Still, their lunges felt slow in his Mana Sense. He easily tiptoed around their attacks with some well-placed footwork. He swung his weapon again. It had cracked after the previous attack ¨C his Red core not doing him any favours ¨C but he¡¯d already finished repairing it as the mana continued to accumulate inside his body.


    Two swings later, three more goblins were rolling on the ground, as Percy finally allowed the staff to crumble.


    Another image flashed through the connection. Micky had already intercepted one of the escapees, having torn out its throat with his talons. The bird was currently feasting on the goblin¡¯s soul, as Percy felt the mana flowing through the link.


    Activating Soul Vision, he spotted the last of the creatures. It had stopped moving, crouching quietly behind a tree some thirty yards away. Perhaps it thought it was safer to hide than run.


    Percy took another breath, this time focusing on his first core instead. The two sources of soul mana soon gave him just enough for the spell as a silver dagger formed in his hand. With a flick of his wrist, the Parting Gift pierced soundlessly through the air, doing so even more rapidly than the arrows had, before phasing through the tree¡¯s trunk.


    THUD


    A moment later, the goblin¡¯s stiff body landed on the ground.


    ***


    ¡°Start with the dead one before its soul dissipates.¡±


    Percy tossed the corpse in front of his familiar, who¡¯d just finished consuming the previous goblin. The other five were merely knocked out, as the young man had taken extra care to keep them alive.


    Feeling the mana in his eyes dissipating, he hurriedly tossed one last glance down at his soul before Soul Vision deactivated. Micky had supplied him more than enough to keep it active for longer if he wanted, but he¡¯d rather invest the limited resource towards their recovery.


    His soul didn¡¯t look that great, still resembling a pile of minced meat held together by thin threads. That said, the chunks were fewer and larger than before, and they were attached to one another more firmly too. The crater in his chest had also shrunk a lot since last year.


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    That¡¯s right.


    A little over a year had passed since Micky¡¯s first flight. Percy had even had two birthdays in that time. He was seventeen now.


    He still couldn¡¯t gather much soul mana without the bird¡¯s assistance, but he healed faster and faster as Micky grew up and their hunts became more rewarding. As early as a few months ago, the two had graduated from rats and rabbits, turning their sights towards the goblins in the nearby Whistling Woods.


    It wasn¡¯t ideal, as the forest was a few miles away from his House¡¯s mansion. It meant they had to spend several hours per day just travelling back and forth. But it couldn¡¯t be helped, as it was too dangerous to camp the night there by themselves, and they harboured a few too many secrets to be working with strangers. Neither baldy nor Elaine had the time to babysit them for weeks on end.


    That said, it wasn¡¯t all bad.


    Percy¡¯s free time had increased sharply ever since his training sessions with his relatives stopped, so he could afford to do this. Plus, hunting was good for honing both his magic and his teamwork with Micky. Finally, even though the goblins were notoriously difficult to find, their larger cores and much more developed souls made the endeavour worthwhile.


    While Percy¡¯s soul was still some distance from a full recovery, preventing him from cleansing his first core or sending another clone, his familiar¡¯s had grown a lot more stable. The bird could even go a few days without a meal before it began to get affected.


    Shrugging, the young man¡¯s attention turned to his Status, as he had no interest in watching his friend stuff his face with goblins.


    ___


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Pure]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude][Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude][Quarterstaff ¨C Crude][Circulation ¨C Refined]


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[???] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    ___


    Not much had changed, besides the two new spells he¡¯d registered.


    The first ¨C ¨C was perhaps the most unassuming entry in his entire Status. Being nothing more than a Crude spell cast from a Red core with a pure affinity, it wasn¡¯t nearly as eye-catching as all the other stuff in there. Still, Percy was proud of it, as it had taken him a lot of hard work to hone it to its current state. Plus, it was his very first registered spell with his second core, so that had to count for something.


    At first the young man had tried to go for a couple of shorter rods, one in each hand, to more closely mirror Micky¡¯s style. Eventually, he realized dual wielding felt a bit unnatural to him. He appeared to have a personal proclivity towards a single, longer weapon. The construct wasn¡¯t very sturdy, but it was good enough for the goblins.


    The other new entry was a lot more impressive, however.


    Although still a step short of the full Dance, Circulation was Percy¡¯s first Refined spell. As a mage¡¯s grade increased, so did their mana capacity and regeneration, as well as their control and reflexes, allowing them to master more intricate spells. Generally, people between Red and Yellow mostly focused on Crude spells, whereas Refined spells were seen as the hallmark of Greens and Blues. There were exceptions of course. Sometimes, a talented Yellow would master a Refined spell ahead of time, or a lazy Green would fail to do so before advancing.


    Still, Percy was only at Orange. Not just that, but he was technically using Circulation with his Red core. Suffice to say, his circumstances were essentially unprecedented. News of his achievement would probably cause some waves if they leaked. He wasn¡¯t exactly surprised Circulation was ranked that highly either, as it involved many difficult and demanding steps to master. Frankly, he knew he couldn¡¯t have done this without cheating. .


    His grandpa¡¯s help had allowed him to get the equivalent of half a decade of physical training in only half a year. That, coupled with his dedication in clearing his channels meant he had started tempering his pathways faster than the others. In addition, the final step ¨C circulating the mana and overcharging both his core and his channels ¨C was by far the most difficult. However, he¡¯d already experienced the art under Micky¡¯s guidance, severely lowering the barrier of entry for him.


    Even baldy hadn¡¯t mastered the spell until a month after Percy. As for Elaine, she was still struggling with the last part.


    SIGH


    At least, Percy had grown strong enough to survive by himself at a semi-dangerous place like the Whistling Woods. That said, the road ahead was long and uphill¡­


    Suddenly, some unexpected thoughts seeped through the link, drawing his attention. The young man lifted his eyes, looking at his familiar with concern. For some reason, the bird had stopped eating after the third goblin. It was sitting on the ground, occasionally twitching, as if in pain.


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    Percy activated Mana Sense, anxious to figure out what was happening to his bond. The bird¡¯s frame was glowing more brightly than ever before, its entire silhouette shimmering in a vibrant Red colour. More and more mana was released from its stomach, as its flesh shook and squirmed. The core in Micky¡¯s sternum thrummed more frequently and violently than he¡¯d ever seen it do before, glowing a shade brighter than the rest of his body.


    Logically, his friend should have already started sending him the excess mana to relieve himself. However, he was instead holding everything in for some reason, letting it accumulate to a dangerous level.


    The young man panicked, unsure how to help his familiar. He was about to call to him again, to ask him to let go of the mana, when he caught something odd through his sixth sense, giving him pause. As the core pulsed more and more intensely, its colour shifted. It was subtle at first, but Percy became more and more sure of what was going on as he kept watching. His previous fear was now replaced by excitement and even anticipation.


    Micky was advancing to Orange.

 Chapter 31: Leaving the nest

    KRA! KRA!Micky complained loudly, much to Percy¡¯s dismay. The bird¡¯s screeches were far more piercing than ever before, echoing through the dark forest.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry buddy. You¡¯re too big to sit on my shoulder now.¡±


    The actual advancement had taken less than an hour, but that was just the start. Saying the crow was starving afterwards would be the understatement of the century. Mere minutes after the promotion, Micky had devoured all seven goblins, not leaving a single bone behind. In fact, he ate their weapons too! Gone were the days when he only selectively sampled his victims¡¯ souls and cores, leaving most of their flesh untouched.


    Evidently, the bird¡¯s advancement had placed its body in a state of rapid mutation, requiring a ton of nutrients in a short period of time. Percy had watched his friend grow visibly with each bite as they scoured the forest, looking for anything even remotely edible. The two had remained in the Whistling Woods all night, desperately fuelling Micky¡¯s insatiable appetite. It wasn¡¯t until the first rays of sunlight pierced through the dense thicket that the bird seemed to be done eating, its frame now twice as large as before.


    Other than his size, Micky¡¯s appearance hadn¡¯t changed much. The only other notable differences were his beak and talons being even sharper than before. Their edges now glinted in a pale silver light, even outside Soul Vision.


    Overall, the most welcome surprise was the improvement to his familiar¡¯s soul, however. It had stabilized a lot even before the promotion, but this new step took everything to a whole new level. Micky¡¯s soul was still an assortment of multiple parts, but they¡¯d grown closer together. The delineation separating the three souls was much fainter, resembling old scars more than fresh wounds.


    Either way, the bird would not only harvest more soul mana from its victims, but it would also need a lot less for itself, sending the lion¡¯s share to Percy. Like this, he was optimistic he¡¯d fully recover in a couple months.


    Then he smiled wryly. Not everything was good news. He¡¯d already felt the two had outgrown the Whistling Woods for a while now. To fully take advantage of Micky¡¯s improvements, they¡¯d need to leave the safety of the mansion and venture to more dangerous regions. And there was another, problem.


    he frowned, looking at his pal flying circles above him as he stepped out of the dense undergrowth.


    Before, they¡¯d used the excuse he¡¯d found Micky abandoned and raised him as a pet. It wasn¡¯t that strange as Red beasts were essentially regular animals. Reaching Orange, however, not only made them stronger, but far more aggressive. The thrill of advancement whetted their appetite, making them all but impossible to tame. Suffice to say, his relatives would be asking a lot of questions if they returned home like this.


    ***


    ¡°Ok. Remember to stay away until I say otherwise.¡± Percy imparted the same instructions for the fifth time as they neared his family¡¯s estate.


    KRA! KRA!


    Micky protested but didn¡¯t disobey, taking off to look for a snack or something. The young man made his way to the mansion, heading straight to baldy¡¯s office.


    KNOCK, KNOCK


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    Percy stepped inside, ready to deliver the news, when he noticed somebody else in there. He was a black-haired man who looked to be in his early twenties, dressed in an elegant buttoned-up shirt and silken trousers. . He was Galahad, Archibald¡¯s oldest living child currently in the family. A Yellow-born over 400 years old ¨C House Avalon¡¯s second in-command, only below baldy himself. In fact, he was the one who had the highest chance of reaching Violet, on track to do so in about a century.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve been wasting too much of father¡¯s time, boy?¡± Galahad asked, his nose wrinkling in disgust.


    Percy grimaced but didn¡¯t reply. Instead, he turned to his grandpa.


    ¡°I was hoping to speak to you alone. .¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t ignore me, you brat!¡± his uncle snapped. ¡°You should be grateful we¡¯ve wasted so many elixirs on you already! I still don¡¯t get what your grade has to do with passing your affinity!¡±


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    He looked about to keep going, but baldy raised his hand.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough, Galahad. I don¡¯t need you to manage my schedule for me, or to tell me which of my grandkids to spend time with.¡± Archibald¡¯s tone was calm but firm.


    Galahad raised an eyebrow. He probably hadn¡¯t expected his father would reprimand him in front of the likes of Percy. He only spared the young man a cold glance as he walked out of the office, though Percy didn¡¯t miss his uncle¡¯s clenched fists, drained of colour.


    Between his injuries, his training and his ventures into the forest, Percy hadn¡¯t run into his relatives as much over the past year. His amiable relationship with Elaine and Archibald had shifted his overall perspective on his family, but the truth was most of them still looked down on Red-borns like him. That much hadn¡¯t changed.


    ¡°What is it?¡± baldy asked, snapping him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°Right!¡± Percy exclaimed before approaching the desk. He covered his mouth before whispering, ¡°Micky has advanced.¡±


    Archibald¡¯s eyes widened.


    ¡°Already? This is even faster than I expected¡­¡±


    ¡°What do we do? I can¡¯t exactly bring him here.¡±


    His grandpa sank back into his chair, remaining silent for a few minutes.


    Eventually, he spoke.


    ¡°We¡¯re heading back to the forest. It¡¯s a temporary solution but I¡¯ll stay there with you for a week until we come up with something more permanent.¡±


    ***


    A grimace marred Percy¡¯s face.


    By the time he met baldy he¡¯d already been up for nearly thirty hours, having spent all night hunting with Micky. Staying awake as his grandpa arranged for his impromptu absence had been pure torture, and the young man wasn¡¯t happy travelling to the woods again. Still, this had to be done if he was to keep his secrets.


    He doubted anybody in his family was a spy or traitor, but there were hundreds of people in the Avalon House. If a few more learned of his second core or Micky, it wouldn¡¯t be long before that number doubled, and then quadrupled, until the entire mansion knew. And then, it would only take a mistake for the rest of Remior to find out too.


    In fact, those two secrets were still relatively benign. Anything pertaining to the Dance, on the other hand, was far more dangerous. Even in its incomplete state, it could instantly raise the strength of an entire House by half a step, placing them right behind the Great Houses. As much as it would benefit his family if they all learned it, a single mishap could easily invite disaster.


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    Consequently, baldy had strongly emphasized to him and Elaine the importance of keeping everything under wraps. As much as it sucked to be looked down on by people like Galahad, knowing he could change everyone¡¯s view of him with a few words, Percy understood what a thin line he was treading.


    ¡°Percy¡­ I¡¯m sorry you have to take all this shit from everyone.¡± baldy said as he walked alongside him, a dozen of his clones marching silently right behind them. ¡°Truth be told, you¡¯ve already done more for our family than almost anyone else¡­¡±


    The young man waved the apology away.


    ¡°We knew it would be like this since the beginning.¡±


    Archibald nodded.


    ¡°So, what do you plan to do now?¡±


    Percy pondered over his grandpa¡¯s words carefully before replying.


    ¡°I¡¯ll head out. I need to find a good place for Micky to hunt, to avoid stunting his growth. I also need to get my soul repaired as soon as possible to resume sending clones. Though, I suppose those go hand in hand.¡±


    Baldy didn¡¯t seem surprised, having probably expected that answer.


    ¡°Any idea where specifically?¡±


    The young man didn¡¯t reply for a while. This was the part he hadn¡¯t figured out yet.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. Maybe I should take lots of missions like Elaine and only come back once every few weeks to restock on elixirs.¡±


    Baldy¡¯s face fell.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to talk to you about the elixirs, actually. As you know, our family is fully transparent with who gets them and who doesn¡¯t. This policy has served us well for centuries, as it bolsters trust.¡±


    Percy nodded, but he didn¡¯t like where baldy was going with this.


    ¡°Normally, it doesn¡¯t really matter, as the rules are fairly simple: Orange-borns and Yellow-borns get them. ¡± Archibald continued.


    ¡°Until me.¡± Percy realized.


    ¡°Yes. So far, I¡¯ve used the excuse of your soul clones being a promising thing for the family to justify giving you elixirs, but nobody knows the details. They have no idea useful your clones are. Neither do they have a clue why I¡¯ve been spending so much time with you. Galahad¡¯s outburst from earlier is actually a common sentiment among the family¡¯s management.¡±


    The young man frowned. Indeed, between the weeks baldy had spent filling his second core up, the several months of training together for the Circulation spell, and all their other interactions, they had really spent a lot of time together. Even now, his grandpa was going to be with him the whole week. This should all seem suspicious to the rest of their family.


    ¡°Surely, they understand there must be a reason for it, right? Even if they don¡¯t know what.¡±


    Baldy shook his head.


    ¡°What reason could there be? Nobody could possibly imagine what your ability does. Sending your soul to other ?! Most of them believe I¡¯ve grown too attached to you for purely sentimental reasons. They think I¡¯m just finding excuses to spoil you rotten.¡±


    Percy¡¯s jaw slackened upon listening to his grandpa. He was glad his relationship with baldy had improved, but he didn¡¯t know their actions had given rise to such a wave of discontent among his relatives.


    ¡°So, what does this mean?¡±


    SIGH


    ¡°I can continue supplying you with a set of elixirs. They won¡¯t like it, but it¡¯s within the limits of what I can justify based on your bloodline¡¯s importance. However, a second one is currently out of the question.¡±


    ¡°What?! But I¡¯ll need it when my soul is repaired!¡±


    He hadn¡¯t started cleansing both cores yet, as he¡¯d created that clone soon after repairing his second core. Since then, his injuries had prevented him from maintaining the necessary mana, despite Micky¡¯s help. But he was very much looking forward to changing this soon.


    ¡°Is there no other way?¡±


    Baldy¡¯s next words gave him hope, however.


    ¡°I can only think of two possible solutions.¡±

 Chapter 32: Two solutions

    The young man looked at his grandpa expectantly, prompting him to speak.¡°The first option is to spill the beans on some of your secrets. Naturally, . That one could destroy our House if it leaks. But if we let the others know about your second core and Micky, they will understand.¡±


    ¡°Do you think it¡¯s a good idea?¡± Percy asked.


    ¡°Not really, no.¡± baldy said before elaborating. ¡°I advise you not to do this. Even though others can¡¯t immediately benefit from your second core, it will still make our family a target. However, these are ultimately secrets. If you want to go through with it, I won¡¯t stop you. It wouldn¡¯t be fair to hinder your growth like that.¡±


    Percy nodded. He didn¡¯t much like the idea of bringing trouble to his House either, but he¡¯d consider it if it was the only way.


    ¡°What about the second option?¡±


    ¡°This one actually circles back to our earlier discussion.¡±


    The young man perked up.


    ¡°I can think of a place where you¡¯ll find plenty of beasts for Micky to eat. At the same time, you can earn as many elixirs as you need. But I must warn you that it¡¯s neither guaranteed, nor easy.¡±


    ¡°Where?¡±


    ¡°The Alchemists¡¯ Guild.¡±


    Percy frowned.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that where they make the elixirs? You want me to become an alchemist?¡±


    ¡°Yes. That place works with a system based on contribution points. You earn them by performing various tasks and you can spend them on elixirs, ingredients or alchemy lessons.¡±


    The young man creased his brow, considering his grandpa¡¯s words. Becoming an alchemist wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d ever imagined doing, but if baldy thought it was a good idea, he wasn¡¯t necessarily against it.


    ¡°Do they let anyone join?¡±


    ¡°Not anyone. The Alchemists¡¯ Guild is one of the most important places on all of Remior. needs the elixirs ¨C even the Divine Order. Consequently, the Guild is completely neutral, and nobody is allowed to stir trouble there. They only accept people recommended by a noble House.¡±


    Ok, perhaps this was an even bigger deal than Percy thought.


    ¡°Won¡¯t the others be against it? They¡¯re already unhappy I get elixirs. Now I¡¯m going to be them?¡±


    Baldy shrugged.


    ¡°It¡¯s not the same thing. It won¡¯t really affect our family either way. We still have to buy the elixirs at full price. It¡¯s not like there¡¯s any discount for having a relative there. As for anything you earn on your own, that¡¯s between you and the Guild.¡±


    ¡°So, is it common to send Red-borns?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not. Not that there¡¯s any rule against Red-borns, but your lower grade will make it difficult to get points. Also, your shorter lifespan means people will generally view it as a waste of time for you to learn the art.¡±


    Percy would be lying if he said he wasn¡¯t bothered. It seemed there wasn¡¯t anywhere on Remior he could go where he wouldn¡¯t be looked down upon.


    ¡°What about my affinities? Are they suitable for alchemy?¡±


    ¡°They don¡¯t really matter. Water and fire help with some parts of the brewing process, though that¡¯s only a minor convenience. Life mana is good for growing herbs faster, but you can just buy those.¡±


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    ¡°That only leaves Micky then. How will I explain him?¡±


    This was by far the most important thing. He wouldn¡¯t leave him behind. After all, his friend was one of the main reasons why he¡¯d even bother going in the first place. S§×ar?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°You won¡¯t. The Guild is right next to where you¡¯ll be hunting the beasts. It¡¯s where the main ingredient for the elixirs comes from. Micky will live there by himself and you¡¯ll join him whenever you can to hunt together. That way, you¡¯ll help him get his meals and he¡¯ll help you earn contribution points.¡±


    ¡°But is it going to be safe? What if someone attacks him?¡±


    Baldy shook his head.


    ¡°The hunting grounds are separated into various levels. Most of the people there are at a higher grade than you. Nobody ever goes to the bottom level as the beasts there are weaker than Micky, and not worth killing. Even if somebody meets him by accident, they won¡¯t have any reason to bother him.¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t immediately reply. He was still tired, and this was a big decision. He¡¯d rather sleep on it and give his grandpa his answer later. The two met up with Micky, before continuing to the forest. However, they didn¡¯t stop upon reaching the Whistling Woods. Instead, they kept walking for another hour.


    ¡°Ok, I think this is far enough.¡± baldy said.


    Percy began setting camp, as Micky flew down, landing in front of Archibald. Baldy took a deep breath. Soon, the young man felt a terrifying amount of ambient mana flow towards his grandpa. It wasn¡¯t until a few seconds later that numerous green lines lit up under the man¡¯s skin. Their pattern looked very different from Percy¡¯s. Rather than simple curved lines, the ones on baldy¡¯s skin swirled and branched out, making them resemble vines.


    Then, Archibald placed his hand on Micky¡¯s head, before a suffocating torrent of green gushed out of his body, flowing down to the familiar¡¯s abdomen. This was the main reason why baldy had arranged to spend a week with them in the forest.


    Ever since he mastered Circulation, Percy¡¯s grandpa volunteered to help the bird repair its second core. He wanted to thank Micky for giving them the technique. Plus, the increased capacity and regeneration made the process much faster than it had been the first time around.


    Of course, they still had no idea where to get the mind mana. Percy couldn¡¯t exactly bring Micky to the temple. The mist outside was much thinner too, so they¡¯d have to lurk there for months ¨C assuming the Order even let them. Finally, finding a friendly Violet core with a mind affinity willing to dedicate several weeks to help wasn¡¯t realistic either.


    Consequently, they hadn¡¯t rushed, only spending a couple of hours each day whenever Percy and Micky returned home. Assuming the bird¡¯s core needed the same amount of mana as Percy¡¯s, they estimated they were already about two thirds done. And Archibald planned to complete the project by the end of the week.


    ***


    Percy watched his grandpa fill up Micky¡¯s core. They¡¯d already been in the forest for six days, yet the process wasn¡¯t done. He sure hoped they hadn¡¯t miscalculated as he¡¯d rather not have to look for a different source of life mana as well, for the final stretch.


    In any case, he¡¯d worry about that later. Right now, baldy¡¯s words still echoed in his mind. Going to the Alchemists¡¯ Guild would be a huge commitment. He didn¡¯t know anything about alchemy! Maybe he¡¯d hate it!


    Even if he enjoyed it, who knew if he¡¯d ever amass enough contribution points to cover his needs. His grandpa had emphasized he¡¯d be at a massive disadvantage. Perhaps, he wouldn¡¯t even have enough elixirs for one of his cores, putting him at a worse position than before.


    Then, there was the issue with Micky. Despite baldy¡¯s reassurances, Percy knew it would still be risky. This was Remior after all. There were plenty of unreasonable people out there, who would harm a beast for sport. Hell, it would be hypocritical of him to even criticize them. He¡¯d killed plenty of goblins himself just to get stronger. He knew he wouldn¡¯t care much about a random bird either if it wasn¡¯t his reincarnated friend.


    At the end of the day, everything boiled down to one simple fact. Despite the discrimination he¡¯d faced growing up, Percy had spent his whole life under his grandpa¡¯s protection. The closest he¡¯d ever come to losing his life had been due to his own recklessness when creating his familiar. But this would be different. There would be no certainties. Everything would depend entirely on his own ability. And his luck.


    Then, he looked at baldy. Perhaps his grandpa had been lucky enough to be born at Yellow, but he¡¯d still made himself into the man he was today. He wasn¡¯t dependent on others. depended on .


    The young man nodded. He finally had his answer. He was about to tell baldy, when he saw him stop pouring mana into the bird. . Smiling, he opened Micky¡¯s Status to check it one last time, before heading to the Alchemists¡¯ Guild.


    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s familiar)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    ???:


    [??? (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent mind mana to germinate.

 Chapter 33: Trouble

    It was a two-week journey on horseback to the Alchemists¡¯ Guild. At least, the dirt road only passed through grasslands and barren fields, saving Percy the trouble of trekking through more forests or mountains.Not that the trip was without dangers. Baldy had given him a month¡¯s worth of elixirs, so that he wouldn¡¯t fall behind on his second core¡¯s purification. Unfortunately, the excessive amount of wealth was a double-edged sword, turning him into a juicy target for any aspiring robbers.


    The young man knew bandits frequented places like this, so he found it difficult to sleep at night. His family didn¡¯t have any justification to send escorts this time, making him easy prey for the criminals. Sure, he was the owner of a promising bloodline but, as far as his relatives were concerned, he should have stayed locked up at home like a good little Red-born ¨C not risk his life on needless adventures.


    His only consolation was that he wasn¡¯t completely alone. Micky flew nearby, a couple miles away, ready to help if something happened. Of course, that came with its own set of challenges as Percy didn¡¯t want to be seen too close to the bird, to avoid drawing suspicions.


    The good news was that they had already travelled nearly two thirds of the trip without getting into trouble. Perhaps he shouldn¡¯t have been so quick to jinx it though¡­


    ***


    Four men rode just a couple hundred meters behind him. Normally, it wouldn¡¯t have necessarily meant much, as this was a popular road. Maybe they were regular travellers or merchants heading the same route. However, their movements were rather suspicious.


    Thanks to Micky, Percy had noticed them before they saw him. At the time they had been riding much faster, but they slowed down as soon as he came into view, staying a fixed distance behind him ever since. They were still too far for him to examine their grades via Mana Sense, but it was easier for his familiar to pass over them and sneak a couple of glances before flying away.


    Percy frowned. The only thing in his arsenal capable of harming a Yellow was his Parting Gift. Even though his first core was at Orange, his soul affinity was disproportionately geared towards offense. It was invisible, making it difficult to spot without Mana Sense. Fast too, making it hard to dodge if it caught them by surprise. It also phased through objects, making it nearly impossible to block. And lethal. . If the stars aligned, he could definitely kill a Yellow with it, as Mixcoatl had learned the hard way.


    His soul magic downright sucked defensively, as he couldn¡¯t block incoming attacks either. It would be just as easy for his opponents to injure him, if not even more so. Plus, he couldn¡¯t gather soul mana right now, unless Micky ate something first.


    Then, there was the rest of his magic. Circulation barely made up for his pure affinity, but his second core was still Red. If it wasn¡¯t for his higher physical strength, he wouldn¡¯t be confident holding his own even against an Orange core. As for Micky¡­ he might be able to keep one of them busy¡­ .


    He shook his head.


    His only option was to run, and hope his horse was both faster and less tired than theirs. He looked at the pouch strapped to his waist, hearing the gem bottles clinking with each bump. Archibald wasn¡¯t na?ve. He obviously understood the perils of the trip. Right before Percy set off, he told him to ditch the elixirs and bolt if he got into a situation like this. The bandits only wanted his money. They didn¡¯t give a damn about his life. Losing the bottles would sting, but they weren¡¯t worth dying over.


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    Percy smiled bitterly. Leaving the pouch behind was the most logical course of action. He could always earn more elixirs later. This whole trip was a gamble. They didn¡¯t even know if he could make it in the Guild. It was all a desperate attempt to earn enough elixirs for both of his cores. Was he really supposed to give up twenty doses before he even got there?


    Having made up his mind, he slowed down his horse.


    he spoke through the connection.


    When the bandits reached him, they seemed quite surprised. They quickly hid their confusion though, replacing it with amiable-looking smiles as their leader approached him. He was probably going to pretend he was just a harmless traveller or something, but Percy wasn¡¯t interested in the charade. Before the criminal even spoke, the young man tossed over the pouch, eliciting a strange look from the former. Still, the bandit opened it, his eyes widening as his expression morphed into one of greed.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got something even more valuable than those, if you leave me alive.¡± Percy said.


    ¡°Hahaha!¡± the bandit laughed. ¡°Kid, you seem to really understand what¡¯s good for you. Most people waste our time running away just to get killed a couple hours later.¡±


    Percy shrugged. Sear?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°So, are you interested in hearing me out?¡±


    The leader only chuckled, gesturing at him to speak. Receiving the affirmation, Percy slowly lifted his shirt, revealing a strange bandage wrapped tightly around his stomach. Multiple runes were engraved on the fabric.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°My family has developed a technique that lets us grow a second core. I keep it hidden for obvious reasons.¡±


    The bandit gave him an odd look, probably thinking he was a lunatic, but didn¡¯t stop him, watching him unwrap the bandage.


    ¡°Just use your Mana Sense, and you¡¯ll know I¡¯m telling the truth.¡±


    A few seconds later, the criminal stared at him with his mouth agape. The others had also approached at some point, now flashing each other incredulous looks.


    ¡°And anybody can learn this?¡±


    Percy nodded.


    ¡°There are a few steps, but as long as you have somebody guiding you, you¡¯ll all have a second core in a couple of months.¡±


    Internally, he smirked. The first part of the plan had gone smoothly. He could already see the bandits salivating with greed. He wouldn¡¯t have to worry about them killing him anytime soon. Now, he just had to make sure none of them lived long enough to speak of his secrets¡­


    ***


    Three more days passed as Percy travelled with the group. At first, they¡¯d been suspicious of him, thinking he was up to something. He didn¡¯t exactly blame them either ¨C . He seriously doubted they¡¯d ever run into another target half as cooperative as he was. The leader had repeatedly questioned the validity of his words, warning him not-so-subtly things wouldn¡¯t end well for him if he tried anything funny.


    But they did appear to relax around him over time. He was sure part of it was because he made no attempt to escape. Not even when they pretended to give him an opening. Another part was due to his demonstration of Circulation. The bizarre technique was impressive enough on its own, as Percy showed them how it increased his strength sharply. Then he went into detail, explaining how it worked and how they could learn it, even guiding them into clearing their mana channels. In fact, he¡¯d been truthful too, instructing them in earnest.


    The only lie he¡¯d added was that Circulation would grant them a second core once mastered. Revealing two of his secrets like that had been a risk, but a necessary one. His second core was the bait he¡¯d needed to entice them on the first day so they wouldn¡¯t kill him on the spot. As for Circulation, it was to convince them to keep him alive, as it was too complicated to learn without guidance.


    But there were a couple more hidden objectives he¡¯d achieved. By explaining how he used the bandage to hide his second core, he¡¯d diverted their attention from anything else he might do with it. Furthermore, by showing them his pure affinity coupled with Circulation, he¡¯d impressed them with its potential, while also making himself appear weaker than he was. Right now, they probably believed his first core lacked an affinity too.


    And the time to act was swiftly approaching, as one of the bandits left the group to pee behind a hill. Knowing this was probably the best chance he was going to get, Percy subtly wrapped the bandage around his right hand a couple of times.


    This was it!


    He took a deep breath, before speaking through the connection.

 Chapter 34: Unexpected boon

    The crow glided soundlessly just a meter above the grass as it approached its prey. Micky¡¯s black feathers turned him nigh invisible against the dark blanket of the night. Soon, a man enlarged in their shared vision. He was looking the other way, performing his business without a care in the world. They could already hear the soft stream pitter-pattering against the stone.Percy held his breath. If the ambush failed, his life would be forfeit!


    With one powerful flap of his wings, Micky shot through the last 15 or so feet, landing on the man¡¯s head. The poor bandit barely managed to turn around, before a talon clamped his mouth shut, as the other clawed his throat out. S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    PHEW


    The young man exhaled the turbid air in his lungs as subtly as he could manage, trying not to alert the others.


    Then, Percy inhaled deeply again, directing the pure mana towards his abdomen, before pumping it through his channels. As for the soul mana, he gathered it in his sternum, fighting against his soul¡¯s pull.


    He walked towards the leader ¨C Rick, if his memory served him. Assassinating the Yellow core was just as important as the previous ambush, if not doubly so.


    Accumulating soul mana was difficult at first, but a new stream gushed through the ethereal cord, helping him amass it more easily.


    The largest things Micky had eaten in the past were the wood goblins. Being semi-sentient creatures, their souls were a lot more developed than the rats and snakes they had hunted before. Still, they couldn¡¯t possibly compare with a human at Orange. Percy didn¡¯t keep the mana in his core for very long though, swiftly drawing it into his fist instead. There, he willed it to condense under the cover of the bandage.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Rick asked.


    Percy stopped a few meters away.


    ¡°I was thinking¡­ Are you guys going to let me go once I¡¯ve taught you everything? Surely, you won¡¯t need anything else from me at that point, right?¡±


    Hearing him, the bandit gave him the most amiable smile in the world, almost like an older brother reassuring his sibling that everything would be ok.


    ¡°Of course! You¡¯ve been a huge help, kid! Just keep cooperating and we might even let you join our gang!¡±


    Rick¡¯s casual acting sent a chill down Percy¡¯s spine. He was fairly certain they wouldn¡¯t let him go. It would be much safer to kill him than leave behind a trail for his family to latch on.


    Then, the young man grinned back.


    Percy had already gathered enough soul mana, though Rick couldn¡¯t see it. Even if he activated Mana Sense, the bandage would take care of it. Next, the young man willed it to harden and take the shape of his insidious weapon, before sending another message to his familiar.


    A shadow shot up from behind the hill, the heads of the remaining bandits all snapping in that direction. Percy didn¡¯t care about that, however, as he bolted towards Rick, flicking his hand towards the man¡¯s torso. Noticing him at the last moment, the bandit leader pulled up a thick sheet of stone with a wave of his finger.


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    But it wouldn¡¯t help him.


    Diverting a trickle of soul mana to his eyes, the young man watched the silver dagger phase through the rocky barrier unobstructed, piercing a hole through the man¡¯s soul as if it was a sheet of paper. The wound continued to widen even after the projectile popped out the other side. By the time Rick fell to his knees, his soul already sported a hole wider than a fist, his head making a sickening thud as he collapsed forward onto his own wall.


    The remaining two bandits took a few moments to catch on to what was happening. By then, the cyan lines had already lit up underneath Percy¡¯s skin, as the young man held the Quarterstaff in one hand, a smaller version of the Parting Gift already forming in the other.


    He rushed towards one of the bandits. The other was about to help his buddy when Micky dove down, trying to gouge out his eyeballs. While he failed to do so ¨C the bandit having managed to roll to one side at the last moment ¨C the familiar had successfully prevented him from reinforcing Percy¡¯s opponent.


    The young man on the other hand was having some trouble at first. His footwork did allow him to dodge most of the fireballs, but the few he was forced to parry made his weapon bend and crack, as the dispersed heat scorched his skin, making him wince.


    At least, this was the case for a few moments, until his second weapon took shape. Ignoring the sweat and the blisters, he dashed towards the bandit, weaving between the incoming spells, closing the distance.


    A well-timed throw later, the third man was on the ground, his eyes glazed over like the two before him.


    Micky wasn¡¯t having an easy time pinning down the last one. The criminal¡¯s air affinity was a bad match for the bird, preventing it from reaching him.


    Still, the tables swiftly turned once Percy joined the fight, the duo eliminating the final opponent not long after.


    The young man plopped down on the bloodied dirt, breathing heavily. This had been his toughest fight yet. The first real one too. But he¡¯d done it! He¡¯d defeated a Yellow core by himself and even took his henchmen out with him!


    KRA! KRA!


    Percy winced as his familiar pecked his shoulder in protest.


    ¡°Ok, ok. We did it together.¡± he smiled. ¡°Now go eat Rick¡¯s soul and core before they dissipate.¡±


    CAW!


    Micky wasn¡¯t entirely placated, but heeded the instruction, clearly thrilled at the prospect of such a gourmet meal. The young man rested on his back, a flood of mana soon filling his body. Shocked as the pressure intensified, he activated Mana Sense, only to be blinded by the bright Yellow colour filling his frame. Unable to discern anything, he switched to Soul Vision, but the intense silver glow wasn¡¯t much easier to peer through.


    It was a lot to absorb at once, but Percy didn¡¯t ask his friend to stop eating. He knew such an opportunity was hard to come by. Rick¡¯s digested soul was by far the richest, most abundant source of soul mana they would come across anytime soon. It was a potent tonic, greatly accelerating his soul¡¯s recovery.


    Squinting, he just about managed to see his gruesome injuries closing in real time. The sight almost reminded him of the time his grandpa healed his physical wounds in mere moments.


    Micky stopped producing soul mana about ten minutes later, but fully processing it took them a couple hours longer. By then, only the crater in Percy¡¯s chest remained, and even that had shrunk to the size of an apple.


    Percy estimated he¡¯d only need one more fight like this to fully recover. Of course, he had no intention of chasing more bandits or provoking other Yellow cores, but even the Orange beasts they would be hunting at their destination should do the trick in a few more weeks. In fact, he figured he could probably refill his core without Micky¡¯s help right now.


    CAW!


    The young man was spent, so resting for a few hours before resuming his journey didn¡¯t sound too bad. Sadly, the longer he remained here, the greater his odds of running into more trouble were. Getting to the Guild as soon as possible was probably the wisest choice.


    Luckily, the bandits had travelled in the same direction, so he hadn¡¯t lost much time. Calculating the distance, Percy estimated he should be within a day of his destination. Standing up, he quickly scanned the corpses for anything valuable.


    The poor bastards were broke. Retrieving his elixirs, he climbed onto his horse. Only one dose was missing from the pouch. Naturally, it would have been too wasteful for them to use the elixirs in their concentrated state. Percy¡¯s entire stash would have barely lasted them a week. Their next promotion had probably been decades away, so the elixirs wouldn¡¯t have made a dent like that. Instead, they had planned to dilute them all, making each dose last the group for nearly a month, the entire stash well over a year.


    SIGH


    This was the Remior, away from his House¡¯s walls. A jungle, where the lowborns like him had to place their lives on the line every single day for a small chance to survive.

 Chapter 35: Scorpions

    SHINGThe azure flash sliced through the thick carapace as if it was butter. It might as well have been, against the spell of a Green. Elaine swung her arms a few more times, three whips lashing out with each move, dicing the rest of the creatures into pieces.


    ¡°Careful not to damage their stingers or their venom glands. It¡¯s what we¡¯re here for.¡± Enid said.


    The blonde girl was having a bit more trouble at Yellow, but her earth magic kept the enemies at bay at least.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about her, Enid. Princess knows what she¡¯s doing.¡± Aleyn said.


    Having inherited the bloodline, the boy¡¯s life affinity didn¡¯t help him much in a direct confrontation. Still, he reduced the pressure on his cousins by distracting the beasts with his clones.


    ¡°All I¡¯m saying is, each scorpion is worth four silver. It would be a waste to lose some.¡±


    ¡°Alright, stop bickering. I think we managed to preserve most of them.¡± Elaine said.


    She wiped the sweat off her brow as the last of the creatures fell limp on the sand. Next, she walked to one of the more intact carcasses and sat against it. Drawing the last drops of mana from her core, she manifested a mouthful of water to quench her thirst. The worst thing about the desert was the suffocating heat. To add insult to injury, it wasn¡¯t particularly suited to her affinity either. Refilling her reserves took twice as long here.


    Still, she took deep breaths to recover as much as she could while resting. Enid soon joined her, also in need of a break. It wasn¡¯t like they hadn¡¯t considered helping Aleyn harvest the loot, but the boy had volunteered to delegate the menial task to his clones. Instead, she summoned her Status.


    Elaine Avalon


    Mana core:


    [Mana core ¨C Green ¨C Water]


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    [Whip ¨C Crude]


    SIGH


    It irked her every time she looked at it. Her first and only Crude spell had registered several years ago, yet the upgrade still eluded her.


    she smiled bitterly.


    She¡¯d resolved to obtain a Refined spell even before Percy¡¯s return from Huehue, yet here she was, with nothing more than a single Crude one over a year later. Not just that, but her cousin had achieved what she failed to, ! And he had other spells too! Yet, despite being two full grades above him, Elaine couldn¡¯t even manage it with Percy holding her hand, walking her through the process! Strengthening her body and tempering her mana channels had been fine, but she just couldn¡¯t figure out the correct pattern for her affinity.


    The only thing she could do was to resume taking mission after mission, focusing on her Whip instead. At least, she could now summon a whopping six constructs at once. Sadly, sheer quantity didn¡¯t a Refined spell make...


    SIGH


    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s all of them.¡± Aleyn said, breaking her out of her thoughts.


    Four men stood behind him, each with a face identical to his own, save for their soulless gazes. They didn¡¯t utter a word of complaint, despite the heavy-looking sacks they were holding over their shoulders, filled to the brim with grimy scorpion parts. One even had a stinger sticking out of the bag, passing just inches from the clone¡¯s cheek, but he didn¡¯t seem bothered in the slightest.


    ¡°Finally!¡± Enid jumped to her feet excitedly. ¡°I can¡¯t wait to take a bath and sleep on a proper bed!¡±


    She looked at Elaine expectantly, silently urging her to get a move on. Faced with her cousin¡¯s eagerness, the latter acquiesced, pushing herself up as the corner of her lips curved upwards. Aleyn and Enid were both Orange-borns, but they didn¡¯t waste their time wallowing in self-pity. What right did have to be unhappy?


    The trio was about to head out, when a sudden burst of sand blinded them. Elaine opened her eyes just a second later, only to be greeted by a gruesome sight. Three figures were lying on the ground, pinned down by long stingers. Each was twice as thick and thrice as long as those of the regular scorpions, making them resemble lances more than monster parts. They were a deep purple colour, dripping with droplets a shade paler.


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    SSSSSS


    Every time the liquid landed on the victims¡¯ skin, it sizzled, releasing smoke that carried a putrid smell with it. The appalling scene made Elaine tremble in abject terror for a moment.


    Luckily, she soon regained her wit. Those three weren¡¯t her real cousins. Just clones. Aleyn and Enid were both ok, lying a few meters away, fortunate enough the abomination hadn¡¯t targeted them.


    ¡°Get up! Fast!¡± she yelled, already stirring the mana in her sternum.


    She¡¯d only managed to recover about a third, but it would have to do. Her cousins heard her, scrambling to stand. Sadly, they weren¡¯t fast enough.


    SNIP


    A second mound of sand exploded just under where Aleyn was, a deafening sound ringing in their ears.


    As soon as the cloud settled somewhat, Elaine saw a colossal pincer pointing towards the sky, chunks of wet gore hanging off its serrated edges. Its base was drenched in a crimson pool which kept deepening as the blood gushed out of the two halves of her cousin¡¯s lifeless body.


    ¡°AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!¡±


    Enid¡¯s scream was the only thing that stopped Elaine from throwing up on the spot. Prying her eyes off Aleyn¡¯s corpse, she turned towards her last surviving teammate. A second pincer had pierced through the sand at some point, but luckily it had missed. Although shaken, Enid was still in one piece.


    Elaine dashed, ignoring the protests of her tired legs, picking her cousin off the ground as she kept running, trying to put distance from the monster. She felt the sand shake as a tremor coursed through her surroundings.


    Resisting the urge to look back, she activated her Mana Sense instead. A bright Green star thrummed in the beast¡¯s frame, as multiple streams of the same colour flowed through its visage. It was using its pincers to pull itself up, its body already halfway above the surface. This scorpion was the size of an elephant, with three long tails flailing above it.


    Being the same grade as the creature, Elaine knew she should be able to defeat it normally. But not with so little mana and not while keeping Enid safe. Right now, her best course of action was to flee.


    Unfortunately, the beast wasn¡¯t quite ready to let them go, however. As soon as it was done unlodging itself from the makeshift tunnel, its three pairs of legs began stabbing and pushing against the sand, the scorpion¡¯s heavy frame accelerating towards them. Like a battering ram, the abomination crashed through the dunes, barely slowing down.


    Elaine grimaced. There was no way she could outrun the monster in its own element. Certainly not while carrying somebody. She summoned all her strength to toss her cousin as far ahead as she could manage. Perhaps the fall might have injured a regular human, but the girl was at Yellow, so she just rolled harmlessly on the soft sand.


    Not that she would survive long if Elaine failed to kill the beast. Hopefully, this would keep her out of the fight though. Turning around, Elaine took another deep breath, briefly entertaining the thought of breaking through the last barrier and mastering Circulation right then and there.


    Then, she chuckled bitterly.


    Even if she could miraculously come up with the burst of inspiration she needed, the arid desert air made this the worst possible place to circulate water mana. . She¡¯d have to make do with the only spell she had. Her measly reserves wouldn¡¯t last for a prolonged fight either.


    The scorpion approached rapidly. Its massive body was only a dozen meters away when a wave of calm took over her, a strange thought passing through her mind.


    Elaine had completed countless missions, but she couldn¡¯t remember coming this close to dying before. Most of the time, her Green core was enough to make quick work of the Orange and Yellow beasts she hunted. Even the few Green ones she¡¯d faced had been under better circumstances. Was this how it felt to put her life on the line?


    She shook her head. This wasn¡¯t the time for silly thoughts. Drawing all the mana from her core and summoning all the strength in her muscles, she spun her body towards the beast to build up as much momentum as she could manage. She figured every little bit might make the difference. Three whips formed in each hand, but she didn¡¯t stop there. She willed them to turn even firmer, even sharper than before, as a fourth one began to manifest. By the time the shadow of the scorpion loomed over her, she could hardly even see it. It was all a blur, the spinning blades of azure dominating her sight, as they whistled shrilly, slicing through the air.


    The impact she feel, however. The whips bent, a couple of them even snapping as a mountain collided with them. Having absorbed most of the weight, her constructs saved her from being squashed into paste, but the wind was still knocked out of her lungs, waves of pain rippling through her body. Her joints buckled, her bones creaked, and she could feel her soles burn as she and the monster both slid through the scorching sand.


    But she didn¡¯t stop spinning. She kept focusing on her whips ¨C her only way out ¨C as she commanded them to reform, to sharpen even more, to carve out anything in their path.


    SHRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII¡­


    The grating sound intensified as she picked up speed. The mana was dwindling at a frightening rate, the whips thinning into mere threads¡­ but they still felt stronger than before, .


    Elaine didn¡¯t stop. She stop. A moment¡¯s hesitation would mean her death. Enid¡¯s too. She kept spinning in place, her world consumed into a whirlwind of azure, as all other senses vanished.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Whip ¨C Crude -> Kraken¡¯s Gambit ¨C Refined!]


    It wasn¡¯t until a long time later she realized she was no longer sliding through the sand. The grating screech had stopped too. There was nothing pushing against her. But she didn¡¯t let go of the mana right away. She didn¡¯t want to risk it.


    ¡°¡­Elaine!¡±


    At some point, she scarcely registered a voice.


    ¡°It¡¯s over! It¡¯s dead!¡± her cousin added after a moment.


    Only then did she allow the spell to fizzle out, plopping down weakly.


    SPLASH


    Yet, it wasn¡¯t the dry mound of sand she was expecting. Her everything still spun, though she scarcely registered a greenish chunk of wet chitin in front of her eyes. She tried shifting around. All her muscles hurt. She felt more of the goo around her with every movement. She was practically swimming in the stuff.


    ¡°I¡¯ll need some help getting home¡­¡±

 Chapter 36: Fungal Spire

    Technically, baldy explained what they would find at their destination. Perhaps, Percy shouldn¡¯t have been so taken aback by the sight before him. Yet here he was, blinking repeatedly, struggling to believe his eyes. Maybe they were playing tricks on him, tired as they were from the long journey.The Alchemists¡¯ Guild was situated next to an extraordinary structure resembling a conical tree. An impossibly tall one too, its tip lost above the clouds. It was adorned from top to bottom with bright lights of all colours, making it appear man-made, seemingly erected for some grand festival.


    Yet, this assessment couldn¡¯t be further from the truth. To start with, this was no plant at all. Strictly speaking, it was a mountain. Its ¡®trunk¡¯ was really a narrow column of rock, several miles long, thrusting towards the sky like a giant¡¯s spear. There was nothing artificial about it either. Countless huge mushrooms grew all over the steep slope, their stems bending upwards. As a result, their caps faced the stars, forming platforms hundreds of meters wide. These titanic protrusions constantly released mana of all types, giving the place its varied glow.


    According to his grandpa, it was among the greatest natural treasures on Remior. Also, one of the main reasons other races targeted them. Multiple underground rivers of mana converged beneath it, allowing the monstrous fungi to flourish. This, in turn, had given rise to a truly bizarre ecosystem where the main ingredient for the elixirs could be found. The Guild, where Percy would be living, was built at its base, while the hunting grounds, where he and Micky would spend most of their time, were the giant mushrooms themselves.


    Reminded by his familiar¡¯s cry, the young man gently tapped the horse¡¯s side with his heel, urging it to gallop faster. There would be plenty of time for sightseeing later. He shouldn¡¯t delay and risk getting attacked again. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ***


    His relief was palpable as the Guild¡¯s entrance came into view. At last, he was safe!


    Not that this wasn¡¯t a popular destination. Quite the opposite, in fact. Aspiring alchemists and merchants travelled to the Guild all year round. Still, it couldn¡¯t compare with the traffic to the Order¡¯s temples, where a third of Remior¡¯s children were brought to take the test. Certainly not this late at night.


    Percy had bid his familiar farewell a few minutes ago. The bird couldn¡¯t follow him into the Guild proper, so the plan was for Micky to circle around and find a place to stay on the other side of the trunk. Apparently, the base of the Spire was designated as the bottom level of the hunting grounds, mostly populated by Red beasts.


    There, the bird could fly around unobstructed, with nothing daring to approach. Of course, the Guild had numerous squads patrolling the perimeter of the structure, to prevent intruders from entering without authorization. That said, they wouldn¡¯t care much about a lone beast passing through the bottom level.


    After receiving confirmation from his friend that he was alright, Percy walked up to the guards. The two men wore green robes ¨C the same colour as their cores. The clothes were neat, but not nearly as over-the-top as the funny-looking togas and sandals of the guards at the temple. They were half-asleep ¨C one even startled by his appearance ¨C probably not expecting any visitors past midnight.


    Still, they were professionals. Without complaint, they requested his official documents backing his purpose at the Guild. Percy took out his grandpa¡¯s letter, which one of the guards skimmed through rather quickly, before handing him a wooden badge.


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    ¡°This is only for guests. You¡¯ll have to register properly inside the third building to your left. But it¡¯s not open at this time. For now, keep going until you reach the building with the blue door and then head right until you get to the inn. You can stay the night there for free. The stables are next door.¡±


    Percy nodded, walking inside, his horse in tow. As soon as he entered the settlement, his eyes widened. Motes of light danced in the wind, like colourful snowflakes painting everything in joy and wonder. He¡¯d seen some outside too, but they were much denser here. Probably thanks to some large-scale enchantment keeping them within the Guild¡¯s perimeter. The tiny orbs faded into nothingness every time they touched an object ¨C a red one startling him as it landed on his nose.


    Instinctively, he tilted his head up, gawking at the blinding sea of colours slowly descending from the sky. Even more numerous than stars, they shifted and mixed, forming ever-changing patterns of raw magic. A question suddenly popped up in his head.


    He took a deep breath, letting the motes spiral into his lungs as he directed the mana to his two cores. His regeneration was slightly faster than outside ¨C maybe by 20% or so ¨C but that was about it. It would make fighting atop the giant fungi slightly more convenient. That said, the difference wouldn¡¯t be great.


    Micky might be able to get some mind mana for his second core too, although it would be negligible. It couldn¡¯t even compare with the red mist outside the Order¡¯s temple, so it would take the familiar years to amass enough at this rate. Percy would still have to find a different source, which was one of his goals for the near future.


    Then, he shook his head.


    Following the guard¡¯s instructions, he slowly made his way towards the inn, all-the-while appreciating the sights around him. The architecture was very different to what he was used to. Unlike his family¡¯s mansion which was mostly made of wood, all the buildings here were made of stone. Not just that, but they all appeared to be in pristine condition, as if they had only been built days ago. Of course, this wasn¡¯t the case. The Alchemists¡¯ Guild was even older than the Avalon House. Many times so, in fact. Percy wouldn¡¯t be surprised if these houses and shops had been here for tens of millennia already.


    The young man didn¡¯t miss the numerous glyphs dimly shimmering along the polished surfaces. The symbols shone a touch more brightly every time one of the colourful motes landed on them, before fading a moment later.


    Soon, he found the inn. He skipped it for now, entering the stables instead. Luckily, they were open, manned by a clerk in a uniform like that of the guards, although his was yellow. There weren¡¯t many horses inside. Not many people used them on Remior, as travelling on foot was easier once you reached Yellow.


    With nine times the speed and endurance of a regular human, the only reason for a Yellow or higher to ride a horse would be if they were escorting somebody at a lower grade. Even then, they technically had the option of carrying that person themselves, although it would look awkward and downright silly. Percy chuckled, imagining Gawain giving him a piggyback ride. Or Rick stacking his three lackies on his back like sacks of rice.


    ¡°How long do you want us to keep it for you?¡± the clerk asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    Percy felt some heat gather in his cheeks upon realizing he¡¯d looked like a maniac, laughing to himself. Then, he shrugged.


    ¡°Can I sell it instead? I¡¯m not going to be leaving anytime soon.¡±


    It would be cheaper to buy another horse when it was time to go ¨C if he even needed one by then. Strictly speaking, Percy had no idea how long he was going to stay. It would depend on many factors he couldn¡¯t account for at the moment, such as his success or failure in the Guild, or whatever treasures his future clones managed to bring back to Remior. Still, he estimated he¡¯d be here for at least a year or two.


    The man nodded, slamming a red coin on the counter, prompting Percy to raise an eyebrow.


    ¡°Ha, I guess you¡¯re new here. This coin is worth 1 contribution point. The colours follow the same pattern as grades, with orange coins worth 10, yellow 100 and so on. You¡¯ll need them for everything you buy or sell in the Guild.¡±


    The young man picked the coin up, examining it for a couple of moments in intrigue before tossing it in his pocket. He was about to flood the clerk with a ton of questions, but the guy beat him to it, raising a hand.


    ¡°Look, kid, I know you want to ask me more stuff, but they¡¯ll explain everything at the orientation when you register tomorrow. For now, go get some sleep. You look like crap. No offense.¡±


    Percy wasn¡¯t bothered, realising the clerk was most likely right. He thanked him before leaving. Entering the inn, he showed his wooden badge to the guy there, before being led to his room for the night. It wasn¡¯t the most luxurious place, but it was clean at least, probably enchanted for that. . His own room back at home too ¨C though not by a huge margin.


    Percy would be lying if he said he wasn¡¯t worried. He knew he¡¯d be safe inside the Guild, and he¡¯d already checked up on his familiar six times since entering the settlement.


    Still, he had no idea what tomorrow would bring. Would he thrive in this place, or sink to the bottom and be forgotten?

 Chapter 37: Registration

    As soon as the first rays of sunlight entered his room, Percy¡¯s eyes bolted open. The young man practically leapt to his feet, eager to register as an alchemist and begin hunting right away.He was still tired, having only barely managed to catch a couple hours of sleep. Not that he hadn¡¯t tried to rest some more, but his anxiety and anticipation had narrowly won over his exhaustion. That said, he was at least right now and he didn¡¯t want to leave his familiar alone out there a moment longer than necessary.


    The response came delayed and strained.


    With it, Percy received a close-up image of a tree¡¯s branches ¨C presumably where the bird had nested for the night. The young man hadn¡¯t missed the hint of annoyance contained in his friend¡¯s reply either. Micky should have just woken up.


    Percy chuckled.


    Exiting the inn, he briefly paused to appreciate the scenery. The colourful motes looked different than before, glinting as they fluttered in the soft light, but they were just as beautiful as last night, if not more so. There was some movement in the streets too, although not as much as he expected.


    The few he did see all wore the Guild¡¯s uniform, with varying colours matching their grade. Most were Yellow but he did spot a couple Greens and even a Blue at some point. As for anything lower, he had yet to see one.


    he grimaced at the thought.


    Retracing his steps from the night before, he recalled the guard¡¯s instructions, trying to find the registration office. He did make it there eventually, albeit after having taken a couple wrong turns and being forced to ask a passerby.


    Luckily, the building was already open, sparing him the torture of waiting outside. A clerk greeted him with a smile.


    ¡°Good morning! We¡¯ll need your guest badge, your recommendation letter and some details about yourself.¡± he said, passing him a piece of paper and a quill.


    Percy handed him the wooden badge and his grandpa¡¯s letter before examining the document. It was a form, meant to be filled with all sorts of personal information.


    It all looked standard, although he wasn¡¯t comfortable with all the fields. Naturally, he wouldn¡¯t reveal anything about his second core, but he had to be truthful about his first one.


    ¡°Is anything wrong?¡± the clerk asked after a minute.


    ¡°Well, I was just wondering¡­ What do you need all this information for?¡±


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    The man chuckled.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be so stressed. I know it¡¯s a jungle out there, but you don¡¯t have anything to worry about as long as you¡¯re within the jurisdiction of the Guild. We need to know some basic things about the people who work here to make sure everything is in order. However, nobody will leak details of your bloodline or use any of the information you provide to harm you.¡±


    Percy nodded, albeit reluctantly. This was in line with what baldy had explained, but it still felt weird being so open about his soul affinity and his ability. Logically, he understood nobody would piece together its function. And even if somebody wanted to hurt him, it wasn¡¯t like they needed this information to do so. Still, he felt his stomach churn after he was done, as if he had been stripped naked in front of a stranger.


    ¡°Great! It will take about an hour to process your registration and prepare your new badge and clothes. In the meantime, please follow me.¡±


    The clerk was already walking down a corridor by the time he finished speaking. Percy hurriedly caught up.


    ¡°About the robes¡­ Is wearing them mandatory?¡± he asked with some hope in his eyes.


    The man tossed him an apologetic look, probably realizing the source of his concern.


    ¡°Afraid so. Still, I assure you that your lower grade won¡¯t affect your ability to access any of the Guild¡¯s facilities. If you suspect anyone has refused to accommodate you just because of that, make sure to report them to the Guild¡¯s management.¡±


    Percy¡¯s expression fell at the beginning of the clerk¡¯s response, although he had to admit he did feel better by the end.


    Soon, they reached an open door. It led to a small room with a few sets of desks and chairs facing a blackboard. There were two people already sitting in there, none of them wearing the Guild¡¯s robes.


    ¡°To save time, we explain everything to you in batches.¡± the clerk said. ¡°Please wait in this room for now. Your orientation will begin once a few more people gather.¡±


    After he left, Percy looked at the other newcomers. Both appeared around his age, although it would be misleading to make any assumptions based on that alone. Having reached adulthood, it would take them decades for any physical changes to show given their Yellow cores.


    They also checked him out at first, but quickly frowned and grew disinterested upon noticing his grade. Despite what the clerk had said, people wouldn¡¯t stop looking down on him just like that. At most, the Guild¡¯s rules forced people to not decline him any important services, but their thoughts were still their own.


    And wait they did, for several more hours. Three more people were brought in by the clerk at various points, but he didn¡¯t seem keen on beginning the orientation just yet. Percy entertained himself by peering through his familiar¡¯s eyes, watching the bird hunt some black wasp-like creatures, stuffing its face full of Red cores.


    The others in the room didn¡¯t have that option, however.


    ¡°How much longer until we start?! I¡¯ve been here for six hours!!¡± one of them yelled at the clerk the next time he showed up.


    ¡°I apologize for the delay. Usually, we do this in groups of seven. Unfortunately, it¡¯s been a slow day today. If nobody shows up in the next hour, we¡¯ll start anyway.¡±


    The reactions were mixed. Some were visibly annoyed hearing they had to wait longer, while others appeared relieved to finally have a concrete timeframe. As for Percy, he was a bit more neutral on all this. He still itched to head out and begin hunting of course, but he was no longer worried about Micky. It was hard to be, after watching the bird play around all morning.


    Either way, the clerk returned just a few minutes later to put them out of their misery, with the seventh person in tow. She was a girl in her late teens, her tousled dark hair barely reaching her shoulders. It matched the colour of her eyes, half-hidden behind glasses. Her frame was petite, dressed in casual clothes. Not exactly what one would expect from a noble lady. In fact, unlike the others in the room, Percy failed to recognize her House¡¯s insignia. sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Either way, she was at Yellow, like everyone else besides him. He figured they were all Orange-borns too. It fit with their appearances. They didn¡¯t look old enough to be Red-borns or young enough to be Yellow-borns. At least, the new girl didn¡¯t look at him with ridicule like the rest. Well, technically she didn¡¯t even spare him a glance at all ¨C or anyone else for that matter. Ignoring all the annoyed glares aimed her way, she sat at the nearest chair, before resting her face down on the desk. Evidently, she was only going through the motions, still half-asleep.


    AHEM


    The clerk cleared his throat, drawing everyone¡¯s attention. His gaze lingered on the drowsy girl for a moment, but he didn¡¯t dwell on her.


    ¡°I apologize again this took so long, but we can finally begin.¡±

 Chapter 38: Orientation

    The first part of the clerk¡¯s explanation wasn¡¯t anything too eye opening. He went over some mundane things like how they were expected to conduct themselves within the Guild. The summary was that they were pretty much allowed to do whatever they wanted, as long as they wore the uniforms, treated others politely and didn¡¯t kill, steal or cheat.Each of them was going to be handed 5 contribution points to start with. It wasn¡¯t a huge sum, but it was more than sufficient to cover their food and accommodation for their first month. Beyond that, they would have to pay for their expenses out of their own pocket. That said, the bare necessities weren¡¯t difficult to earn enough for. The clerk even gave them a quick overview of the settlement, showing them where to find shops, inns, restaurants and other important facilities on a map.


    Percy thought, suppressing a yawn.


    It was the next part of the orientation that caused his eyes to widen. This was what he was interested in.


    ¡°The reason most of you are here are naturally the elixirs we all need to advance. Our Guild is where they are produced. You can learn to brew them yourselves, but you can also buy them with contribution points.¡±


    ¡°How much does a dose cost?¡± somebody asked.


    The clerk smiled bitterly.


    ¡°400 points.¡±


    His response elicited sharp breaths from the audience.


    ¡°Per ?!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s enough to buy food and accommodation for 7 years!¡±


    After waiting for the chatter to die out, the clerk spoke again.


    ¡°It¡¯s indeed expensive, but you knew that already. It¡¯s not any cheaper to buy it from the Guild than elsewhere. However, you can find all sorts of opportunities to earn contribution points here.¡±


    The room remained quiet, prompting him to continue.


    ¡°There are many ways to get them. The simpler ones are jobs like what I¡¯m doing right now.¡± he smiled. ¡°Although these posts don¡¯t pay that well. We typically treat them as a vacation, for when we want to take things easy for a couple of weeks.¡±


    ¡°Then, what¡¯s the most profitable method?¡± an initiate asked.


    ¡°Alchemy obviously! After all, it¡¯s the Guild¡¯s specialty! There is no better way to earn points than to brew your own elixirs and make a killing selling the excess to others¡­ But I¡¯m afraid there¡¯s a catch.¡±


    Nobody looked surprised by his words. If it was that easy, nobody would bother with anything else.


    ¡°Learning the art is a time-consuming process and a colossal money sink. You¡¯ll have to spend months if not years to get any good at it. You¡¯ll need to throw a warehouse of ingredients down the gutter too. Until then, you¡¯ll be losing more points than you earn.¡±


    Everyone¡¯s faces fell, but he continued.


    ¡°Consequently, I advise you to forget about alchemy for the time being. If you have lofty aspirations to live a life of luxury and wealth, it might be something for you to work towards in the long-term. For now, your best bet is to venture out into the Fungal Spire and hunt the Starry Wasps.¡±


    ¡°What does that involve?¡± a young man asked. Percy recognised him as one of the two people who¡¯d arrived earlier than him.


    The clerk proceeded to explain how the hunting grounds worked. Essentially, the Fungal Spire was segregated into five levels, based on the grade of the beasts living there. The higher one ascended, the stronger the wasps got. At the ground level, where Micky was currently staying, you could only find Starry Drones, which had Red cores and were about as large as a man¡¯s fist. Further up, one could find Starry Workers, Soldiers, Knights and Commanders, which progressively increased in both size and grade, all the way to Blue.


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    There was even rumoured to be a Starry Queen with a Violet core hiding somewhere in the depths of the Fungal Spire. However, nobody could verify if this was true, as entering the structure was strictly prohibited. The number of insects living inside the Spire vastly eclipsed the few that wandered outside. Still, the Guild¡¯s foremost priority was to preserve the local ecosystem, so people were only allowed to freely roam and hunt on the giant mushrooms.


    ¡°What you want to harvest is the special gland that all types of wasps share just a few inches below their core.¡±


    According to the clerk, this unique organ contained a few drops of nectar ¨C the primary ingredient for the elixirs. The amount of nectar contained in each gland depended on the grade of the creature. Apparently, the Starry Drones at the bottom level usually carried 5 drops, with each higher grade having three times as much as the one below.


    Each drop of nectar was valued at precisely 1 contribution point ¨C or perhaps it might be more accurate to say it was the other way around. Clearly, the entire economy of the Alchemists¡¯ Guild had been built around the exotic substance.


    ¡°At the end of the day, it all comes down to your combat ability. If you¡¯re good, you can kill a lot of wasps per day and make a ton of points. Sadly, it means that some of you may be at a bit of a disadvantage.¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t appreciate how everyone turned towards him after that statement.


    Most of these people would be hunting the Starry Soldiers on the third level, while he and Micky would have to make do with the workers on the second one. Still, this wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing. He actually liked the idea of having an entire level to himself. After all, he had many secrets. Hunting in a crowded area would be inconvenient.


    ¡°Any questions?¡± the clerk asked after finishing.


    Only one person raised her hand.


    It was the girl with the glasses who had arrived last. She¡¯d spent the entire orientation face down on the desk, so Percy assumed she¡¯d slept through the whole thing. The clerk didn¡¯t look very pleased either, creasing his brow. He probably thought she was going to ask about something he¡¯d already explained. Still, he didn¡¯t stop her.


    ¡°Are we obligated to hunt or brew?¡±


    The man raised an eyebrow, not expecting that question.


    ¡°Well, no. Nobody can tell you what to do. If you want to stick to other jobs and only pay for your expenses, you¡¯re technically allowed to do that. But, you won¡¯t be able to afford the elixirs that way. Why even come to the Guild if you aren¡¯t willing to do those things?¡±


    Drowsy girl nodded absentmindedly, seemingly satisfied with the answer. She didn¡¯t say much else, instead falling back to her desk, resuming her nap. The clerk spent another 5 minutes giving them a few more tips and instructions. Next, he politely asked them to leave the room to make space for the next batch after handing them their badges and robes.


    Finding a place to stay wasn¡¯t difficult. The Guild was full of empty houses, all made of the same enchanted stone, waiting for new members to claim them. Percy picked a spot near the back gate of the settlement, for easier access to the Spire. He only needed to press his badge against a rune on the door to register himself as the new owner, allowing him to enter and lock as he pleased. At the end of each month, he¡¯d have to pay rent at a designated spot to get the badge recharged.


    After a quick look inside, he took a shower before changing into the orange robes. It was still annoying he had to wear them everywhere, but at least they felt comfortable enough to hunt in. S§×ar?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Having not had a chance earlier, he gulped down his daily dose of the elixir, leaving the last few vials in his possession back home, before heading out for some shopping. Despite being quite hungry, he didn¡¯t buy much, settling for a loaf of bread. He munched on it on the way back, figuring he could return for more stuff later.


    Right now, he¡¯d rather avoid wasting more time. It was already late in the afternoon. He¡¯d accepted he wouldn¡¯t get much hunting done today, but he wanted to at least meet up with Micky and explore the first level to familiarize himself with the area.


    Leaving through the back gate, he ignored the suspension bridge leading up the first mushroom. That was the way to the second level, which he¡¯d worry about tomorrow. Remaining on the ground, he began circling around the mountain. The entire trip would have taken him several hours, but he¡¯d already asked his familiar to meet him halfway. The bird flew much faster than he walked too.


    Although Micky had kept him updated throughout the day, the young man couldn¡¯t help but exhale in relief after seeing him in person. This was the longest they had ever spent apart.


    CAW! CAW!


    Evidently, the familiar felt the same way.


    ¡°So, care to show me around your new home? I want to see what these Starry Wasps are all about.¡±

 Chapter 39: Starry Drones

    It wasn¡¯t like he hadn¡¯t searched for the bugs on the way, but he hadn¡¯t found any. The colourful motes impaired visibility and even interfered with Mana Sense.CAW!


    The bird threw a quick glance around, before flying a certain direction. A few moments later, it returned with something squirming in its beak. Its shape wasn¡¯t much different from a regular wasp¡¯s, but it was much larger. For the most part, its carapace was black. However, Percy didn¡¯t miss the numerous tiny dots glittering along the slick chitin, resembling the motes in their surroundings.


    Micky hadn¡¯t struggled much to locate the oversized bug, seemingly unaffected by its camouflage. The familiar pointed to its eyes with a wing.


    CAW! CAW! sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy smiled wryly.


    Gathering some soul mana into his eyes, three silver flames of various shapes and sizes came into view. His own was the largest, followed by Micky¡¯s. The wasp¡¯s wasn¡¯t nearly as bright, merely a wisp on the verge of being snuffed out, but it was there nonetheless.


    This was good news. Due to his nature as a familiar, Micky had manifested some unique abilities allowing him to interact with the souls of others. At the beginning, it had only affected his beak, letting him consume the souls of his prey. Following his advancement to Orange, however, it had extended to his talons and eyes. Evidently, while the colourful motes affected both Mana Sense and regular sight, they weren¡¯t alive and thus could be filtered out through Soul Vision.


    Still, Percy failed to spot any other wasps nearby. Apparently, they were somewhat scarce. Despite having the ability to see them, he and Micky would have to move around a lot.


    The bird heeded his instructions, swiftly putting the wasp out of its misery, cawing in satisfaction after swallowing the tasty snack. Pulling a knife out, Percy carefully sliced open the bug¡¯s thorax vertically, before placing his fingers inside, searching for something. A few moments later, he pulled out a soft, squishy ball about half the size of a cherry.


    Taking a small vial out of his pocket, he uncorked it with his mouth before cutting a small hole into the gland and squeezing it above the bottle¡¯s opening. A drop of a viscous liquid fell inside. It glowed in a rich amber colour ¨C looking a bit like magic honey.


    The young man compressed the gland more firmly, until he counted five drops. This was already worth as much as what the Guild had given him. Clearly, the clerk wasn¡¯t kidding when he said it would be easy to make a living.


    It was a huge sum. Percy wasn¡¯t sure if it was even possible to get that much. Micky and Soul Vision would certainly help, but they¡¯d need to hunt 160 Starry Drones on average.


    ***


    CAW!


    The familiar was over the moon, having barely eked out a victory in their little competition. Percy wasn¡¯t nearly as excited on the other hand. Although, his loss wasn¡¯t what soured his mood.


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    The two had only found another five wasps by the end. Extrapolating, he estimated that even if they spent all day doing this from now on, they¡¯d only get about 200 contribution points ¨C barely half a dose. A quarter of what he needed.


    It was not all bad, however.


    Killing the drones was easy as they didn¡¯t put up much of a fight, making the ground floor quite safe. He was also certain nobody in their right mind would ever bother with it either, meaning he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about his secrets leaking. Finally, he was confident he and Micky would improve with some more experience, increasing their harvest after a few more weeks.


    he shook his head.


    But that was fine. He hadn¡¯t expected this to work. His goal had always been the second level, the Starry Workers there being more suitable for their grades. Even if he ignored the fact they possessed three times as much nectar as the drones, their Orange cores would accelerate Micky¡¯s advancement and their souls would do the same for his own recovery.


    Squeezing the rest of his loot into the vial, he shook it a few times, marvelling at the expensive liquid swirling at the bottom. It wasn¡¯t nearly as much as he needed, but it was a start. His goal for tomorrow would be to do better.


    Percy bid his familiar farewell, before heading back towards the settlement. The sun had already set a while ago, but according to the clerk the shops shouldn¡¯t have closed yet. The young man hoped to get some supplies for his new abode. He would be staying there for some time, after all. He might as well make it comfortable.


    ***


    Percy was carrying four paper bags full of groceries. While he had come across a lot of exotic spices and ingredients they didn¡¯t have back at the mansion, he had kept his shopping fairly barebones. He¡¯d only gone for things like bread, milk, eggs and some fruit. After all, he¡¯d never learned to cook, and he doubted he¡¯d have the time for a new hobby anytime soon.


    He was only a couple blocks away from his new house when an interesting smell caught his attention. It came from his left, where a small stall stood. It was operated by a plump guy lighting a stove with fire magic. This was the first person Percy had seen wearing an orange robe. He looked a bit older than the others too, seemingly in his mid-thirties.


    The guy noticed him as well, waving at him to approach.


    ¡°First day here?¡±


    ¡°What gave me away?¡±


    ¡°Nothing really. I just haven¡¯t seen you before.¡±


    He handed Percy something warm, wrapped in a piece of parchment. The young man sniffed a couple of times, trying to discern what it was. It looked a bit like a pancake, dripping with honey. However, it had been rolled up and it was crispy too. Percy struggled to keep himself from drooling.


    ¡°What is it? It delicious.¡±


    ¡°It tastes even better!¡± the guy grinned. ¡°I call them Honey Rolls.¡±


    ¡°How much?¡± Percy asked, reaching into his pocket.


    The guy shook his head.


    ¡°First one¡¯s on the house. Think of it like a welcome gift. Or Red-born solidarity if you prefer.¡±


    ¡°Thanks!¡±


    If the guy was offering, Percy wouldn¡¯t stand on ceremony. He bit a chunk out of the Honey Roll. The dude wasn¡¯t kidding. This was . The thin crust gave way, crunching under his teeth, as the flavour of the honey blended with the warm dough. Maybe he was a little biased, having lived off dried rations for two weeks followed by some bland bread. That said, he¡¯d bet money this would still taste good tomorrow.


    Suddenly, a strange thought crossed his mind.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re using nectar?¡±


    ¡°Ha! As if! What moron would waste an elixir¡¯s worth of nectar on a snack?!¡± the plump dude chuckled.


    ¡°Besides, I doubt it would even taste that good. This is just regular honey.¡± he added after a moment.


    Percy nodded. That made sense.


    ¡°Name¡¯s Freddy.¡± the plump guy said, extending his hand.


    The young man hurriedly wiped his on the parchment a couple of times, before reciprocating.


    ¡°Percy. Are you also doing this as a ¡®vacation¡¯? The clerk from the orientation said you can¡¯t afford the elixirs without hunting wasps or learning to brew.¡±


    Freddy¡¯s face fell at his question, making Percy realize he might have asked something inappropriate. He was about to apologize but the guy spoke first.


    ¡°He was right. My Honey Rolls rather popular if I may say so myself. Still, nowhere near enough.¡±


    He remained silent for a few seconds, before continuing.


    ¡°But I¡¯ve given up on hunting. Even after busting my ass, I could barely make 300 points on a good day. It would still be enough to get the expensive elixir every other day or something, but I figured it wasn¡¯t worth the trouble. Right now, I¡¯ve settled on the diluted ones.¡±


    Percy felt the urge to protest ¨C to tell Freddy not to give up. But he suppressed it.


    The two chatted for a few minutes, switching to some more light-hearted topics, before Percy left.


    His expression was downtrodden by the time he got home. Freddy was a nice guy. A Red-born like him, who had probably come to the Alchemists¡¯ Guild harbouring the same dream. And the cruel reality had chipped away at it for years, until nothing remained.


    Percy¡¯s final thought before he dozed off was a resolute one.

 Chapter 40: Starry Workers

    Percy had experienced a few peculiar things in his relatively short life. More than the average person on Remior, at least. After all, how many could boast of traversing the space between worlds with their soul, or fighting in an alien arena?Still, walking atop a giant mushroom just to make the list.


    And it wasn¡¯t the first one today either. Each level of the Fungal Spire contained hundreds of them, the smallest being wide enough to fit a minor village. As for the largest ¨C it was bigger than the Alchemists¡¯ Guild!


    Well, the fact he was here to hunt giant bugs didn¡¯t help much either.


    In any case, despite the novelty of this all, moving up and down the colossal structure was straightforward. Numerous suspension bridges had been built, linking the giant fungi together for everyone¡¯s convenience. Sear?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    What was more annoying was that he still had to circle a couple miles away from the entrance to the second level, as he didn¡¯t want Micky anywhere near the crowded places. Only after he estimated to have travelled far enough did he call to the bird.


    Luckily, his friend didn¡¯t need bridges to navigate the Spire. It only took him around fifteen minutes to reach him. As soon as they had regrouped, Percy activated Soul Vision, looking for the wasps. Sadly, there didn¡¯t seem to be any around.


    CAW!


    Micky didn¡¯t need to be told twice, shooting out like an arrow. And hardly another ten minutes passed before Percy received news of two nearby targets on the same mushroom, only a couple bridges away.


    Percy knew Micky could probably handle one of the Starry Workers by himself. He was an Orange beast too, plus he was smarter and had some unique abilities giving him an edge. In fact, he figured they would have to split up in the future, to hunt the creatures more efficiently.


    That said, today was their first day, so it was probably unwise to undertake any unnecessary risks before learning more about the bugs. They¡¯d still try fighting individually, but they¡¯d remain close to one another, to intervene if necessary.


    Micky didn¡¯t sound very happy about it. He¡¯d waited two days to get his talons on some tasty snacks fitting for his grade. Still, he listened to the young man, albeit begrudgingly.


    Once Percy arrived, he reactivated his Soul Vision, locating their target. The Starry Worker was much larger than the drones. At about the size of a fox, it was still on the smaller side as far as Orange beasts were concerned. Still massive for a bug though. What gave Percy pause was a rather nasty stinger sticking out of the wasp¡¯s abdomen. It was longer than his index finger.


    CAW!


    From what he¡¯d heard, the creatures were venomous. At least, their acid wasn¡¯t very potent, so it wouldn¡¯t be lethal unless they got hit in a vital area. It¡¯d still be rather unpleasant though.


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    Redoubling their caution, they spread out by a few paces, as he took a few deep breaths, drawing the mana to his second core while guiding even more into his channels. Less than a minute later, his muscles were brimming with strength, and his body spilling out mana, as he could practically feel the cyan lines thrumming underneath his skin.


    It was one of the few saving graces of the Guild¡¯s uniform. It only left his face and hands exposed and the latter he had fixed by putting on a pair of gloves. Of course, he still very much hoped that nobody would pass through this remote region, but they¡¯d be hunting around here for months. It was best to minimize the risk.


    With everything in order, Percy gathered some soul mana in his hand, before tossing the Parting Gift towards the wasp.


    It missed.


    Although annoyed, the young man wasn¡¯t surprised. Unfortunately, the insect wasn¡¯t sitting still. It was whizzing around, feeding on the colourful motes falling from the mushrooms above. Naturally, hitting it mid-air had been a long shot.


    It also hadn¡¯t been subtle. Beasts had keen senses, making it somewhat harder to catch them by surprise. It must have had its Mana Sense active, noticing the translucent dagger flying past it.


    BZZZZZZZZZZ


    Before Percy knew it, the creature was upon him, and it appeared enraged. It tried to finish him directly by lunging straight towards his throat. It almost succeeded too, as it was faster than expected, making it difficult to sidestep even with Circulation active. However, it wasn¡¯t as hard to divert the stinger with a flick of his Quarterstaff.


    SHING


    Still, the construct bent and cracked, barely shifting the trajectory of the stab by a couple inches ¨C a bit too close for comfort.


    Rotating his right wrist anti-clockwise, Percy tried to use the rebound force from the parry to slam the other end of his weapon on the wasp, but he hit nothing but empty air.


    The creature flew around him erratically, looking for another opening to attack.


    Percy¡¯s kit was not very suitable against this kind of opponent.


    His lack of defensive magic didn¡¯t afford him the luxury of blocking hits. He¡¯d lose if he got stabbed even once. Of course, the combination of Circulation and his second core put his reflexes solidly above a regular Orange, meaning he could prevent that if he remained alert.


    Still, he didn¡¯t exactly have a good means of killing the slippery creature either. His staff was too weak, unless he landed a good blow on the wasp¡¯s wings. As for his Parting Gift, it was certainly powerful enough to finish the insect, but it wasn¡¯t easy hitting the bug with it. It cost a lot of mana and time for each shot so he couldn¡¯t launch it very often either.


    Twenty minutes and twice as many Parting Gifts later, the wasp was finally dead. The young man was lying on his back, drenched in sweat, his chest heaving up and down.


    CAW! CAW!


    Percy grimaced, hearing the crow¡¯s ridicule.


    Another twenty minutes later, it was Micky¡¯s turn to lie with his back on the giant mushroom, as Percy stood over him with a grin.


    Flying in a straight line, the crow much faster than the wasp, but that didn¡¯t account for the difference in agility. The bug could fly horizontally or vertically too, making it difficult for the familiar to pin it down.


    It was also rather dangerous, as the insect¡¯s manoeuvrability along with the stinger¡¯s greater reach had almost cost Micky dearly a few times. Eventually, Percy had been forced to intervene, taking advantage of the situation to finish the creature.


    CAW¡­


    Percy agreed.


    Their first two kills on the second level hadn¡¯t been easy. It would be a while until they got any good at it.


    Depending on how bad it was, it might be better to stick to the bottom level. The young man sure hoped it wouldn¡¯t be necessary, but it would all come down to how much nectar they could harvest here and how much room for improvement there was.


    After emptying their spoils into a vial, they took off. Like before, Micky headed out first, scouting for their next target. However, they wouldn¡¯t try fighting separately anymore. It might be something worth considering in the future, but Percy understood their best bet for today would be to team up against the bugs.


    Spoiler alert: They weren¡¯t.

 Chapter 41: A poor showing

    The young man wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve for the billionth time. Luckily, it trickled down the enchanted fabric without being absorbed, else he would be soaking by now.Percy was trudging down the final bridge linking the first and second levels, his eyes half-closed and his breath rugged. The wind caused the flimsy structure to sway every so often, but he¡¯d grown used to it by now, having walked several miles on the bridges already. That said, the exhaustion made keeping his balance more challenging. He briefly considered using his Quarterstaff as a walking cane, but that would only take more effort.


    he shrugged.


    Today''s hunt had been gruelling, and the results abysmal. He and Micky had only managed to kill fourteen wasps in total, averaging less than one per hour. Evidently, the Starry Workers were on a whole different level than the drones ¨C both literally and metaphorically.


    Finding them wasn¡¯t that hard. If anything, their larger size made them spottable from further away, but they were slightly less abundant than their weaker relatives, so it worked out about the same.


    them was a different story, however. The best strategy they had come up with involved Micky distracting the wasps while Percy fired Parting Gifts, praying they landed. Despite reducing the size and increasing the quantity of the projectiles ¨C launching three smaller daggers with each shot ¨C hitting the beasts came down to sheer luck. He also had to take extra care not to hit his own familiar with the deadly spell, complicating things further.


    Another issue was that he couldn¡¯t keep Circulation active all day. Everything had progressed relatively smoothly during the morning, but it all went downhill once he grew too tired to use the technique in the afternoon.


    The final nail in the coffin was that he had only harvested 12 of the 14 glands, as they had accidentally ruined a couple while fighting the creatures.


    Percy frowned.


    Although he had only tested it for a couple of hours, he had estimated they could reliably hunt around 40 drones per day, which would get them about 200 drops of nectar. Today, they had only earned about 180 from the workers!


    The difficulty in killing the Red variants was non-existent, so the only issue was finding them. Perhaps, they could get better at that after learning the ropes, but they would still be capped by how fast they could travel. Meanwhile, there was more at play on the second level. There, they could also work on their combat ability and teamwork to increase their gains.


    Soon, he reached the gate, waving at the guards who returned the gesture. Entering the settlement, he headed straight towards Freddy¡¯s spot, craving another Honey Roll. However, he paused upon seeing another new stand that had popped up at some point.


    Of course, the roads inside the Guild¡¯s camp were filled with all sorts of stalls with people bartering and trading. Not all were open this late, but plenty still were. That said, there was a reason why this one caught his eye. Percy recognized the owner! A strange phenomenon considering how few people he had met. It was a petite girl dressed in a brand-new yellow robe. Her tousled hair was black and only barely reached her shoulders. She wore a pair of glasses too.


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    True to the nickname he had given her, she was resting face-down on the counter once more. Right next to her, there was a translucent jar with five red coins ¨C she clearly hadn¡¯t spent any of her allowance yet, nor had she made any effort to earn more.


    Percy shook his head.


    Next, he glanced down at a hastily made sign she had nailed on the stand.


    The handwriting was sloppy too.


    Percy¡¯s jaw dropped at the sight. She wanted to buy information with her measly five points? What for? If she had no intention of venturing out, then how would it help her? Also, what if people lied to her? She¡¯d just be wasting her money!


    Ignoring her, he continued to Freddy¡¯s stall.


    ¡°Hey Percy! Any luck out there?¡± the plump guy asked with a smile.


    ¡°Not really. I only managed to kill seven workers today.¡± he replied, halving the number to hide Micky¡¯s involvement.


    ¡°That¡¯s quite good for your first proper hunt. A bit better than average too.¡± Freddy nodded.


    ¡°Really? I thought it was on the lower side.¡± Percy raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Most people find the best level to hunt at is the one matching their grade. Locating and killing the wasps can be tricky, so newcomers usually average about five glands per day. If you have a suitable affinity and with some experience, you can get to twenty.¡±


    Percy frowned. This arrangement would work well for people at Yellow. After all, twenty kills on the third level would get them 900 contribution points which was more than double what they needed. However, this wouldn¡¯t cut it for him. Even if he and Micky improved enough to hunt twenty workers each, they¡¯d only get 600 points, still short of his second dose.


    He thanked Freddy for the information and the food before leaving. Just two blocks from his house, however, he was rudely shoved aside by a passerby.


    ¡°The hell?!¡±


    The guy didn¡¯t bother apologizing or even glancing back. He kept walking next to another person, the two seemingly locked in a heated conversation.


    ¡°Nobody mentioned these fucking things would be so hard to find!¡± the first guy yelled.


    ¡°At least your fire magic is among the best for the job!¡± the other replied. ¡°Do you have any idea how annoying it is to toss stones at them until they hit?!¡±


    Both wore yellow robes and Percy recognized the second guy ¨C the one who hadn¡¯t pushed him. He¡¯d also been in his orientation.


    Percy smiled wryly.


    Of course, these people were much closer to their own targets. They were earning more and needed less. Still, knowing he wasn¡¯t alone struggling was a little reassuring.


    Reaching his house, he took a shower before sitting on his bed. Next, he drank another dose of the elixir, noting he only had sixteen vials left. Adding in the ones he could buy with his current income, he calculated they¡¯d last him a month.


    Having made his mind up, he activated Soul Vision, examining the state of his soul.


    the corner of his lips curled up.


    Despite their subpar performance, the soul mana Micky had gathered from the wasps had done wonders for Percy¡¯s recovery. The crater in his chest had visibly shrunk some more. There was still some distance to cover, but his healing speed would increase too as they raised their hunting efficiency.


    Not only that, but honing his combat skills was a noteworthy benefit in and of itself. Percy would have sought out an environment like the Fungal Spire to train in, even if his advancement wasn¡¯t dependent on it. At the end of the day, adapting his fighting style to his nimble opponents was a welcome challenge.


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 Chapter 42: Adjusting tactics

    Hearing the warning, the crow changed direction at the last second, briefly confusing the wasp. Percy dashed towards it, swinging down his staff.Still, the agile bug caught on quickly enough, dodging the telegraphed blow, before lunging forward to deliver a hit of its own. The young man flicked his hand, parrying the stinger.


    SHING


    Bending dangerously, the cyan weapon appeared about to snap. Percy understood by now that a quarterstaff wasn¡¯t great against the creatures. Coming up with a better use for his pure mana was definitely something on his to-do list. That said, this wasn¡¯t his focus right now. He stabbed forward with his other hand, the silver point just barely missing the wasp.


    ¡°Fuck! I almost got it!¡± he groaned.


    The insect was about to counterattack, but Micky dove towards it, nearly clipping its membranous wings with his talons, engaging it into a new round.


    SIGH


    Activating Soul Vision, the young man looked at his new weapon again. Its shape hadn¡¯t changed much, but it was twice as long as before. Perhaps it resembled a rapier more than it did a dagger by now.


    Over the last couple of days, Percy had thought about the greatest shortcomings in his offensive capabilities. While the Parting Gift packed quite a punch, it was frankly overkill in most situations. The difficulty in landing it coupled with the long preparation time meant he left himself defenceless for much of the fight.


    If he didn¡¯t have a second core to rely on, he would have probably died already. Even if he had found another way to escape from Rick¡¯s group, the Starry Workers would have stabbed him full of holes by now.


    Consequently, he had come up with two possible solutions. The first was to continue increasing the number of projectiles he could shoot at once. If he gave his spell a wider spread, he¡¯d be able to hit the wasps more frequently. However, it would still leave him powerless between shots.


    That¡¯s why he¡¯d gone with the second solution instead. His current plan was to devise a close-combat variant of the Parting Gift. It wouldn¡¯t dissipate after each strike, so his opponents would think twice before approaching ¨C or pay the price.


    he frowned.


    While it would keep the bugs at bay ¨C making him safer ¨C it wouldn¡¯t help him land the hits. If anything, it would make it even harder. That said, he reasoned he could amend that with more practice. The soul constructs were weightless, so he could swing them faster than any corporeal weapon. As long as he worked on his timing, he¡¯d be able to slay the Starry Workers with some well-executed counterattacks.


    Due to the extreme lethality of his soul mana, he only needed to nick a corner of the bugs¡¯ souls to defeat them. Even if the first strike didn¡¯t kill them, it would stop them in their tracks long enough for him to finish the job. Consequently, a slashing weapon might be more useful than a stabbing one. It wasn¡¯t piercing power he lacked.


    He didn¡¯t like the idea of the former as he¡¯d have to waste a lot of mana on the handle. The latter sounded better, but he¡¯d still prefer something with a wider blade. Something the wasps couldn¡¯t evade so easily.


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    Micky complained, snapping him out of his thoughts.


    He quickly summoned his weapons, but one looked different. As before, the scuffle ended without success, the wasp dodging the modified spell effortlessly. However, he didn¡¯t let it get to him, as he knew realizing his new idea would take a couple more days.


    Percy grinned, beginning to reform the blade once more, adjusting the shape again.


    ***


    He took a deep breath, as the cyan lines shone underneath his skin. Over the past week, Percy had focused on adapting his Parting Gift rather than killing as many wasps as possible. Logically, this should have caused their daily gains to drop even more, yet it hadn¡¯t. Without realizing, the young man had grown better at maintaining Circulation. This had allowed him to fight in his top form for a couple hours longer per day. sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Soul mana gathered in his hand once more, coalescing into a solid. The blade extended and curved and¡­ . By the time it finished taking shape, Percy had exhausted every last drop of mana in his sternum, his weapon spanning an arc three times the radius of his fist. The new version of the Parting Gift required the full capacity of his core to cast, taking the form of a sickle!


    CAW!


    Stomping hard, he bolted towards the wasp. The worker noticed him before he reached it, diving for the counter. Percy sidestepped the stab, feinting with his staff. Not the sharpest tool in the shed, the wasp bought the fake out, flying to one side, as Percy swung the rod for real this time, nearly glancing the bug too.


    BZZZZZZZZZZZZ


    That seemed to have pissed it off, as it launched a barrage of lunges towards him, trying to turn him into a pin cushion. It wasn¡¯t hard to evade most of them with his footwork, parrying the rest with the Quarterstaff. The construct protested, but it held ¨C for now.


    Another narrow dodge later, the bug seemed to have run out of steam, as it tried to put some distance. Percy didn¡¯t let it, instead stepping forward, putting some pressure on the creature with his rod.


    Realizing it couldn¡¯t keep this up, the bug went for another desperate counterattack, forcing Percy to sacrifice the Quarterstaff for one last parry.


    SHING


    This was it! The attack left the bug staggered!


    Having anticipated it, Percy¡¯s left hand was already on its way to the wasp¡¯s side. It tried to pull back diagonally, but he only had to let the weapon travel a few inches horizontally before releasing his grip, letting the sickle spin as it flew towards the creature.


    The slash didn¡¯t make a sound, but the young man didn¡¯t miss the bug¡¯s silvery soul being cleanly bisected through his Soul Vision. Percy allowed what remained of his staff to crumble away, but he didn¡¯t move.


    THUD


    The lifeless carcass of the Starry Worker crashed on the cap of the giant mushroom, one of its wings nearly snapping as it bent in a weird angle.


    he stared at it in disbelief.


    He wasn¡¯t even out of breath yet! The fight had only lasted a few minutes!


    Of course, he¡¯d already spent a week working towards this, but pinning down the slippery creature by himself ¨C without relying on luck or distractions ¨C had seemed like such a distant goal. But he¡¯d done it! He¡¯d held his own, anticipating the bug¡¯s moves, dodging its blows and seizing the right opportunity to strike back!


    CAW! CAW!


    Micky flew over him, sharing in his excitement.


    ¡°Hahahaha!¡± the young man burst into laughter.


    ¡°Help yourself buddy!¡± he gestured to the corpse.


    There was still plenty he could do to make their trips more efficient, but this was the first massive step forward. He smiled.


    ***


    he counted, a shit-eating grin plastered on his face.


    Percy had just finished squeezing the last of today¡¯s glands into a vial. This was their best record so far!


    This time, he had filled nearly three tubes with the precious nectar, indicating he was getting closer and closer to his goal. Naturally, he was still 8 kills short, but that didn¡¯t seem so unattainable after what he had achieved over a single week.


    The new form of the Parting Gift was extremely effective against the creatures. He had already killed a few with it in both melee range and from a distance, proving it was about as versatile as he¡¯d intended.


    It was still a pain whenever he threw it and missed, as it left his first core completely empty for a time. Luckily, Micky could always jump in and keep the bugs occupied until he recovered.


    That said, he had expected that. The new variant wasn¡¯t sufficiently different from the original to be listed as a new spell, and neither was it profound enough to be elevated to a Refined classification.


    Percy shrugged.

 Chapter 43: Aleyn

    The atmosphere was sombre as the crowd of hundreds stood outside, clad in black robes. A deep silence might have been more appropriate for the occasion, but nobody had let the crickets know to stop chirping, or the birds to avoid carelessly flying over the garden.Perhaps, the sky should have looked gloomier too, but Remior¡¯s sun still shone brightly, oblivious to the bitter sobs of the grieving mother, and the occasional crackles of firewood snapping in the pyre.


    SIGH


    Archibald let out a turbid breath, held inside for a touch too long, as he watched Seryna ¨C his daughter-in-law ¨C scatter her son¡¯s ashes in the wind. Fortunately, Aballach was not here to mourn the boy, having died in the tragedy years ago, along with the other Red-borns.


    Truth be told, Archibald had a personal preference for burials over cremations. The idea of having a grave to visit ¨C a way to keep the deceased always close ¨C just sounded better. In fact, many of the younger families still performed them to this day.


    Sadly, this wasn¡¯t an option for the older ones, like the Avalon House, who had bid farewell to thousands of members over their millennia-long history. If they buried everyone, their mansion would be little more than an island amidst a sea of graves by now.


    No, the Avalons wouldn¡¯t get a grave¡­ They¡¯d all have to settle for a few words in a book, listing their relationships and achievements. The Yellow-borns who lived the longest would get a full page. Some ¨C like Archibald himself ¨C might even get a couple. As for the Red-borns and Orange-borns who died young¡­ they¡¯d have to make do with a paragraph.


    It was precisely because things like this kept happening that he had maintained his distance from the family. ! Could he afford to break down every time he lost somebody?


    Putting his own emotions aside was what was best for everyone. If anything, it helped reduce losses such as today¡¯s.


    Archibald¡¯s interactions with Percy had made him reconsider his stance. Perhaps, his role as the cold patriarch of the family served their House well ¨C for the majority of people ¨C but what about those few who received the short end of the stick? If Aleyn had been destined to die young, hadn¡¯t he deserved a grandpa in his short life?


    Elaine walked over, breaking him out of his thoughts. Her expression was downtrodden ¨C she hadn¡¯t spoken a word since Enid helped her back a few days ago, carrying a sack with Aleyn¡¯s remains in the other hand.


    ¡®She must be blaming herself.¡¯


    He placed his hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently.


    By all accounts, this could still be considered a positive outcome for the family. Elaine ¨C the only Yellow-born in the team ¨C had not only survived, but returned home with a new Refined spell. In fact, the pragmatic leader in him should have been overjoyed. Perhaps, they should even be celebrating rather than mourning. Yet, the mere thought made his stomach churn.


    ¡°Grandpa¡­ Where is Percy? I haven¡¯t seen him since I got back.¡±


    A lump got stuck in Archibald¡¯s throat. Breaking more bad news to the girl was the last thing he wanted.


    ¡°He left a few weeks ago. He should be in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild by now.¡±


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    ¡°What?! Why?! He didn¡¯t even say goodbye!¡± she exclaimed, only catching herself a moment later after seeing the others giving her weird looks.


    ¡°What happened?¡± she whispered a moment later.


    ¡°The boy probably grew a conscience.¡± another voice interjected.


    A gallant man approached them, the air around him crackling with power as he stopped just a meter away.


    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?!¡± Elaine scowled at him.


    ¡°It means you and father have already spoiled that Red-born for long enough. It¡¯s best he tries to pay his own way in the world. He¡¯ll fail of course, but that ought to teach him that precious resources aren¡¯t meant for his ilk.¡± Galahad replied in a casual tone, his words sharp like knives.


    But he wasn¡¯t done.


    ¡°My only worry is that he¡¯ll embarrass our House in the eyes of others, but I suppose that¡¯s a small price to pay to stop pouring elixirs down the drain.¡±


    The girl looked ready to snap at her uncle, but Archibald squeezed her shoulder a bit more firmly to stop her.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough son. This is not the time or the place to be badmouthing anyone, let alone your nephew. Besides, I think you might be surprised the next time you meet Percy.¡± S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    He didn¡¯t like Galahad¡¯s callousness, but it would be hypocritical of him to get angry. After all, he was the one who had moulded his son into this, preparing him into a future leader of the House.


    Strictly speaking, Galahad simply embodied the principles he had taught, nothing more, nothing less. In fact, one might even argue the man adhered to them even more closely than Archibald himself, not allowing emotions to seep into his thought process.


    Soon, Galahad left. It wasn¡¯t until an hour later that the rest of their relatives had too.


    ¡°Is he going to be alright?¡± she asked once they were alone in the garden.


    He nodded.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about him. Micky advanced to Orange and they needed a good place to hunt and earn elixirs. I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll thrive there.¡±


    His words seemed to ease the tension in her eyes. Although, it wasn¡¯t gone entirely.


    ¡°Elaine. It wasn¡¯t your fault. Scorpion Kings are rare, and you couldn¡¯t have prevented the ambush.¡± he said after a moment.


    ¡°But it my fault¡­ If only I¡¯d learned Circulation like you and Percy¡­ Maybe¡­¡± she stammered, the corners of her eyes glistening with tears.


    Archibald shook his head.


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have even managed to activate it in time to save Aleyn. Dwelling on it doesn¡¯t help anyone.¡±


    Elaine didn¡¯t say anything, looking down at her feet. The two remained there for another few minutes, before he spoke again.


    ¡°What are you planning to do now? Will you keep going on missions?¡±


    The girl tilted her head up, giving him a firm look.


    ¡°No. Perhaps you are right. Even if I had mastered Circulation, maybe it wouldn¡¯t have made a difference. But it might the next time. Or the one after.¡±


    She clenched her fists before continuing.


    ¡°I won¡¯t leave the mansion until I master it too.¡±


    ***


    Archibald was sitting cross-legged in the inner garden, basking under the gentle radiance of the jade tree. Tossing the prized treasure a glance, he remembered what he had told Percy over a year ago.


    The words already rang hollow as they echoed in his head, making him chuckle. Mere months after he¡¯d said that, Percy had brought Circulation back from Huehue, helping him grow far stronger than he ever would through the tree.


    Taking a deep breath, he spent a moment appreciating the refreshing fragrance with its minty aftertaste, before guiding the dense mana to his channels. Not long after, green lines glowed under his skin, swirling and branching out like vines.


    Next, he placed his palms against each other, as he sent a wave of mana rippling through his body, before bouncing off his skin and towards his hands. Soon, a small verdant bubble the size of a pea formed, softly pulsing like a tiny heart.


    Archibald normally only maintained 60 clones ¨C a mere quarter of what he was capable of ¨C to ensure he still had access to 75% of his mana reserves at any given time.


    However, now that he had the option of falling back to Circulation in a pinch, he had decided to double the number of clones he had on standby. The fact he could create them faster using the technique was a nice bonus too.


    As for the tree ¨C its main purpose was providing inspiration to life users when developing their spells. Archibald already possessed a top-tier Secret Art combining his magic and his bloodline, but with Circulation and twice as many clones, he was aiming to improve upon it.


    Whatever happened, he was the patriarch of the family. He¡¯d keep them all safe at any cost. As for the next poor fool who decided to mess with them¡­


    He was in for a nasty surprise.

 Chapter 44: Opportunity

    The thing about quarterstaffs was they were weapons. Suffice to say, dual wielding one with a sickle was more than a little awkward. Detrimental even ¨C as it got in Percy¡¯s way more often than not, preventing him from landing sure blows with his deadlier tool.Of course, he couldn¡¯t help it either. He considered simply not using it, but the Parting Gift couldn¡¯t block incoming attacks, so the flimsy rod was essentially his only defence against the venomous stingers of the Starry Workers. Although he was currently working on changing that.


    The reason he¡¯d even created it to begin with, was Micky¡¯s influence still fresh on his mind after Huehue, coupled with his first core being unavailable for a long time. The staff had been his only means of attack back then, and it served him well against the wood goblins.


    However, his fighting style was still rough around the edges, pieced together out of whatever scraps he could recall from his friend¡¯s demonstration. His lacking pair of limbs didn¡¯t help much either. Not to mention his grade being much lower than Micky¡¯s too, so the poor excuse of a weapon just wouldn¡¯t cut it against the wasps. He reasoned it might be worth revisiting the Quarterstaff in the future, after his second core advanced to Orange, but for now he¡¯d rather retire it.


    Strictly speaking, his requirements for the replacement were rather modest. He only needed something to block a blow or two, to give him a chance to counterattack. Something that wouldn¡¯t get in the way as much. The thought of forming some kind of armour with his pure mana was appealing, though he understood he lacked the capacity to cover his whole body. Instead, he settled for something smaller.


    he frowned, looking at his right fist coated in a film of cyan.


    The construct was poorly made. It was more akin to a cast than a glove right now as he couldn¡¯t twitch a single finger in it, but he¡¯d rather confirm it worked as protection before trying to improve its design. He lifted his eyes, gazing at the bug locked in an aerial confrontation with his familiar, before shrugging.


    Activating Circulation, he dashed in, telling the crow to disengage. The wasp didn¡¯t seem to mind either, more than happy to switch targets. Percy could have dodged the incoming lunge but didn¡¯t. Instead, he swung his hand to brush the stinger aside, bracing himself for the worst.


    Had this been his first day on the second level, he would have missed, as it was much harder to time the parry with such a small surface area than it was with the rod. However, he¡¯d grown used to the bugs¡¯ movements by now, so the blows connected without issue.


    CRACK


    He felt the material crumble under the pressure, but it held better than the staff. That was promising, considering his new construct still had plenty of room for improvement.


    Pushing the wasp away, he tossed a fleeting glance at his hand. The impact had left a deep and wide groove into the construct. Percy directed more mana to repair the cast before taunting the bug to attack again.


    The two exchanged blows for about ten minutes, as the young man tested the limits of his new spell, before his stamina began to decline. Only then did he finally seize the next opening, finishing the bug with his sickle. He gestured Micky to enjoy his meal, before plopping down on the mushroom¡¯s cap, analysing what he¡¯d learned.


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    The cast lasted a couple of blows before it came close to shattering. It was only when Percy had pushed for a third in a row without fixing it that he¡¯d risked getting injured. It cost less mana to form and repair, plus it let him use the sickle better too.


    He¡¯d never made anything this intricate with mana before. The finalized glove would involve lots of interconnected pieces, to protect all the joints in his hand without impairing their movement.


    ***


    By nightfall, the duo had taken 20 wasps down, surpassing their previous limit once more.


    Just over a week after joining the Guild, Percy had already reached the higher end of what was viewed as possible for an Orange core. He was still far from his goal, but at least his new constructs were much better suited for hunting the bugs. Moreover, he was getting more accustomed to both their fighting style and to keeping Circulation active for longer.


    And his personal kit wasn¡¯t the only thing he was working on. Micky had yet to kill a single wasp by himself, but he was getting closer. His agile opponents were a terrible match for the crow, which was why Percy was still reluctant to let him fight unsupervised. That said, the familiar had not gotten himself in trouble over the last couple of days, having grown better at dodging the last-minute lunges of the bugs. In fact, he¡¯d almost managed to clip their wings a few times. Percy estimated the crow would achieve his first solo kill before long, at which point they could split up and adjust their strategy.


    Entering the settlement, his attention was drawn to a crowd that had gathered around somebody. He counted a couple dozen people, most of them in yellow robes ¨C not very surprising as they made up the majority of the Guild members. Still, he spotted a handful of Green and Orange cores too.


    Percy raised an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued.


    Approaching them, he noticed everyone held a leaflet, chatting loudly.


    In fact, they seemed to be in such a good mood they didn¡¯t even frown upon seeing him, instead letting him pass unobstructed.


    The person at the centre of the crowd ¨C a Blue core holding the stack of leaflets ¨C handed him one with a smile.


    ¡°Free introductory lesson to alchemy?¡± Percy¡¯s eyes widened as he read the heading aloud. ¡°Seriously?¡±


    The guy nodded.


    ¡°Normally, each lesson costs about 1000 contribution points, but the Guild likes to sponsor them every now and then to encourage people to get into it. After all, alchemists are precious, and we need as many as we can get.¡±


    Percy smirked.


    ¡°Then why even charge people in the first place?¡±


    ¡°Because this isn¡¯t a charity. Those giving the lessons are just regular members of the Guild and they expect proper compensation for their time.¡±


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    ¡°That said, I do think my fellow alchemists should strive to be a little more selfless for everyone¡¯s sake. Teaching is even more lucrative than brewing. You can make tens of thousands per day doing it, but you need to be an experienced alchemist already to qualify. I guess some of them are either a tad too greedy or they just don¡¯t want to build up the competition.¡±


    The young man nodded, albeit reluctantly. It¡¯s not like he didn¡¯t understand the concept, but it really made it difficult for people like him to get into the field.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t there any books on the topic?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yes, there are plenty in the library, free to read. They cover the basics but, without guidance, it¡¯ll take you ten times longer to learn. Plus, the priciest part of alchemy is the ingredients, not the lessons.¡±


    That made sense. All these Yellows wouldn¡¯t have trouble saving up a thousand points, but if they had to waste months¡¯ worth of nectar before they got any good at it, it would indeed be a huge barrier of entry.


    ¡°Anyway, are you interested in signing up?¡± the Blue core asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°Yes, when is it?¡± Percy didn¡¯t hesitate.


    Perhaps he couldn¡¯t afford to become a proper alchemist just yet, but it wouldn¡¯t hurt to learn more now that the opportunity presented itself. The knowledge might influence his future plans, after all.


    ¡°Tomorrow morning. Just show up at this building at ten.¡± the guy indicated a certain spot on the leaflet, on a hand-drawn map of the Guild.


    Percy thanked him, before leaving.

 Chapter 45: Introduction to alchemy

    Percy struggled to find a seat. The lecture theatre was packed to the brim with people. Naturally, the Orange cores like him were meant to sit at the very back, but even those rows were full. Shrugging, he picked the least crowded corner to stand. It wasn¡¯t the most comfortable solution, but he wouldn¡¯t have trouble hearing the lecturer.Soon, a man in blue robes walked in. He was actually the same guy who¡¯d given him the leaflet. It was weird for one at that level to waste time advertising his own lecture. Couldn¡¯t he have paid somebody to do it? S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Good morning everyone!¡± the guy said.


    Percy paid more attention to his lecturer¡¯s appearance today. He looked middle-aged which meant he was probably an Orange-born who¡¯d lived for several centuries already.


    he realized.


    ¡°Judging by your presence here, it¡¯s safe to assume you¡¯re all beginners, so I¡¯ll start with the basics. First of all, the field of alchemy contains more than just the elixirs we know and love. It essentially spans any potions, poisons or medicine brewed with natural ingredients.¡±


    Percy nodded, having heard that before.


    ¡°However, most of those things are secondary products of alchemy. Even the best healing potions can¡¯t hold a handle to a Yellow core¡¯s life mana. Similarly, the most potent venoms and poisons we can concoct won¡¯t do much to one of the strongest mages. If you want to assassinate a Blue, you¡¯re better off just using a Starry Commander¡¯s venom.¡± he chuckled before continuing. ¡°And if you¡¯re above Orange you¡¯re unlikely to get sick, meaning even medicine isn¡¯t particularly useful.¡±


    The room broke into some chatter.


    ¡°I know what you¡¯re all thinking ¨C if these things are so ineffective, then why would anybody bother? And you¡¯re not wrong. While there is a place for these products in any noble family¡¯s warehouse, they are but secondary pursuits for bored alchemists with too much money and time in their hands. I would advise you to not bother with them for now. Consequently, we aren¡¯t interested in anything but elixirs during this lecture.¡±


    The young man shrugged. Hearing that alchemy was so underdeveloped on Remior was a little sad, but this arrangement suited him just fine. After all, the Avalon House was full of people with the life affinity, so they had even less need for these auxiliary resources than others.


    ¡°In any case, the first thing you need to understand about elixirs, is they work. Does anyone know?¡±


    A brave girl in a yellow robe raised her hand.


    ¡°They break down the impurities in our cores over time, allowing them to reform at a higher grade.¡±


    The lecturer smiled. This was indeed common knowledge.


    ¡°Yes. The elixirs owe this miraculous property to their main ingredient ¨C the nectar you¡¯ve all probably come across by now. But can somebody tell me what is?¡±


    This time, nobody answered.


    Everyone in the room had likely hunted the wasps before, yet nobody seemed to understand what exactly made them so special.


    ¡°Simply put, the nectar is the only known example of beast mana capable of existing for an extended period of time outside a beast¡¯s body. People tried to make elixirs out of beast cores, but nobody has ever succeeded. At least, not on Remior.¡±


    Sharp breaths were drawn across the room.


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    It was well understood that beasts refined their cores naturally by eating, without needing any external resources. Evidently, this was because they already possessed the main ingredient of the elixirs within their very cores. As it turned out, alchemists did nothing more than imitate them, harnessing their ability for humanity¡¯s sake.


    ¡°Sir, if that¡¯s true then how do other races advance their grades? Are there Starry Wasps on every world?¡± somebody asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s an excellent question. I¡¯m not a member of the Divine Order, so what I can say with certainty on the topic is rather limited. Still, as far as I know, Starry Wasps are native to Remior.¡± the lecturer replied.


    ¡°Then how?¡± another person asked.


    ¡°Well, every world has different resources and natural treasures. Some are unlucky enough they lack the means of advancing, while others have their own methods. I¡¯d wager most of those methods involve an alternative source of beast mana, however.¡±


    This explanation made another thing click in Percy¡¯s mind.


    The young man developed some newfound appreciation for the colossal mushrooms above their heads.


    ¡°Ok, so now that we¡¯ve established that, the question is how do we process the nectar into elixir?¡± the lecturer asked.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard there are multiple recipes.¡± somebody said.


    The alchemist nodded.


    ¡°Indeed, while the nectar is irreplaceable, all the other ingredients have several alternatives ¨C with similar functions. It all comes down to transforming the nectar from raw beast mana ¨C which would only run berserk inside your cores and injure you ¨C into something stable, which will harmlessly cleanse away the impurities alone. Strictly speaking, you only really need to focus on a single recipe and strive to get good at it, although it can be useful to come in contact with a couple more, for when you have limited access to the ingredients you need. Still, most approaches are rather similar, so it¡¯s not that hard to switch to a different recipe once you understand the process.¡±


    Percy felt the urge to laugh. All this time, alchemy had sounded like a mystical and profound profession¡­ but... according to everything they had been taught today, didn¡¯t it all seem rather inane?


    The potions, poisons and medicines were borderline useless, and even the elixirs merely involved harvesting a single raw ingredient they were lucky enough to find on Remior, transforming it into a slightly different form. If the Fungal Spire was destroyed, wouldn¡¯t that leave all the alchemists without a job overnight?


    But he shook his head.


    The lecturer¡¯s next words confirmed that.


    ¡°There is one reliable metric that can be used to define an alchemist¡¯s skill: Their brewing yield. Simply put, this is just a percentage indicating how many drops of elixir they can produce out of a hundred drops of nectar.¡±


    Percy ran the calculation in his head. As far as he could tell, the finished product was four times as expensive.


    ¡°Some of you seem to have mathed it out already. Indeed, the turning point that qualifies somebody into a full-fledged alchemist is a 25% yield. That¡¯s the cutoff where you stop losing money as you brew. The most talented and experienced alchemists in the Guild can boast of yields as high as 56%. For anyone wondering, my personal best is only at 44%.¡±


    The young man had to swallow his saliva, to avoid drooling. Didn¡¯t that mean their lecturer nearly doubled his money every time he brewed a batch?


    ¡°It¡¯s still a time-consuming process, so there¡¯s a limit to how much elixir we can brew per day. Our output is still lower than the input and also lower than Remior¡¯s needs, which is why we need more alchemists in the Guild. If we could convert all the available nectar with a 45% yield, we might have enough for everyone on Remior ¨C including the Red-borns.¡±


    Now, this bit of information was even more shocking to Percy. His whole life, he¡¯d suffered from his low grade, preventing him from advancing as fast as others. If it hadn¡¯t been for this shortage, he would have reached Orange five years sooner! And the lecturer claimed it could all be solved if they¡¯d just bothered to train a few more alchemists?


    fuck the young man struggled to keep his thoughts to himself.


    SIGH


    ¡°Despite what my idealistic words might suggest, this is easier said than done. It will take you a few months and a lot of wasted nectar before your first successful batch of elixir. Even then, you¡¯re unlikely to start with a yield higher than 15%. It won¡¯t be until the end of the year you get to 25% and it only keeps getting harder. You¡¯ll get to about 30% if you keep at it for another year or two. Reaching 40% is usually a matter of decades and 50% centuries. Perhaps, the White cores leading the Great Houses, or the gods of the Divine Order could surpass that, having lived for tens of millennia, but their time is much more valuable spent elsewhere than brewing elixirs.¡±


    The new influx of information did calm Percy down. Evidently, they¡¯d need to train an army of Blue cored alchemists for centuries to provide for everyone. And for what? Just so that Red-borns like him would get elixirs? They still wouldn¡¯t live past Yellow!


    It wasn¡¯t worth the time.


    But he¡¯d heard another thing of interest. A 30% yield was a realistic goal after a couple of years. That was already enough to make a profit.

 Chapter 46: An idea

    It was early afternoon by the time the alchemist¡¯s lecture ended. Advertised as a mere introduction, it didn¡¯t really delve into the topic too deeply. After explaining the basic concepts, the guy talked about a few of the most popular recipes, giving them an overview of how the secondary ingredients worked and what tools they needed to use.Percy feel some anticipation.


    Not only due to the stacks of contribution points waiting at the other end of his alchemical journey, but also because the whole thing seemed fun. The idea of playing around with magic juices and challenging himself to increase his yield sounded like something he would enjoy. Still, he had to reign in his excitement until he raised the funds to actually dip his toes into the field.


    Half the day was gone, but that was no excuse to slack for the rest of it.


    Apparently, Micky agreed, as he¡¯d been urging him for some time.


    Nearing the gate, he saw the drowsy girl¡¯s stand was still there, over a week after he first spotted it. The owner was too, sleeping on the counter as usual.


    For many days, nobody had paid her any attention, although Percy did notice her coins were gone last night. And since then, she¡¯d nailed a new smaller sign, adding more words to the advertisement.


    So that was her brilliant plan? Purchasing information from experienced hunters to sell to newcomers? Something like where the best spots for hunting were? Or how to find and kill the Starry Soldiers more efficiently? Percy didn¡¯t know if anyone would take her up on that. It sounded a bit iffy to spend money on.


    he shook his head.


    Half an hour later, he met up with Micky somewhere on the second level. Not the same place as yesterday. They liked to switch things up every day to let the bugs repopulate.


    Percy wasn¡¯t sure it mattered, as the interior of the Spire was supposedly filled with them. More were constantly deployed outside to harvest the dense mana from the mushrooms and to bring back nectar to the nest. Suffice to say, he doubted they would run out anytime soon. Still, he could use any advantage he could get. However, they didn¡¯t begin hunting just yet, as Percy wanted to test an idea he came up with during the lecture.


    The crow tilted its head in confusion.


    CAW?


    Micky hadn¡¯t eaten anything all morning, so he lacked the soul mana to send.


    Percy explained.


    While beast mana couldn¡¯t normally leave one¡¯s body or form regular spells, it could still freely circulate through its owner¡¯s channels, passively nourishing their flesh. This was the source of the beasts¡¯ strength after all.


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    After learning that nectar was essentially just beast mana that could be transferred outside, Percy had considered the possibility of taking advantage of the ethereal cord to achieve something similar.


    Of course, even if it worked, he wasn¡¯t sure how to benefit from it. The alchemist had already told them they couldn¡¯t purify their cores with raw beast mana. He¡¯d have to find a way to process it into an elixir inside his body. Still, he was curious enough to give it a shot.


    It took some guidance from him, but Micky eventually understood the task. Through Mana Sense, the young man observed the Orange glow leave the crow¡¯s sternum, moving towards the connection. However, nothing happened. It just accumulated there with nowhere to go.


    Unsure whether Micky had done something wrong or if this was just a peculiarity of the beast mana, Percy next tested whether he could send his own mana to the familiar. Transferring a trickle of soul mana worked, confirming the ethereal cord was a two-way connection, but it didn¡¯t accept any of his pure mana either.


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    He shrugged, not too disheartened.


    CAW! CAW!


    Micky was getting more impatient, sending him an image of a Starry Worker he¡¯d just spotted.


    SIGH


    Percy activated Circulation, before gathering the cyan mana into his right hand, resuming work on his new project. Today, he¡¯d focus on forming the glove with an open hand, increasing its surface area. As soon as everything was in order, he engaged the worker, testing his spell¡¯s durability as he looked for an opening to finish the creature.


    A few minutes later, it was lying motionless on the surface of the mushroom, both its core and nectar gland already harvested. Micky had flown ahead to scout for their next target, as Percy sat next to the carcass, eyeing it in contemplation.


    His world¡¯s survival hinged entirely on these bugs. If they went extinct, everyone on Remior would be stuck at the grade they were born with. Perhaps, they could try other means of cleansing their cores, but they¡¯d be lucky if they even advanced once in their lives that way.


    But more than his world¡¯s situation, Percy couldn¡¯t help but consider what this meant for him. Would he have to stay in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild his whole life? Even if he managed to provide for his two cores eventually, what would happen when he left? He couldn¡¯t exactly take the wasps with him¡­


    Then, he creased his brow.


    His thoughts lingered on the ethereal cord linking him to Micky for a moment.


    He hadn¡¯t created the familiar with the intention of raising his own strength. It had all been an accident, brought upon by his desperate attempt to save his friend. However, the advantages the crow brought him were undeniable.


    Percy would be lying if he said he hadn¡¯t considered creating more of them in the past year. After all, how powerful would he be if he could cultivate an army of Green or even Blue beasts, all loyal to him? It would take even less time than reaching those grades himself!


    The only reason he hadn¡¯t tried it yet was that his soul hadn¡¯t been in a good enough state before now. But that was swiftly changing with every soul Micky devoured.


    Not only would he have another companion to fight alongside him, but he¡¯d also have his personal nectar factory! Its production wouldn¡¯t be much at Red or Orange, but what about Green or Blue? Maybe he could sustain his cores indefinitely one day!


    The more he thought about it, the more he liked the idea.


    That said, there were many details he needed to figure out to make this work, as his first success had been a bit of a fluke. For example, could he injure a wasp and shove a part of his soul inside it to create a familiar? It didn¡¯t seem to be that simple, because that tended to produce regular clones in his experience.


    From what he¡¯d learned, newborn souls were more malleable than developed ones, making them easier to meld with. That¡¯s why the Moirai baby had not given him as much trouble as Micky had, and why the crow chick had proven a suitable host for his familiar.


    That only raised more questions, however.


    Where would he even get a Starry Wasp egg? Would he need to venture into the depths of the Fungal Spire? That was a place filled with beasts at Blue or even higher! Not just that, but entering it was a serious crime!


    And even then, it wasn¡¯t guaranteed to work. The crow egg had produced a familiar, but the Moirai baby had simply died as a short-lived clone. Was it because the latter had been in a worse condition to begin with? Or was it because he brought another passenger along ¨C Micky ¨C in the case of the bird?


    He¡¯d need to come up with answers to all those questions if he was to succeed¡­ which led to another problem.


    Having already lost a ton of time due to his reckless experiments with his soul, Percy was going to take this slow.

 Chapter 47: Healed

    A month went by in a flash.Percy and Micky had grown a lot better at hunting the wasps, but today he didn¡¯t care about that. Something else was going through his mind as he sat on his bed, gazing down at his soul.


    It stopped absorbing more mana, although it wasn¡¯t back to 100% yet. The hole in his chest had mostly closed, but not completely, leaving a circular scar about the width of a strawberry right where the ethereal cord linked him to Micky.


    It didn¡¯t look like it would recover entirely, as a part of him still existed within the bird. Perhaps he could fix it by retrieving the missing piece or severing the connection ¨C he wasn¡¯t sure which ¨C but he had no intention of doing either. Hopefully, this injury wouldn¡¯t affect him too much when creating more clones. Especially since that was exactly what he was planning to do right now!


    It was early in the morning, although Percy¡¯s room was currently pitch black, as he had closed the curtains. The last thing he needed was somebody seeing what he intended to do today.


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    The familiar was roaming the base of the Fungal Spire, searching for Starry Drones to munch on. He could already kill a couple Starry Workers by himself, but it took too long, and it was dangerous to let him hunt on the second floor by himself. Percy would have to settle for the less potent soul mana they could gather from the Red bugs. Still, between the crow¡¯s help and the increased regeneration brought about by the colourful motes, he estimated he would have a much easier time forming his new clone.


    Pressing down his bubbling enthusiasm, he began by sending pulses of soul mana through his channels, letting them bounce off his soul¡¯s edge. Not wanting to interfere with his connection to Micky, he had adjusted the angle slightly, so that the mana would gather a few inches below the previous spot after being reflected. By the time that happened, he was ready to grab a hold of the bulge, pulling it out of his skin.


    he winced, as the strain cause some tears to form.


    However, he quickly raised an eyebrow after examining them for a couple of seconds.


    This was strange. If anything, he would have expected his injury to have negatively impacted the integrity of his soul, making it more fragile than before. That didn¡¯t seem to be the case. It was hard to say for sure, but the cracks appeared both less numerous and less serious than the last time he¡¯d done this.


    Why would that be the case? He¡¯d spent all this time recovering¡­


    Then again, wasn¡¯t that how muscles and bones worked? Exercising essentially involved damaging and repairing one¡¯s body repeatedly. Perhaps, the same principle applied to his soul!


    This was an issue that had troubled him for a long time. Although the technique he¡¯d learned on Huehue had served him well until now, he greatly lamented only being able to use it with his second core. After all, it was much weaker than the one in his sternum, both in grade and affinity. Evidently, the solution had been right under his nose all along!


    In his excitement, the young man nearly let go of the bulge.


    It was a project for the future. While it was a nice surprise, it wasn¡¯t worth ruining his current attempt. Shaking the distracting thoughts out of his head, he sent another pulse through his soul, which soon caused the bulge to grow. More soul mana began flowing into his core a few minutes later too, as Micky had already taken down the first drone.


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    ***


    Eight hours later, Percy was holding an outstretched chunk of his soul larger than an apple. Thanks to his familiar¡¯s diligent efforts, he had reached this step four hours sooner than the last time!


    This was already the same amount he¡¯d used for his previous clone, so he knew it was enough to survive for a couple days. Perhaps, he could increase that if he gathered more of the silver flame before cutting it off, but he didn¡¯t want to damage his soul more than he could handle.


    Pulling the mana out of his core, he directed it all straight into the bulge, filling it up like a waterskin. Taking deep breaths, he strove to gather even more, as his familiar intensified his efforts to support him.


    Back then, Percy had done this out on a limb, without knowing if it would help in any way. Still, that had obviously been the correct decision. His clone had greatly relied on the stashed mana multiple times during his adventure ¨C whether to bond with Micky¡¯s soul initially or to deliver the killing blow to Mixcoatl near the end. Suffice to say, the young man didn¡¯t mind investing a few more hours to overcharge his clone again.


    ***


    It wasn¡¯t until another four hours later that Percy stopped. Right now, the bulge had bloated up by about 50% of its previous volume. It still contained the same amount of his soul as before, but its surface stretched due to the dense quantity of mana sealed within.


    The young man briefly considered pushing some more into it, but at this rate he might cause the clone to burst before he even sent it out. Plus, the mana was already slowly leaking, as his willpower was scarcely sufficient to keep it contained.


    Unlike his previous attempt, the soul mana was so concentrated it was fully visible even to the naked eye, appearing like a silver bubble pulsing akin to a beating heart.


    This reassured Percy somewhat. All this time he¡¯d been fumbling in the dark with his bloodline, mostly doing whatever he instinctively felt made sense. Still, the more his efforts looked like what his family did with their version, the more confidence he had that he was on the right track.


    After refilling his core one last time, he tossed another glance at his handiwork, nodding in appreciation. Then, he stirred his bloodline, feeling the ghostly claw forming in his sternum.


    If it insisted on heading to the previous spot, it could harm his connection to the familiar. Percy focused all his willpower to direct it slightly lower, towards the thrumming bubble he had spent all day cultivating.


    Luckily, the ghostly claw didn¡¯t need much prodding either, as it gladly acquiesced, pouncing on the bulge like a cat would a mouse. Percy gritted his teeth in agony as all the tears in his soul widened. He held his breath, watching the ghostly claw clamp the soul and mana alike, twisting them and pulling them out of his body.


    SNAP


    And with an audible popping sound, accompanied by a violent shockwave rippling through his very existence, Percy felt his world tremble as the silver bubble was ripped out of his stomach, shooting off like a meteor. By the time his head sank into the pillow, his eyes had already closed shut.


    ***


    Percy¡¯s eyes bolted open, a splitting headache making him dizzy.


    was his first thought.


    Wait, no. That was supposed to be a good thing.


    the familiar called to him again.


    Percy could practically taste the palpable sense of panic oozing through their bond. The realization simultaneously gave him a fuzzy feeling at having somebody who cared, but also a pang of guilt in his chest.


    Getting off his bed was tough, but it was promising he was even capable of standing. Pulling the curtain open, he noted it was dark outside.


    He knew it shouldn¡¯t have been more than a day or two, otherwise he would have starved. Well, he feeling a little peckish, but not quite starving yet.


    Micky sent him an image of a single sunset, though no sunrise. It was still the same day. . He couldn¡¯t afford to knock himself out for a week every time he sent out a new clone.


    Walking was a hassle, but he made his way to the door. He sure hoped Freddy was open, as he was too tired to cook, and he could use a Honey Roll right about now.


    THUD


    Suddenly, he lost his balance, falling to his knees, his consciousness sucked right out of his body. One moment he was still in his room, the next he felt the wind press against him, colourful motes whizzing by from all directions. He was diving towards a bug, its carapace pitch black, with bright spots glistening all over the sleek chitin.


    They felt dizzy, banking towards the left. Flapping their wings at the last second, they barely managed to soften their landing, narrowly avoiding a nasty crash on the ground.


    he thought, as he returned to his own body, lying against the cold stone of his room¡¯s floor.


    came gushing through the cord. He felt his familiar¡¯s confusion, as his mind drifted back and forth between the bodies a couple more times.


    he asked the bird once the situation seemed to stabilize.


    The reply was strained. Micky didn¡¯t seem to understand much more than he did.


    What was going on?

 Chapter 48: Limit

    ¡°What?¡± Percy asked.Freddy gave him a concerned look.


    ¡°I said, are you sure you¡¯re ok?¡± he repeated.


    The young man felt his mind slipping again, but he resisted the pull.


    ¡°Yeah, sorry. It¡¯s been a long day.¡± he forced himself to say.


    It was only now he remembered he was holding a Honey Roll.


    Not that he was in the mood to eat, but it would have looked strange. He searched his pocket for some change, but his friend stopped him.


    ¡°It¡¯s on the house today. Just look after yourself man. You¡¯re the only one I see who¡¯s hunting 18 hours a day, no breaks. , it¡¯s not sustainable.¡±


    Percy nodded, thanking Freddy before leaving in a hurry. Going out in this state hadn¡¯t been his brightest idea. It wasn¡¯t until he got back home that he allowed himself to fall on the bed, leaving the snack on a table for later.


    Soon, another episode hit him, but he allowed himself to sink into Micky¡¯s body this time. They were pecking the core out of the drone when he joined him. Percy had watched the bird hunt, as Micky had inadvertently sent him the images. He¡¯d nearly got stung too, having lost his concentration during what would have otherwise been a trivial kill.


    As the soul got digested in the familiar¡¯s stomach, Percy¡¯s mind followed the soul mana back to his own body. He quickly forced it to his eyes, to see what the hell was going on with him.


    he frowned.


    His soul didn¡¯t look much different from the time he went to Huehue. There was the small scar near his sternum, a grapefruit-sized crater above his stomach, and a bunch of cracks all over. Fewer than before too, due to his increased resilience.


    This was different than even the time he¡¯d woken up after creating the familiar. Rather than pain or weakness, it felt more like his sense of self was shaken. As if he had trouble remaining .


    This didn¡¯t bode well for his ambitious plan of forming an army of familiars. At this rate, he¡¯d be lucky if he could keep sending out clones.


    ***


    And there it was ¨C the good old infinite nothingness he fondly remembered.


    Unlike the last clone, this one accepted his identity promptly, beginning the search for a body without delay. He knew this was one of the most critical parts of the journey.


    During his previous attempt, three weeks had passed on Remior, but he shouldn¡¯t have spent longer than a couple of days on Huehue. This could only mean one of two things. Either there was a huge mismatch in the flow of time from one world to another, or he had spent most of it in the space between them.


    Consequently, the faster he moved here the better.


    Retracing his actions, he allowed his senses to expand outwards, touching upon the sea of souls. Brushing over them without focusing too intently was a little tricky at first. Percy had grown rusty, having not done this in over a year, but he soon got a grip on it.


    He couldn¡¯t tell how long it took, but he eventually picked one he liked, reaching towards it without missing a beat.


    A moment later, he found himself lodged between the nooks and crannies of the dying soul. It was more cramped than last time, but that was a good thing. It meant his new host was in a better condition than Micky had been in.


    And, having learned from his past experience, he was a lot more careful moving around, trying not to exert much pressure on the fragments before the new guy accepted him.


    No reply.


    Nothing verbal, at least. A sense of panic and pain assaulted him. Also, hunger¡­ and cold¡­ . Percy¡¯s very soul shivered.


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    His host felt distant. They didn¡¯t seem aggressive ¨C at least, they didn¡¯t push him away yet. But they cowered in a corner, trying to avoid being touched.


    The creature didn¡¯t understand him. Its intelligence seemed even more rudimentary than his familiar¡¯s had been right after hatching.


    That put Percy at a bit of an impasse. He couldn¡¯t begin the process of patching up their souls into something workable unless his host opened up. But they couldn¡¯t even communicate properly. The only clues he had were that it was afraid, in pain, starving and cold.


    There was only one thing he could do. He dug through his memories for anything suitable. The first one he found was a time he was nestled in a blanket, enjoying some hot soup during the winter. He couldn¡¯t even tell how old he was. Maybe 4 or 5?


    It was after his folks died, and the blanket was cozy, almost reminding him of his mother¡¯s hug. A weird thing to replace one¡¯s parents with, he knew, but he was willing to cut himself some slack. It wasn¡¯t like toddler-Percy had anybody else in his life back then. He hadn¡¯t grown close to Elaine until later.


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    Percy counted it as progress. You¡¯d only get suspicious about something you was true. Well, not that it was true of course. It was an empty promise. He had no idea if he could deliver. He¡¯d try to make good on it if possible, but he wasn¡¯t going to cry if he ended up lying to the animal either.


    At least, he was more in control of what he allowed to leak through the connection this time. The bond was more intrusive when he possessed something than it was with his familiar, but he¡¯d still gained enough experience over the past year to filter his thoughts somewhat.


    A few more carefully picked memories and some placating later, the creature opened up enough to let him move around without harming it.


    His soul wisp expanded and twisted, stretching through the gaps and touching as many of the broken shards as possible. Only then did he unleash his sizeable stash of soul mana, letting it do its thing.


    Like glue, the potent substance forged a bridge between the two entities, as they came closer together than ever before. Memories flashed through Percy¡¯s mind, one after another¡­


    Hatching through an egg, a nest full of tiny gecko-like things, cannibalism, running away, hiding from giant shadows, scavenging for scraps, cold, cold, shivering, FREEZING COLD¡­


    Oh, and they were all monochrome.


    Percy tried opening his new eyes. They refused to budge. He wasn¡¯t sure if he was signalling the wrong muscles or if the problem lied elsewhere.


    Silence.


    The beast was still in there somewhere, but it refused to come to the surface, happy to observe from the background.


    Unable to figure out how to control this thing, he fell back to his Status instead.


    Percival''s clone


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude]


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[??? (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.


    Percy would have frowned if he could.


    Nothing special there. His clone didn¡¯t have a proper name this time, which frankly made sense. An Orange core was decent. Not too high, but it could have been worse. Only his Parting Gift was listed under spells, because it was the only one he could currently use. The beast affinity and the incomplete second mana core were also expected.


    There wasn¡¯t a question mark thingy to bring back to Remior and he didn¡¯t think the lizard knew any profound techniques to teach. He also doubted it would make a good familiar, nor had he any intention of crippling himself again to try.


    He¡¯d thought the exact same thing on Huehue, only to be proven wrong. Still, he was willing to bet good money it was true this time. He could walk around, hoping to find something interesting, but he hadn¡¯t a clue how to even bring it back. Were there even any sentient races on this world?


    That sounded like a plan. It would be a good datapoint, so he¡¯d know what to expect from Micky. Not the most rewarding venture, but probably the best he could get out of the creature.


    It didn¡¯t respond to any commands. He couldn¡¯t even hear his own heartbeat. Frustrated, he grew less gentle with it. Its owner didn¡¯t seem to care, so why should he? He willed any muscle to move. He tried to give himself a panic attack. Anything¡­


    A twitch.


    It wasn¡¯t much, but it was the first sign of feedback. Capitalizing on it, he redoubled his efforts, trying to expand on the sensation.


    CRACK


    More twitches. A muscle group.


    He could feel a limb unfold slowly. A foreleg ¨C if he understood the lizard¡¯s physiology correctly.


    CRACK. CRACK. CRACK.


    Every time a joint moved, something broke.


    It would certainly explain his host¡¯s aversion to cold and their impairment. Why didn¡¯t it hurt though? Were they numb?


    A couple frantic spasms later, Percy received his answer. He didn¡¯t get the chance to celebrate his newly freed limb before it began burning, as if on fire.


    That didn¡¯t make him give up though. If anything, it was proof his efforts were paying off. He figured the pain would stop either when he froze completely again, or when he fully thawed. And the latter seemed preferable. He ignored the other limbs, focusing inwards. The sooner he jumpstarted their heart the faster his torture would come to an end.


    Fortunately, they did, as he found out a couple minutes later. Its beats were soft and infrequent. He thought there was something wrong with the organ, or that it would take a while to get back to normal.


    But it never did. At some point, he was forced to accept that this normal for the lizard. In any case, the pain had receded slightly. Even more importantly, he realized ¨C to his great joy ¨C he could finally open their eyes.


    A flash of white greeted him, which soon died down to¡­


    ¡­an of white.

 Chapter 49: Frozen expanse

    Snow covered the ground below like a white blanket. Percy was standing on a steeply inclined surface ¨C a boulder or something.Not used to looking at everything sideways, he climbed down from the rock. He noticed his host didn¡¯t weigh much, their feet not sinking very deep, their steps barely leaving some shallow prints.


    Examining his surroundings, he realized his host wasn¡¯t the only unlucky lizard. Countless more geckos stood motionless all around him, having met the same fate. Either some extinction level event had occurred in this region, or it was normal for his species to go through cycles of freezing and thawing with the seasons.


    he asked his new pal.


    Percy had already experienced some of the lizard¡¯s memories. He¡¯d watched his host devour its own siblings, so he doubted it cared. That said, he figured it was polite to ask.


    No reply.


    Shrugging, he activated Mana Sense, noting most of the creatures were not only still alive, but also at Orange like him. Approaching the nearest one, he dug its core out with his claws, before swallowing it whole.


    Normally, Percy wasn¡¯t a huge fan of raw meat, especially when frozen solid. That said, his new tastebuds appeared to have a thing for blood-flavoured snow. Another pleasant surprise soon followed. A burst of mana was released in their stomach, warming them up. This was finally enough to elicit a satisfied reaction from his host. Although, the timid lizard quickly faded to the background again, happy to let Percy do all the work.


    Percy reprimanded the gecko, before moving to the next statue.


    He had no idea how close the lizard was to advancing, but it wouldn¡¯t take that long to eat all the cores. It was a bit of a gamble but ¨C if he got lucky ¨C he¡¯d have a much easier time travelling at Yellow. As he continued slaughtering one gecko after the other, a strange thought crossed his mind. The lizards looked rather similar to what one could find on Remior, making him wonder whether he¡¯d even left his world.


    A quick glance at the sky gave him his answer.


    There was only one sun ¨C its colour unknown ¨C but that was where the similarities ended. Percy counted as many as 17 moons of various sizes, and guessed there should be more that weren¡¯t visible right now. And those were just the semi-intact ones. Many more broken, irregular chunks of stone littered the sky, making it look like a cosmic cesspit.


    The mere thought sent shivers down Percy¡¯s reptilian spine. He had no idea if a god was even capable of such a feat, and he¡¯d rather not find out. He wasn¡¯t keen on meeting a being capable of tossing moons around like pebbles. After all, what else would such an existence be capable of?


    Eager to get the hell out of this world, he picked up the pace, guzzling down one core after another, uncaring about the lizard genocide he was committing. Of course, he still had to take frequent breaks, to digest the mana every time his body reached saturation. While he couldn¡¯t devour the geckos¡¯ souls like Micky, the beast mana contained in their cores still accumulated rapidly after eating so many in quick succession.


    ***


    he thought as he sat on the snow waiting once more.


    It had been several hours since he managed to thaw his host, and he¡¯d already consumed hundreds of cores in that time. The sun had set too, but luckily his eyes turned out less useless than expected, as they appeared to possess some level of night vision. Percy¡¯s core was still at Orange, although more than two thirds of the lizards remained. At his current rate, it would take him another day to finish the rest.


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    His fear wasn¡¯t the only thing rushing him. Given the relatively good condition of his body coupled with the ungodly amount of soul mana he had used to patch it up, he was confident he could easily survive for a week or two.


    However, sending out clones was a zero-sum game. Every day he spent here meant delaying the next clone by just as much. Consequently, if there was nothing of value on this world, it was in his best interest to leave early. S§×arch* The ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Standing up, he walked to the next lizard, about to resume his feast. Not that he had much of an appetite left. While the first dozen or so had tasted alright, he¡¯d grown sick after spending the whole afternoon stuffing his face full of them. Also, the statues looked much creepier at night. Either way, he never got the chance to take another bite, as he saw movement off the corner of his eye.


    he thought, as a wave of primal terror overcame his host.


    A massive shape was slithering some distance away, its pale colour barely discernible against the frozen expanse. Much like the geckos, the serpent also vaguely reminded Percy of something he might encounter on Remior, but it was his first time seeing a snake covered in .


    He had no idea how large his host was compared to a human, but the abomination appeared colossal to his current eyes, its girth four times his own. As for its length, it was impossible to estimate as it zigged and zagged through the army of statues, swallowing them whole, one after the other.


    Percy briefly considered playing dead.


    A moment later he realized how idiotic the idea was. Even if the snake somehow missed the trail of footprints behind him, the thick stench of blood coming from him or his elevated body temperature, it certainly couldn¡¯t miss the sea of mana coursing through his channels. But more importantly, the serpent clearly wouldn¡¯t stop until it devoured every last one of his kin. Whether he stood still or not, his end would be the same.


    Out of options and without much to lose, Percy waited for the snake to look the other way before sprinting as if his life depended on it ¨C which it did. He didn¡¯t even dare to look back, only using Mana Sense half a minute later to check if the monster was in hot pursuit.


    It wasn¡¯t.


    Only then did he stop, turning around. The snake was still busy eating the other geckos a few hundred meters away.


    Percy wasn¡¯t sure whether to be relieved or offended. He was certain the creature had noticed him, but it hadn¡¯t bothered giving chase. Then again, it wasn¡¯t that surprising. Why waste time going after the lone survivor when it had a veritable feast laid out in front of it?


    Perhaps the serpent didn¡¯t care much about a single gecko slipping away, but it was probably not going to take too kindly to him returning.


    Frustrated, Percy entertained the thought of going back to confront the snake. He knew he was no match for a Yellow beast, let alone a Green one, so he¡¯d definitely die. That said, ending this farce a moment sooner might be his best course of action right now.


    But he shook his head.


    He realized he¡¯d been spoiled by his past clones'' successes. His current situation was likely more indicative of what he should expect going forward. The odds of stumbling upon a treasure trove every time weren''t high, so giving up after the first setback would be unwise.


    As for what "something interesting" might be, he wasn''t sure. He guessed he''d know when he found it. Perhaps a potent life source for his second core, another cluster of frozen lizards he could eat, a village of sentient lifeforms, or any other rare treasure might qualify.


    SCREEEEEEEEEEEEE


    Just as Percy made up his mind, a loud screech caused him to tilt his head up. The only thing he managed to see was a shadow blotting out the sky.


    SNAP


    He didn¡¯t even get the chance to examine it with Mana Sense, before an elongated maw snapped shut around his head. At least it didn¡¯t hurt, the pain not yet registering, as his face rolled inside something slimy, before plunging into a pungent swamp. And with that, his vision faded to black, an irresistible force prying him out of the gecko¡¯s flesh, bringing his third adventure to an abrupt end.


    [Author¡¯s Note 1: I know many of you were probably eagerly waiting for Percy to resume sending clones and might be disappointed his first one in a while went down like this. I just want to clarify that I typically won¡¯t be showing failed clones ¡°on-screen¡± moving forward. I only included this one to give you a taste of what his average clone experience is like. From now on, Percy will be sending clones regularly, but I¡¯ll only show the interesting ones where he gains something useful. Apologies for the wait.]


    [Author¡¯s Note 2: Some of you might be wondering why the lizard could perceive colours through Mana Sense when its vision is monochrome. Mana Sense is the same as regular eyesight. People use colours to describe grades out of convenience, but if you notice I always capitalize them when viewed through Mana Sense. (Red, Orange, Yellow etc)]

 Chapter 50: The hunt resumes

    Percy was running along a bridge, Circulation active, with a wasp corpse the size of a fox slung over his shoulder. The stinger pointed forward, ensuring he wouldn¡¯t accidentally stab himself.The crow was flying at half its usual speed with another worker hot on its trail.


    Ten minutes later, they met up. Percy tossed the carapace in front of his familiar, before gathering both types of mana in his right hand, forming a cyan glove and a transparent sickle. He dashed towards the bird, who circled around him. Micky dug into the corpse¡¯s sternum for its snack, as Percy engaged his pursuer.


    The fight was short.


    Percy dodged the first few stabs before a well-executed parry with his backhand doubled as a lethal counterattack, swiping the Parting Gift across the bug¡¯s torso.


    As soon as the second wasp died, he ignored it, letting Micky deal with the corpse once he finished his current meal. Instead, Percy moved toward the third target, conveniently located on the same mushroom.


    A minute later, it met the same fate. Just in time too, as Micky arrived at Percy¡¯s location, gently holding two glands in his talons.


    Percy asked while squeezing the nectar into a vial.


    CAW! CAW!


    The bird showed him the locations of three more workers, the nearest over half an hour away, eliciting a groan from the young man.


    he said, getting a nod back.


    Their current hunting strategy was a lot different from what Percy had originally envisioned. Based on what others had told him soon after he joined the Guild, he¡¯d thought he and Micky should ideally grow proficient enough to split up and hunt separately. After all, they could cover more ground like that ¨C on paper. And indeed, both of them had improved a lot after a month, to the point Micky could even kill a few wasps on his own by now.


    However, their strengths and weaknesses had developed rather disproportionally to one another. On one hand, Percy was quite adept at killing the bugs with his glove and sickle, often dispatching them within seconds. As much as his familiar had improved in this department, he doubted it would get as good as him anytime soon.


    On the other hand, Percy was held up by his slower travelling speed. Even if he knew where the bugs were, he still needed several minutes to reach each one ¨C let alone when he had to blindly search for them. Yet, scouting was precisely where Micky excelled.


    Consequently, he had concluded that the most efficient strategy should make use of both their talents, while covering their shortcomings. Micky would locate the bugs and bait the more distant ones over, while Percy was in charge of putting them down. Like that, they had reached an average of 29 daily kills by the end of the month!


    Percy smiled bitterly as he crossed the bridge.


    Strictly speaking, he could now earn over 400 contribution points per hunt, which was just barely enough to cover for one of his cores. However, that was under the assumption that he¡¯d hunt every single day without fail. Unfortunately, some downtime was unavoidable. His third clone had needed three full days for the round trip, forcing Percy to remain idle in that time.


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    At first, he had intended to keep hunting while his clone was away. Due to his soul¡¯s injuries, he knew it would be harder to accumulate soul mana by himself, but he could still form the sickle with Micky¡¯s help. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t have accounted for the unexpected issue with his soul¡¯s integrity, caused by having two ethereal cords simultaneously. Hunting in that state was ill-advised as a single moment of weakness could cost them dearly.


    There was a little room for improvement, but not a lot. Percy estimated they¡¯d cap out at 32 kills after some more experience, but that was it. He couldn¡¯t get much quicker at killing the bugs, and neither could Micky fly any faster. The only thing he could help was getting Circulation to work for the rest of the afternoon.


    SIGH


    Of course, he just stop creating clones.


    He shook his head. As annoyed as he was when his first clone in over a year came back empty-handed, Percy had no intention of giving up on his ability entirely.


    He¡¯d always known this would happen. Not every dying body in the universe held some profound magical secret, but he¡¯d never find the few diamonds in the rough if he stopped looking altogether. Perhaps, somebody else in his shoes might have grown content with a second core and a familiar, but Percy understood his current kit wasn¡¯t sufficient to reach the pinnacle.


    ***


    Percy entered the settlement, after another exhausting hunt. In the end, they¡¯d only harvested 29 glands again. The same as yesterday. And the day before. His efficiency had only dropped slightly a couple hours before sunset, when Circulation failed him.


    Still, it was hard to extend its duration any further and he couldn¡¯t figure out a better way to use his mana than his current glove-sickle combo. It didn¡¯t help that he woke up tired every morning, as five hours of sleep didn¡¯t seem to cut it.


    They weren¡¯t very good, but he only needed the tiniest boost. It would all depend on their price though. He was about to head to one of the official buildings to exchange his nectar, when his gaze landed on the drowsy girl¡¯s stand.


    he chuckled.


    Contrary to his expectations, her information trade had not only survived over the past month, but even boomed somewhat. Percy had been shocked to see her jar steadily filling over time, until she had amassed enough money to expand her business.


    Her sign now read:


    Much to Percy¡¯s annoyance, she hadn¡¯t even bothered to nail a new plank with the changes, instead sticking a couple pieces of paper to patch in the new words. Yet, the five jars on the counter, all filled with red and orange coins were proof enough that she knew what she was doing.


    Percy¡¯s eyelid twitched as he listened to the girl snoring without a care in the world.


    At the beginning he¡¯d felt happy for her, but it was starting to irritate him. She was making nearly as many points as he was, while sitting around all day. In fact, he wouldn¡¯t be surprised if she surpassed him before long.


    SIGH


    Ignoring her, he walked to Freddy¡¯s for his daily Honey Roll. Eating the delicious snacks after each hunt had grown into a bit of a ritual by now. Also, Freddy was currently his only friend in the Guild, and it was nice having somebody to talk to. Only ten minutes later did Percy leave, trying to catch the official buildings before they closed for the night.


    The most annoying part was that he had to visit two different shops, in opposite corners of the settlement. He only sold half his loot at each location, and alternated which one he bought his elixirs from, to avoid unnecessary questions.


    He knew he was probably just being paranoid, as nobody had ever asked him where he got his nectar. Even if somebody figured out that an Orange core was somehow making over 400 points per day, they wouldn¡¯t care too much. Still, he did prefer to take any precautions he could.


    ¡°Anything else I can help you with?¡± the clerk at the second shop ¨C a brunette clad in green ¨C asked after handing him a vial of elixir.


    Percy was about to shake his head absentmindedly, when he thought of something.


    ¡°Do you sell potions?¡±


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 Chapter 51: Potions

    ¡°Of course!¡± the clerk replied, before scratching her head. ¡°Although, I¡¯m forced by Guild regulations to inform potential customers that the potions¡¯ potency is rather limited.¡±¡°So I¡¯ve been told. But how limited are we talking about exactly?¡±


    ¡°Well, they work as advertised, but don¡¯t expect any miracles on par with the elixirs.¡± she elaborated, before furrowing her brow. ¡°Although I suppose they¡¯ll be somewhat effective for you. No offense.¡±


    Percy nodded.


    ¡°None taken. I¡¯d like to have a look if it¡¯s not too difficult.¡±


    The clerk shrugged, before leading him to an adjacent room. She pressed her badge against a symbol on the wall, causing a different rune to light up on the ceiling, illuminating the place. It wasn¡¯t a large room and ¨C if the dust on the shelves was any indication ¨C it was rarely used.


    ¡°As you can imagine, not many of our alchemists bother brewing potions, and even fewer customers ever buy them. Still, we currently have four different varieties of sufficient quality to be approved for sale by the Guild.¡±


    Seeing Percy remain silent, she continued.


    ¡°The most popular ones ¨C relatively speaking ¨C are the healing potions. They can help mend injuries for people below Yellow. Just minor stuff though. No raising the dead or regrowing limbs.¡±


    So far, Percy had survived his first month on the Spire without getting stabbed by the wasps, so he doubted he¡¯d get in much trouble anytime soon. Still, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to have something to fall back to in case of an accident.


    ¡°How much?¡±


    The clerk smiled.


    ¡°Just 10 points per dose. If we went solely by the price of the ingredients and the expertise required to brew them, they¡¯d be a lot more expensive. However, the supply far exceeds their demand. Our senior alchemists only bother with them whenever they want a break from elixirs. The same is true for the other potions.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll take three of these then.¡± Percy said.


    He didn¡¯t have much money to splurge on them, but if it was a one-time thing he could afford it. He doubted he¡¯d need them replaced anytime soon.


    The clerk handed him three glass vials. Apparently, the gemstones were too precious to be used for cheap potions. Percy could see a glowing green liquid swirling inside. Probably some life mana somehow processed into this form. In any case, this wasn¡¯t what he was here for. Tossing the potions into his pockets, he paid the clerk three orange coins, before asking her about the rest.


    ¡°Next we have magic potions.¡± she gestured to a row of vials, their contents shimmering in a light blue colour. ¡°Their main ingredient is a flower with pure mana properties, and they can refill your core once consumed. However, they only contain enough for an Orange core, and the conversion rate to other affinities is abysmal.¡±


    Percy made an odd expression. On paper, it sounded like these potions were tailor made for him. He had a Red core with a pure affinity, which meant there was nobody else on Remior who could benefit more from these potions than him.


    A single dose could refill his core thrice over!


    Still, Circulation boosted his mana regeneration the most, so he couldn¡¯t recall ever getting in a situation that couldn¡¯t be resolved through his Refined spell. In the end he shook his head, prompting the clerk to continue.


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    ¡°These are called enlightenment potions. Please pardon us for the tacky name ¨C it is a bit on the nose considering their subpar effect ¨C but they do help you focus for a couple hours after consuming them. They are best used before studying.¡± she said, pointing to a shelf of bright red potions that looked a bit like glowing blood.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened. They might be handy for him if he decided to read up on alchemy, but that wasn¡¯t what surprised him.


    ¡°Do they contain mind mana by any chance?¡± he asked, trying to mask his inner turmoil.


    He probably did a poor job at it, as the clerk chuckled upon seeing his expression.


    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m sure you see the pattern by now. Our alchemists have drawn inspiration from elixirs, trying to brew other affinities into potions, although their results leave much to be desired. None of them exceed what an Orange core is capable of.¡±


    Percy quickly ran some calculations in his head. Baldy had needed around 1800 refills to germinate his second core. If these enlightenment potions contained as much mana as an Orange core, he¡¯d need somewhere around 110,000 doses for Micky. He smiled wryly at that conclusion.


    Even if he somehow managed to amass the outlandish sum, he¡¯d have to find a way to buy the potions without arousing suspicion. Still, this was his first lead, so it was something to keep in mind for the future.


    ¡°Do you want to buy some?¡± the clerk asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°Not right now.¡±


    Micky aside, he definitely wanted to hit the library in the next couple of days. Perhaps the enlightenment potions would be handy at that time, but they weren¡¯t a priority at the moment.


    Shrugging, the clerk moved to the final shelf filled with brown potions. This time, she had to brush some cobwebs aside, speaking volumes as to the last time anybody bought any of these.


    ¡°This is the final item ¨C and the least popular I¡¯m afraid. They are called rejuvenation potions and you¡¯re meant to drink them before going to bed. Supposedly, they help you rest more overnight, but the difference isn¡¯t huge and it¡¯s not like sleep deprivation is a serious issue in the Guild.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t seem very keen on promoting your merchandise.¡± Percy noted. S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The clerk hadn¡¯t really painted any of the potions in a positive light since he got here. It was his first time experiencing something like this in a shop.


    She chuckled.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not like I get a commission based on sales. Besides, all the prices in this shop are fixed according to Guild rules. Also, the profits from the potions are peanuts compared to the elixirs and the demand for those is set in stone, regardless of my conduct. Thank Phoebe for it too. People only volunteer for these posts to relax. Nobody would bother if it was a hassle. So yeah¡­ I might as well be honest with the customers.¡±


    This arrangement suited Percy just fine.


    ¡°So, what mana do these contain?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t quote me on this, but I believe it¡¯s a mixture of life and mind mana. However, they are designed to have a more delayed effect compared to the other potions. They basically work by augmenting your body¡¯s natural recovery over a longer period of time. So don¡¯t try relying on them in a pinch, but they¡¯ll probably give you more value for your points overnight.¡±


    ¡°Ok, I¡¯ll take one of these for now.¡± Percy said.


    Truth be told, none of the potions seemed revolutionary, but the brown ones sounded like the most suitable to his situation. He¡¯d try one tonight to see if it helped. A single dose was worth less points than a Starry Worker, so if it let him get an extra kill tomorrow it would pay for itself.


    He left after thanking the clerk. Returning home was a pain in the ass, as the shop was in the other side of the settlement.


    he grimaced.


    Picking up the pace, he made it to his house in a rush, only lamenting the fact that he couldn¡¯t activate Circulation in the middle of the Guild. Not many people were out and about this late, but it wasn¡¯t worth the risk just to sleep a few minutes longer.


    As soon as he entered his room, he downed the expensive elixir before getting into the shower. To save time, he circulated his pure mana between his stomach and abdomen while the warm water splashed on his shoulders, washing the grime off him.


    The mana burned wherever it passed, as he had overused his channels again. On top of that, his body¡¯s soreness made it a struggle to even stand, but he gritted his teeth to see this through. Half an hour later, he was in his bed, drinking a dose of the diluted elixir.


    For the next couple of weeks, Percy would need some help generating enough soul mana for the elixirs. They¡¯d arranged for Micky to keep a half-dead Starry Drone by his side, with its stinger broken and its wings clipped, to be eaten on demand.


    The familiar appeared half-asleep, but a modest trickle of mana still flowed through the connection a few moments later. Percy took deep breaths to reinforce it, as he circulated it between his stomach and sternum.


    By the time he finished, there were less than four hours left before sunrise. Picking up the rejuvenation potion, he gave it a swirl, gazing at the brown liquid as if it was the most precious treasure.


    POP


    He uncorked the vial with his mouth, carelessly spitting the lid on the floor, before gulping the potion down. It wasn¡¯t bitter like the elixirs. It was sweet, reminding him of thinned syrup.

 Chapter 52: Time management

    Percy woke up feeling¡­ .He stretched out on his bed, before glancing around the dimly lit room. Just enough sunlight seeped through the curtain to cast soft shadows on the walls. Percy wasn¡¯t exactly fully rested, and he¡¯d gladly sleep for another hour if it were an option. As the shopkeeper had said, the effect of the rejuvenation potion was rather modest.


    All things considered, Percy had barely slept four hours, yet he was less tired than the previous mornings. His soreness remained, but it was muted. Pulling some mana from his abdomen also revealed that his channels had somewhat recovered ¨C at least they didn¡¯t burn as much. Percy was tempted to keep buying the brown potions if only to improve his quality of life. Not feeling like crap to count for something.


    he decided, getting up.


    Tossing his robe on, he opened his house¡¯s preservation box, taking a bottle of milk out. Next, he hurriedly drank two mouthfuls before rushing out of his house with a loaf of bread held by his teeth, eager to begin hunting. If he managed 30 kills today, he¡¯d absolutely use that as an excuse to justify buying the potions. Half an hour later, Micky tilted his head upon seeing him, clearly noticing he was in a good mood.


    CAW?


    Percy chuckled, feeling a rare lightness in his steps. Even the colourful motes slowly falling on the mushroom looked prettier than usual.


    he smirked, acting all mysterious.


    CAW! CAW!


    The familiar pecked him a few times.


    ¡°Ah-Ouch! Fuck! Ok! It¡¯s a thing that made me sleep better!¡± Percy broke rather easily, rubbing his arm. That only seemed to pour oil in the fire, however.


    CAW!! CRAAAA!!! CAW!!!


    Percy shielded his face with his elbows, curling on the ground to cover as much of his body as possible.


    CAW!


    Micky sent him the memory of being woken up in the middle of the night.


    CONSIDER


    Only then did the bird stop torturing him, a satisfied glint in its eye.


    he exhaled in defeat.


    Micky remained silent, only sending him a few images of Starry Workers on some nearby mushrooms. Nodding, Percy took a deep breath, and then another¡­ Next, he sprinted towards their first target for the day as the cyan lines shone under his skin.


    ***


    Micky reminded him of his promise as he crossed the final bridge connecting the second level to the Spire¡¯s base.


    the young man replied.


    His steps were uneven, as were his breaths. However, a shit-eating grin was plastered all over his face, despite the exhaustion. Today, they had managed to harvest 31 glands, proving the efficacy of the rejuvenation potion!


    Well, ok. Perhaps part of it was just luck, another part a placebo. Still, Percy was quite certain his recent purchase had contributed to some extent. After all, once the mana began burning his channels and Circulation started feeling heavier, he was able to push through, keeping the technique active until the end. He doubted he had achieved this through sheer willpower.


    Overall, he was satisfied. Not only with the potion but also his improvements since joining the Guild. He and Micky had started with a laughable 14 kills on their first day, yet they had more than doubled that number since.


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    His only regret was that there didn¡¯t seem to be any room for further improvement. At least not on the second floor. And he wasn¡¯t confident in risking their lives or their secrets on the third one. This meant he had to make do with 465 contribution points per hunt for the foreseeable future, assuming he could keep this up.


    Of course, it was possible one of his clones might need longer but, in that case, he¡¯d just have to accept the loss and hope he got something worthwhile in return. More importantly, this would also leave him enough change for two potions per day. One of those had to be his daily dose of the rejuvenation potion ¨C it was already indispensable in his mind.


    The second slot placed him in a bit of a dilemma though. On one hand, he wanted to get brown potions for Micky, to compensate the crow for helping him recover soul mana. He needed his help both to use the diluted elixirs with his first core, but also to begin clearing the corresponding set of channels. On the other, he had to start reading up on alchemy. Saving 1000 points for each lecture was out of the question, so his only option was to hit the library and hope the enlightenment potions helped.


    And there was another problem.


    Percy felt like tearing his hair out.


    His hunting trips already lasted 18 hours ¨C of which one was spent just travelling to and from the mushrooms. He couldn¡¯t cut the time down, else his income would also drop. Of the remaining six hours, one was spent at home drinking elixirs. His other activities ¨C such as socializing with Freddy or exchanging his points ¨C only ate into his sleep. Suffice to say, he couldn¡¯t reduce that any further either.


    It might take some practice, but it would save him an hour per day. He could spend that either in the library or at home unblocking his channels.


    Having settled on a plan, Percy entered the settlement, stopping by Freddy¡¯s for a few minutes. Next, he went to the official shops, this time buying his elixir from the other one. He also got two doses of the rejuvenation potion, one for himself and one to hand to his familiar tomorrow. Only then did he head home, taking a shower and downing one of the new potions before going to bed. He didn¡¯t drink any elixirs today, as he had to adjust the time he took them.


    ***


    Percy got up, feeling even better than yesterday. Evidently, an extra hour of sleep got him even more value out of the potion. After dressing and eating a tomato ¨C no time for a salad ¨C he ran out of his house, taking two doses of elixir with him ¨C a regular and a diluted one. However, he didn¡¯t drink them just yet.


    His plan was to take the diluted dose in the afternoon, on the way back. At that point, his body and core would be full of soul mana, right after the hunt ended. This meant he had to cleanse his pure core in the morning, but he couldn¡¯t do that in plain sight. People might notice the mana circulating in his abdomen. Consequently, he waited until he reached the second level to finally swallow the expensive elixir.


    he groaned.


    Cleansing one¡¯s core required a lot of focus and it was his first time trying it on the move. Making a mistake wasn¡¯t necessarily dangerous, but it could easily waste some of the elixir¡¯s efficacy.


    He didn¡¯t know if it was different on the upper floors, but he didn¡¯t have to worry about them bothering him right now. By the time he met up with Micky, the elixir in his stomach had been used up. Percy estimated he¡¯d wasted about 20%, which wasn¡¯t ideal. He sure hoped he¡¯d get better at this soon.


    Most experienced mages learned this at some point. People like baldy couldn¡¯t afford to waste half an hour sitting still every day.


    It would be impossible to do that during a fight, but most of his time was spent travelling atop the giant fungi. In fact, whenever they finished a batch of wasps, Micky provided him with a ton of mana, so his current difficulty in regenerating it by himself wouldn¡¯t be an issue. Of course, he needed the soul mana to recover, but it wouldn¡¯t be lost when he unblocked a channel. It would still be in his body, available to be used later.


    he grimaced.


    Like this, Percy would essentially be using every second productively.


    Waking up. Travelling to the Fungal Spire while cleansing his second core. Killing a batch of wasps. Clearing his channels while moving to the next batch. Repeating the last two steps for the whole day. Returning to the Guild while cleansing his first core. Exchanging his points and buying potions and elixirs. Spending an hour in the library. Sleeping.


    His routine would only change slightly once a month when he sent out a new clone. At that point, he¡¯d have to take a break from hunting, but it would also be his best chance to put more time into studying, so he wasn¡¯t going to waste it.


    He frowned.


    Strictly speaking, this was arguably torture. However, if he stuck to it, he¡¯d be making rapid progress towards multiple goals. Whenever he reached one of them, he¡¯d be able to relax somewhat.


    Eventually, using the elixirs while walking would become effortless. Also, after mastering Circulation with his second core, he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about it either. Plus, he could reconsider hunting on the third level at that point.


    And these were just the short-term milestones. One of his clones was bound to stumble upon something interesting sooner or later. Not to mention that once he became an alchemist, he might be able to stop hunting entirely. And even if everything else failed, his second core should advance to Orange in a little over three years too. Although he sure hoped another of his projects would bear fruit before then.


    Percy grinned. sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

 Chapter 53: Three pillars

    One of the Guild¡¯s largest buildings stood before Percy. It was made out of the same polished stones as all the houses and shops, covered from top to bottom in intricate glyphs, shimmering faintly whenever the colourful motes landed on them.He¡¯d walked past the library many times since joining, although he¡¯d never entered. And he wasn¡¯t alone in that. Apparently very few people ever bothered, as it wasn¡¯t the easiest way to learn alchemy.


    At least the place was always open, so he wouldn¡¯t have to tailor his schedule to any inconvenient opening hours. He only needed to press his badge against a rune to be allowed inside. As soon as he gazed upon the countless towering bookcases, his heart began racing.


    It used to be his main pastime growing up, but he¡¯d been too busy over the last couple of years. Glancing around the room, he saw two middle-aged men dressed in blue, sitting on different tables. Each had a pile of books by their side. However, both had stopped what they were doing, giving him strange looks.


    On closer inspection, one of them was the guy who¡¯d given him the introductory lecture a month earlier. Percy never caught his name, but he did feel grateful for the freebie. He walked up to him, with a smile on his face. In his experience, the man was approachable, and he could use some help finding what he needed.


    ¡°Good evening, sir!¡± he whispered to avoid bothering the other guy who¡¯d returned to reading by now.


    ¡°Did something happen outside?¡± the alchemist asked in concern, skipping the pleasantries.


    Percy furrowed his brow.


    ¡°No? Why do you ask?¡±


    The man stared at him in confusion for a few moments.


    ¡°I see¡­ It¡¯s just that I can¡¯t remember the last time I saw anybody under a century old in here.¡±


    Percy smiled wryly.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m currently broke, so this is my only means of getting into alchemy.¡± he said. ¡°Actually, I wanted to thank you for that lesson you gave recently. I was hoping you could point me to some suitable books for beginners. If it¡¯s not too much trouble of course!¡±


    The man¡¯s expression brightened like the morning sun as soon as alchemy was brought up.


    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it! As I said back then, the Guild can use as many alchemists as we can get. It brings me great joy whenever I see young people willing to delve into the field.¡±


    Standing up, the man hurriedly walked to a certain corner of the room, motioning him to follow.


    ¡°Sadly, these are all the books we have on the subject.¡± he gestured to an old, dusty bookcase.


    ¡°Seriously?¡±


    These were less than 5% of the books in the building. Pretty neglected too ¨C compared to everything else.


    ¡°What about the rest?¡±


    The alchemist chuckled.


    ¡°History, geography, politics, novels¡­ Those are a lot more popular. Only old people frequent this place, and most of them are already experienced alchemists after all.¡±


    Percy nodded. The thing about a world as old as Remior was that there was never a lack of material for people to read and write about. Countless wars took place every year between the various noble Houses. Alliances, betrayals, epic battles¡­ If there was one thing authors and bards alike never had to worry about, it was sources of inspiration to draw from.


    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    ¡°I suggest you start with these for now.¡± the man said, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    Next, he handed him four leather-bound tomes, one after another. The stack might have felt heavy if he was still at Red.


    ¡°Feel free to ask me if you have any questions. I spend most of my nights in here.¡±


    The implication made Percy¡¯s heart skip a beat. It would be rude to keep bothering the alchemist if he never offered, but now things were different. Between the books, the potion and the elder¡¯s help, wasn¡¯t this like getting another free lesson?


    ¡°Thank you, sir! I really appreciate it.¡±


    ¡°Just call me Orin.¡± the man replied, already returning to his table.


    Following suit, Percy picked another vacant spot, before setting down the books.


    THUD


    Next, he removed them from the pile, laying them side by side, before blowing at them, raising a cloud of dust in the process.


    COUGH, COUGH


    In any case, he could finally make out their titles.


    Percy decided to start with the last one, assuming it was the most fundamental. With less than half an hour left, he doubted he¡¯d get far tonight, so he didn¡¯t waste the enlightenment potion. Opening the tome, he quickly skimmed through the fluff in the first few pages before his eyes settled on something interesting.


    ¡¯


    Percy was glad to have started with this one. He still didn¡¯t fully understand what the brewing process involved, so learning about specific ingredients and recipes should come later. Reading on, he soon found the definitions he was interested in.


    pacification


    Percy realised.


    But there was more there, so he continued.


    redirectiondeattunement


    Percy reread the text a few more times to make sure he understood everything.


    Almost out of time, he quickly dove back into the book to make as much progress as possible.


    The book went on to divulge some general information about the three pillars and what types of plants tended to fall into each category. As expected, dozens of known ingredients were suitable for each step, giving rise to thousands of recipes.


    That said, about 80% of the process was transferable from one recipe to another. Some plants required special handling, introducing some additional variable, but for the most part there was no clear ¡®winner¡¯ among the recipes. It was just a question of what materials were available and what the alchemist was most familiar with.


    SIGH


    Even though he had yet to delve into alchemy proper, Percy had still enjoyed reading up on the theory. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t extend today¡¯s session without affecting tomorrow¡¯s hunt. Returning the books to the shelf, he gave Orin an apologetic smile before leaving. The man frowned upon seeing him go so early.


    A few minutes later he made it home. After showering, he drank the rejuvenation potion and went to bed. Staring up at his ceiling, he thought back to Orin¡¯s disappointed expression as he bade him farewell.


    Percy smiled bitterly.


    But there was nothing he could do about it. Actions spoke louder than words and besides¡­ S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

 Chapter 54: Orin

    Lukewarm.If Orin had to pick a word to describe his life, it would be that. He enjoyed what he did of course ¨C enough to forget about the bitterness in his past, but his daily routine hadn¡¯t changed much in a long time.


    It had been several centuries since he left home to join the Guild as an aspiring alchemist. He still missed his family from time to time, his House having long been destroyed.


    Not being there for his parents and sister in their final moments was one of his few regrets. Still, he understood he couldn¡¯t have changed much even if he¡¯d stayed. Born with an Orange core, Orin hadn¡¯t even reached Green back when the disaster struck.


    His only solace was he didn¡¯t have to worry about the brutality running rampant across Remior as long as he remained within the walls of the Guild. Nobody dared to stir trouble under the noses of both the Divine Order and the Great Houses.


    Even better was he¡¯d found his true calling here. Harnessing nature for humanity¡¯s sake, using the raw nectar to refine elixirs ¨C Remior¡¯s lifeblood ¨C was Orin¡¯s greatest passion in life.


    Something about the art truly resonated with him. Perhaps it was the respect it garnered from mortals and gods alike. Maybe it was the satisfaction he drew knowing he personally contributed to his world¡¯s survival. Or it could just be that challenging himself to improve every day, to find new ways of increasing his yield was a ton of fun.


    In fact, if there was one thing the old codger liked as much as brewing, it was mentoring youngsters and passing along the art to the next generation.


    The Guild didn¡¯t exactly lack manpower. Sure, they couldn¡¯t provide for the Red-borns of Remior, but who cared about them anyway?


    There were plenty of elixirs to go around for the Orange-borns and above. Plus, new members kept joining the Guild in droves. Most of them picked up alchemy too ¨C sooner or later. Even the lazier ones eventually managed to save up enough points.


    However, Orin had a soft spot for the rare few who bothered learning the art properly ¨C paying as much attention to the underlying theory as they did for demonstrations and lessons.


    That was why he¡¯d been so excited when he first saw Percy in the library. Sure, the boy had probably been driven there by his empty pockets ¨C not a pure appreciation for the subject. Still, it warmed Orin¡¯s heart to see somebody diving into the books in earnest. The others who only blindly copied their elders rarely surpassed a yield of 35%. They also never brought any new insights into the field, causing it to stagnate.


    So great had his enthusiasm been, that his dejection had been equally grand seeing the boy give up mere minutes after starting.


    he¡¯d thought at the time.


    But to Orin¡¯s great shock, the boy had returned the next day, at about the same time ¨C if a few minutes earlier perhaps. Percy had picked up the books again, resuming exactly where he had left off.


    The old alchemist hadn¡¯t missed the youngster swallowing a dose of a red potion too. He¡¯d recognised it of course ¨C Orin had brewed a lot of the Guild¡¯s potions personally. Not many of his peers cared much about this lesser branch of alchemy.


    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    It was only at that point Orin realized Percy hadn¡¯t left the previous night out of boredom, but necessity.


    Over the following few days, he paid more attention to the context clues. Percy always arrived at the library at around the same time ¨C just before midnight. He never stayed longer than an hour, but he always had a distraught expression when leaving. Clearly, the boy wanted to keep reading, but had to cut his trips short.


    His eyes were also tired the whole time. There was never a speck of dust on the young man¡¯s orange robe ¨C the self-cleaning runes doing their job admirably ¨C but Orin didn¡¯t miss the traces of dried sweat all over his face.


    Orin had realized.


    It wasn¡¯t that strange for a new member to spend a lot of time on the Spire. It was common for newcomers to do that. After all, it was the easiest way to save up enough points before switching to alchemy. That said, the vast majority were Orange-borns who didn¡¯t need more than 8 to 10 hours of work to cover their needs.


    This was his first time meeting a boy who was not only willing to learn the art the hard way, but who struggled to find enough time for it. The revelation made his heart quiver, to the point he no longer minded offering to answer Percy¡¯s questions. Originally, Orin had regretted the words as soon as they¡¯d left his mouth.


    He¡¯d volunteered to mentor others in the past, but that never went well. The youngsters tended to ask simple questions at first. However, they kept demanding more and more, until eventually it all turned into a one-to-one lesson, with Orin spoon-feeding them everything.


    But that wasn¡¯t what Percy did.


    For the most part, the boy had done his best to study by himself. Even when he seemed stuck, he went back to the books, trying to figure out the answer on his own. Very rarely did he take Orin up on his offer and, even then, he only asked specific questions related to the problem he was facing.


    Over time, the old man truly came to appreciate Percy¡¯s work ethic and his dedication. The boy never missed a day, although he only used a potion every other night. Apparently, it was the most he could afford.


    Once a month, the young man seemed to take a break from hunting for a few days. Orin was curious, but he didn¡¯t ask, respecting the boy¡¯s privacy. Percy almost lived in the library during those days, taking the opportunity to get a lot more reading done than usual.


    Sadly, he didn¡¯t use the potions at that time, as they didn¡¯t last very long, and he didn¡¯t have the funds to keep guzzling them down one after another. He also seemed to endure some headaches during those days. Maybe he suffered from some chronic illness?


    In any case, Orin had come to lament Percy¡¯s lower grade.


    He felt it was a true injustice that such a hard-working young man was cursed with the lowest birthright on Remior. Then again, perhaps it was a blessing. Maybe the boy wouldn¡¯t have been so passionate about learning if he¡¯d grown up with a silver spoon in his mouth like the rest.


    Either way, the young man kept visiting the library, night after night, month after month. Through the scarce scraps of time he could invest into alchemy, Percy slowly devoured all the books Orin recommended, even rereading a couple of them. Eventually, the old alchemist watched the boy return the final book to its shelf, his expression an odd cocktail of triumph and dejection.


    ¡°Congratulations Percy!¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯ve read everything we have on alchemy!¡±


    ¡°Thank you, sir. I couldn¡¯t have made it this far without your help.¡±


    Orin shook his head.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t do much. I barely gave you a couple tips here and there. What do you plan to do next? I bet you¡¯re itching to try brewing an elixir yourself, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    The boy smiled bitterly but didn¡¯t say anything. He didn¡¯t need to. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Six months.¡± Orin said.


    Percy tilted his head.


    ¡°I¡¯ll provide the materials you need for the next six months, four hours per day. You can keep any elixir you manage to brew too, so even if your yield is horrible at the start, you might be able to make up for the shorter hunting trips in due time.¡±


    The boy¡¯s jaw slackened. Orin chuckled at the sight. Only about a minute later did Percy seem to find the words.


    ¡°Sir, I can¡¯t express how grateful I am¡­ But may I ask why?¡±


    Orin shrugged.


    ¡°Why not? I¡¯m filthy rich. It won¡¯t really affect me if I buy you some nectar.¡±


    Percy still appeared confused.


    ¡°I mean, I get that. Still, wouldn¡¯t it be cheaper if you gave some more free lectures like before? That way, a lot more people would benefit than just me.¡±


    The old alchemist scoffed.


    ¡°I could do that, but why bother? Most of those kids can afford the lessons and the materials by themselves if they put a tiny bit more effort. I¡¯d rather help the one who needs it.¡±


    Percy¡¯s eyes glistened with tears. He looked like he was about to hug him too. Orin chuckled, placing his hand on the boy¡¯s forehead to keep him at bay.


    ¡°But I meant it when I said it¡¯s only for six months. There¡¯s no guarantee you¡¯ll manage to brew any elixir by then.¡±


    ¡°What you get out of this is up to you.¡±

 Chapter 55: A message from a god

    Percy¡¯s past few weeks had been rough ¨C to say the least. His last clone had been another dud, just like the five before it. He¡¯d found himself in the body of a fish that barely survived an hour before getting eaten.the memory still made his blood boil.


    At this point, he wasn¡¯t sure if he¡¯d been lucky with his first two clones, or unlucky with the rest. Probably both.


    However, that was where the bad news ended. Last night, he finished the alchemy books, and Orin generously offered to sponsor him for half a year. It really was like the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, as he¡¯d been trying to figure out how to fund his studies for a while now. His hunting trips had capped out at 32 kills per day since three months ago, with no further improvements in sight.


    At least, he could now afford both Micky¡¯s rejuvenation potions and the ones he needed to study, but he still struggled to save up any more points past that. At this rate, he¡¯d be stuck until he managed to use Circulation with both cores.


    That said, he¡¯d made some progress towards that. He¡¯d already finished clearing the rest of his channels and even mastered drinking the elixirs while moving. His soul had also grown a lot stronger after sending so many clones. Right now, using his bloodline didn¡¯t cause any new tears to form ¨C other than the large chunk he carved out deliberately of course. The only steps left were to temper the channels to their limits and figure out a suitable pattern for the soul mana to flow in. Of course, there were some issues there, but he hoped he¡¯d solve them in due time.


    Still, Orin¡¯s help was the key to delving into alchemy a lot sooner than he could have otherwise. Percy hoped his strong theoretical background would let him reach the minimum thresholds more easily than other newbies.


    have


    Percy stopped in front of a stone house, slightly larger than his own. Senior alchemists who had contributed a lot to the Guild were given an upgraded home with its own private alchemy lab. The rest had to make do with the public ones. Luckily, Percy¡¯s mentor had offered him his own. He was even going to guide him through the process! Well, only for his first few attempts, but it was still massive. sea??h th§× n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Reading about alchemy for so long without being able to put the lessons to practice had been quite frustrating to say the least. It was like baking cakes without being allowed a bite.


    he chuckled.


    He was about to knock on the door, when something unexpected happened. A shockwave coursed through him, making all the buildings around him tremble slightly. A gentle but firm breeze soon followed, sending all the motes in the air flying to the south. Percy squinted as a few landed in his eyes in quick succession.


    Orin¡¯s door opened, the man walking out of his house with an equally perplexed expression. The same happened with a few of his neighbours ¨C the ones who were at home presumably. Everyone just stood outside, trying to make sense of the event. Percy had never seen anything like this since joining the Guild, and from what he gathered, neither had these seniors.


    ¡°Is somebody dumb enough to attack us?¡± he asked his mentor.


    It was only now that the old alchemist even registered he was there. He gave him a reassuring smile, before shrugging.


    ¡°I doubt it, but even if some House has gone crazy, there¡¯s nothing to worry about. We have 5 Violet cores stationed here, so even a Great House would struggle to do much.¡±


    Percy nodded, but he still wasn¡¯t fully convinced.


    ¡°Attention, denizens of Remior! This is a message broadcast by Hermes, one of the 12 gods of the Divine Order!¡± a booming voice said.


    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    The young man couldn¡¯t tell where the sound was coming from. It was as if it came from everywhere and nowhere, all at once. As if each pebble on the ground and each speck of dust in the air was eager to relay the god¡¯s will.


    ¡°Today is a joyous day for our world!¡± Hermes continued, oblivious to Percy¡¯s thoughts. ¡°As you all know, our Order is constantly at war with other races ¨C A war over land, lives and resources. Usually, these conflicts do not spill over to the rest of you ¨C the mortals of Remior ¨C but a recent development has granted us a grand opportunity that we can share with some of you.¡±


    Awed exclamations followed from the alchemists surrounding Percy. Everyone knew the Order often came across unique treasures with miraculous powers. However, they tended to monopolize them among themselves. Some people weren¡¯t happy with that arrangement but, honestly, Percy understood where the gods were coming from. After all, they were the ones who fought tooth and nail to protect them all. Plus, they were spoils of war, so they did deserve to keep them.


    ¡°You may be wondering why we¡¯re being so generous all of a sudden, but that will become clear once I describe the properties of this bizarre item we have recently procured. It¡¯s called the Lotus of a Myriad Rivers. Although, strictly speaking it¡¯s not the lotus itself we¡¯re in possession of, but the seed of one.


    In any case, as you may imagine, this object is not native to Remior. It¡¯s something we¡¯ve competed against rival races to obtain from a recently vanquished world. And its effect is something you¡¯ve all dreamt of at point in your lives. . This is something that ¡¯ all dreamt about ¨C including many of our gods. After all, once the lotus fully blossoms, it can !¡±


    It was Percy¡¯s turn to draw a sharp breath at that revelation. This was something that had truly bothered him ever since he discovered his second core¡¯s affinity. He¡¯d long hypothesised he might be able to find a solution out there in his travels. But he couldn¡¯t have predicted the solution would present itself to him back at home, in such a manner!


    ¡°Now here¡¯s the catch. As the name of the plant implies, you can¡¯t exactly get whatever affinity piques your fancy. Once consumed, a petal of the lotus will add a water affinity to one¡¯s core. According to our current understanding, it won¡¯t do anything if you already possess the water affinity. Neither will it work with the rare or composite ones. However, it does work with other elemental affinities, merging with them. In other words, if you have a fire or earth affinity, you will end up with steam or mud respectively, and so on.¡±


    Percy grimaced at that. Those who lacked an affinity like him were already 20% of the population, but now he¡¯d also have to compete with those with fire, earth, air or lightning. It meant about 84% of the people on Remior would want a petal¡­


    ¡°Yes, as you have probably realized, almost everyone you know can use it. As fate would have it, there¡¯s plenty of it to go around, however!


    Once again, the name of the treasure might have already clued you in, but the lotus will generate a total of 10,000 petals when it blooms. And ¨C lucky you ¨C we currently only have about 7,000 members in the Order who can benefit from it.


    In theory, we delay planting the seed until we have more people, but nobody knows how long that would take, as we can¡¯t exactly control the rate by which talented individuals are born. Plus, we are firmly of the philosophy that the treasure won¡¯t do us any good if we keep it in storage forever.


    So, we have already planted it ¨C and the petals will be available for us all in five short years. A blink of an eye for us gods, and even the more competent of you mortals. Still a long time for the Red-born runts though.¡±


    The god chuckled.


    Percy didn¡¯t appreciate somehow being the butt of a joke even during a divine transmission, but he was excited enough to let it slide.


    ¡°Ah, and just in case you smartasses think we haven¡¯t considered storing the excess petals for later ¨C surprise! We are not as dumb as you think!


    Sadly, they will wither away into nothing exactly 23 days, 7 hours, 12 minutes and 45.2 seconds after the plant blooms, no matter what we do. There is no preservation array that can change that. Even time dilation won¡¯t work.


    It¡¯s actually the first time we ¨C ¨C got our hands on this bad boy, but other races have documented trying to cheat the system, only to end up crying over the wasted petals.¡±


    This time, the crowd around Percy erupted into cheers. Of course, everyone understood they probably wouldn¡¯t be among the lucky few to get a petal, but there was still plenty to be excited about. The news that the Divine Order had achieved another important victory gave them all some peace of mind. And, after this, their world would grow stronger still!


    ¡°Yes! We are amazing and all that!¡± Hermes said after a couple of minutes. ¡°In any case, I¡¯m running out of juice for the spell, so let me wrap this up real quick. To summarize, we have this neat thing in the oven that will give anyone with a pure or elemental affinity an upgrade five years from now. There are about 3,000 spots we are willing to share and around 1,000 noble Houses on Remior.


    We have tried to come up with a more elaborate system to decide who gets them but, frankly, we don¡¯t give a shit. So, we¡¯ll just hand three petals to each House and they can do whatever with them. Even if you¡¯re a commoner it doesn¡¯t necessarily mean you are screwed. You can still try buttering up one of the Houses if you¡¯ve got anything of value to give them, but that¡¯s your problem, not mine.


    Ba-bye!¡±

 Chapter 56: Calm before the storm

    ¡°Careful. Careful! Stir it! ¡±


    Percy followed his mentor¡¯s instructions, picking up the pace. However, before he even got the chance to celebrate the broken lumps, more bubbles began to form in the cauldron.


    ¡°Shit!¡±


    It took him a couple seconds too long to remember what he was supposed to do. Brushing his fingers over the rune controlling the temperature, he hurriedly dialled it down a notch, but the mixture was already threatening to boil over.


    SSSS


    A few drops landed outside, soon evaporating into wisps of steam, causing Percy¡¯s heart to clench. Each of those was a wasted contribution point!


    Pinching a touch of powder from a bowl, he tossed it into the concoction, causing the bubbles to die down more quickly. Of course, this wasn¡¯t without cost. Every mistake he made either killed some of the elixir¡¯s efficacy directly or delayed the process ¨C indirectly resulting in a lower yield.


    ¡°Well, that was positively atrocious.¡± Orin said a few minutes later, staring at the useless sludge in the cauldron.


    Percy plopped down on a chair, before wiping the sweat off his brow. He was too embarrassed to look his mentor in the eyes. The alchemist chuckled, patting him on the shoulder.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let this get to you kid. This was your first time trying this. You should have seen me back when I was starting out. It took me a month just to get through the pacification step. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll get it down within the week.¡±


    Percy sighed. Brewing an elixir was nothing like reading about it in a book. There were a ton of things that could go wrong with each attempt, and it was an alchemist¡¯s job to deal with any issues that came up promptly and effectively.


    If he had to explain alchemy to an amateur, Percy would liken it to a song played by two clueless musicians ¨C the nectar and the secondary ingredient. In this analogy, the alchemist was like the conductor, who had to somehow fix the shoddy performance, blending the dissonant tunes into something acceptable. No matter what he did, it would never sound , but he could minimize both the duration of the piece and the number of mistakes that slipped through, to spare the audience¡¯s ears from the pain.


    It wasn¡¯t like the recipes outlined everything perfectly either. The nectar was an organic product, and it wasn¡¯t homogeneous from one vial to the next. There were subtle differences not only between wasps, but even a pair of drops coming from the same gland. Consequently, no two brewing sessions would ever go the same. Percy had to learn to recognize problems before they even manifested, relying on various clues such as faint odours or minor changes in the colour of the mixture.


    ¡°Let¡¯s stop here for today. Technically, we¡¯ve got some time left, but I can see you¡¯re still rattled by the god¡¯s message.¡± Orin said, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    Percy didn¡¯t deny it. He¡¯d known about the existence of gods his whole life, but he¡¯d never seen one in person. Well, that was still true of course, but he experienced one¡¯s spell today, and it was truly eye opening.


    Hermes had somehow affected the whole world with his magic!


    Sure, it wasn¡¯t some apocalyptic spell bringing ruin and destruction on Remior or anything crazy ¨C just straightforward transmission magic. However, Percy still had difficulty picturing the insane amount of mana it should have required.


    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    And then, there were the god¡¯s words. The deity definitely seemed a little long-winded and downright eccentric ¨C Percy didn¡¯t know if that was a common side-effect of divinity. That said, it was the substance of the message that interested him the most.


    It was still going to be difficult ¨C but not impossible. He didn¡¯t have to worry about the 7,000 petals the Divine Order would keep to themselves, or the other nearly 3,000 handed to the rest of Remior. He merely had to snatch one of the three spots in his own House!


    The good news was, of the 500 people in his family, about 60% had been born with the life affinity. He only had to compete with the remaining 200. In fact, there were even fewer, considering 16% already had a water affinity. Elaine and Gawain came to mind. However, there weren¡¯t many Red-borns left in their family. Most of those 170 eligible people had a stronger claim to the treasure than him.


    He¡¯d rather not deal with the fallout of such a rash move, but he wouldn¡¯t pass up a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity just to keep a secret. In any case, he had five years to figure something out.


    ¡°Sir, are you going to compete for a petal too?¡±


    Orin appeared to ponder over his question for a few moments.


    ¡°I . But I don¡¯t think I will, no.¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°Well, Hermes didn¡¯t say anything about giving the Guild any petals. That¡¯s probably because all our members are nobles, so they can all just go back to their family for the event. However, my House was destroyed a long time ago.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯re a senior alchemist! And forgive me for putting it so bluntly, but you¡¯ve said it yourself that you¡¯re loaded! Surely you can cut a deal with one of the smaller Houses!¡±


    Orin nodded.


    ¡°Indeed, that¡¯s why I said I do it. And truth be told, it would be fun to upgrade my fire affinity to steam. It would certainly give me a fun toy to play around in my old age. Hahaha!¡±


    ¡°But it won¡¯t affect my alchemy, and I can¡¯t even remember the last time I got into a fight. I don¡¯t need this, so I¡¯d rather leave it for somebody who does. What about you?¡±


    Percy smiled wryly.


    ¡°I have a soul affinity already. Also, I can think of an uncle or two who would lose their shit if a Red-born like me got a petal.¡±


    Lying to his mentor ¨C even if only by omission ¨C felt wrong. Especially given how much Orin had done for him. But Percy hadn¡¯t known him for long, so he couldn¡¯t risk telling him about his second core. He¡¯d already reported his soul affinity to the Guild too. On paper, he had neither the need nor the means to compete for a petal, so he¡¯d have to play the part.


    ¡°Percy.¡± Orin spoke in a sombre tone. ¡°Don¡¯t leave the Guild in the next five years.¡± S~ea??h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Huh? Why not?¡± the young man asked.


    ¡°This announcement sounds like a good thing¡­ And, well¡­ It a good thing, for the most part.¡± the old alchemist said, before elaborating. ¡°However, it will also bring a lot of chaos in the foreseeable future. It¡¯s better to stay out of trouble until it all blows over.¡±


    Percy wasn¡¯t sure he understood. Back when he heard the message, he consider the noble Houses might intensify their conflicts over the petals. However, he quickly concluded they wouldn¡¯t. After all, Hermes said every House would get three of them. He didn¡¯t say you¡¯d get more if you destroyed a rival family. That would be a barbaric message to send, wouldn¡¯t it?


    ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking, but there are plenty of ways to tiptoe around it. For example, what if one House annexed another without destroying it? Or kidnapped important hostages to use as leverage? People have done worse things than that over the centuries. There¡¯s no telling how low some families are willing to stoop in the face of such a treasure.¡±


    Percy swallowed a lump of saliva. If this was true, the world outside the Guild¡¯s walls was going to become even more dangerous than usual. After all, the majority of Blue and Violet cored mages on Remior could instantly grow stronger with a petal, elevating their House¡¯s status. Naturally, they¡¯d do everything to get more of them.


    ¡°Thanks for the warning, sir. I have no intention of going anywhere anytime soon.¡± Percy said.


    Another half-truth. He¡¯d have to return home before the five years were up. However, that was some time away. He wasn¡¯t even remotely close to meeting his goals in the Guild just yet. In fact, he¡¯d barely even begun tackling them.


    After bidding his mentor farewell, Percy leisurely strolled to his place. Since the brewing session had finished earlier than expected, he had some time to kill. It wasn¡¯t enough to go back to the Spire and he was already used to sleeping less, so he didn¡¯t feel the need to go to bed either.


    Instead, he was going to deal with something else that had been bothering him for a while.

 Chapter 57: Nesha

    A ray of sunlight pierced through the blockade, causing her eyelid to twitch. Evidently, even the extra layer of clothes she had clumsily draped over the curtain wasn¡¯t perfect. But alas, she couldn¡¯t be asked to adjust it. The girl ignored the disturbance, shifting on her pillow. A couple seconds later, she was asleep again.


    It was noon the next time she woke up. The intensity of her headache clued her in. Nesha was a bit of an expert in that department. Her body refused to remain asleep any longer, regardless of how hard she pushed. She¡¯d already rested way longer than necessary, but it wasn¡¯t like there was a point to getting up. With a shrug, she remained there, staring at the ceiling for another hour.


    Only when her stomach grumbled did she begrudgingly reach for the glasses on the nightstand. Practically dragging her feet along the stone floor, Nesha made her way to the preservation box. She grabbed a couple oranges ¨C the first things she saw ¨C before peeling them with her mana. Tossing a segment into her mouth, she bit down a little too hard, accidentally sending some juice down her chin. It was a bit too sour for her taste, causing her brow to pucker up. She was also getting sick of eating the same five things over and over.


    Technically, Nesha how to cook. Her father ¨C the patriarch of the Veritas House ¨C had made sure her maids taught her.


    she chuckled.


    Born with an Orange core, she¡¯d never been destined to succeed Janos as the new leader, nor to become a powerful mage. That said, she did have two gifts that were of value to her family. The first was the bloodline. It didn¡¯t matter how high her grade was, or what affinity she had, the Truthseeker ability worked the same way regardless. That¡¯s why she had been brought up learning about trade and psychology. The second was that she was a woman, and she could have made for a useful chip to be given away in a political marriage.


    Sadly for Janos, things hadn¡¯t gone according to plan. Backstabbed by his allies, the man had seen his House crumble before his very eyes. His last ¨C and one of the few ¨C acts of love towards his daughter had been to send her to the Guild to seek asylum.


    It took Nesha another half an hour to dress up and reach the door.


    she wondered as she headed toward her stand.


    Nesha didn¡¯t really care about the contribution points. Her core¡¯s advancement wasn¡¯t a priority for her, nor had she any interest in alchemy. Supposedly, her space affinity could have made her good at hunting, but there was no way she¡¯d ever be powerful enough to hurt her enemies ¨C the ones who ruined her life ¨C by herself.


    Perhaps, she harboured hope of finding a different way to enact her revenge. Maybe, deep down, she believed she could hire assassins or something if she amassed enough wealth.


    Either way, it was a pipe dream, but she could work on it in her own way. She wasn¡¯t going to waste her time killing the wasps one at a time to collect nectar like a brute. Nor was she going to get her hands dirty brewing elixirs. If there was one thing she was confident about, it was her ability to get rich in a more sophisticated manner.


    And yeah, she wasn¡¯t exactly in a rush either.


    Reaching her stand, she took out five jars filled with orange and yellow coins, placing them next to her. Nesha could have emptied them at home of course, but she¡¯d brought the money here intentionally. She understood giving the appearance of a successful business was the key to attracting even more customers. It was why it had taken her longer than she¡¯d liked at the beginning. Then, she rested her face on the counter, forcing herself to take another nap.


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    A few minutes later, a young man in yellow approached. Nesha caught him eyeing the jars, but she wasn¡¯t worried. Nobody was stupid enough to steal in the Guild in broad daylight.


    ¡°Selling or buying?¡± she asked.


    The man smirked at her.


    ¡°Selling. I found a place with dozens of Starry Soldiers clustered together somewhere on the third level. I can tell you the exact location for 50 points.¡±


    Nesha didn¡¯t even spare him a glance.


    ¡°Not interested.¡±


    She resumed her nap.


    The guy slammed his fist next to her.


    ¡°What bullshit business are you running, you slut?! Are you buying information, or not?!?!¡±


    Nesha didn¡¯t bother with him. Neither did any of the passerbys. Everyone was familiar with his type. After not getting a reaction for several seconds, the asshole clicked his tongue before walking away.


    More people approached her in irregular intervals. Many tried to sell ¨C but very few of them were honest. Some were willing to spend a few coins on information. Almost everyone was interested in the third level. It wasn¡¯t like there weren¡¯t Green cores in the Guild, but most of them were veterans who knew the ropes well. Nesha hadn¡¯t made much money from them since she expanded her business to the fourth level.


    She¡¯d known from the beginning brokering information on the Spire wouldn¡¯t be very profitable. That said, it had been less of a hassle to start with. At least, it didn¡¯t require an initial capital nor too much effort. Still, Nesha had amassed more than enough money for her next step. At this point, she was just procrastinating.


    Another guy approached, drawing her attention. She recognized him. Although she hadn¡¯t socialized much in the Guild, the boy had made a slight impression as the only Red-born in her orientation. Since then, she often watched him walk by. He almost never missed a day from hunting. Nesha couldn¡¯t recall seeing him leave ¨C he probably tended to head out early ¨C but she did spot him on the way back nearly every night.


    The young man stopped before her. He was holding something under his arm ¨C a wide plank of wood.


    ¡°Hello there. I¡¯m Percy. You might not remember me, but we joined on the same day.¡±


    Nesha nodded, still waiting to see what he wanted.


    ¡°In any case, I¡¯ve noticed you¡¯ve been using this shoddy sign for a while. I had some free time today, so I figured I could help a peer out.¡±


    He then shifted the plank, showing her its contents. It basically read the same as her current one, but the words had been carved with more care, and it did away with the patchwork.


    She raised an eyebrow. In her experience, there were only two reasons he¡¯d do this. Either he saw her business growing and wanted to ingratiate himself with her¡­ Or, like a typical guy, he wanted to get in her pants. And frankly, Nesha wasn¡¯t interested in either.


    ¡°Why?¡± she asked, barely masking her irritation.


    The boy ¨C Percy ¨C exhaled before speaking.


    ¡°Ok, I know it will sound weird, but I have something to confess.¡±


    Nesha smirked.


    ¡°So uhm¡­ I keep seeing your sign every time I return from the Spire and¡­ It kinda irks me.¡± he smiled wryly. ¡°I mean no offense or anything, but I¡¯d rather look at this one.¡±


    Her jaw slackened at the revelation. She was about to call him out on his bullshit excuse, but her bloodline corroborated his words. The madman was telling the truth!


    ¡°Hello? I hope I haven¡¯t overstepped or anything. You don¡¯t have to use it if you don¡¯t want.¡± he said after a while.


    ¡°Ah, no! Leave it. Ehh¡­ Thanks I guess.¡±


    ¡°No worries!¡±


    The young man waved at her, already walking to the plump guy¡¯s stand.


    Shrugging, she picked up the new sign. It really did look better than the other one. Also, there was more space at the bottom. Pulling the nails from the stand, she removed the previous sign, replacing it with the one Percy had given her. Then, she flipped the old one around, as she carved some new words on it with her mana, before clumsily patching it under the new sign.


    Giving it one last look, she nodded in satisfaction. S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    It read:

 Chapter 58: Soul channels

    Carving that sign for the drowsy girl hadn¡¯t taken him longer than ten minutes. It wasn¡¯t a big deal for him, but it had only proven just how lazy she was, having not bothered to do it herself after so many months.


    In any case, Percy had considered it a great investment of his time. The sheer satisfaction he¡¯d draw by not having to look at that abomination every day would pay dividends for a while.


    Or so he¡¯d thought. One could only imagine his shock upon seeing his work desecrated with a new patch the very next morning.


    Apparently not one who liked owing people, the girl had called him over the following night, giving him a free tip to thank him for the donation. She¡¯d informed Percy of a location on the northwestern side of the Fungal Spire to be wary of. On a map of the second level, she¡¯d circled a couple dozen mushrooms, telling him to avoid wandering there by mistake.


    In terms of elevation, those platforms were much higher than the rest of the second level, bringing them closer to the third. Consequently, Starry Soldiers were known to roam those mushrooms, making them extremely dangerous for an Orange core like Percy. However, they were considered part of the second level on paper, because they could only be accessed from below. Their closest neighbours on the third level were too far away, making it impractical to build bridges between them.


    ¡°Good to know.¡± he¡¯d grinned at the time.


    The girl ¨C Nesha ¨C had only told him out of concern for his safety, but Percy had heard something entirely different from what she¡¯d intended.


    His profits had plateaued for a while now, and he was already considering giving the Yellow beasts a shot sooner or later. What worried him the most was he wouldn¡¯t be able to hunt them while keeping all his trump cards secret, and the third level was always crowded. The location Nesha had so graciously shared would let him do it with the same privacy he¡¯d come to enjoy!


    Percy understood the soldiers would rip him to shreds as he was. He¡¯d only consider approaching them once he could use Circulation with both cores. Sadly, his results in that department were rather mixed. He¡¯d already finished clearing his second set of channels and he was currently busy tempering them. This was the easiest step, as it only involved pushing mana through them, forcing them to expand little by little, until they couldn¡¯t grow any wider. It was the next and final step that stumped him, however.


    Percy had known from the very beginning that each affinity introduced its own variables into the technique, requiring some adjustments to be made. Elaine and Archibald had already learned the hard way, having unblocked a very different network of channels to his own. They¡¯d also been forced to discover the correct pattern for their mana by themselves. In fact, his cousin had still not managed to solve the issue by the time he¡¯d left the Avalon House.


    Consequently, he¡¯d already expected his soul affinity would come with its own set of challenges. However, he couldn¡¯t have predicted just how many roadblocks he would encounter in his quest. First, there was the issue with tempering his soul rather than his body, but luckily his clones had passively helped him do that. More problems popped up back when he began unblocking the channels though. Each affinity might have its own set of pathways, but at least they were typically fixed in place. This wasn¡¯t the case for Percy. S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


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    he¡¯d noted when he first tried opening them.


    The ones he had cleared as a child were still ok, as they branched out from his sternum to his soul¡¯s extremities. In other words, both their ends were anchored in set locations, making these channels relatively static, much like other affinities. In his analogy, they were like the large intestine.


    However, the rest of his channels ¨C the ones that looped around his soul ¨C were a lot more fluid. Like the small intestine, they shuffled around with each ¡®bowel movement¡¯. Their connections were still fixed in relation to one another, but there was a lot of leeway for them to bend and turn, making the entire network look very different from one moment to the next.


    Locating and clearing a single channel wasn¡¯t that hard, but to use Circulation he had to look at all of them at the same time and find a pattern that took the whole system into account.


    Micky sent him an image of his next targets, pulling him out of his thoughts. Shrugging, he began running towards the bridge.


    It would be a few more months until he finished tempering his channels. He sure hoped he¡¯d work out the correct pattern by then.


    Over the next several hours, Percy absentmindedly hunted the Starry Workers along with his familiar. By now, he¡¯d been doing this for so long the arduous task was firmly embedded into his routine.


    Keeping Circulation active with his second core. Tempering his soul channels. Rushing from one mushroom to the next. Forming his weapons. Executing the bugs swiftly. Feeding them to the crow. Extracting the nectar from their glands. None of it required much focus, allowing him to keep thinking about the issue.


    From his experience travelling between worlds, Percy knew that disembodied souls tended to perceive time and space very differently from living people. In that state, a single moment could stretch into days, while a single step could bridge unfathomable distances. In the same vein, it was perhaps a mistake trying to fit his soul and its corresponding channels into the same mould as his body¡¯s.


    He grimaced.


    It wasn¡¯t like he hadn¡¯t tried sensing his soul more deeply in the past. However, inhabiting his own body was very different than drifting outside Remior, or fighting to possess others with his clones. In the latter case, his soul was but a fragment, free to move within a much larger vessel, in constant contact with an external ¨C often hostile ¨C soul. Here, his soul existed alone, in its rightful vessel, without much space to move or anything else touching it.


    Micky called out to him once again. Percy checked the four vials in his pocket. Three were filled to the brim with nectar as the fourth one was a little over halfway there. The sun was also about to set.


    Handing his familiar a rejuvenation potion, he bid him farewell in a hurry, before drinking a diluted elixir and rushing back to the Guild. It was still his first week brewing under Orin¡¯s supervision and he didn¡¯t want to keep his mentor waiting.


    After entering the settlement, he sprinted to the old alchemist¡¯s house. He did grab a Honey Roll, only because he was so hungry he might faint during the session otherwise, but he didn¡¯t have time for a chat with Freddy tonight.


    Nor would he visit the official stores today. Due to alchemy eating into his schedule, he was already earning less than 400 points per hunt, so he no longer needed to stop by every night.


    He barely managed to swallow the last bite of his meal by the time he made it to Orin¡¯s door. He downed the enlightenment potion too while waiting for the man to open.


    ¡°Another busy day?¡± his mentor asked with a smile after seeing his student out of breath once more.


    Percy nodded, having already flushed out all thoughts of souls and mana channels out of his mind, replacing them with a different set of problems. Right now, the only thing he was thinking about was how to mix those damn ingredients properly.


    Making his way to the cauldron, he rolled up his sleeves, fully aware he was going to get his ass kicked here too. But he wouldn¡¯t let this bother him.


    Taking a deep breath, he prepared himself before tossing the ingredients in.

 Chapter 59: Floating

    Percy¡¯s feelings towards his clones had shifted a lot over time.


    His first attempts had been defined by pain and confusion, as he hadn¡¯t had the slightest clue how his bloodline was supposed to work back then. Yet oddly enough, those very trips to the Moirais¡¯ world and Huehue had proven his most successful ones by far.


    Suffice to say, by the time he¡¯d developed a proper understanding of his ability, his greed and anticipation had reached an all-time high. Of course, that had only led to disappointment during his crappy adventure in the gecko¡¯s body, which was soon followed by several equally fruitless trips.


    That said, things had flipped around once more since then. No, he hadn¡¯t found anything else of value, but that was precisely why he had learned to lower his expectations, to the point the shitty bodies and gruesome deaths no longer bothered him.


    If anything, he had slowly come to appreciate the novelty of his adventures. Initially, Percy had pitied his clones, who had to endure all those hardships just so he could benefit. Nowadays, he was beginning to think it was his main body who had drawn the short end of the stick, however.


    And it was with this mindset that clone #13 had embraced his new holiday.


    Things were looking up for him too! He¡¯d found a suitable body fairly quickly and it hadn¡¯t even resisted much ¨C unlike clones #9 and #11 who had imploded before even doing anything. In fact, his new host was even more zen than the lizard, happy to relax and give him the reins. Not out of fear ¨C just pure, unmitigated .


    Percy tried looking down at his body, but failed to even glimpse at his limbs. A curved wall of grey fur was in the way.


    Getting dizzy, he tried to stop rotating. There was nothing to grab against! Though he wasn¡¯t underwater ¨C he¡¯d already experienced that, and this was different.


    After experimenting for a few minutes, he realized he could slow down by stretching his limbs. He still couldn¡¯t see them, but they seemed to respond to his commands all the same. He also had some damn powerful lungs, as he managed to completely halt his movements by the other way!


    By now, he¡¯d also verified he wasn¡¯t falling. If he were, he¡¯d have splattered on the ground already. No, his host was


    Paying more attention to his surroundings, he soon noticed he couldn¡¯t see very far. A light brown fog partially obscured his vision. At first, he wondered whether his host had suffocated or been poisoned to death by the substance. However, he instinctively felt there was nothing wrong with it. As if inhaling the gas was the most normal thing in the world.


    Percy took a few deep breaths, enjoying the flavour. Even if it was harmful¡­ Who cared, right?


    Next, he remembered his purpose here, opening his Status.


    Percival''s clone


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Yellow ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude]


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[??? (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.


    He nodded, not seeing anything out of place. His host was at Yellow too, making him one of the luckier clones so far.


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    Although, if there was anything of value here, he¡¯d have to look for it. His best means of navigating the environment was to propel himself by blowing air. He didn¡¯t know if the beast had something better in its arsenal, but it refused to share if it did.


    Since his eyes couldn¡¯t peer through the fog, Percy activated Mana Sense, soon getting a couple readings. They were at Orange, so he wasn¡¯t too concerned. Not that he had any clue how to fight in his current body, but the creatures hopefully wouldn¡¯t attack unprovoked.


    He cautiously approached the nearest one, a bizarre animal appearing in his sight. It looked very different to anything he¡¯d seen, but the closest match would be a cat. . . Its body was round like a ball, covered in long, pink, curly fluff. It actually looked ridiculous as it rotated slowly, without a care in the world. Every time its head spun his way, it watched him curiously, with its eyes half-opened and its four ears lazily hanging aside.


    That should be it. After all, why else would it remain so calm when approached by a beast at a higher grade? Although it did appear smaller. Half his radius maybe? Less?


    Percy inched closer, trying not to startle it. His worries were unfounded though, as the furball wasn¡¯t fazed in the slightest. When he was in front of it, he shifted slightly. Roughly estimating where his paw was, he gave it a gentle shove. Was that rude? He didn¡¯t know, nor care. The creature didn¡¯t mind either, continuing to inhale some fog of its own as it drifted away.


    Well, dream or not, he fully intended to get his time¡¯s worth.


    Falling back to Mana Sense, he moved around, examining a dozen more creatures. They all looked the same, but their fur was either pink, brown or black. He¡¯d yet to find another grey one like himself. And they all had Orange cores.


    In any case, he had to get out of the fog. Harmful or not, he could barely see past his nose. That kinda went against his goal of finding something useful. He decided to descend to the ground, when another question popped up in his mind.


    there was any gravity, he couldn¡¯t differentiate it from the buoyancy holding him up. Not seeing any other solution, he exhaled as much air as he could, causing his body to shrivel slightly. That seemed to do the trick as he began falling a certain direction. After falling a few metres, he inhaled again to slow down. He had no idea how high he was, but he¡¯d rather not turn into meat paste so soon. Luckily, his situation changed after a while.


    The brown fog thinned as he descended, letting him see further. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but he could now vaguely spot land underneath him, as well as some rocky peaks in the distance. He saw more of his species floating around too.


    Shrugging, he continued his controlled fall with more confidence than before, stopping when he was a dozen metres from the ground. The fog still surrounded him, but it wasn¡¯t as intrusive.


    he frowned.


    No wonder the rest of the cat-thingies preferred floating higher. But this wasn¡¯t the time to indulge in alien delicacies, so he simply began moving towards a random direction, parallel to the ground. Hopefully his higher vantage point would help him find something interesting soon.


    ***


    This was getting annoying. Percy had to blow opposite to where he wanted to go, so he was forced to turn around every few seconds. It had already been a few hours since he descended, and he¡¯d travelled a fair distance. His higher grade helped some, although his host didn¡¯t seem to be the fastest flyer. Well, either that or he was doing something wrong.


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    He briefly entertained the idea of giving it a shot, but he shook his head. Inconvenient or not, he¡¯d rather keep his dignity.


    Percy hadn¡¯t found anything either. It was just more rocky plains and hills all around him. He had no idea how far they stretched, and he hadn¡¯t seen any other living beings either. Well, besides the furballs. His species seemed to be extremely abundant in this world. Or this region at least.


    The only slight oddity he spotted was a higher concentration of both the fog and the cats somewhere in the distance. It was difficult to make out, but it appeared there was some large vent there, spewing the brown gas into the air.


    Judging from everything he¡¯d seen to that point, not only wasn¡¯t the substance harmful to him, it was beneficial even. If he approached, he might find something interesting there, or at least he¡¯d get a better taste of the strawberry vapor.


    In the end, he decided to circle around it for now. He could consider returning later if he found nothing else.


    SHREEEEEEE


    Hearing a shrill cry, he snapped his head to the right. A shadow was approaching rapidly, bringing up some bad memories.


    Whatever it was, he knew he couldn¡¯t outrun it, so he began blowing downwards to gain elevation. His only hope was to ascend high enough to lose it in the fog. However, the monster was getting closer much faster than he climbed. He¡¯d never make it in time!


    A few seconds later, he could already make out its features. It was a fierce lizard-like creature, with its two forelimbs ending in large membranous wings. He thought he saw three ruby-like eyes glinting on its face too. And it was five times his size.


    Resigning to his fate, he stopped struggling after noticing the Green core thrumming in the creature¡¯s frame. Yet, when he was sure the monster was about to pounce on him, something strange happened. It just circled around him, continuing on its way, ignoring him entirely!

 Chapter 60: Docile

    Beasts didn¡¯t just ignore tasty meals.


    Not all of them were cannibals, but if they encountered prey of a different species and a lower grade, their reaction was essentially set in stone. So, Percy had no clue why the flying lizard decided to spare him all of a sudden.


    He hadn¡¯t cared at the time, but the creature¡¯s core burned less intensely than it should for its size. The flow in its channels also appeared stilted and the colour muted.


    If it hadn¡¯t seen him nor used Mana Sense, it would explain how he got lucky. Then again, that didn¡¯t sound right. Percy was pretty sure the creature had gone out of its way to avoid him. Not attacking had been a conscious choice.


    His own species were the least aggressive beasts he¡¯d ever seen, and they seemed to thrive off the substance. Either way, there wasn¡¯t enough data to tell for sure. In any case, Percy wasn¡¯t one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Since he got a second chance, he resumed his journey, this time flying higher to more easily escape to the clouds in a pinch.


    A while later, he found something else worth noting. Splitting the plain in half, a river gushed through the stone. It was wider than the Guild¡¯s settlement, and he couldn¡¯t tell what lied at either end as it trailed off in the mist. He wasn¡¯t even sure if it was water flowing through it. The liquid was a light brown colour. If it was water, it was polluted by the same substance permeating the air.


    Percy¡¯s feline heart skipped a beat, as he began tracing the river upstream. If this was drinkable, it should lead him to something alive sooner or later.


    And it turned out to be sooner. He didn¡¯t need to fly higher either, as the new creatures he ran into were land-dwellers this time. One was a mix between a praying mantis and a beetle. The other resembled a scaled leopard. Both were larger than him, glaring at each other with their three eyes, apparently getting ready to tear each other to shreds.


    Approaching them cautiously, he stopped just near enough to check out their cores. They were both at Green, afflicted by the same ailment as the last beast. In fact, they had it even worse.


    A third of the leopard¡¯s channels were completely inactive. On closer inspection, Percy saw the corresponding hindleg was half-rotten. The beast avoided leaning on it too, the paw being suspended an inch off the ground. The bug didn¡¯t look much better, its pathways also a patchwork of holes and dim links.


    Thinking of something, he ascended to the clouds, looking for another of his kin. He flew above the first furball he saw before blowing air the other way, accelerating towards it. Slamming against his much smaller relative, he sent it flying downward. The creature didn¡¯t even resist, just passively letting him push it around.


    It took them a few more bumps and a couple of minutes to return to his previous location. The Green cored beasts were still trying to intimidate each other, but they had yet to make a move. Apparently, they judged they weren¡¯t in a good enough condition to fight.


    Percy flashed the smaller furball an apologetic grin, before shoving it one last time towards the leopard. The much larger beast tilted its head, giving them both a curious look, but didn¡¯t do much else. It just allowed the cat to bounce off the ground right next to it ¨C within striking distance even ¨C without touching it.


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    Then again, the leopard¡¯s reaction wasn¡¯t what he¡¯d expect if a highly toxic creature brushed right next to it. It had merely eyed it in amusement before looking away. S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Shrugging, Percy continued following the river. He had yet to fully solve the mystery, but at the end of the day he didn¡¯t even know if it mattered. They didn¡¯t have the brown substance back on Remior and even if they did, he couldn¡¯t exactly bring this body back with him.


    It took several more hours until he saw something new. However, this discovery truly made his breath quicken. For the first time in over two years, one of his clones stumbled upon sentient life!


    The village was small, the humble huts made of stone. Not the polished, enchanted sort he was used to. Just rough chunks, stacked against each other to form the most rudimentary shelter. Whoever lived here was clearly primitive.


    And he did get a closer look at them, soon enough. These people were mostly humanoid, although their skin was a richer pink. They also had four pointy ears and three eyes, one in the middle of their forehead, much like everything else in this world.


    Not that the patches of beast skin they draped on themselves were particularly fashionable, but it was . Percy internally debated how close he wanted to get to the natives. He wasn¡¯t sure if they¡¯d be as indifferent towards him as the wild beasts.


    Not that it would be the end of the world if they killed him, but it had taken him nearly a dozen clones to find some semblance of civilization. He didn¡¯t want to miss learning something useful by being careless. Who knew how long it would be until he had another chance?


    In the end, he chose to err on the side of caution. He ascended to the clouds once more, before returning with another sacrificial furball to test the waters with. Approaching the village, he shoved the creature in there, this time prompting some exclamations and amused reactions from the crowd. Some pointed at him while a few chuckled or talked to one another. Percy figured they just weren¡¯t used to his species being so¡­ . All the ones he¡¯d seen had been a lot more sluggish.


    Nobody moved to attack him, or the one he¡¯d tossed their way. A kid ¨C a girl maybe ¨C ran up to the furball as it bounced a few times on the ground. She watched it curiously before extending her hand to pet it, when an adult hurriedly grabbed her arm, shaking his head. He spoke a few words Percy didn¡¯t understand, before the girl nodded, continuing to stare at the creature from a distance.


    In any case he¡¯d confirmed it was safe, so he moved closer, inspecting the locals with Mana Sense. He spotted Red, Orange and Yellow cores, in approximately a 40-40-20 ratio. That made them a lot luckier than the people of Remior, as they got Yellow cores twice as frequently. However, Percy didn¡¯t feel any envy towards them. Many of the older-looking folk were still at Red.


    And that wasn¡¯t even where the bad news ended. The villagers seemed to suffer from the same condition as the beasts, all their cores appearing somewhat dysfunctional. The kids had it a bit better than the adults, reinforcing Percy¡¯s guess that the ailment was brought on by their chronic exposure to the fog.


    Well, this was all fascinating and everything, but that still didn¡¯t answer the question of what he should do. One option was to accept that this clone was another dud and leave early. He¡¯d already spent several hours travelling here, and it didn¡¯t look like these people had much to give him.


    But he was disinclined to pick this.


    While wasting time was something he generally preferred to avoid, this was his first time finding sentient life since Huehue. Even though this particular village didn¡¯t seem to contain anything valuable, it did raise the worth of the clone in his eyes. At least, his last ten or so clones hadn¡¯t lived half as long or found anything remotely as interesting. Even if he spent a few days longer than expected, it wouldn¡¯t hurt the main body much.


    Percy doubted the 40 or so people here were the entirety of their species. There were bound to be more out there. That said, he had no idea where to find them, or if they¡¯d have anything more useful.

 Chapter 61: Holy ball of fur

    Over the past several hours, Percy had learned a lot more about the dynamic between his species and the natives of this world.


    While they were prohibited from touching him for any reason, he wasn¡¯t. He had approached and tapped the villagers many times over, always eliciting a smile from them. They seemed to see his presence as a good luck charm, treating him like a guest of honour ¨C no, a sacred creature even.


    In any case, this only made his life easier. Between their overt friendliness and the fact he could survive on nothing but the brown fog, Percy was free to float around the village and observe it to his heart¡¯s content.


    Their understanding of magic was as poor as expected. They appeared to possess the same common affinities he was used to, although he hadn¡¯t seen them cast anything more complex than a Crude spell. He also had no idea if they could be born with rare or composite affinities. Less than 1% of the population had them back on Remior. His sample size here was too small.


    Either way, Percy could see how they survived in such a hostile environment. Even though he¡¯d spotted several Green beasts on the way to the village, such a large group of Yellow and Orange mages shouldn¡¯t have much trouble taking care of themselves.


    He sighed.


    As relaxing as it was floating around and being worshipped, Percy was confident there was nothing to gain here. He was about to wave the villagers farewell, when some commotion drew his attention.


    Flying above the crowd, he saw a distraught father carrying his unconscious daughter in his arms. She looked to be in her mid-teens, although Percy wasn¡¯t sure how well his pre-conceived notions about aging translated to this place.


    More importantly, the girl was afflicted with the worst instance of the disease he¡¯d seen yet, her Yellow core seemingly on the verge of dying out. The man hurriedly brought her to one of the largest huts, before kneeling by the entrance. He then spoke in an anxious tone, probably pleading with somebody.


    Percy wanted to watch how the natives mitigated the poison. Whatever they did was clearly nothing more than a half-measure, as none of them were in perfect condition. Still, he¡¯d be lying if he said he wasn¡¯t curious.


    Someone walked out of the house. An old lady. She was only at Orange, but her core was among the healthiest he¡¯d seen, despite her age. She held two small bowls ¨C carved out of bone presumably. Leaving one on the ground, she tilted the girl¡¯s head up with her free hand, before placing the other bowl under her nose. A green liquid was swirling inside, emanating thick smoke of the same colour.


    Some of it entered the teen¡¯s nostrils, as Percy paid closer attention, using both his regular sight and Mana Sense. Nothing changed in the girl¡¯s core, but she soon creased her brow as if in pain, before opening her eyes weakly a few moments later.


    The old lady picked up the second bowl again. This one contained a fine cyan powder. She spoke a few words to the girl, seemingly explaining something as she pointed first to the bowl and then to her stomach. Next, she gestured to a man in the crowd, who manifested a few drops of water above the powder.


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    Nodding, the girl picked up the bowl, mixing the contents into paste with her fingers before swallowing it. What followed made Percy¡¯s eyes widen. He saw the mana flow from the girl¡¯s core to her stomach and then back, much like what he did on Remior whenever he used an elixir.


    The purpose of the paste was very different. Every time it washed over the core, the latter regained some of its lustre. The change was minute, almost imperceptible. Percy would have certainly missed it if he wasn¡¯t actively looking for it. Even several minutes later, after she was done, the girl¡¯s situation had barely improved. Still, the tension on her forehead seemed to ease slightly. She was also able to stand, albeit with her father¡¯s support.


    The father and daughter both bowed their heads to the old lady, as the former said something in a sombre tone. She didn¡¯t reply, but she made a gesture with her hand Percy didn¡¯t recognize, before returning to her hut. It didn¡¯t take long for the rest of the crowd to disperse.


    Percy was reconsidering his decision to leave. Strictly speaking, all of this was irrelevant to him. The brown fog wasn¡¯t something they had to worry about back home. Furthermore, the effect of the cyan powder was quite underwhelming. He couldn¡¯t figure out what it did, nor did he know if it could be used for anything else. But that was exactly what made him want to learn more. This was the first thing the natives did he didn¡¯t fully understand.


    Having made up his mind, he descended next to the old lady¡¯s hut, peeking inside. It was a little creepy spying into her home like that, but he doubted she¡¯d take offense. The woman was sitting on a piece of stone roughly shaped like a cube, sipping some orange broth from a cup. As expected, she only gave him a smile upon noticing him, not bothered by his intrusion in the slightest.


    Being larger than the rest of his kin, Percy¡¯s host was as tall as one of the adult villagers. However, he was much wider than them, his frame closer to a bear¡¯s than a cat¡¯s. Shrugging, he plopped down, taking a seat on the ground outside. He nearly rolled on his back too, just barely managing to grab the stone wall to keep himself upright. sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The old lady failed to stifle her laughter at his antics, choking on her soup as some came out of her nose. Percy rolled his eyes, but internally suppressed a chuckle of his own. He knew he looked ridiculous.


    Feeling a little peckish, he took a couple deep breaths, greedily sucking all the brown fog he could, savouring its flavour. A few minutes later, the air inside the hut already looked cleaner, as the old lady bowed her head in appreciation. She said something Percy didn¡¯t understand, although he did recognise some of the words of gratitude the girl¡¯s father had spoken earlier.


    Percy made an odd expression. In theory, nothing stopped the locals from kidnapping a few of the furballs to lock in their houses. It wouldn¡¯t fix everything, but they could at least improve their quality of life that way. Would these people rather die than disrespect his kin?


    Getting up, he took another deep breath before exhaling downward, taking off. A few minutes later he returned to the village with two of his younger relatives in tow. The creatures didn¡¯t even struggle as he threw the first in the old lady¡¯s hut, before locating the sick girl¡¯s house and tossing the second one in there.


    Percy ignored the villagers cheering him on as he ascended again, repeating his actions a few more times. Only when he had stuffed a furball in each hut did he return to his spot by the old lady¡¯s entrance, clumsily sitting down again.


    More people surrounded him, eager to express their thanks. However, it wasn¡¯t their gratitude he wanted. Sadly, he didn¡¯t understand their language and he suspected he couldn¡¯t speak it anyway. His rotund frame made it difficult for him to relay his request via gestures too. Furthermore, it probably didn¡¯t help he was immune to the poison, thus having no reason to be interested in its remedy.


    Luckily, he didn¡¯t have to wait for long.

 Chapter 62: Crystal

    It wasn¡¯t easy telling day and night apart on this world. Percy had no idea how many suns there were, as the brown clouds perpetually obscured the sky. Still, it was never dark, as the light seemed to be absorbed and then disseminated by the substance, giving it a permanent glow.


    Suffice to say, he didn¡¯t know how the natives kept track of time. But he guessed it was their equivalent of a night when he saw the old lady go to sleep on the floor, not long after he¡¯d begun observing her. The rest of the village soon grew quieter too, as he turned around to show some common courtesy. He didn¡¯t think she¡¯d mind being stared at, but it felt downright creepy to do that as she rested.


    Several hours later, people started waking up. What drew his attention was a young girl walking his way. She was actually the one who¡¯d tried petting the furball when he first arrived here, only to be scolded by an adult.


    She seemed to have learned her lesson too, as this time she stood some distance from him, eyeing him curiously without daring to move closer. Feeling bad for the girl, Percy patted her head, prompting her to smile brightly, two dimples forming on her cheeks.


    A few minutes later, more kids arrived. This time it was a pair of boys, slightly older than the girl. Probably siblings too, as they¡¯d come together from the same house and looked identical to one another. In fact, Percy was being conservative. He was confident they were twins, but maybe he wasn¡¯t that good at telling the natives apart.


    In any case, they joined the first girl outside the hut. Soon, the old lady also woke up, inviting them all inside. All four of them sat down on the floor, forming a circle. It was quite cramped in there ¨C especially with the cat-creature floating just inches above their heads ¨C but they still left enough room for one more person. Sear?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Nobody spoke as they waited for the final member to arrive. It wasn¡¯t until half an hour later that the man from last night helped his daughter along, escorting her to the old lady¡¯s hut once more. Only after the teenager joined the others in the circle did her father leave.


    This suited Percy just fine, as he looked forward to the lesson. After exchanging a few words with the newcomer, the old lady addressed the rest of the kids. Next, she pulled some mana from her core, forming a cyan blob in her hand.


    The students followed her lead, although the sick girl seemed to have more trouble controlling her mana. Despite having the highest grade in the hut, her condition wasn¡¯t doing her any favours. However, this wasn¡¯t what Percy was focused on.


    he¡¯d rub his paws together if he could.


    Doubling his concentration, his gaze locked onto the old lady¡¯s palm, unwilling to miss whatever she was about to do. Her first move was to will the blob into a solid, forming a cyan sphere the size of a tangerine. Percy nodded. This wasn¡¯t very different from his own constructs.


    However, what she did next made him furrow his brow. She placed her other hand on top of the ball, and then began pressing them both together, trying to squeeze the sphere tighter. The kids also mirrored her actions, but he didn¡¯t pay them any attention, preferring to learn from the expert.


    The strangest part was that Percy wasn¡¯t exactly sure what she was doing. Her muscles were tense and her face red, suggesting some level of physical activity. Yet, her core was also shining a touch more brightly, which typically happened when somebody was using their mana to form a spell.


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    At first nothing changed, making Percy wonder whether they were pulling his leg. However, a minute or two later he noticed the sphere had shrunk somewhat. It contained the same amount of mana as before, but it was denser.


    The old lady kept going. She was already drenched in sweat, but her focus didn¡¯t waver. She was probably used to doing this. Over time, the ball continued to shrink, until it was roughly half its original size an hour later. Only then did she stop, letting the ball roll out of her hand.


    The marble made a crisp sound as it hit the floor, bouncing once before rolling to the centre of the circle.


    In his experience, whenever he stopped paying attention to his constructs, they instantly crumbled into motes of mana before dissipating. But that wasn¡¯t what happened here. The old lady had already forgotten all about the ball, as she was talking to her students, pointing out their mistakes. Yet, the sphere was sitting idly on the floor, giving no signs of breaking anytime soon.


    The old lady only had an Orange core. An injured one at that. Her mana capacity couldn¡¯t compare to a Yellow, let alone a Violet or White, so why did the substance transform this way just by being compressed by about 50%?


    Thinking back to her actions, Percy tried to figure out what she had done to cause this. She had first pulled the mana out of her sternum, manifesting the cyan blob in her hand. At that point, it was still in its fluid state, as that was how mana was stored in one¡¯s core. When in that state, mana could be compressed countless times, which was essentially the difference between different grades. By purifying their core, mages reinforced it, allowing it to withstand more pressure and store denser mana.


    After turning into a solid, the mana resisted the compression more strongly, requiring a lot more effort for even the tiniest deformation. The old lady had probably done this her whole life, yet she¡¯d still needed an hour before the crystal was stable.


    Percy¡¯s attention returned to the kids. It had taken them longer than their teacher, yet most of their spheres had barely shrunk by 20% ¨C a far cry from their goal. The younger girl was actually the best, but even she had only compressed hers by about 25%. All of them were breathing heavily too, their hands shaking.


    One of the boys was the first to make a mistake, his sphere shattering into a cloud of dust. Percy almost thought he had made it, but the powder faded away into nothing not long after. The rest of the kids soon followed, none of them leaving behind much evidence of their efforts, other than a shallow pool of sweat by their seat.


    After giving them a couple minutes to catch their breath, the old lady spoke to them in a consoling tone, seemingly giving them a few words of advice. Only then did she remember the marble on the floor, picking it up before flicking it a couple of times with her fingernail.


    TING, TING


    It showed no signs of breaking, making the children nod in appreciation as Percy considered the implications.


    He didn¡¯t even get a chance to complete that thought, when the old lady smashed the ball with a rock, splitting it in two. She then tossed the pieces in a bowl, before proceeding to crush them both into powder.


    Perhaps the crystal was slightly harder than his regular constructs, maybe not. But it was certainly extremely brittle. Even if Percy ignored the effort required to create it, he doubted his weapons would take more than a hit or two before breaking.


    With his hopes dashed, he had no choice but to keep watching the lesson to its end. The old lady continued to mercilessly pound the crystal for a while longer, until she was left with a pile of the same cyan powder he had seen before.


    She then picked up an oblong piece of bone from the corner of the room. It was hollowed out, looking a bit like a vase. She poured a few drops of water into the bowl, before handing it to the sick girl.


    The teenager then mixed the powder into paste once more, before repeating her actions from the previous night. Half an hour later, the old lady said a few more words to her students before sending them on their merry way.


    Even if every person with a pure affinity learned to do this as proficiently as the old lady, it wouldn¡¯t be enough. In any case, Percy fully intended to observe for a few more days. He had a hunch this trick could help him with alchemy back home.


    Unfortunately, he had no way of knowing what repercussions this decision would have on his main body¡­

 Chapter 63: Emergency

    This was going to be the one.


    Percy had already preserved enough of the nectar through both pacification and redirection. In fact, deattunement was going great too. Just a couple more minutes and he¡¯d finish brewing his first drops of elixir!


    Suddenly, he felt the ethereal cord tense, his consciousness nearly sinking into his familiar¡¯s. He resisted. Percy had grown somewhat better at handling the episodes after nearly a year in the Guild.


    Still¡­


    The mixture boiled over, as the few remaining drops of elixir began to dwindle. Even a couple moments of inattention were more than enough to ruin his efforts. Percy tried his best to salvage some of it, but only slop remained in the cauldron.


    ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re ok?¡± Orin asked in concern. ¡°Your¡­ illness has lasted a lot longer this time.¡±


    The old alchemist had stopped supervising his attempts for the past few months, letting him experiment and learn by himself. However, he¡¯d resumed observing him recently, as his sponsorship was nearing its end and he wanted to evaluate his student¡¯s progress as well as offer some final advice.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s going to pass sooner or later.¡± Percy said.


    ¡°If you want, I¡¯ve got a friend with a Blue core and a life affinity in the Guild. I can ask him to give you a check-up.¡± Orin didn¡¯t relent.


    ¡°Thank you sir, but it won¡¯t be necessary. We have plenty of those in my House and none of them could do anything about my situation.¡± he replied vaguely.


    Orin creased his brow but didn¡¯t insist. They bid each other farewell before parting for the night.


    Percy wondered on the way to his place.


    It had been gone for over a week!


    Of course, he knew this was technically a good thing. It meant he¡¯d finally stumbled upon something interesting enough to warrant looking into. Percy had been over the moon when he first realized his latest venture was a success. That said, the delay was really screwing with both his alchemy and hunting in the meantime.


    Entering his house, Percy was about to take a shower when the connection pulled him again. Instinctively he fought back, but a wave of powerful thoughts and emotions also seeped through the bond.


    Micky was distraught. Afraid. .


    Panicking, Percy was tempted to peer through the crow¡¯s eyes, to see what was happening. Still, he didn¡¯t want to interfere with his familiar in case he was fleeing from something. S~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Without wasting a moment, he grabbed all the healing potions in his room, clumsily splitting them into his pockets, hoping the cheap vials wouldn¡¯t break. Next, he bolted out of his house, sprinting towards the Spire, ignoring the soreness and exhaustion.


    The bird couldn¡¯t spare him much attention, but it still managed to relay some fragmented images. A figure in a yellow robe. Stones flying. An injured wing. Micky hadn¡¯t given him much, but it was enough. Percy already knew where the familiar tended to nest for the night.


    Despite his reassuring words, he was a lot more conflicted internally, however.


    Percy had no idea what madness had driven the Yellow core to roam the first level so late at night. Nor what stroke of misfortune had caused him to attack his familiar. Still, technically that person hadn¡¯t done anything wrong. Sometimes, other beasts besides the Starry Wasps wandered into the Fungal Spire and there weren¡¯t any rules against killing them.


    But if Percy harmed him, he¡¯d be the one in trouble.


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    Even if he came clean with his secrets and explained the situation to the Guild¡¯s management, he doubted it would solve much. Micky might not be a regular beast, but the truth was in many ways worse. He was a member of a foreign race that Percy had smuggled into Remior! Some might even consider it an act of treason. They wouldn¡¯t take kindly to him attacking a member of the Guild ¨C a native ¨C over such a creature.


    Percy shook his head.


    Micky wasn¡¯t just a beast. Or an alien. Or a creature¡­ He was his His


    By the time he¡¯d resolved himself to doing whatever it took, Percy was outside the settlement. Ignoring the bridge leading up to the second level, he ran towards Micky while activating Circulation.


    Micky¡¯s thoughts were sluggish. He was desperately fleeing from his pursuer, but he couldn¡¯t fly very high nor very fast. Every beat of his wings hurt, and he felt cold ¨Chaving lost a lot of blood. At least, the Yellow guy didn¡¯t seem to be in a hurry, only leisurely chasing the bird, knowing it wouldn¡¯t get very far.


    Percy gritted his teeth, picking up the pace. He might have decided to do whatever he could to save his friend, but he had yet to settle on his best course of action.


    As things stood, he only had two viable options.


    He could try reasoning with that person, getting him to back off peacefully. This was the most civilized approach, but also a rather one. There were many details he¡¯d have to gloss over while negotiating, and he had no idea what the other party¡¯s personality was like. If the talks failed, he¡¯d be giving up the element of surprise.


    The other option was a sneak attack. It had worked in the past, but there was no guarantee it would again. Especially given the circumstances. Having freshly sent out a clone, Percy still had some trouble regenerating soul mana by himself. Micky was in no condition to help either. Perhaps he could gather enough for a Parting Gift in the next few minutes, but that would limit him to a single shot. If he missed, he¡¯d be screwed, and it would be too late for negotiations.


    He¡¯d already failed to find the correct pattern for his soul affinity countless times, but there was still some distance from Micky, so he could afford another attempt.


    Intensifying his breaths, he began filling his first core. His injuries pulled the mana, trying to pry it from his control. And he let them. As the mana flowed into his channels, the newly formed vacuum enhanced his ability to draw more from the air, as the colourful motes swirled into his body even more forcefully.


    Soon, an equilibrium was reached, with mana flowing both into and out of his sternum at equal measures, as the hole in his soul began to fill up. This lasted until the injury was saturated. It needed some time to absorb the mana, which caused the drain on his core to weaken temporarily.


    Still, Percy didn¡¯t allow it, continuing to push the mana into his channels, this time intentionally directing it along the latest pattern he had devised. Locating the correct pathways inside the mess was tricky, but he managed to get a grip on them eventually.


    At first, things were going alright, as the soul mana flowed through his soul unobstructed, his body and mind strengthening. However, the channels soon drifted again, making him almost mess up, nearly sending the mana down the wrong pathway. Gritting his teeth, he adjusted his control, focusing on maintaining the correct pattern as the channels continued to shift around.


    Percy would have to constantly pay attention inwards to keep the technique up. It wasn¡¯t practical, but he didn¡¯t want to give up just yet.


    Sadly, he made a mistake a few moments later. Having missed a connection, he sent the mana down the wrong turn, causing the entire flow to collide against itself. An entire section of his soul swelled near his right shoulder, causing some tears to form, as an excruciating wave of agony washed over him.


    ¡°AAAAAARGGGHH!!!¡± Percy stumbled, falling on the ground before rolling a dozen meters in the dirt.


    Still, he didn¡¯t let go of his control just yet, trying to restore the correct pattern. However, another complication emerged. The soul mana now wanted to flood the newly formed cracks, creating a third flow to compete against the other two.


    And it all went downhill from there. More clashes occurred, causing more injuries and just as many rogue flows of mana, soon forcing him to relinquish the technique before it led to irreparable damage.


    he smiled wryly.


    Pushing himself up, he resumed running towards Micky, allowing part of the mana to flood the new injuries as he gathered the rest in his core. At least, he had enough for the Parting Gift now.


    A few minutes later, he finally caught a glimpse of his familiar, flying in an irregular path towards him. In fact, it might be more accurate to say it was leaping from tree to tree, inadvertently banking to his injured wing with each beat.


    Percy ignored Micky for now, hiding behind the nearest tree, pulling a trickle of soul mana into his eyes, sending the rest to his hand. He felt the sickle form, as the pursuer¡¯s silver silhouette casually approached the bird.


    Percy didn¡¯t bother circling around the tree, instead launching the sickle through it. He held his breath as the blade spun soundlessly through the air. It was about to hit its mark!


    At the last second, the pursuer was startled, clumsily leaping out of the way. He only had enough time to move slightly, the sickle still carving a nasty groove on his upper arm.


    ¡°AAAAAAAAAAAGHH!!!¡± the man fell down, clutching his injury.


    However, before Percy had the chance to celebrate, his enemy was back on his feet. This time, he was looking his way. Through Mana Sense, Percy spotted three Yellow masses gathering in the air next to the man, taking the form of spears, pointing towards the tree.


    The sneak attack had failed.

 Chapter 64: Maelstrom

    The spears pierced through the tree like it was made of cotton, barely giving Percy a chance to dodge.


    But his trouble had just begun, as more Yellow mana gathered under his feet. Tilting his body at the last second, he narrowly escaped impalement, though not without a gnarly gash on his upper thigh.


    If this had been higher up on the Spire, his opponent wouldn¡¯t be able to manifest his earth constructs through the surface of the giant fungi. Sadly for Percy, the ground on the first floor was made of dirt and rock.


    At least, Mana Sense gave him the chance to react a fraction of a second early, but even with Circulation, keeping up with a Yellow core was a tall order.


    ¡°What the fuck gave you the confidence to attack me?! And what¡¯s up with the weird mana flow around your abdomen?!¡± the man asked without pausing.


    Percy was too preoccupied trying to survive the barrage of javelins to reply. Another two landed next to his feet, almost pinning him in place. Luckily, he¡¯d managed to step out of their path just in time.


    Squarely at a disadvantage, he tried dodging backwards whenever possible in a desperate attempt to put some distance between them. It would give him more time to react, not to mention giving his familiar an opening to escape. However, even the physical capabilities of his opponent eclipsed his own, letting him casually keep up with him while continuing his relentless onslaught.


    A javelin brushed over his head. It would have stabbed through his skull if he hadn¡¯t ducked. The earth mage made the next one pop up from the ground at an angle, leaving another deep cut right under Percy¡¯s ribs.


    ¡°AAAAAAGH!!¡±


    Returning to the Guild wasn¡¯t an option either. It was too far to outrun him. Percy gritted his teeth. Soul mana was the only thing that could save him, but it took too long to recover normally.


    Still, realizing it was only a matter of time until he made a fatal mistake, he took a deep breath, not giving the mana a chance to settle in his core before pushing it into his channels.


    He didn¡¯t even bother trying to control where it went this time. He couldn¡¯t. Most of his attention was glued to his opponent. His only option was to let it rampage freely until he had enough for another sickle.


    A javelin headed for his eye. This one Percy saw too late. He tried parrying with his backhand.


    The glove shattered on impact, blood splattering from his left hand as the bones inside cracked, sending a visceral wave of pain through his body.


    Percy suppressed a groan, as he continued to evade whatever he could, trying to minimize the damage.


    Several seconds later, enough mana had gathered in his channels to begin clashing with itself. Tears formed on his soul, the new surge of agony utterly dwarfing that of his physical wounds.


    But he didn¡¯t stop it. He didn¡¯t have the luxury to grab a hold of the flow or to delay the accumulation. If he failed to craft his weapon, he was done for regardless. The flow shifted towards the new cracks, putting more strain on his soul. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Wherever the mana clashed, more tears opened. Each fresh wound created its own flow, in a vicious cycle that could only end in a horrific death.


    Percy was too absorbed to care.


    He dodged spear after spear, the cuts continuing to accumulate on his flesh every time he made a mistake. Some were shallow, others deeper, as both his body and soul were on the verge of collapse.


    At this point, he couldn¡¯t even keep track of how much mana he had gathered. Maybe it was enough for the sickle, maybe not. He lacked the mental capacity to form the spell anyway. He could only keep evading.


    Soon, his vision became a blur. He couldn¡¯t make out his surroundings and his heartbeats dominated his hearing. The only thing he had left was Mana Sense, barely providing him enough information to keep dodging by the skin of his teeth.


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    The mana still raged in his channels. By now he couldn¡¯t stop the flow even if he wanted. It rampaged ceaselessly through his soul, tearing and repairing it with each violent gale.


    Percy wasn¡¯t sure he was even alive anymore. He hoped his muscles still responded to his input, but he couldn¡¯t feel them. By now he struggled to even remember the shape of his body.


    For a second, he even forgot where he was, almost thinking he was another clone, trying to possess somebody else.


    The ethereal cord tightened, his consciousness nearly stripped out of his head. Luckily, he was still lucid enough to resist. If he let this happen now, his death would be guaranteed.


    He succeeded, his opponent¡¯s Yellow core coming into focus once again, as he sidestepped another construct.


    Something new appeared in his vision. Surrounding the Yellow glow in the man¡¯s body, a silver silhouette gradually formed.


    More spears. Some flew directly towards him. Others tried to block his escape. A few stabbed from the ground up, in all sorts of insidious angles, trying to catch him unprepared.


    Percy dodged one after another. Fewer scraped him than before.


    Soon, he noticed something interesting. Right before each attack, the silhouette changed.


    Silver flicker.


    Yellow glow.


    Dodge.


    Javelin.


    Another flicker.


    Another glow.


    Dodge again.


    Spear.


    Silver flicker.


    Dodge!


    A Yellow glow.


    The spear changed trajectory at the last second, but evading it was still easier than before. This time the silver silhouette wavered! He was surprised!


    Percy didn¡¯t care, he just continued dodging as best as he could. The man¡¯s intent betrayed his actions before they were complete. The spells grew slower too. At some point, dodging them was effortless.


    Another new sensation took root in Percy¡¯s mind. His hearing. But it wasn¡¯t regular sound.


    Howls of pain.


    It was his own soul, screaming at him in agony.


    Only then did he remember what he was doing. He tossed a fleeting glance at his body. The sight shocked him.


    His soul thrummed in a bright silver, raging torrents rampant through his channels. New tears kept forming. His pathways kept shifting. The flow randomly changed, never remaining constant for longer than a moment.


    Like a maelstrom.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened in horror.


    He dodged another couple of spears before checking his soul again. More tears formed each second, but they were tiny. Every time the potent mana washed over them, they disappeared! At some point, he¡¯d began to outheal the damage, to the point the injuries only managed to change the flow before fading!


    He grinned, shifting his attention to his opponent.


    Another spear stabbed through the ground. Percy tilted his head slightly to avoid it.


    A torrent of mana gushed to his hand, forming the Parting Gift. It was twice as large as it normally was.


    The silver silhouette trembled.


    One more spear pierced underneath Percy¡­ but he was ready for it. Falling forward, he let it stab the air behind him, before kicking it with his right foot.


    Propelling himself, he dashed towards his opponent, with two types of mana empowering his body.


    More javelins formed. Some stabbed at him directly, others tried to cut him off.


    They all missed.


    Percy stepped around them, weaving and pivoting and¡­ dancing!


    ¡°Please, don¡¯t!¡± a shaky voice begged.


    However, the sickle sliced soundlessly through the air without stopping. And just like that, a soul was cleaved in half.


    As soon as the lifeless body hit the ground, Percy wanted to plop down himself. But there were things he needed to do first.


    No reply.


    They had put some distance from the familiar during the fight, and he should have passed out from his injuries. Percy felt the crow¡¯s location through the cord, before tossing the corpse on his shoulder and running towards it.


    While moving, he threw his body another glance. Both his flesh and soul were covered in nasty wounds from head to toe. Fortunately, the adrenaline combined with two instances of Circulation gave him enough energy to stand.


    He reached for the healing potions in his pockets.


    ¡°Ouch!¡±


    He tried again after covering his hands with cyan gloves, grabbing a pile of wet shards. Only one of the vials had survived, the rest having shattered during the fight. In hindsight, it wasn¡¯t that surprising considering even his robes were in tatters.


    Reaching the crow, he pushed a crapload of soul mana through the connection, waking it up. He drank half the potion, before feeding the rest to the bird. It wasn¡¯t that potent, but they¡¯d have to share given the circumstances.


    he said, carelessly tossing the body on the ground.


    Even ignoring how valuable a Yellow core was, they had to get rid of all the evidence of what happened. Percy hadn¡¯t forgotten he¡¯d just committed a serious crime.


    As the bird feasted on the corpse, Percy searched the man¡¯s possessions for anything of value. He found a pouch containing about a dozen elixirs and a couple thousand contribution points. Next, he buried everything else a few meters deep by the time Micky was done. Only a third of the corpse had been consumed, the bird not being large enough to devour the whole thing in one sitting. He¡¯d have to finish the rest tomorrow.


    The two found the nearest tree, before plopping down at its base. Their situation was still precarious given the partially eaten body and the hundreds of stone spears littering their surroundings. If somebody stumbled upon them, they¡¯d get in a world of trouble.


    However, neither of them could summon enough strength to clean up right now. They¡¯d have to do so in the morning, assuming the potion did its job.

 Chapter 65: Aftermath

    Beasts tended to heal fast. Between drinking half the healing potion and consuming a fresh Yellow core, Micky was alright by morning. Percy on the other hand¡­ Not so much.


    he consoled himself, looking at the half-eaten corpse of his enemy.


    At least, he wasn¡¯t dead or in chains. Percy had never been more grateful for the desolation on the lower levels than he was in that moment. His wounds had stopped bleeding too, so he wasn¡¯t in any immediate danger.


    Gritting his teeth, he grabbed against the tree to stand up, before walking to the nearest stone javelin. He only activated Circulation with his weaker core, as he wasn¡¯t in the mood to start tearing his soul again. His channels still burned, but he needed the extra boost to crush the constructs to dust. And there were plenty of them.


    CAW


    The crow wasn¡¯t pleased, as the remains were already devoid of mana. But it accepted the assignment without complaint.


    Percy stomped the first spear to powder, before moving to the next one. There were hundreds in the area where they had fought, plus he¡¯d have to retrace the guy¡¯s steps from when he was chasing Micky. The bastard had paced himself well, launching the projectiles about as fast as he recovered his mana. Even without Circulation, he¡¯d unleashed a lot of attacks without tapping out.


    It was already dark again by the time Percy was done. He¡¯d destroyed most of the evidence of the battle and Micky had eaten the last traces of the corpse. They¡¯d even looked for any lingering bloodstains, burying them underground. If somebody passed through the area in the next couple of days, the freshly dug dirt might look suspicious, but they couldn¡¯t do much about that, other than letting time take care of it.


    Another problem was the tree the earth mage had pierced through at the beginning of the scuffle. Percy couldn¡¯t make the whole thing disappear, so his next best move had been to cut it in half and trim the trunk. At least, that way it wouldn¡¯t be so obvious what had damaged it. It was probably overkill, but he didn¡¯t know if somebody was familiar with the guy¡¯s magic.


    This was his first time missing an alchemy session in the past five months. He¡¯d have to make up a story by tomorrow, but he doubted his mentor would suspect he¡¯d spent the day covering up a murder.


    Then, there was the issue with his current appearance. Between his battered body and tattered clothes, he needed a believable excuse before returning to the settlement. Fortunately, the bandage wrapped around his abdomen still seemed to work, despite a few holes here and there. At least, Micky couldn¡¯t detect the second core through Mana Sense.


    CAW!


    Next, the bird led him to a pile of Starry Drones. He¡¯d hunted them on his own while Percy was busy clearing the evidence. Not for the contribution points of course. They¡¯d already decided to take it easy for the next few days. No, they needed the dead wasps for something else.


    Ripping a strip of fabric from his robes, Percy rolled it up before placing it in his mouth. He bit down, holding a carcass over a wound on his arm. Next, he squeezed its abdomen, causing a drop of purple liquid to drip down from the stinger, splashing along the cut.


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    SSSSS


    A sharp pain instantly assaulted him as he watched his own flesh sizzle and blacken. Intentionally pouring acid into his injuries wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d ever imagined doing, but he had to make them look like they¡¯d been inflicted by the bugs. Percy¡¯s body had gone through a lot of torture over the past day, but his mind wasn¡¯t faring much better. Even now, he couldn¡¯t help but second guess his decisions.


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    The guy he¡¯d killed wasn¡¯t a bandit like Rick. Just a fellow member of the Guild, hunting on the Fungal Spire. . Percy had attacked without even trying to communicate first. He¡¯d done that to maintain the element of surprise, but the sneak attack had failed anyway.


    He didn¡¯t regret doing his best to save his familiar, but he couldn¡¯t help but wonder what would¡¯ve happened had he given that person a chance. Even if negotiations had led nowhere, the fight would have pretty much developed in the same way. But what if he¡¯d agreed to let Micky go?


    Sure, Percy would have still ended up in a difficult situation, with another person knowing at least one of his secrets. That said, it wasn¡¯t necessarily worse than worrying about his crime being discovered.


    It was past midnight by the time he finished mutilating his wounds. Percy was glad he didn¡¯t have a mirror on him, as he was too scared to look at his body. At least, there wouldn¡¯t be too many people awake in the settlement right now. Hopefully, he wouldn¡¯t meet anybody besides the guards.


    ***


    ¡°Gods! What happened to you?!¡± one of the men asked.


    Percy scratched his head.


    ¡°I was an idiot. I heard of a place with Starry Soldiers on the second level and I was dumb enough to try fighting them.¡±


    The two gave him incredulous expressions.


    ¡°Hunting Yellow beasts with an Orange core?! What madness possessed you to do that?!¡±


    ¡°Kid, you¡¯re lucky to be alive!!¡±


    Percy chuckled bitterly.


    He then tried walking through the gate but one of them stepped in his way, blocking his path. Outwardly Percy gave him a questioning look, but internally he was sweating buckets, afraid he¡¯d overlooked something. The guy didn¡¯t seem to notice, however. Instead, he searched his pocket before handing Percy a vial.


    ¡°Use this. I¡¯ve had this for ages, but I doubt it will do me much good. It might work better on you. It¡¯s a healing potion.¡±


    Percy was moved. He was already planning to buy a few tomorrow to fix his body, but the sooner he began recovering, the less unwanted attention he¡¯d draw to himself. He looked for some change in his pouch, when the guard stopped him.


    ¡°It¡¯s on me kid. Just try to be more careful out there.¡±


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Percy nodded in appreciation before downing the green liquid on the spot. He felt his wounds itch for a few seconds, already looking a bit better by the time the effect wore off.


    Luckily, he saw nobody else on the way home. All the stands had already closed for the night. Not that he didn¡¯t crave his daily Honey Roll ¨C Percy was practically starving ¨C but he¡¯d rather not give Freddy a heart attack.


    Reaching his house, he first stopped by his preservation box, stuffing his face with anything edible he found. Only then did he enter the shower, still chewing on a slice of cheese. Peeling what remained of his robes was painful, the fabric already stuck to his wounds in several spots. Many scabs fell out, making him wince. Washing the acid off his injuries wasn¡¯t much better.


    It had cost him 200 points ¨C a hefty sum ¨C most likely due to the self-cleaning enchantments inscribed on the garments. Still, given his secrets, he¡¯d decided it was worth investing in some spare clothes in case of an emergency. Thank Phoebe too. He wouldn¡¯t have to walk around naked tomorrow.


    He¡¯d give the clerk the same excuse as the guards ¨C if she asked ¨C and patch his body up with another potion or two. By then, he¡¯d look as good as new. That way nobody else would see his wounds. He¡¯d only have to repeat his story twice more ¨C to Orin and maybe Freddy, before returning to his routine.


    Overall, he was happy with his odds of getting away with it. Murder was a serious crime in the Guild, but only if he got caught. Nobody ever bothered checking up on people. The chances anyone would notice the Yellow core was missing were abysmal. Not to mention somebody going out looking for him ¨C and on the first floor, of all places.


    Beyond that, it would all come down to Percy¡¯s luck.

 Chapter 66: Hemarakah

    Having been around for nearly two weeks, #13 was Percy¡¯s longest-lived clone so far ¨C at least in terms of time inside a body. Of course, he still fell a little short compared to his predecessor¡¯s trip on Huehue, but most of that guy¡¯s days had been spent shopping for a host, so they hardly counted.


    Either way, Percy confirmed once more that his clones were inherently unstable. No matter how peacefully he possessed their bodies or how much soul mana he invested, they wouldn¡¯t last long before collapsing. Perhaps it also depended on the circumstances of their deaths. At least when it came to old age, there was only so much he could do to stretch their remaining lifespan.


    Consequently, his time observing the primitive village was also nearing its end.


    The crystallization technique was straightforward. Percy had only needed a couple days to understand how it was performed and what the effects of the cyan powder were. Essentially, it was a matter of exerting one¡¯s control over mana to compress the constructs into a denser state. The locals used their physical strength to supplement their willpower ¨C something he would have an easier time doing due to his second core and Circulation.


    That said, this component wasn¡¯t necessary. Advancing to a higher grade would naturally make the technique easier, so he estimated he would eventually be able to perform it without getting his hands dirty. Sadly, this simply wasn¡¯t an option for the locals.


    Either way, the rest of his time had been spent estimating how long he¡¯d need to master the art. It was an important datapoint that would determine whether it was worth focusing on this once he returned home, or whether he was better off waiting until he advanced. And the results were mixed.


    His only consolation was that he was both more hard-working and healthier than the local children, giving him some hope of integrating the cyan powder into his alchemy before it was time to leave the Guild.


    Percy had also grown a little fond of the locals. Every world he had ever experienced had its own share of hardships, but he¡¯d never met anybody as pitiful as these people. The very air they breathed was poison!


    The sick girl¡¯s situation in particular was a true tragedy. Born at Yellow, she would have enjoyed a long and comfortable life in most places. Here, she was destined to die before reaching adulthood¡­


    If this had been any noble House on Remior, her tribemates would have written her off as a hopeless case and left her alone to die a long time ago. But that wasn¡¯t what the villagers had done. They seemed to have a policy of devoting all their cyan powder to the person who needed it the most. Many others were also sick, but the old lady kept all her efforts focused on the girl.


    Not that it helped much.


    ¡°Hemarakah!¡± her father shouted when she collapsed again.


    That was the girl¡¯s name as Percy had come to learn. Despite everyone¡¯s sacrifices, her episodes had grown both more frequent and more severe. At this point, he wasn¡¯t sure if his host would die before she did.


    The man brought her to the old lady¡¯s hut once more. However, the healer was at a loss. The green concoction was no longer enough to wake the girl up and she couldn¡¯t use the powder if she was unconscious. A gloomy mood overcame the small village as a crowd gathered around them. Nobody spoke, but the children¡¯s cries and even the occasional sobs of the adults broke the sombre silence.


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    As Hemarakah¡¯s breaths slowed down and whatever was left of her core began to dim, her father grew even more desperate. Grabbing his daughter, he began shaking her, trying to wake her up. Another person had to intervene to stop him.


    ¡°AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!¡± the grieving father¡¯s guttural scream was the most heart-wrenching sound Percy had heard in any of his lives.


    Someone patted the man¡¯s back, trying to console him. He didn¡¯t react. He just stared at his unconscious daughter, his body trembling. He was either unwilling to miss her final moments, or unable to accept they were forthcoming.


    Suddenly, he stopped shaking. Raising his head, the man looked at Percy. His eyes were bloodshot, a crazy glint shining in his pupils. But there was something else there too.


    Hope.


    Leaping to his feet, the father sprinted towards him, before falling to his knees right underneath the floating clone.


    ¡°Sah kar, el di kin! Di kin!!¡± he screamed, his voice cracking.


    Percy didn¡¯t understand the words, of course, but it wasn¡¯t that hard to infer their meaning.


    Truth be told, he still didn¡¯t know the full extent of his species¡¯ abilities. Could they do more than just filtering the air?


    The old lady soon approached the man, trying to pull him away.


    He resisted.


    ¡°Di kin!! Di kin!!!¡± he kept yelling.


    He knocked his head on the ground over and over, a trickle of blood flowing down his forehead, mixing with tears on his chin. The sight made Percy wince, especially considering these people had an eye on their foreheads.


    Exhaling, Percy floated down, gently stopping him with his paw. He then made his way to the girl. Her life was already hanging by a thread. Percy had no idea if he could help, but what was there to lose?


    Patting Hemarakah¡¯s arm, he quickly noted it was cold. He already knew her sternum was filled with the brown mist. The question was how to get it out of her core.


    Percy asked his host.


    The original owner of his body had remained silent over the past two weeks. He wasn¡¯t sure if he was still even there.


    Against all odds, a response came through!


    Foreign thoughts soon crossed Percy¡¯s mind. He suddenly had some idea of what he was supposed to do.


    Looking at the girl¡¯s father who¡¯d already joined him by now, he gestured for him to open his daughter¡¯s mouth. He then lowered his own, before softly inhaling, focusing his Mana Sense on her core.


    Nothing happened.


    Percy drew a second breath and then a third, in a desperate race against time. Every moment risked being Hemarakah¡¯s last.


    A dark wisp emerged. It was the thickest, deepest brown he¡¯d seen since coming to this world. It was even denser than the clouds above, or the vents spewing the poison into the air.


    Another wisp followed, as the girl¡¯s core stopped dimming.


    A wet cough escaped her throat, as a viscous sludge splattered all over Percy¡¯s face. Part of him flinched, wanting to move away from the discharge. Another part of him, however, the one stemming from his host¡¯s instincts, prodded him to remain in place. If the brown fog tasted like strawberry juice, the sticky liquid was more akin to strawberry jam, its flavour heavenly to his alien tastebuds.


    Either way, the girl kept improving the more of the substance he extracted from the core, as the Yellow light burned brighter with every breath.


    ¡°HAHAHAHAHA!!!¡± the father burst into joyous laughter, as the rest of the villagers erupted into cheers. Sear?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    A few minutes later, Hemarakah had the healthiest core he had seen since coming here, but Percy didn¡¯t stop just yet.


    He kept going, until the core was restored to over 80% of its full capacity, when something unexpected happened. Amidst the bright Yellow glow, a faint Green strand emerged, causing Percy to raise an eyebrow, as the locals gasped and exclaimed in awe.


    Intensifying his efforts, he took breath after breath, as more poison was sucked out of the girl¡¯s core and more strands of Green appeared, one after another, until they began to dominate. By the time Hemarakah coughed out the last drop of sludge out of her throat, a Green core thrummed with power in her chest!


    It clearly wasn¡¯t pure like the nectar they had on Remior, as even the beasts he¡¯d encountered were suffering from the poison. His species were the only ones equipped to fully process the substance. The mana was also rather thin, as it wasn¡¯t visible through Mana Sense. Still, it had to be there, as that was the only explanation for Hemarakah¡¯s advancement.


    ¡°Kerez dim laat!!¡± the man said, drawing Percy¡¯s attention.


    His daughter soon echoed his words. Nodding, Percy then looked at the rest of the villagers, noticing all their eyes were sparkling as they gazed at him.


    He chuckled.

 Chapter 67: Vent

    It took Percy several more hours to cure the rest of the villagers. Not all of them advanced like the girl, but many did. Especially the older ones or those with the most poison accumulated in their cores.


    By now, Percy was in a lot of pain, his host¡¯s soul already beginning to crumble. He had to keep shifting his soul mana around the dying vessel to hold it together just a little longer. Despite the pain, a content grin tugged at his lips. He hadn''t known these people for long, and his efforts hadn''t permanently solved their problems, but even this small act of kindness brought him a sense of satisfaction.


    ¡°Kerez dim laat!! Kerez dim laat!!¡± they chanted over and over, their joy surpassing even his own.


    Waving them farewell, Percy took off, determined to accomplish one more task before his body gave out. He doubted it would make much difference, but he wanted to help the locals one last time before returning home. Retracing his steps from two weeks prior, he flew along the river. Before long, his destination came into view ¨C the giant vent spewing brown gas into the air.


    Guessing this was the closest source of pollution to the village, Percy¡¯s plan was to filter as much of the substance as possible before his host expired. As he approached the colossal geyser, he noticed more of his kin ¨C this time including a few larger ones with Yellow cores. However, none had the distinctive grey fur of his host, indicating that the creature he was inhabiting was likely an elder, even among others of the same grade.


    Drawing nearer, Percy¡¯s vision was soon obscured by the dense cloud of gas, but he managed to orient himself toward the hole by tasting the concentration of the toxic substance around him. By now, he had to rely on Mana Sense to locate the other furballs, the population of which grew denser the closer he came to the source of the gas.


    At least, that was the case at first. Past a certain point, the strawberry flavor in the air grew overwhelming, almost reminiscent of the syrupy sludge he¡¯d extracted from the villagers¡¯ cores. As he pressed on, the number of Orange cored beasts began to dwindle. Here, the fog was so thick it was beginning to hinder his movements, the current pushing him back. The sweetness in his mouth gave way to a spicy sensation as his core began to burn. S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Not that he cared much about his health ¨C he only had minutes left anyway. Unlike his Yellow cored kin, who were unwilling to venture further, Percy pressed onward, diving deeper against the flow. Ignoring the pain in his sternum, he took deep breaths, trying to rid the world of as much of the toxic gas as he could manage as a final gift to the villagers.


    The remnants of his host¡¯s soul began to shatter, the knots of soul mana unravelling. Percy could already feel the ethereal cord linking him to his main body on Remior pulling him back. He resisted for as long as he could, until it seemed he was about to lose the battle, when something changed.


    His body began to burn more intensely than before, internal pressure threatening to tear him apart. Percy grinned, recognizing the sensation ¨C one his familiar had experienced in the past. Looking inward, he quickly confirmed his suspicion. His body was saturated with dense Yellow mana, though parts of it were dimmer than others. His organs were fighting a losing battle, struggling to purify the toxin into a state his core could handle.


    However, something began to shift as strands of Green mana started to form in his sternum. As he had hoped, his host had lived just long enough to reach the boundary of his next promotion. The reckless baptism in the toxic fumes had proven to be precisely the catalyst required to push them over the edge.


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    Soon, the Green strands coiled together, consuming the Yellow mana around them, as his core shifted colours, burning more fiercely than ever before.


    Usually, a core advancement was a joyous occasion. However, this was perhaps one of the few cases where it wouldn¡¯t do anyone much good. The creature¡¯s remaining lifespan would be tripled, but three times zero was zero. It was still going to die within the next minute.


    As for Percy, his host¡¯s advancement only complicated matters, hastening the unravelling of the fragile bonds joining their souls. That said, he hoped to last long enough to harness this opportunity to do some real good.


    he smiled wryly.


    Now that the furball had advanced, they could consume a tremendous quantity of the toxic gas. Strictly speaking, the vent was too large for a single creature to filter by itself, whether it was at Green or even Blue. However, there was one critical exception where a beast could consume far more than normal.


    At the moment of its advancement!


    Back when Micky had evolved to Orange, Percy and the crow had spent all night scouring the Whistling Woods, feeding the bird anything they could find so it could rebuild its body to suit its new grade. This time, the furball had advanced to Green ¨C two grades higher ¨C and its diet consisted entirely of the toxic brown gas.


    Well, Percy intended to find out.


    Fighting against his crumbling body, Remior¡¯s pull and the pressure from the vent, he opened his mouth, inhaling the gas as forcefully as he could. Normally, his lungs would have filled in an instant, but now his body hungrily absorbed every bit of material that entered, breaking down the toxins into nutrients necessary for growth.


    Soon, the clone transformed into a ravenous vortex, greedily sucking in the brown fog like a drain at the bottom of a tub. He could feel his body swelling at an alarming rate, doubling in size within half a minute as the remaining shards of the dying soul grew just as quickly as they crumbled.


    This pace wouldn¡¯t last long ¨C his vessel was already nearing its new limits ¨C but the massive intake of mist triggered another change. The pressure from the vent was no longer enough to push him back, his expanding body beginning to accelerate toward it.


    Having absorbed enough nutrients, the flow of gas began to slow, but Percy refused to let it. He forced his body to continue drawing in every last particle of poison it could, even as he hurtled dangerously toward the ground.


    He slammed into a stone wall with a deafening crash, feeling both bones and rock shatter as the impact knocked the air from his lungs and sent his body rebounding. More impacts followed, each collision wreaking havoc on his flesh as well as the surrounding environment.


    Percy heard more stones crashing down as sections of the vent¡¯s walls crumbled, but he didn¡¯t pay that any heed, focusing solely on maintaining his grip on the dying soul and inhaling more fumes with every ounce of willpower he had left.


    By now, every bone in the furball¡¯s body had turned into mush, as a bunch of boulders fell on top of him, pushing him down. Percy¡¯s lungs felt like they were on fire, the pungent substance overwhelming even his newly upgraded constitution.


    he thought, his consciousness finally slipping out of the dying vessel.


    Percy knew his actions didn¡¯t truly amount to much.


    The furballs he had placed inside the villagers¡¯ houses would leave sooner or later. The cores he had cleansed would eventually end up polluted again, and the poison he had consumed inside the vent would hardly make a dent. And even if he ended up helping out the people in that village, just how many more villages like that were scattered around this world?


    But he didn¡¯t regret trying.


    Everything he¡¯d done would buy these people some precious time. With higher grades, a cleaner environment and healthier bodies, the ones with the pure affinity would be able to produce more cyan powder too, extending everyone¡¯s lives even more. They might still die, but the few years he had bought them mattered. They mattered just as much as when he¡¯d killed Mixcoatl, or when he¡¯d preserved his friend¡¯s soul to create his familiar.


    Percy wasn¡¯t strong enough yet to free the people of Huehue, or to cleanse all the poison in this world¡­


    But he would do what he could, to help as many as he could¡­


    Why?


    Micky was his friend, and he¡¯d grown fond of the natives here too.


    Wasn¡¯t that what magic ultimately was?


    The power to exert one¡¯s will on the world!

 Chapter 68: Alchemist

    Percy stirred the concoction at a modest, yet steady pace. A few bubbles began to form, but not too many. Instead of panicking, he continued going as he had, only carefully adjusting the temperature slightly with his free hand.


    A few seconds later, the foam died down, the mixture settling into a transparent gel at the bottom of the cauldron. Carefully pouring the substance onto a membrane over a vial¡¯s mouth, he watched it distilled into a clear liquid. The droplets made crisp sounds, splashing inside the sapphire bottle one after another.


    ¡°65 drops! Congratulations Percy! That¡¯s over 16%! You¡¯ve improved again!¡± Orin said.


    Letting out a breath he¡¯d been holding, Percy also felt a sense of triumph rising over his achievement. It had already been two weeks since his clone returned, and he¡¯d been able to brew some elixir every day since. His yield had started off at a modest 15%, but it was already slightly higher than that. There was still some way to go before he could be considered a fully-fledged alchemist, but at least the losses were small enough he could stomach them on his own now. A good thing too, as today was his final session sponsored by his mentor.


    ¡°Thank you, sir! I owe everything to your kindness.¡± he said.


    ¡°How many times do I need to tell you to just call me Orin? And no, given how hard you¡¯ve been working, I¡¯m sure you would have reached this point sooner or later. I only helped you get started.¡±


    Percy chuckled.


    ¡°That¡¯s still massive. It would have taken me years to gather enough points by myself.¡±


    Orin patted his shoulder before speaking.


    ¡°In any case, I¡¯m sure you can reach 25% if you keep at it for a few more months. Just promise me you won¡¯t pull off another reckless stunt.¡±


    The young man gazed down at his feet, unable to look the alchemist in the eye.


    ¡°Percy¡­ promise me.¡±


    Orin had bought his lie about getting injured by the Starry Soldiers. That much was unavoidable, as the alternative was confessing to murder. However, what exacerbated Percy¡¯s guilt was that he planned to start hunting the Yellow bugs for real. Now that he¡¯d settled his previous concerns, he intended to put his new strength to work.


    ¡°The most I can promise is to be more careful in the future.¡± he replied after a few seconds.


    Orin didn¡¯t say anything, instead just patting his shoulder again. The two bid each other farewell as Percy left his mentor¡¯s place for the night. Moving forward, he was still allowed to use the old alchemist¡¯s lab, but he wouldn¡¯t be provided with any more free materials or supervision.


    Thinking back to his gains over the past month, he couldn¡¯t help but grin. During his clone¡¯s absence he¡¯d lost a lot of time from hunting, which meant he¡¯d collected much less elixir the normal way. However, adding in the amount he¡¯d looted from his unfortunate victim, as well as the ones he¡¯d brewed himself, he still had over forty vials left.


    Each brewing session started with 400 drops of nectar and currently took him around an hour from beginning to the end. Over the last two weeks he¡¯d reliably earned over 60 drops per session, for four sessions per day, meaning that Orin had allowed him to keep over a month¡¯s worth of elixir. However, his income would take a massive drop now that he had to pay for his own materials. After all, he was still brewing at a loss. He sure hoped his new targets would be profitable enough to cover the difference.


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    ***


    Percy was breathing heavily as he reached the Starry Worker. At least, dispatching it wasn¡¯t that hard ¨C it only took a single swipe of his sickle. He owed his exhaustion to something else. Over the past few days, the young man had practiced activating both types of Circulation at the same time and keeping them going for longer.


    At first, it had been somewhat tricky to recall how he¡¯d managed to get his soul mana flowing that night. The circumstances at the time had been rather unique. Still, he was able to replicate his success after some trial and error. In fact, by now he could even do it without injuring his soul too much in the process. Unlike the cyan lines of pure mana forming static patterns on his skin, their silver counterparts constantly moved around in a chaotic vortex, resembling a maelstrom centred around his sternum.


    In any case, the new version of the art further enhanced his physical capabilities, letting him run even faster atop the giant mushrooms. That alone would have increased the number of glands he harvested, but he figured he¡¯d get the most benefit by taking down the stronger variants. Sadly, the Starry Soldiers were located on the other side of the Spire, so he¡¯d have to spend a few hours running back and forth every day. At least, he and Micky could minimize the wasted time by killing the Orange variants en route to their cousins.


    Percy groaned.


    Killing the workers wasn¡¯t very difficult, so there was no better time to practice new spells than while travelling. The only issue was this particular technique required him to compress his mana over longer sessions. The frequent interruptions every time he had to kill a bug would be annoying. Still, even if it wasn¡¯t very efficient, he could work on it over time.


    Overall, Percy doubted he¡¯d have enough nectar for over two hours of alchemy per day, which meant he would have about 16 hours to hunt on the second level. Of those, one was needed for the round trip from the settlement, while six more would be spent traveling to and from the location Nesha had told him about. He estimated he and Micky could get around 12 workers in that time. That left him about nine hours to hunt the Yellow cored bugs, and he¡¯d need to kill at least seven of those per day to make as much nectar as he normally would.


    The crow still couldn¡¯t speak, but Percy guessed it was likely because it didn¡¯t need to. The bird was already more intelligent than a human child by now ¨C not something a two-year old beast should be capable of. Even more importantly, due to beasts constantly fighting with their bodies, Micky didn¡¯t need any physical training. He only needed to clear his remaining pathways, to temper them and then find the correct pattern for the mana to flow in. Given how smart he was and with Percy guiding him, he should be able to get it down within a few months. In fact, he harboured some hope the process would jog his friend¡¯s memories, making him learn faster, or helping him remember who he was.


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    So once again, Percy had ended up with quite a few projects to work on in parallel. The increased profits from his lucrative prey would hopefully offset the losses from his subpar brewing, allowing him to continue funding one of his cores. He¡¯d keep at it until he surpassed a 25% yield, at which point he¡¯d switch to full-time alchemy. That should eventually get him enough points to cover for both of his cores.


    In the meantime, he¡¯d keep feeding his familiar wasps, working on both Micky¡¯s advancement and his own recovery, so that he could resume sending out clones once a month. The bird would also focus on learning Circulation, which would allow it to hunt the workers on its own when mastered. That would let them split up, focusing on different tasks. At the same time, Percy would work on Crystallization, eventually incorporating the cyan powder into his alchemy. He still wasn¡¯t sure what the exact result would be, but he had a hunch he could use it to improve the elixirs in some way.


    Percy understood he still had a long way to go until he was strong enough to have a real voice in his family. Well, if he wanted to accomplish that without spilling his secrets or hugging baldy¡¯s thighs, at least.


    CAW! CAW!


    Micky suddenly pecked his shoulder, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    They were there. They had finally reached the location of the Starry Soldiers.


    Percy grinned.


    He was about to have his first proper fight against a Yellow cored beast. And with his own body at that.

 Chapter 69: Starry Soldiers

    As soon as Percy overcame the shock of seeing a wasp as large as he was, he thought he¡¯d have an easy time slaying the overgrown bug. Its slick black carapace still glittered with colours like its smaller cousins, but the soldier was large enough that its camouflage was essentially useless. S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    After all, the motes of light slowly falling from the mushrooms above couldn¡¯t possibly conceal the man-sized creature, nor could they obscure the dense Yellow shape thrumming within Percy¡¯s Mana Sense. So, with nowhere to hide and with such a bulky frame, how hard could it be to hit it with his sickle?


    Well¡­


    Near impossible it turned out.


    The soldier¡¯s stinger was about the shape and length of a rapier, delivering a barrage of lunges, trying to turn his head into a kebab. Strictly speaking, Percy didn¡¯t have much difficulty dodging the blows ¨C they were more forgiving than the mage¡¯s stone javelins. Especially with the bug¡¯s soul betraying its intentions ahead of time.


    Still, it was landing his own attacks that proved challenging. Unlike his human opponent who had stood in place like a sitting duck, Percy couldn¡¯t pin the wasp down. Despite its larger frame, the soldier was even more agile than the Orange variants. Hitting it from a distance was a tall order.


    Then, there was the strategy Percy had used against the workers at the beginning. Back when he was weaker, he¡¯d resorted to well-timed counterattacks to dispatch the bugs. Sadly, that wasn¡¯t applicable right now. His only means of defending himself had grown obsolete once more. And there wasn¡¯t much he could do about that.


    Until it advanced to Orange, he¡¯d have to retire his second core entirely. Its only use at the moment was the passive boost to his physique. Although he did have another advantage.


    Side-stepping a stab, Percy tried to bisect the wasp¡¯s soul with his left. It moved horizontally to dodge, but that gave him a chance to throw the second Parting Gift held by his right.


    Thanks to Circulation, he could summon and maintain two of the weapons now!


    That said, the wasp flew up to avoid the second attack. Next, it only stared at him for a moment before diving back to unleash another rain of lunges, trying to take advantage of his missing weapon. Not that he had much trouble evading them, but a similar scene repeated once he finished replacing his second sickle.


    Half an hour later, the two were still at an impasse. The bug attacked whenever Percy was one weapon down, putting him on the backfoot until he recovered. Whenever he did, it was his turn to go on the offense, but the soldier was just as good at evading. If necessary, Percy keep Circulation up with both cores for a couple more hours. Still¡­


    Having Micky distract the creature was out of the question. Percy had already asked his familiar to remain at a safe distance and he had no intention of letting him anywhere close to the monster.


    As Percy was evaluating his options, the soldier suddenly did something different. It flew a few meters above his head, before pointing its stinger down.


    A purple blob emerged from the stinger¡¯s point, soon expanding to a blanket shrouding his view. Leaping to the side, Percy barely managed to roll out of the way as the sludge rained on the mushroom.


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    SSSSS


    The surface of the giant fungus sizzled as a wall of brown gas rose to the sky. The small amount that reached Percy¡¯s nose burned his nostrils, even coating the back of his throat with an acrid aftertaste.


    However, that was just the start, as the wasp fired two more liquid projectiles. This time, it was harder evading them, some of the acid landing on his leg.


    SSSSS


    ¡°AAAAAAGH!!¡±


    Percy hadn¡¯t expected to experience this again so soon. Luckily, it didn¡¯t corrode much deeper than his skin. The substance had spread rather thin during its flight, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t be surprised seeing his entire limb melted into a puddle ¨C bones and everything. Not that it made his situation much less precarious.


    He barely got the chance to roll out of the way of the stinger, as it stabbed just inches from his face. Lodged into the mushroom, the wasp appeared stuck, but it still tried to crush his throat with its limbs, forcing him to keep crawling away. Only when he was a couple meters from the bug did he get the chance to stand up, before dashing towards the soldier, taking advantage of its immobility to finally kill it.


    Percy had thought his latest improvements would make this a walk in the park, but he couldn¡¯t have been more wrong. The acid rain attack was something he¡¯d never seen the Orange variants do. It could have easily spelled his doom if the bug wasn¡¯t limited to three consecutive shots. In fact, if the soldier hadn¡¯t stupidly trapped itself, the fight might have not even ended.


    he shrugged.


    At least, this did give him an idea as to how he could use his pure mana against these creatures. Although it wasn¡¯t strong enough to block their blows or pierce their carapace, maybe he could protect himself from the acid rain with it.


    The familiar didn¡¯t need to be told twice. Tearing into the hard exoskeleton took the bird a bit longer than usual, but it still managed to claw a hole soon enough. It first dug the gland out of the torso, throwing it to Percy with its talon. Then, it dove back into the bug¡¯s sternum, looking for the tasty snack. Percy grabbed the gland. Ignoring his feasting friend, he took a vial out of his pouch. Next, he sliced it open with a knife before squeezing the nectar into the gemstone.


    he counted with glee.


    He¡¯d already known how much nectar the soldiers had on them of course. Still, actually seeing half the vial filled with amber fluid after a single kill was truly satisfying.


    Not that anybody hunted there of course. Most Guild members were already alchemists by the time they reached Green, let alone Blue. By then, they could earn a lot more points brewing than hunting.


    ***


    The wasp fired a blob of acid like the last one. This time, Percy was prepared. Through the passive Soul Vision granted by his Circulation, he dodged the spray before it was even unleashed.


    He could have easily evaded the next two shots too, but he intentionally remained within the splash zone to test something out. Pure mana gushed out of his pores as he swiped his arm, brushing the droplets aside with a wave of cyan. The purple liquid rapidly dissolved the flimsy defence, some of it making it to Percy¡¯s skin. Still, most of it had been blocked.


    he made a weird expression halfway between a grin and a wince.


    He¡¯d rather dodge the attacks entirely than rely on this, but it was nice knowing he had one last layer of protection.


    Next, the soldier dove down in an attempt to poke his eye out. Apparently, this one wasn¡¯t dumb enough to get itself trapped like the last bug. Dodging, Percy tried to land a melee blow, hitting nothing but empty air.


    Not getting discouraged, he quickly threw a handful of silver knives towards the creature. While he¡¯d kept one of the Parting Gifts in the shape of a sickle, he¡¯d decided to branch out by reverting the second one to a bunch of projectiles. Two of them missed, but the last one grazed its side. The silver silhouette shook, the wasp¡¯s movements growing erratic.


    Finishing the injured creature only took a couple more minutes.


    At least, Percy didn¡¯t come close to dying this time. Also, incorporating some level of variation in his arsenal looked promising. Still, he estimated he wouldn¡¯t kill more than six soldiers today. Surpassing his previous spoils would take a few more weeks.


    But he wasn¡¯t too disappointed.


    His gains had been modest when he began hunting the workers too, yet they¡¯d quickly eclipsed what was possible on the first level. Percy couldn¡¯t help but rub his hands in anticipation. After a year in the Guild, his original goal was finally within reach.

 Chapter 70: Second year in the Guild

    More time passed as Percy worked hard on all fronts, improving both his hunting efficiency and his brewing yield. A month after his first fight against a Starry Soldier, he could already reliably kill around 10 of them per day. The difference was rather modest, but he welcomed the opportunity to hone his combat skills once more.


    Before, his efficiency had plateaued as he could already slay the workers near instantly, and his profits had been capped by his travelling speed. Now, he finally had the chance to work on both his stamina ¨C extending Circulation to last all day ¨C and the potency of his magic ¨C learning how to better slaughter the bugs. He also grew better at alchemy, raising his yield to 18%. Between earning 630 drops of nectar per trip and converting most of that into elixir, he could finally fully support one of his cores while still getting a lot of brewing practice.


    But he didn¡¯t stop there.


    Five months later ¨C or about half a year since the end of his funding ¨C Percy was able to hunt 14 soldiers per trip, while his yield had increased to a whopping 23%. He estimated he could have crossed the 25% threshold if he had continued spending four hours on alchemy per day, but sadly he only had enough nectar for about two. Still, he was on the verge of supporting both of his cores when another interesting development occurred.


    Micky finally mastered Circulation!


    As Percy had come to learn through the numerous beasts his clones had possessed, a beast affinity was very uniquely suited for the technique. In fact, that was an understatement. Apparently, blood was the best medium for beast mana to flow in, making one¡¯s blood vessels synonymous with their channels!


    Even more importantly, since beasts didn¡¯t use conventional spells, they didn¡¯t fall into the trap of only clearing the channels branching out from their cores to their extremities. Instead, they passively cleared and tempered all their pathways, their mana constantly flowing through their whole body, always empowering it. Percy had been shocked by that discovery, realizing beasts already used Circulation ¨C albeit a weaker version of it. It had essentially been the truth behind their strength all along!


    It didn¡¯t take a genius to find the correct pattern for the mana to flow in either. It was identical to one¡¯s circulatory system. However, that didn¡¯t mean Micky couldn¡¯t learn to use the full scope of the technique. It only meant Circulation for a beast was equivalent to supercharging their blood flow, a bit like a steroid, drawing even more strength out of their bodies than usual.


    Beasts also couldn¡¯t exactly replenish their mana by breathing like mages did, because ambient mana didn¡¯t contain the beast affinity. They could still slowly draw some mana of other affinities from the air, converting it to beast mana, but it was much less efficient than it was for Percy.


    In Micky¡¯s case, Circulation drew its power from the crow¡¯s flesh and blood. It broke down the body, converting matter to strength. At first, Percy had worried this would have an adverse effect on his familiar. After a few tests, however, he concluded it wouldn¡¯t.


    Perhaps it might be an issue for a beast living in an environment where food was scarce. For Micky who had more wasp meat than he knew what to do with, it wouldn¡¯t be a problem. It only meant he had to eat some more of his preys¡¯ bodies per day, and he¡¯d wake up fresh the following morning. sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The only reason it had even taken the bird so long to master the technique was due to its reluctance. It had needed a lot of convincing from Percy before it was willing to endure the strain of the spell. It wasn¡¯t a pleasant experience, but the familiar quickly came around after enjoying the benefits of the technique.


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    And naturally, that was a game-changer for them. Micky had already been able to easily find the workers before ¨C he just hadn¡¯t been great at killing them. However, his efficiency soared after his upgrade. The crow could now hunt the Orange variants way faster by itself, as Percy only slowed the bird down. On his first day roaming the second level alone, Micky took down over forty wasps, brutally shattering their previous record!


    At that point they split up, with Micky spending all day hunting the workers by himself, while Percy was free to focus on Crystallization as he travelled to the soldiers. They also gathered over 1200 contribution points per day, not only giving Percy enough for both cores, but even letting him save some. Four months later, their hunting trips hadn¡¯t improved much, with Micky capping at around 43 kills per day, and Percy unable to get past 15.


    Still, his brewing yield finally reached 26%, making him a fully-fledged alchemist. According to Orin, he could even take a test if he wanted, to be officially acknowledged by the Guild. It would raise his status if he left one day. It still wouldn¡¯t be on par with a Yellow-born, but he¡¯d receive better treatment than Orange-borns who had never dabbled in alchemy.


    It wasn¡¯t a huge deal, and Percy didn¡¯t see a reason to bother just yet, but perhaps he could consider it when it was time to leave. More importantly, he could now brew elixirs at a profit, and he even had a lot stashed in his house. He had enough to last as a buffer for two months once he stopped hunting.


    It was finally time to make the transition to full-time alchemy!


    At first, it would be less profitable than his current hunting trips, but that would be temporary. By brewing 18 hours per day, he would improve rapidly, meaning he¡¯d continue increasing his yield several times faster. And sure enough, another two months later ¨C or one year after Orin¡¯s funding stopped ¨C Percy reached a 30% yield!


    That was when the improvements truly slowed down, but it was enough. Each brewing session only took him about 40 minutes now, and with such a yield it meant he could now earn 2160 points per day! That was without even including the 645 points Micky got!


    His two original goals in coming to the Guild had already been met. He could now fund both of his cores, and Micky had a perfect environment to keep hunting Orange beasts to his heart¡¯s content. Even better, Percy was making over three times as much money as he needed, so in theory he could fall back and relax for a while.


    He chuckled.


    Percy might have met his initial targets, but there were still many projects he had to worry about. He had continued sending his clones out about once a month, although they¡¯d all returned empty-handed. A couple of them had ended up possessing sentient creatures again, but neither of them had access to anything that couldn¡¯t be found on Remior. Not that it was a bad thing, as he had yet to fully process his gains from the primitive village.


    By now, he could compress the cyan constructs by about 40%. It was still a little short of what he needed, and his improvements had slowed down as he hadn¡¯t had much time outside alchemy to invest in the technique over the past couple of months. Still, now that he was free, he decided to only brew as much elixir as he needed for the next few weeks, spending the rest of his time on Crystallization. He had a hunch it would let him take an important step forward once mastered.


    His other long-term projects included the creation of a Starry Wasp familiar and repairing Micky¡¯s second core. The former still stumped him, as there were way too many impossible problems he had to overcome. Having two ethereal cords at once was already difficult, so he couldn¡¯t even consider creating another familiar without losing the ability to send out clones. Not to mention the issue with stealing a wasp egg from the depths of the Fungal Spire under the noses of Blue and Violet beasts.


    As for repairing Micky¡¯s core, that was more doable. The 1 million contribution points he needed were a lot, but given his current income, they were no longer impossible to amass. Even without any further improvements, he¡¯d get there in less than two years if he saved up all his excess money. Though he still hoped his gamble with Crystallization would pay off beforehand.

 Announcements

    Hi everyone,


    First of all, I want to thank you all for this amazing month! It has been a great Rising Stars run, thanks to each and every one of you for giving my book a chance :)


    Writing The Lone Wanderer was a ton of fun even when I was doing it alone and nobody knew about it. That said, having thousands of people reading and enjoying it alongside me just feels different.


    With that out of the way, I promised you big announcements, so here they come:


    1) Double releases are EXTENDED by one week, until Nov. 7th!


    Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. S~ea??h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    As you all know, the double releases were originally only meant for October, so they were technically supposed to end yesterday. However, as a celebration of the past month, I''ve decided to work hard to keep them up for a week longer. (Also it turns out there''s a writathon starting and I want the badge ;|)


    2) New (lower) Patreon tiers


    Admittedly, I should have had these options from the beginning, but hey, better late than never, right? There are now three paid tiers in total (and the free one).


    So yeah. That''s about it for today. The next chapter is coming out in 1 minute, so just refresh the page a couple of times if the next button is greyed out.


    And remember that Percy''s adventure has only just begun. I promise you that he will continue growing as a mage, just like I will continue growing as a writer, for many, many, chapters to come. The ideas I have for the story are positively endless, and I can hardly wait to write them all, so stay tuned!


    Best,


    PathOfPen

 Chapter 71: Crystallization

    A vein throbbed on Percy¡¯s forehead, his skin already a deep crimson colour. His eyes were shut, to shield them from the annoying streams of sweat pouring down his face. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    His body shook, his muscles having already been locked in their current position for over an hour. A palm was placed on top of the other, both squeezing hard on a glowing sphere with all their strength. Two sets of bright lines pulsed underneath his flesh. The cyan ones were static, drawing orderly curves on his body, while the silver ones constantly shuffled, outlining a violent maelstrom swirling around his sternum.


    Percy gritted his teeth.


    He couldn¡¯t estimate how close he was exactly, but he felt he¡¯d been on the verge of compressing the pure mana into a crystal for the past few days. Today, he¡¯d resolved himself to doing whatever it took to finally cross the threshold.


    And just like that, the young man felt something snap in place, as the cyan marble stopped fighting back a few minutes later. But Percy wasn¡¯t in a hurry to quit, unwilling to risk wasting his efforts. Luckily, he received some additional confirmation of his success not long after.


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new spell: Crystallization ¨C Crude!]


    Finally free to deactivate Circulation, Percy let go of the orb, plopping back on the cold stone weakly. His chest heaved up and down, as he watched the crystal roll away on his room¡¯s floor. Perhaps it would have been more comfortable to do this on his bed, but he didn¡¯t want to get his mattress all sweaty.


    In any case, he was done!


    His lips curled upwards as the last motes of mana seeped out of his pores. It had taken him over a year, but the new spell was finally ready. Opening his Status, he spent the next couple of minutes gawking at it in silent appreciation.


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Pure]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude][Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude][Quarterstaff ¨C Crude][Glove ¨C Crude][Crystallization ¨C Crude][Circulation ¨C Refined]


    ???:


    [???] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[???] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    Percy was pretty sure nobody else on Remior had this many at his age. If it hadn¡¯t been for the various opportunities granted by his bloodline, he knew he would have only mastered a single one by now.


    The Status never bothered registering variants of the same spell if they weren¡¯t sufficiently different from one another. This was why there was only a single mention of Circulation. Also, why his Parting Gift was only listed once, despite all the slight permutations he could cast.


    In fact, the two most similar spells listed separately were his Quarterstaff and his Glove. Strictly speaking, both were just regular constructs of pure mana, although their purpose was very different to one another, as were the principles of their design.


    He still wasn¡¯t sure what the Status was for. He guessed it was meant to encourage mages to branch out, developing distinct lines of magic. As for the spells¡¯ classification, it was probably there to push people to delve deeper into each one.


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    In the end, he shrugged. This wasn¡¯t something he could figure out right now. Nor did it matter too much to him at the moment.


    Pushing himself up, he walked to the marble before grabbing it. It was warm to the touch, but he guessed that was just an artifact of his lingering body heat ¨C from holding it for so long. It was a little sticky too ¨C drenched in sweat ¨C prompting him to wipe it on his robes a few times. Only then did he lift it in front of his eyes, examining it more closely. It was about the size of a cherry, its smooth surface shimmering with a pale cyan light. Percy was tempted to keep the first one as a memento, but his anticipation won out in the end. He¡¯d already looked forward to testing its effects for so long!


    Making his way to the kitchen table, he sifted through his alchemy equipment for a pestle and mortar. Tossing the marble inside, he gave it one final glance, before sealing its fate. Without his willpower and his hands pressing on the sphere uniformly, it shattered rather easily, the brittle material quickly giving way under the weight of the bronze tool. Less than a minute later, Percy was looking at a small pile of powder, reminding him of his short time in the primitive village.


    Had their cores succumbed to the poison once more? They must have. The brown fog was both abundant and fast-acting. Shaking the distracting thoughts out of his mind, Percy walked to the tap, opening it slightly to let a few drops of water into the pestle. Recalling Hemarakah¡¯s actions, he mixed the contents with his fingers, before gulping down the cyan paste.


    Next, he pulled some soul mana from his sternum, letting it swirl inside his stomach for a couple minutes, before moving it back. Originally, his core still burned a little. It had only been a few hours since he consumed today¡¯s elixirs. However, as soon as he pushed the enriched mana inside it, the ethereal organ itched, the discomfort easing slightly.


    Percy hadn¡¯t been certain it would, as his circumstances were somewhat different from the natives of that world. Still, he had persisted in his madness, recognizing the underlying principles behind the two situations were similar. The villagers Percy had encountered had relied on the cyan paste to mend their cores, letting them survive the poison longer ¨C despite lacking the means of purging it entirely.


    Strictly speaking, the damage caused by the brown mist wasn¡¯t that different from what the elixirs did. Of course, the effect of the elixirs was more surgical, designed to target the impurities. Still, the process always left the organ injured, forcing people to wait 24 hours for it to recover after each dose. But if the powder could speed things up¡­


    The question was how much more frequently he could drink the elixirs.


    ***


    A few days later, Percy already had some answers. The cyan paste seemed to merely provide the nutrients his core needed. A single marble was more than enough for his recovery, so consuming more than one didn¡¯t do anything.


    In other words, he couldn¡¯t spam the process to mend the core instantly. No matter what, he was limited to one dose of powder after each dose of elixir. As for the exact recovery period, it seemed to fluctuate depending on when he used the paste. The sooner he did, the fresher the wounds in his core were, making the powder more effective. When he consumed the paste right after the elixir, his core recovered twice as fast as normal!


    his heart skipped a beat.


    Of course, it would also be twice as expensive. Not just that, but he¡¯d also need about six hours to condense enough crystals. That would only leave him about twelve hours to spend on brewing. With his income dropping sharply and his costs doubling, he estimated he would barely keep up with his needs. Suddenly, he felt a little envious of the old lady.


    Percy groaned.


    Granted, her core had been at Orange, giving her an edge when it came to controlling pure mana. She was a lot more experienced than him too. Still, he had his own advantages, so he figured he¡¯d catch up soon enough.


    Calculating the time he¡¯d already spent on his second core; Percy was over two thirds into his next promotion. If he began consuming four elixirs per day, he would get there in under a year! At that point, condensing the crystals would become much easier too. And there was another thing that gave him pause¡­


    Since the effects of the powder improved depending on how soon it was used, Percy had naturally tried consuming both substances simultaneously. The elixir and the paste had mixed in his stomach without issue, but the moment he added his own mana, it all reacted violently, eliminating the potency of both materials before he even had the chance to draw them back to his core. That said, Percy wasn¡¯t too discouraged. He already had an idea as to how he could fix this ¨C he¡¯d just need some time to work on it. If he succeeded, he could speed up his advancement even further!

 Chapter 72: Unexpected visitor

    ¡­DRIP. DRIP. DRIP.


    Tossing the empty gland aside, Percy picked the next one, carving a small incision into the soft tissue before squeezing it over the vial. A few seconds later, he threw another one to the pile ¨C which contained hundreds by now ¨C before moving on.


    Gone were the days when he and Micky spent all their time hunting together on the Spire. Over the past several months, Percy had focused on his alchemical endeavours, leaving the crow alone to tend to its own needs. Nowadays, they only met up once a week, for Percy to retrieve the glands stashed by his familiar, handing him rejuvenation potions in return.


    CAW! CAW!


    the young man grinned.


    He waved at the crow flying rapidly towards him, a small pouch held in its beak. Percy returned to the task at hand, emptying the last couple of glands by the time Micky reached him. The bird landed on the dirt right next to him, as the amber lines on its plumage faded. Next, Micky gently placed the linen bag on the ground.


    Handing a different pouch to the crow, Percy watched his familiar fly excitedly to a nearby tree, the gem vials making clinking sounds as they tumbled inside the cloth. Having learned from his mistakes, Percy now carried even the cheaper potions in the expensive vials, to prevent them from breaking.


    Micky dropped his new supplies in an oversized nest, as the young man opened the pouch the familiar had brought, picking another gland from the fresh batch.


    CAW!


    If Percy dropped everything else and merely focused on making as much money as possible, he could amass enough enlightenment potions in under two years. However, not only would that slow down his own progress, but he also strongly suspected it wouldn¡¯t even be the quickest way. He had a hunch he could make a lot more money once he figured out how to profit from the cyan paste.


    Of course, there were a few obstacles to overcome. First, he couldn¡¯t sell it in its raw form, as that would risk people figuring out how to reproduce it. After all, the only thing one needed was a pure affinity, which was extremely common on Remior.


    In fact, Percy was surprised nobody had discovered the usefulness of the powder before. His guess was that it took too much effort for people under Blue to crystallize their mana. They were unlikely to stumble upon the spell by mistake. As for those above, they were already too fixated on their ways by the time they reached Blue, so even if they accidentally condensed their mana, they wouldn¡¯t necessarily realize the implications. The natives in that world had probably tried everything they could to alleviate their poisoning, stumbling upon this secret out of sheer desperation.


    But people weren¡¯t dumb. If Percy sold the paste directly, it wouldn¡¯t take them long to figure it out. Consequently, he¡¯d have to incorporate it inside the elixirs before profiting off it.


    The next issue was finding a suitable location for his experiments. He couldn¡¯t work on the new recipe in the public labs, so he¡¯d have to come clean to Orin. Percy greatly respected his old mentor, but he also had no idea how the alchemist would react to such a revolutionary discovery.


    Finally, even if everything went well, he¡¯d still have to find a proper avenue to sell the product safely and secretly. After all, he wouldn¡¯t be able to create too much of the improved elixir by himself. If knowledge of it leaked and he couldn¡¯t meet the demand, the Divine Order would skin him alive for the recipe.


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    It wouldn¡¯t be ideal, as he¡¯d be giving up on his advantage, but it would be better than losing his life. Unlike his other secrets, he could claim he had just stumbled upon Crystallization by accident. It wasn¡¯t nearly as exotic as a second core or Circulation, so he wouldn¡¯t have to spill the beans on his bloodline.


    he grimaced.


    Bidding his familiar farewell, Percy returned to the settlement. On the way to Freddy¡¯s, he tossed a quick glance at the spot where Nesha¡¯s stand used to be. It had already changed hands multiple times, the current owner being a Yellow core with a life affinity, offering cheap healing services.


    As for Nesha, she had rented a stone building a long time ago, opening a proper gambling den. It was quite impressive too. Based on what Percy had heard, the Guild charged a lot more when leasing buildings for commercial reasons than they did for accommodation. Not that there was a shortage or anything, but they did it on purpose, to discourage small business owners from renting buildings they didn¡¯t really need. In any case, it only spoke to how much money the girl was making. Percy was confident she was even wealthier than him, despite his recent success.


    he shrugged.


    At least the new owner of the stand had spent a lot more effort on the sign.


    ¡°Oh! Hi Percy!¡± Freddy greeted him with a smile, which quickly morphed into a mischievous grin. ¡°I thought it was your time of the month again.¡± sea??h th§× N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy snorted. His friend had been teasing him about this for a while now. In hindsight, he should have realized altering his schedule for a few days per month would lead to¡­ misunderstandings.


    Not that he could do much about it. This was simply the most convenient timing to send out his clones, taking into account the average length of his trips and the impact they had on his main body. In the end, he¡¯d given up, simply playing into the joke.


    ¡°No, my period is next week.¡± he shot back.


    They stared at each other silently for a couple of seconds. Freddy was the first to burst into laughter, Percy joining him a moment later.


    ¡°There you go man.¡± the plump guy handed him the steaming snack, as the young man paid him a brown chip ¨C worth a tenth of a contribution point.


    Percy held the Honey Roll with both hands as if it was the most precious treasure, biting a huge chunk out of it. He closed his eyes to savour it too, as the crispy dough blended with the warm honey in his mouth.


    ¡°If I hadn¡¯t watched you eat them every night for the past two years, I¡¯d have thought it was your first one.¡± Freddy said. ¡°Haven¡¯t you grown sick of them yet?¡±


    ¡°Never!¡± Percy protested in shock a few seconds later ¨C but only after swallowing.


    The two chatted for a while longer. It was mostly Freddy gossiping, really, as Percy didn¡¯t have too much to talk about, since he tended to spend most of his days holed up in a lab.


    At the end, the young man waved his friend goodbye, but not before buying a second Honey Roll to take home. Part of it was to make a statement, while the rest was just because the things were that damn good. It was late by the time he reached his place. Shockingly, he saw a woman in green standing outside.


    Percy paled.


    He never got visitors, so his mind instantly went to the worst-case scenario.


    Part of him wanted to run, but it would only make things worse. Maybe she was here for something else.


    ¡°Hello? How may I help you?¡± he asked, trying to sound calm.


    It was only now the woman seemed to notice him.


    ¡°Are you Percival Avalon?¡± she asked, prompting him to swallow hard.


    In the end, he just nodded silently. The woman didn¡¯t say anything either, approaching him instead. She placed her hand in her pocket, searching for something. Right when Percy expected her to pull out a pair of handcuffs, she took out an envelope instead, handing it to him.


    ¡°It¡¯s a letter from your House.¡± she said.


    Then she left without even waiting for the reply, as Percy watched her walk down his porch, his mouth agape.


    It wasn¡¯t until a few minutes later that he had calmed down enough to look at the sender¡¯s name.

 Chapter 73: House Tantalus

    Entering his room, Percy gobbled up his Honey Roll swiftly, before taking a quick shower. Only after he was done with today¡¯s chores did he allow himself to sink into his bed, finally taking the letter out of its envelope.


    he chuckled.


    The penmanship was immaculate, and the light indigo paper smelled of lavender. His cousin had clearly poured a lot of effort into this.


    Elaine¡¯s scathing words stung, but Percy couldn¡¯t exactly argue against them. At the very least, he should have let her and baldy know he was alright.


    Still, he decided to contact them more frequently from now on, before diving back to the letter.


    Percy nodded. He didn¡¯t really know Aleyn that well, but he could tell his death still weighed heavily on Elaine¡¯s conscience.


    Either way, the rest of his cousin¡¯s news were much more positive. The ¡®dance moves¡¯ she mentioned were obviously code for Circulation. Percy wasn¡¯t sure how secure these letters were, but Elaine clearly wasn¡¯t willing to take any chances ¨C which suited him just fine.


    That meant she had at least two Refined spells listed in her Status now. That ought to have made her a force to be reckoned with. Even without a bloodline, he doubted any noble their age would be a match for her.


    However, the letter wasn¡¯t over yet.


    Percy gritted his teeth.


    Those were the same people who¡¯d attacked them when he was young. . He didn¡¯t know what exactly the deal was between the two Houses. It seemed to be a complicated mix of an old grudge, territorial disputes and also some drama around their bloodline. But yeah, it didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out why Elaine had decided to contact him all of a sudden.


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    This was in line with Orin¡¯s speculations.


    Elaine¡¯s next words corroborated that.


    Due to the widespread need for elixirs, most noble Houses had frequent dealings with the alchemists. Percy knew his own family needed thousands of doses per month, so a group of Blue cores was given the job of delivering them three times a year.


    No bandit group had the power to mess with such a force. In theory, a rival House could, but none of them were dumb enough to try. Attacking the Guild¡¯s people was tantamount to declaring war on all of Remior. Sadly, the next delivery had been months away back when Micky advanced, so Percy had chosen to take the risk rather than waiting.


    Returning to the letter, Percy quickly noted it contained some more coded messages.


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    Percy grinned. Naturally, he had nothing of the sort. Baldy was clearly talking about the petals. He should have realized Percy would want one, and he was subtly telling him he¡¯d try to make it happen.


    If it was that simple, Percy wouldn¡¯t have needed to travel all the way to the Alchemists¡¯ Guild for elixirs ¨C not to mention something as miraculous as the petals. But Archibald obviously understood this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so he didn¡¯t want his grandson to miss it.


    Percy felt a fuzzy sensation in his chest. Having people who genuinely cared for him was a novel feeling. Though it did exacerbate his guilt over not contacting them sooner. That said¡­


    His relatives¡¯ intentions were good, but they had no idea how much he had progressed over the past two years.


    He wasn¡¯t powerful enough to travel around the world freely, but he could still handle the average bandit group in a direct confrontation. If he ran into someone like Rick and his goons, he was confident he could beat them without relying on his familiar or resorting to a sneak attack this time.


    Percy could brew his own elixirs too, although he had yet to find a way to do it away from the Guild. The nectar wasn¡¯t exported outside the Fungal Spire, so he¡¯d lose his main source of income once he left. Still, if he succeeded in creating a wasp familiar, he could fix that too. Even when it came to the petals, he already had something in mind.


    It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it would be easier than exchanging it for elixirs. While a petal was more valuable, it was also a single-use consumable. He just had to convince one of the three recipients to part with it. It was better than handing the spell to everyone in his House¡¯s management and getting them to keep giving him elixir forever. In the latter case, he¡¯d also have to reveal his second core, and his secrets were more likely to leak the more people he told.


    The man had a lightning affinity, which could be elevated to acid with the petal. His status in the family was the highest too. Still, as much of a prick as he was, he¡¯d probably recognize that Circulation would help him more. Especially if Percy managed to figure the final step of the technique.


    There was also the cyan powder. Getting another Violet core sooner would be massive for his family. Though Percy would rather not spend the next seventy years of his life feeding his uncle the cyan paste twice a day.


    options


    He also had plenty of time to decide.


    Shrugging, he quickly searched through his cupboards for something to write with, eager to get back to his cousin. He did manage to find a quill and a half-empty bottle of ink. Remnants from the previous owner of the house obviously, as he¡¯d never bought any. Percy confirmed the ink was still usable, when he realized he didn¡¯t have anything to write .


    He smiled wryly, before shooting the idea down. There was definitely enough space there, but it would be crass of him.

 Chapter 74: Gabe

    The state of his latest host shocked Percy. On one hand, he¡¯d spent way too long searching for a body, so he had no choice but to compromise. This person¡¯s condition was much worse than he¡¯d like. However, as broken as it was, this was still one of the strongest souls any of his clones had come across.


    Knowing that a good first impression was half the battle, he wasn¡¯t in a hurry to reach out. Instead, he took a moment deliberating how to best introduce himself, unwilling to spook an otherwise promising host. Though he never got the chance. The stranger spoke first.


    This wasn¡¯t among the reactions Percy was expecting, but he didn¡¯t sense any hostility, which was a good sign.


    he explained.


    his host asked.


    Percy would have creased his brow if he had one. While he¡¯d never thought of his clones like that, they invisible, incorporeal and could possess bodies. Functionally, they did fit with what he imagined a ghost to be.


    the spirit sounded amused.


    The response left Percy stumped.


    he asked.


    his host explained.


    The spirit¡¯s words made Percy want to rub his hands. This was shaping into quite the treasure trove already. A powerful host he could communicate with, and a rich world coveted by all. But their body was deteriorating fast, and this person seemed suspicious of him.


    amam he said.


    he hurriedly added.


    His host sent him something akin to a mental shrug.


    Percy was surprised once more. He wasn¡¯t the most altruistic person either, but he wouldn¡¯t be so indifferent if an outsider tried to use him to take down Remior. Still, his host¡¯s callousness made him easy to work with.


    A pang of laughter rang in their shared consciousness, but it sounded hollow.


    the spirit protested.


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    Percy remained silent for a few seconds. It was true his offer was lopsided, but he couldn¡¯t help it.


    They appeared to be at an impasse.


    Percy asked again, unwilling to lose this chance.


    Percy considered it for a few moments. Despite what his new host might believe, he wasn¡¯t exactly an expert on souls. Everything he knew were just bits and pieces he¡¯d discovered by accident. Still, he took this seriously. Technically, he lie to get what he wanted, but deceiving a dying person didn¡¯t sit well with him.


    he ultimately said.


    The spirit didn¡¯t reply right away, taking a few minutes to contemplate Percy¡¯s words. Eventually, he probably realised this was the best he was going to get.


    Percy felt the natural resistance of his host disappear, allowing him to move more freely in the damaged vessel. Seeing that their condition was critical, he stretched his soul wisp, touching as many fragments as he could without delay. Only then did he release some of the stashed mana, letting it flow to the cracks, gluing himself to Gabe.


    Having already sent out over thirty clones, Percy was a bit of a veteran by now. He¡¯d grown somewhat proficient at patching his hosts up efficiently, meaning he didn¡¯t need to use all his mana right away. The rest, he kept as a trump card, in case Gabe needed a follow-up treatment.


    he replied.


    Finally able to tap into the body¡¯s senses, a bizarre sight greeted him. He found himself lying face-up in a spacious room, its ceiling as high as its sides were long. It appeared to be a dark grey cube, over 50 meters wide, entirely made of a smooth metal.


    Bright runes covered all its surfaces, their combined glow more than sufficient to illuminate the place. They were smaller, denser and far more intricate than anything he¡¯d seen before. The symbols were joined together with all sorts of geometric shapes and curved lines.


    If this magical script could be likened to a detailed painting from a talented artist, then everything they had back on Remior ¨C including the glyphs in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild ¨C were nothing more than a toddler¡¯s scribbles.


    shifting a little made him wince, the pain breaking him out of his daze.


    It hurt all over, though this wasn¡¯t his first rodeo. Soon, he filtered out the unpleasant sensation, before gazing down at his body.


    While Gabe was vaguely humanoid, his flesh was transparent. Through their skin, Percy saw an assortment of strange organs decorating the interior of their torso. A pale sphere-like thing pulsed rhythmically like a heart in their chest. It was right behind the bright blue star burning in their sternum. Percy didn¡¯t know what affinity it was, but a quick activation of Mana Sense revealed the core was at Green. As for the rest of the squirming organs, their colours varied from turquoise to deep purple, and Percy couldn¡¯t name any of them if his life depended on it. He also had four limbs ¨C his favourite number to have ¨C but they all ended in just three digits.


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    More concerning was the lack of clothes ¨C other than a pair of brown shorts ¨C and the numerous cuts all over their body, all oozing out a clear, viscous liquid.


    Seemingly oblivious to the novelty of his guest¡¯s situation, Gabe didn¡¯t even register his words, clearly impatient to get himself healed. Without even giving Percy a chance to read his new Status, he spoke.


    ¡°Cube. Restart the ¡®swarm¡¯ challenge. Green level. User ID: 004527945512.¡±


    ¡°Authorization granted. Restarting ¡®swarm¡¯ challenge, Green level. The user has already cleared wave 5. Do you wish to resume at wave 6? WARNING: Wave 6 contains elite enemies.¡± a soulless voice boomed from all around them.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Gabe said, not missing a beat.


    ¡°Choice confirmed. Wave begins in 18 rits.¡±


    Percy protested.


    Gabe shrugged.


    ¡°Wave begins in 12 rits.¡±


    Percy wasn¡¯t sure how long a rit was. He estimated it was a little longer than a second, which meant they were running out of time. Fast.


    ¡°Wave begins in 6 rits.¡±


    Gabe¡¯s words didn¡¯t sound particularly reassuring, but Percy had no choice but to trust him.


    ¡°Wave begins. May your challenge be successful!¡±

 Chapter 75: Wings

    A strange gelatinous liquid oozed out of the walls, the black droplets of sludge pooling at their base.


    Bulky appendages rose from the tar-like substance, before solidifying, making metallic groans as they pushed against the floor. An army of obsidian golems slowly took shape, pulling themselves out of the swamp, each of them as tall as a man. Their features became increasingly defined over time, a series of shallow indentations forming on their surface, before ultimately lighting up in a dim Yellow colour.


    Percy asked.


    He lost count after thirty. Plus, the dark liquid was still pouring down the sides of the cube, showing no sign of stopping anytime soon.


    Gabe replied.


    And just as he said that, Percy noticed a few larger silhouettes coming to life a couple rows back. Even while hunched over, they were twice as tall as the weaker variants, their long arms thicker than a tree¡¯s trunk.


    One of the giants took its first step forward, inadvertently crushing a smaller golem under its fist, a series of bright green inscriptions lighting up all over its smooth surface. The others soon followed, each of their strides sending a tremor through the floor.


    But Gabe was too preoccupied to worry about that right now. The first batch of Yellow golems was already upon them. As for Percy, he understood he¡¯d only get in his host¡¯s way, so he relaxed, relying on Gabe to handle them.


    And handle them he did.


    Before the nearest golem reached them, Gabe¡¯s core lit up, as Percy watched a torrent of blue mana gush through their transparent arms. A bright flash emerged from their palms, soon expanding into a fiery tornado, grinding against a dozen golems, their metallic frames melting like candles under the intense heat.


    Seemingly unconcerned about the devastation, more of the constructs walked into the hellish flames, only to share the grim fate of their predecessors. By the time the fire died out, over twenty golems had been reduced to a second puddle, surrounding Gabe like a donut. Unlike before, a red-hot sheen coated the substance, which showed no intention of returning to life.


    Percy was ecstatic.


    The spell was a lot fiercer than expected. Of course, it wasn¡¯t his first time seeing fire magic cast by a Green core, but Gabe¡¯s flames looked different. Hotter too. He wanted to ask his host about it. However, he suppressed his bubbling curiosity, recognizing their situation was still dire. Gabe had used up a quarter of his reserves already, barely putting a dent in the swarm.


    Percy felt their lips part into a savage grin, as the ambient mana flowed towards them. At first, he thought Gabe was trying to recover a little before the next batch reached them, but he soon noticed that wasn¡¯t it. The mana didn¡¯t enter their lungs ¨C or whatever the equivalent organs were. Instead, it gathered on their back, the region below their shoulder blades heating up. A moment later, another flash blinded them, a blue light reflecting off the smooth walls of the cube.


    Judging from its intensity, Percy guessed the new spell should have completely drained their core. However, he quickly noted he was wrong. It was still at 75%, not a single drop missing compared to a second ago. By the time the light died down, he realized they were hovering a few meters off the ground, a pair of wings flapping rhythmically behind them, holding them up.


    Oblivious to Percy¡¯s questions, Gabe remained in that position a little longer, arrogantly staring down the golems below. Then, he tilted his body, flapping his wings more violently than before, diving with great ferocity towards his enemies. He rolled in the air once, forming another fiery tornado, narrower but denser than the previous one. sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


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    And¡­


    BOOM


    The blazing wings slammed down on the metallic floor, crushing and melting more of the golems, leaving a shallow dent on the ground. Percy felt one of their ethereal appendages crumble under the rough landing, but more ambient mana rushed to repair it. Not that Gabe gave it the chance, as he leapt towards the nearest golem, pivoting on his foot to spin, the half-formed wing slicing through it like butter.


    Suddenly, a tall silhouette loomed over them, its shadow blanketing their vision. The first Green golem¡­ . Its massive fist descended, Gabe barely folding his one remaining wing at the last second, to shield their torso from the impact.


    Half of it was torn off, as Gabe was sent sliding back. Their bare feet burned from the friction against the metal, the blood rolling in their chest, the blow having knocked the breath out of their lungs. Still, the wing had done its job, protecting them from any serious damage. And it was already recovering, as was the other one.


    A wet discharge escaped their lips, as Gabe wavered for a second. While his wing had endured the brunt of the blow, his previous injuries weren¡¯t doing him any favours.


    Still, he regained his bearing a moment later, throwing a quick glance around the room, scanning the army of golems as his gaze briefly lingered on the bigger ones, memorizing their locations.


    Then, he made use of his newly repaired wings, diving back towards the smaller constructs. Over the next several minutes, he methodically took them down one after another, this time making sure to avoid getting close to the taller variants.


    Things seemed to be going well too. A while later, he finished clearing out the cube without any further mishaps, leaving only the Green golems standing. Luckily, they were too slow to catch up. The walls had stopped oozing sludge at some point too.


    those Percy wondered.


    As much as their situation had improved, he guessed the challenge wouldn¡¯t be over until they destroyed the rest.


    Suddenly, one of the giants stepped in a pool left over from its molten brethren. The construct raised its massive arms, stretching them towards Gabe. At the same time, black tar began flowing towards its bulky legs, visible bumps travelling up its body.


    More of the liquid accumulated in the outstretched limbs, as Percy watched them swell, in preparation for something nasty. Gabe was clearly expecting that, as he started running to a wall, circling a different golem, to use its body as cover.


    But he was a moment too late.


    The golem¡¯s hands exploded into a rain of black needles, pelting their location, trying to rip them to shreds. Sparks flew wherever they landed, most of the projectiles bouncing off the smooth floor, as some pierced through, lodging themselves in place.


    Gabe raised his wing to block them, though it clearly wasn¡¯t going to last long. The burning appendage was already full of holes a second later, a couple shards having opened fresh wounds on their body.


    Luckily, they managed to make it behind the construct a moment later, prompting the other to cease firing. Just in time too, as the remaining two golems reached puddles of their own, preparing to join their comrade.


    Gabe explained between pants.


    Percy shuddered, picturing four of the golems shooting at once.


    In any case, it was good they were better prepared, but that still didn¡¯t solve their immediate problem. Their ¡°cover¡± was nothing more than another enemy. It was already slowly walking towards them, forcing them to step back, nearing the wall dangerously. They couldn¡¯t escape any other direction, as the other three were waiting for an opening to shoot. And to make matters worse, there was another puddle in the golem¡¯s path. As soon as it reached it, it would be able to unleash a barrage of its own.


    Thinking of something, Percy moved a trickle of soul mana to their eyes. Gabe raised an eyebrow, but didn¡¯t say anything, letting his guest try this. Sadly, Soul Vision showed nothing. The constructs didn¡¯t have a soul he could target. In fact, they didn¡¯t have a mana core either. Apparently, they were powered entirely through their inscriptions, drawing mana from the cube.


    Gabe asked.


    Percy shot back.


    Percy thought there were more issues to solve than just offensive power¡­ There was also the matter of endurance. Would their mana last for all four of the golems? Also, how would they reached the other three amidst the barrage of needles after losing their cover?


    But he remained quiet, not wanting to discourage his host before they even got through the first hurdle. Shrugging, Gabe ran towards the approaching golem, in a rush to intercept it before it stepped into the pool.


    A huge chunk of mana flowed out of his core, this time supplementing the ambient mana in his wings, causing them to burn even more fiercely than before. Gabe winced, as Percy felt the skin on their back blister from the heat.


    And a moment later, Gabe stepped in front of the construct, pivoting on his foot as a white-hot wing cleaved towards the golem like a giant axe.

 Chapter 76: Complications

    The blazing spell made a grating sound as it clashed with the golem¡¯s fist, encountering far more resistance from the Green construct than it had from its lesser brethren. Percy felt a sharp ache in their back, the torque threatening to rip the ethereal wing to shreds. But it held somehow, digging into the material inch by inch, the dark metal slowly parting under the burning blade.


    More ambient mana surged to repair the axe. Sadly, the same couldn¡¯t be said about Gabe¡¯s own mana, his core already dry. The wing gradually reverted to blue, much of its power gone. Gritting his teeth, Gabe didn¡¯t give up.


    With a final push, he sent the upper chunk of the golem¡¯s arm flying, before delivering a diagonal slash to its torso. The axe had lost a lot of its heat and momentum, but it still managed to dig halfway through the construct¡¯s chest before crumbling into wisps of blue.


    Exposed and at the golem¡¯s mercy, Percy braced for impact, fully expecting to get pounded to a pulp the very next second. Gabe must have thought the same, as he closed his eyes, preparing for the worst.


    But nothing happened.


    They reluctantly opened their eyes to see the golem¡¯s colossal frame still looming over them, unmoving. The green lines on its surface were already dark.


    Percy said.


    His host only nodded in agreement. While they¡¯d failed to bisect the golem as intended, the final slash had still been deep enough to put it out of commission.


    Yet...


    Not giving them a chance to celebrate, the other three golems launched a joint round of fire, no longer concerned with the integrity of their fallen comrade. Gabe barely managed to use the golem¡¯s leg as cover, but the relentless needles were already eating into the metal. It wouldn¡¯t be long before they reached them, assuming the corpse didn¡¯t collapse on them first.


    Percy urged.


    Heeding his guest¡¯s advice, Gabe pulled the ambient mana once more, igniting a blue flame under his shoulders.


    Gabe asked.


    Gabe¡¯s eyes widened in understanding as he followed the instructions. The golem¡¯s corpse was heavy, but they only needed to support a fraction of its weight to keep it balanced. Gabe was at Green, so his physical strength was just about enough.


    The wings barely lasted a second against the torrent of shrapnel, but Gabe kept flooding them with ambient mana, to buy more time. And with their situation temporarily stable, he inhaled, sending a trickle of mana into the empty core, slowly refilling it.


    Of course, this wasn¡¯t sustainable. At this rate the leg would be eaten through, or the golem would crush them before the core was even halfway full. Percy was racking his brain for a plan when something changed. Suddenly, the cacophony of the metallic rain eased slightly, seemingly taking pity on their eardrums.


    Gabe guessed.


    Sure enough, a series of thunderous steps sent tremors through the floor, as the giant started walking around the room, probably searching for another puddle to use as ammunition.


    Percy said.


    Gabe protested.


    Percy felt their features twist into a grimace. Still, his host didn¡¯t argue back, likely agreeing with his logic. He pulled his wings, hiding them behind to let them recover, allowing the needles to grind through the leg faster.


    The half-eaten limb began to buckle, as the golem¡¯s weight shifted, straining their arms dangerously. Their bones creaked and groaned, threatening to break within the next few seconds.


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    Out of time, Gabe pushed some of his newly recovered mana into the wings, turning them white once more. A powerful flap sent him half-way across the cube, well on his way to the next golem. He¡¯d aimed for the one not shooting at them, roughly estimating its location by the sound of its steps.


    The other two quickly turned to him, as Gabe split his mana between the wings, using one to shield himself from the projectiles while aiming the other downward.


    The golem barely raised its arm in time, but Gabe¡¯s momentum allowed him to slice right through it. His axe carved vertically into the construct, splitting its head down the middle, before fizzling out at the base of its neck. And just like that, the second golem was dead, Percy and Gabe finding themselves behind new cover.


    Percy said.


    Their core was empty again, but with one less golem shooting at them, they had more time. Reforming the wings, Gabe hid behind a leg, coating it in a layer of blue flames. Then, he inhaled.


    Or tried to.


    It was only then they realized they hadn¡¯t escaped unscathed. The adrenaline had masked the pain, but now they noticed several needles had penetrated through their defences. Plenty were sticking out of their body, their left side resembling a porcupine. Worst of all was a shard deeply lodged in their lung, making it much harder to recover mana.


    Percy was momentarily unsettled by the alien taste in his mouth. The flavour was metallic but, unlike the sweet undertone of iron, it left a hint of bitterness lingering at the back of his throat.


    he grimly told his host.


    They couldn¡¯t damage the remaining golems with the wings alone. Without Gabe¡¯s own mana empowering the spell, they had no hope of cutting through the hard material.


    Gabe nodded. Each breath hurt and, with only one functioning lung, it took way longer to gather mana. Still, thanks to the weakened barrage, they eventually managed to refill half their core.


    Percy was ecstatic when another of the golems ran out of juice, though he couldn¡¯t help but frown a moment later. His host wasn¡¯t moving.


    he urged again.


    No reply.


    Only then did Percy notice Gabe¡¯s condition had grown critical. By now, they¡¯d lost a ton of blood, and their vision was blurry. His host lacked the strength to execute the manoeuvre.


    the latter said weakly.


    While he had made it look easy, Percy understood it took a lot of focus to combine the two sources of mana. Reshaping the wings into weapons probably required some effort too.


    he asked.


    He still had no idea why Gabe had this ability, but he¡¯d observed him long enough to figure out how to keep it going.


    Without missing a beat, Gabe relinquished control of the ambient mana, passing the reins to his guest. It was a somewhat novel experience for Percy, but he quickly realized it felt vaguely familiar.


    But he shook the distracting thoughts out of his head. This wasn¡¯t the time.


    Gabe soon added his own mana to the wings, reshaping them into a white shield and axe, as Percy sprinted towards the next target. More shards dug into the wing, but with only one golem shooting, the damage was more bearable. Once they reached the construct, Gabe swung the tattered wing to brush its fist aside, before slashing at its neck with the other one.


    Its head landed heavily a couple meters away, as its inscriptions dimmed, making this one of their cleanest kills yet. Plopping down, Gabe rested against the leg, not even bothering to coat it with his wings this time. It would take the last golem ages to pierce through the cover by itself, letting them concentrate on recovering.


    Every time one of them was on the verge of passing out, the other shook him awake, as they waited for the construct to exhaust the liquid pool by its feet. And finally ¨C after what felt like forever ¨C the golem stopped shooting. Not in a rush to exacerbate their wounds, they casually strolled towards it, delivering one last strike, ending the challenge.


    Percy said.


    Gabe replied, before falling to his knees.


    Suddenly, the symbols all over the room lit up, as the cube started repairing itself. The remains of the golems ¨C both the small and large variants ¨C all liquefied, seeping into the floor. Even the shards sticking out of their body melted, trickling down their skin, as more of Gabe¡¯s clear blood gushed out of the wounds.


    Percy groaned.


    A few seconds later, every last drop of sludge had disappeared, the cube¡¯s surfaces having reverted to their former condition, with no sign of the previous dents and scratches.


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 6 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡± the soulless voice was back.


    ¡°Awarded credits: 6000. Current balance: 28563.¡±


    ¡°Wave 6 is a special milestone. Bonus reward is available. Please voice your request. NOTE: Bonus reward is limited to the Green grade.¡±


    ¡°I want my body healed up completely.¡± Gabe strained himself to speak.


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    Gabe explained.


    However, Percy didn¡¯t pay him any attention. He was busy thinking about something else. It was only now he realized their recovery might be riddled with¡­ .


    ¡°Evaluation complete. The request falls well within the parameters of your reward. The excess value will be converted to credits.¡±


    ¡°Accumulating life mana. Healing begins in 6 rits.¡±


    And that about confirmed Percy¡¯s fears.


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 Chapter 77: Decree

    Multiple green symbols lit up underneath their feet. Together, they formed an intricate circle, woven out of the same script decorating the rest of the cube. Gazing up, Percy noticed a similar shape forming on the ceiling right above them, as a beautiful gem glistened in its centre. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    It fell, flying through the air like a verdant droplet, before landing on their forehead. The liquid was cool to the touch, swiftly seeping into their skin. Percy felt an itch snaking down through their body, as cuts and scrapes closed in its wake, the pain fading a moment later. By the time its effect was exhausted, all the injuries above their chest had healed entirely, the discomfort replaced by a gentle chill. Only then did they look up again, watching a second droplet about to coalesce.


    However, things didn¡¯t go so smoothly this time. As the soothing sensation lingered in their torso, latching itself to some of the many wounds marring it, something else stirred inside their body.


    Percy grimaced.


    An all too familiar vortex awakened right around their abdomen, exerting an attractive force on the mana. At first it was weak, unable to sway the substance off its path.


    But it was nothing if not persistent. The pull kept intensifying, until a trickle was finally pried from the wounds. And the very moment the mana reached its new home, all hell broke loose. While the minuscule snack wasn¡¯t remotely sufficient to satiate the vortex¡¯s hunger, it was more than enough to fully whet its appetite. The force instantly quadrupled in strength, as the rest of the mana was violently snatched from its original purpose.


    Gabe asked, only now registering something was wrong.


    Percy said, knowing there was no stopping what was about to occur.


    The third droplet barely landed on their head, before getting sucked right into their abdomen. But the inscriptions appeared too proud to accept their loss, tossing more life mana at their patient, trying to outmatch their new competitor. Little did they know that it was only getting started. The new droplets were gone as soon as they landed.


    The inscriptions were enraged!


    They blinked furiously for several seconds, before rapidly expanding. They didn¡¯t stop until their diameter had doubled! More mana accumulated inside the circle on the ceiling, but it didn¡¯t fall just yet. This time, it waited, gathering more and more of the syrupy liquid, a viscous blob swelling to fill the entire shape.


    Percy advised his host.


    Luckily the hole in their lung was one of the few injuries the first couple of droplets had managed to reach. It wasn¡¯t completely healed, but it didn¡¯t hurt as much when Gabe inhaled. And he was just in time too. Having gathered enough fluid, the inscription finally let go of the monstrous blob, as the mother of all droplets rapidly enlarged in Percy¡¯s vision.


    It was heavy, but not enough to knock a Green core off his feet. The sound was strangely muted too, as the liquid instantly wrapped around their body, hugging it tightly. It seeped through every orifice and pore, desperate to do its job before it got consumed.


    But the vortex never gave it the chance. Almost as if it knew its tasty feast would end the moment the healing was complete, it stubbornly devoured every single hint of mana, much to Gabe¡¯s growing frustration. Worse still, the liquid blocked his air canals, making it impossible to breathe. Gabe didn¡¯t seem to appreciate the minty taste in his mouth either, clawing the bubble out of his face. Sadly for him, more flowed to replace it.


    Percy explained.


    Much like the crimson fluid back in Phoebe¡¯s temple, it was far denser than anything a mortal could produce. This was clearly a god¡¯s mana! And just like back then, the liquid had been in storage for who-knew how long. The will of its original owner had long dissipated, rendering it powerless to resist the gluttonous vortex.


    Percy said.


    But Gabe didn¡¯t seem convinced. He kept squirming, desperate to shake the substance off. At some point, he even tried summoning his wings, but the bubble blocked the flow of ambient mana.


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    This was Percy¡¯s third attempt at placating his host. Out of options, the latter finally paid attention.


    Percy shrugged.


    Resigning to his fate, Gabe sat cross-legged, letting the vortex enjoy its meal. And indeed, the flow died down about a minute later. Freed at last, what remained of the liquid returned to its original job. Though only a fraction was necessary to complete their recovery. The rest, they had to expel the good old way, as the circle on the floor drained whatever mana reached it. Before they were even done spitting out the leftovers, the cube spoke once more.


    ¡°Healing complete. Calculating excess value¡­¡±


    ¡°Excess value: -2432. Deducting credits. New balance: 26131.¡±


    Gabe snapped.


    Percy felt their brow crease.


    Percy said, pulling up his Status. Though he got interrupted before even reading half-way through.


    Gabriel (Percival''s clone)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Green ¨C Fire][Mana core 2 ¨C Yellow ¨C ???]


    Gabe exclaimed.


    Well, Micky hadn¡¯t. Then again, the gladiator hadn¡¯t been privy to much gossip from inside his damp cell. The rest of the places Percy had visited hadn¡¯t been much better. However, this world seemed even more developed than Remior, so it wasn¡¯t that surprising Gabe was better informed.


    he said.


    his host asked.


    Percy shrugged.


    Percy raised an eyebrow.


    A wave of shock reached him through their connection.


    Gabe explained enthusiastically.


    He remained silent for a couple seconds, before adding,


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened. He¡¯d never come across this tidbit of information in his studies. It seemed the Divine Order didn¡¯t publicize everything. Then, was that the secret behind the mysterious section in his Status? Did it list all the Decrees affecting him? One of them was what granted him the ability to view his Status in the first place. Was that a Decree in and of itself? Plus, Phoebe was a titaness. And she clearly had a connection to the Status and the affinity tests. Was it her Decree? Then what about the one granting him a bloodline? Who did that come from?


    All those were things he¡¯d have to investigate when he returned to Remior. For now, his best course of action was to learn as much as possible from his host.


    he couldn¡¯t help but ask.


    Gabe gasped, seemingly taken aback by his question. Almost offended, even.


    he said.


    Percy was already shocked but didn¡¯t interrupt.


    For the next few minutes, Percy pondered the implications. Indeed, all the Decrees he had come across fit the criteria. Every person on Remior had access to a Status and the chance to inherit a bloodline. And the same was true for the Moirai, all of them born with a second core. Decrees were truly world-altering!


    he eventually replied.


    But his host shook his head.


    Gabe said before elaborating.


    Percy frowned.


    Percy nodded. He had already suspected Gabe¡¯s wings to be a bloodline. Unaware of his thoughts, the latter continued.


    Percy asked.


    Once again, Percy came to appreciate just how lucky that first clone of his had been. Of all the places in the universe, it had ended up in quite the spot!


    He grinned, before turning to his host again.

 Chapter 78: Blessing

    Gabe asked.


    Percy replied.


    Gabe frowned.


    Saying that, Percy felt a little envious of his new pal. Why did Gabe¡¯s second core start off at Yellow, when he had to climb from the very bottom?


    Gabe nodded absentmindedly, apparently lost in thought. Confirming his guess, Percy wasn¡¯t very happy. All three of his datapoints suggested one¡¯s second core began at the same grade as their first. It meant Micky¡¯s would be Red too. In any case, that was his main body¡¯s problem. Right now, his job was to make the most of his time here. Thinking of something, he turned to Gabe again.


    It should be more complicated without a Status or Phoebe¡¯s tests¡­


    Ok, that didn¡¯t sound very difficult. Percy couldn¡¯t help but wonder why they didn¡¯t have books like that back on Remior. Then again, all the people got tested for free. Besides, listing their grades and affinities was nothing more than a convenience. The main purpose of the Status was to help them develop their spells.


    Shrugging, he pulled Gabe¡¯s information again, eager to read the rest.


    Gabriel (Percival''s clone)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Green ¨C Fire][Mana core 2 ¨C Yellow ¨C ???]


    Bloodline:


    [Wings] ¨C Create a pair of wings fuelled by ambient mana. Effect varies by affinity.


    Blessing:


    [Blessing of Heat] ¨C Produce hotter flames.


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    Most of it was as expected.


    Percy was happy his new understanding of Decrees was reflected in his Status. It might not seem like a big deal that a couple of question marks had been replaced by words, but it was massive. He now knew what to look for during his travels. After all, these divine perks were some of the most valuable things he could obtain.


    What shocked him the most, however, was the blessing. It finally explained the odd colour and increased potency of his host¡¯s flames, but that wasn¡¯t what surprised Percy. He didn¡¯t need to ask what a blessing was, as they actually had them back on Remior. No, what left him flabbergasted was what it implied about Gabe¡¯s heritage.


    It was the only way to obtain a blessing. A god¡¯s offspring wasn¡¯t much different from a mortal¡¯s. Their grade, affinity and bloodline were still determined based on the same rules as everyone else¡¯s, and with the same rates.


    Their only advantage was the chance of inheriting a blessing. For that to happen, they needed to share the affinity of their divine parent and, even then, it wasn¡¯t guaranteed. If they got lucky enough to inherit one, it essentially allowed them to passively tap into one of the concepts their parent had mastered, permanently empowering their magic.


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    In Gabe¡¯s case, it turned his flames hotter, but that wasn¡¯t the only blessing one could inherit from a fire god. Somebody else might have flames that spread more easily or lasted longer. Each element was associated with multiple concepts, though a mortal could only ever possess a single blessing.


    The revelation left Percy flabbergasted.


    Gabe shrugged.


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    Gabe sighed.


    Gabe walked to a wall, as a few symbols shined brighter, forming the outline of a square.


    SSSSS


    By the time he reached it, a burst of steam spewed out of its edges, the thick slab of metal sinking into the floor, allowing them to leave the room.


    The sight outside was unlike anything Percy had ever seen. They found themselves inside an even bigger cube ¨C this one downright colossal. Its sides were so far away they appeared blurry, the walls taller than mountains. The top of the room was closed too, the ceiling akin to a sky of grey metal. Countless inscriptions decorated the structure¡¯s surfaces like stars.


    Percy spotted many of the smaller cubes around him, similar to the one they¡¯d just exited. A few people queued up in front of each, probably waiting for their turn to start a challenge. Gabe ignored them, as he began walking.


    Over the next few minutes, Gabe explained the Vault¡¯s history to Percy. Apparently, this Metatron possessed a space affinity, and was pretty good with it too. He originally hid the Vault in some remote corner of the universe. Finding it was no easy task, and even the few times it was spotted, it hadn¡¯t been too difficult to move it elsewhere. Away from everyone, the god was free to continue his research in peace, spending countless millennia holed up in his humble abode.


    Eventually, something changed.


    At some point, Metatron grew powerful enough to finally cast a Decree, making him the Vault¡¯s first titan. It allowed him to grant others access to the Vault, letting them open a portal to the artificial world from anywhere across the universe.


    That moment marked the beginning of the Vault¡¯s rapid expansion. Through the Decree, it was possible to recruit more gods without compromising the world¡¯s safety. After all, they could enter it even while it was hidden or on the move. The portals were one-way too, so it was much easier to join than leave.


    Not that it was impossible for a god to exit if they really wanted, but that was beside the point. Even then, they wouldn¡¯t necessarily know the location of the Vault, and by the time they had the chance to betray Metatron, he would have long moved it elsewhere and revoked their access.


    Percy said.


    Gabe nodded.


    Of course, that was not to say Metatron didn¡¯t vet his peers the good old way too. He had to use all the means at his disposal ¨C both mundane and magical ¨C since many of them came from shady backgrounds. Some were criminals, exiled from their own worlds. Many were refugees with nowhere to go after their homes were destroyed or conquered. Only a few were researchers at heart, sharing his own passion for magic.


    Percy noted.


    On their way to his host¡¯s house, they saw people of all sorts. They ranged from Gabe¡¯s own species, to hulking humanoids twice his height with two horns sticking out their temples. There were even some green-skinned folks with pointy ears who barely reached his knees, scurrying about like kids.


    Gabe explained.


    Through all his security measures, Metatron had ensured the Vault¡¯s safety, as more and more gods joined. Many of them brought new knowledge with them, helping him upgrade and expand the artificial world, until it became the marvel of magical technology it was today. Of course, it still paled in comparison to a natural world, in both size and content. Though they did eventually manage to implement a habitat that could support a larger population of mortals.


    Percy said.


    Gabe chuckled bitterly.


    They reached another cube, much larger than the one they had undergone the challenge in. Gabe pressed his hand on its surface, as a circle lit up around it.


    SSSSS


    A moment later, the metal parted like before, letting them inside. Gabe walked through a relatively narrow corridor. It was wide enough for them, but Percy guessed the horned creatures would probably have to crouch to fit. Every time they came across a resident, they had to squeeze against the walls to pass each other.


    Percy didn¡¯t miss the faint square indentations tightly packed along the walls, guessing they were probably doors. Several corridors and flights of stairs later, they eventually stopped before one, pressing their hand on its cold surface once more.


    Gabe¡¯s room was tiny. It was actually smaller than Micky¡¯s cell on Huehue!


    There was a bed, barely large enough for him. Right next to it, there was a toilet and a shower, with nothing but a thin glass panel to shield the rest of the room from the moisture.

 Chapter 79: Natural selection

    Percy raised an eyebrow.


    Gabe shrugged.


    While the chances of any one child reaching divinity were laughably minuscule, it was ultimately a numbers game. Especially for immortal beings who could keep pumping out kids for millennia on end.


    Percy asked.


    Gabe shook his head.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened. Resource management was a problem all worlds had to deal with. That said, it was even more pronounced in the Vault of Magic, due to its smaller size and barren environment. Consequently, it could only support a small number of mortals. This meant the gods had to be a lot more deliberate when choosing which of their kids to keep around.


    ¡°Cube. I wish to purchase one portion of sizian meat. User ID: 004527945512.¡± Gabe suddenly said.


    ¡°Authorization granted. 1 portion of sizian meat is valued at 1 credit. Current balance: 26131. Proceed with purchase?¡± the soulless voice answered again, as the colourful symbols blinked along the room¡¯s walls.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Gabe said.


    ¡°Confirmed. Deducting credits. New balance: 26130. Delivery in 6 rits.¡±


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but wonder what happened if one tried using somebody else¡¯s ID. Though, he seriously doubted the gods in charge had been dumb enough to overlook such a glaring loophole.


    SSS


    A small circular hole opened in the ceiling a few seconds later, before an amber object fell on the bed.


    Percy asked.


    Gabe said, before picking it up.


    The alien snack was irregularly shaped and about as large as Gabe¡¯s fist. Taking a bite, Percy quickly noticed its texture was rough, its taste bitter. Between this and the spoilt rodent meat he¡¯d eaten back on Huehue, he couldn¡¯t help but reevaluate the food they had on Remior. His world might be far from perfect, but if there was one thing he couldn¡¯t complain about was their cuisine. At least, he¡¯d yet to stumble upon anything on par with Freddy¡¯s Honey Rolls during his travels.


    As soon as Gabe finished eating, he began circulating his mana between his sternum and stomach, in a manner very familiar to Percy. And about half an hour later, the meal¡¯s efficacy was exhausted, leaving a burning sensation lingering inside the core.


    Percy asked.


    Gabe replied, before elaborating.


    Percy asked in protest.


    Gabe said.


    Percy grimaced in disgust. What sort of monsters would treat their children like that?!


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    Gabe nodded.


    In the context of the Vault ¨C and even Remior ¨C one of the most important factors influencing the ¡®quality¡¯ of a god was whether they had a powerful bloodline or not. After all, bloodline abilities had all sorts of weird effects, often letting one do things even gods couldn¡¯t otherwise replicate. Percy himself was a prime example of this. So, while a bloodline wasn¡¯t a requirement for divinity, a god who had one was generally stronger than one who didn¡¯t.


    Percy remained silent for a while, contemplating the implications. Strictly speaking, Remior¡¯s gods weren¡¯t much better than this. True, they didn¡¯t treat low-borns nearly as badly and, they also didn¡¯t sleep around to spread their blessings all over the place. That said, their approach to bloodlines was more or less the same.


    The constant war rampant between the noble Houses was clearly something that suited the Divine Order. After all, it would only take Phoebe a word to stop it, since nobody would dare oppose her. In other words, letting Remior¡¯s nobles continue killing each other was their version of the challenges, to keep recycling the population, allowing more gods to emerge and powerful bloodlines to mutate.


    Percy thought.


    By comparison, the Vault¡¯s deities were downright cruel, treating their own offspring as nothing but livestock.


    Gabe shrugged.


    Indeed, Percy¡¯s latest host was clearly one of the lucky ones, having inherited the full package.


    he couldn¡¯t help but point out.


    Gabe said, before adding.


    Percy replied.


    Percy felt a wave of hope inadvertently seeping through their connection, but Gabe quickly quashed it.


    the latter said.


    he explained.


    Naturally, Percy wasn¡¯t certain about that last part, but all his experiences seemed to corroborate that deduction.


    Gabe was flustered.


    And rightfully so. While life and soul affinities were both categorized as rare, the former were much more common than the latter. The Vault of Magic clearly possessed at least one god with a life affinity willing to donate some of his mana. However, there was no guarantee they had what Gabe needed.


    Percy asked.


    Percy didn¡¯t understand what the problem was.


    But Gabe shook his head.


    Percy swallowed hard. He had no idea how the difficulty scaled, but he couldn¡¯t help but picture an army of Green golems like the ones from earlier surrounding them.


    he asked.


    Gabe said.


    As much as Percy would¡¯ve loved to dip his toes into the field, he didn¡¯t argue back. Not only had he promised Gabe he¡¯d try saving him, they also didn¡¯t have enough time for this. Even with their newly repaired body, he estimated they¡¯d last a month or two at most.


    he asked.


    It definitely sounded like a tall order, but Percy wasn¡¯t one to give up easily.


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 Chapter 80: Preparations

    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    Gabe asked.


    Percy replied.


    Before they could begin filling up Gabe¡¯s second core, they needed to ensure it was concealed. Based on what Percy had come to learn about the Vault of Magic, the last thing they needed were the gods in charge finding out such a juicy specimen had fallen in their grasp.


    Of course, Percy had inadvertently left plenty of evidence of his presence already ¨C whether it was Gabe¡¯s miraculous survival or the extraordinary amount of life mana they had used up. Adding all the things they were planning to do over the next few weeks, the cat was already halfway out of the bag. Though most of it couldn¡¯t be avoided, they could at least take care of the rest.


    ¡°Evaluation complete. Custom item is valued at 37 credits. Current balance: 26130. Proceed with purchase?¡± the soulless voice asked.


    Percy felt Gabe¡¯s heartache through the connection.


    he groaned.


    Percy said.


    Gabe explained.


    Percy nodded in understanding. It should indeed be the case that a resident of the Vault earned the majority of their resources shortly after advancing. The first few waves in each grade shouldn¡¯t be too difficult. Though Gabe was already struggling to climb much further. His current credits would have to last him all the way to Blue, which was presumably several decades away.


    Gabe grumbled some more, but he ultimately acquiesced.


    ¡°Yes.¡± he spoke.


    ¡°Confirmed. Deducting credits. New balance: 26093. Delivery in 900 rits.¡±


    Percy raised an eyebrow. That should be over fifteen minutes. A lot longer than that piece of meat had needed. Then again, the latter was probably an off-the-shelf product they had plenty of in stock. As for the object they¡¯d just requested, it would have to be manufactured on the spot. All things considered, it was already quite impressive the Vault¡¯s system could accomplish the task at all ¨C let alone in such short notice. A testament to their advanced technology.


    Soon enough, a circular hole opened on the ceiling once more, before the requested object landed on the bed. It was a rolled-up strip of cloth, cut out of an exquisite midnight blue fabric, densely covered in embroidered symbols a few shades lighter. Percy picked it up, noting it was still quite warm ¨C probably because it was fresh out the oven. It was soft to the touch, made of the finest silk he¡¯d ever come across.


    Next, he unravelled it, marvelling at the intricate script decorating it. This bandage was both thinner and much shorter than his own, which only served to drive home the insurmountable gap between the Vault¡¯s enchanters and Remior¡¯s. A quick tug revealed it was also somewhat flexible, yet still strong. It wouldn¡¯t be an issue if it had to stretch a little, and it was unlikely to tear easily.


    In any case, Percy couldn¡¯t help but study the runes a little longer. Due to all his secrets, it would serve him well to learn how to craft this type of enchantment by himself. Gabe didn¡¯t bother him either, letting him concentrate for a few minutes ¨C probably a gesture of goodwill, considering how much Percy had done for him already.


    Still, the latter didn¡¯t get very far. He had to begrudgingly give up after failing to understand anything. His host clearly hadn¡¯t lied when he said magiscript was a demanding field.


    Not letting this get to him too much, Percy wrapped the bandage around their abdomen a couple of times, before tying the loose ends behind their back.


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    Between the cube being stingy with the fabric and his host¡¯s transparent skin, the core was barely concealed, but it would have to do. S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Gabe asked.


    Percy replied.


    Percy thought about it for a while before speaking.


    Without wasting a moment, he activated Mana Sense, looking inward for the new organ. His host¡¯s physiology was different to his own, but Percy was a bit of an expert in locating cores and mana channels in all sorts of alien bodies by now.


    Gabe asked.


    Ever since he obtained his second core, Percy had been winging it, mostly using his two affinities independently of one another. However, he couldn¡¯t shake the feeling he was missing out on something important. An entire culture of people with two cores should have developed some more esoteric arts to fully exploit them ¨C yet Percy had never had the opportunity to learn them before now.


    ¡°Cube. What do you have on the Moirai? Also, while you¡¯re at it, check if you have any soul mana stored. User ID: 004527945512.¡± Gabe said.


    ¡°Authorization granted. Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. There are 452 books, 1121 research logs, 9 encyclopaedias and 32653 news reports that mention ¡°Moirai¡±. Part of the selection is restricted for your grade. Only 321 books, 354 research logs, 6 encyclopaedias and 7564 news reports are available for purchase. Total cost: 35431 credits. Current balance: 26093.¡±


    The response elicited different reactions from Percy and Gabe. The former couldn¡¯t help but rub his hands. He wanted to purchase everything and make his host binge read it, but he knew that wasn¡¯t realistic. As for the latter, the shocking price nearly gave him a heart attack. But the cube wasn¡¯t done quite yet.


    ¡°Evaluation complete. Soul mana is listed on the restricted section for Green grade. It is only available through a bonus reward.¡±


    As expected, they still had to work through the challenge, though it was nice to have confirmation the mana actually existed.


    Percy suggested, returning to the previous item.


    Gabe hesitated for a moment, probably thinking it would still be more than he¡¯d be willing to pay, but ultimately heeded Percy¡¯s request.


    ¡°Get rid of anything on the Moirais¡¯ world, politics, history and geography. Only leave behind things related directly to their magic.¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. There are 78 books, 185 research logs, 2 encyclopaedias and 67 news reports available for purchase. Total cost: 6597 credits. Current balance: 26093.¡±


    That did seem to cut out a lot of encyclopaedias and news reports, but not as many research logs ¨C which frankly made sense. Still, it was way too pricey.


    ¡°Ignore everything relevant only to gods or specific affinities and bloodlines. Focus on general information about how the average Moirai mortal uses their two cores.¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. There are 24 books, 93 research logs, 0 encyclopaedias and 67 news reports available for purchase. Total cost: 2597 credits. Current balance: 26093.¡±


    Gabe said.


    Percy creased their brow.


    Gabe explained.


    Hearing that, Percy wanted nothing more than to slap his host. He only held himself back because he knew it would hurt him too.


    he fired back.


    Gabe replied.


    Percy didn¡¯t let up.


    But his host shook his head.


    Well, that was true¡­


    Also, Percy would be lying if he said he wasn¡¯t thinking about himself too. Still, he firmly believed this was in Gabe¡¯s best interest. The credits wouldn¡¯t matter if they failed to fix his soul, plus Percy genuinely thought the insight contained in those books would pay for itself.


    Gabe remained silent for a few seconds, considering his options.

 Chapter 81: Gabe’s second affinity

    Percy figured he¡¯d been in the Vault for about a week, though keeping track of time was always difficult outside Remior.


    It had only taken him a few days to clear enough mana channels to fill up his host¡¯s second core. Piling onto the good news, the event had also gone down surprisingly smoothly. Sure, an elemental affinity wasn¡¯t the flashiest one to have, but it was definitely more useful than pure mana. Also, activating the core did strengthen Gabe¡¯s soul, causing the broken shards to swell, filling up more of their vessel.


    Sadly, the shift did cause their bond to loosen, forcing Percy to expend the last of his stashed mana to repair the connection. Though it wasn¡¯t that great a loss, since the golems were immune to his Parting Gift anyway.


    And today, Percy felt he¡¯d cleared enough pathways to use the new core in a fight. Not that he was anywhere close to using it with finesse, but they should still be ready to tackle the fourth wave. As much as they¡¯d love to prepare a little longer, their time was finite, and they needed to assess their situation.


    ***


    The white-hot axe slashed against the octagonal shield, the impact sending a shockwave reverberating through the room. However, the empowered flames barely carved an inch into the black metal before dimming, as the green inscriptions on its surface flashed brighter.


    Worse still, the construct easily brushed its left arm aside, tearing one of Gabe¡¯s wings to shreds, throwing him off balance in the process. And taking advantage of the opening, it lunged forward with its sword.


    Percy¡¯s host barely managed to leap to the side at the last second, escaping with a shallow cut on his upper arm. Not ideal, but definitely preferrable to getting cleanly ran through by a blade wider than his thigh.


    Gabe clumsily walked backwards, putting some distance from the giant golem, each step awkwardly splashing through the viscous liquid covering the cube¡¯s floor all the way up to his knees.


    The construct simply stood in place, watching him disengage. It clearly wasn¡¯t in a rush to give chase. Some of the tar-like substance flowed to the golem, mending the small cut on its shield within mere seconds.


    Gabe asked.


    But Percy didn¡¯t have a good response either. Unlike the ¡°swarm¡± challenge which involved lots of weaker enemies, the ¡°gauntlet¡± instead focused on singular, elite opponents. Their current foe was technically ¡°just¡± another Green golem, not unlike the four constructs they had defeated during Percy¡¯s first day in the Vault. Still, its strength was nothing like those.


    It stood at twice Gabe¡¯s height ¨C much like the previous golems ¨C though this one was a fair amount leaner. Its shield was neigh-impregnable ¨C even harder than the bodies of the last ones ¨C while its speed was nothing to scoff at either. Percy estimated it was faster than the Starry Soldiers back on Remior. Plus, this was still only the fourth wave. He wasn¡¯t looking forward to whatever monstrosity the challenge would throw at them during the sixth one.


    To make matters worse, Gabe¡¯s kit wasn¡¯t as well suited to this challenge. Sure, his bloodline and blessing did augment both his offense and defence to a degree ¨C making him much stronger than the average Green core. That said, these advantages couldn¡¯t compare with the boost to his endurance, which was what had ultimately carried him through the other one. And these challenges had clearly been designed taking into account that most of the Vault¡¯s surviving mortals were bred elites.


    Percy said.


    Gabe wrinkled his nose.


    While Gabe would have to figure out how to use his second core by himself after his guest was gone, they had agreed to leave Percy in charge of the new affinity for now. S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy said.


    Nodding, his host prepared the wings again, taking to the air. Reinforcing them with mana from his first core, he dove down towards their opponent. The golem raised its shield to block with practiced ease, though it was in for a small surprise this time.


    Right when they had covered about half the distance, Percy drew some mana from their second core, expelling it from their feet. The manoeuvre was a little rough around the edges, but it did work as intended. Picking up speed, they arrived a moment sooner than the construct was expecting, as Gabe delivered another brutal blow.


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    Like before, he failed to deal much damage, but he did land the attack at an angle, deflecting the shield to the side as he spun, opening the way for a second slash right at the golem¡¯s neck.


    Taken off-guard, the construct still managed a last-second parry with its sword, though not before Gabe carved about an inch into its neck. The golem was even forced to take a step back.


    Sadly, the wound wasn¡¯t nearly deep enough to cause any lasting damage. The construct didn¡¯t miss a beat, slamming its shield right where they stood the very next second. It nearly crushed them into paste too ¨C as Gabe still hadn¡¯t recovered his footing, having gone all out in that last exchange. It certainly didn¡¯t help they were essentially fighting in a swamp.


    Luckily, Percy intervened once more, pushing their body out of the impact zone with another burst of mana. The shield caused the tar to part for a moment, sending a tall wave of liquid metal slamming against the room¡¯s walls. It also pushed Gabe a few meters back, but that worked in their favour, helping them disengage sooner.


    Percy said.


    Gabe hesitated briefly before nodding, reluctantly agreeing with that assessment.


    he suggested.


    Percy said.


    Repeating the same sequence, Gabe dove against the golem once more, with Percy accelerating his descent behind the scenes. Better prepared than before, the construct firmed its stance while waiting for the attack to arrive.


    But it never did.


    Percy said, diverting their flight to the side at the last second.


    The unexpected turn allowed them to circle around the golem¡¯s massive shield, as it awkwardly moved it, trying to trace their trajectory. Still, it was a little slower than them, allowing Gabe to roll in the air before landing a vertical slash on its scalp. Before he had the chance to split its head open, the shield was finally in the way to resist the attack, but Percy wasn¡¯t going to let their opponent have its way.


    he said, adding momentum to his host¡¯s cleave.


    Swinging the shield up, the golem managed to throw them off by the time they¡¯d cut about a third into its face ¨C right around where the bridge of its nose would have begun if it had one. A wave of disappointment overcame the duo, though it faded once they noticed their opponent¡¯s inability to follow-up with a counterattack. It was still on its feet, but the last blow had obviously done .


    Not wasting the opportunity, Gabe tried to land another blow with his second wing.


    Percy released more mana from their back, clearly on the same page.


    The burst of wind was more modest than the ones before. Their second core¡¯s lower grade, coupled with Percy¡¯s inexperience with the air affinity had already dried out their reserves. In fact, Gabe wasn¡¯t doing much better with his first core, having already exhausted most of his fire mana during the previous attack.


    That said, the golem wasn¡¯t in top shape either, its grip shaking after that desperate block and the nasty wound on its noggin. Expecting another attack to its neck, the construct tried to intercept with its sword, but Gabe had seen through its moves by now. Taking advantage of their shorter stature, he crouched below the swing, before cleaving at the golem¡¯s wrists.


    The hand holding the weapon was cleanly separated, though the wing fizzled out before it got through the other one too. As the heavy chunks of metal landed in the liquid, they sent a tall wave towards Gabe. A second one also rose when the construct lifted its foot to stomp them.


    Luckily the viscous sludge impaired the golem¡¯s movements as much as it did Gabe¡¯s ¨C if not even more so due to its increased bulk. Out of mana and wings both, the duo barely rolled out of the way. At least, the powerful current helped.


    However, the golem didn¡¯t stop after the first step. It stomped its way towards them, trying to pulverize them before they recovered, its previous nonchalance nowhere to be seen.


    The scene might have looked a little comical to an outsider, but neither Gabe nor Percy were in the mood to laugh, as they frantically dodged the golem¡¯s furious footfalls, trying to sneak in a few breaths in between. Some mana barely trickled into their cores, as a little more made its way to Gabe¡¯s back, reigniting the wings.


    Though they weren¡¯t the only ones recovering. The sludge kept flowing to repair the construct, the wound on its head already halfway mended. In fact, Percy didn¡¯t miss how the discarded sword had already melted down, as the severed hand and weapon were already reforming on the golem¡¯s arm. It was currently little more than a broken shard attached to a hilt, but it wouldn¡¯t be long before it was back to its former glory.


    Suffice to say, Gabe had no intention of letting his opponent complete its recovery.


    he said, getting a mental nod back from Percy.


    Leaping back to avoid another stomp, Gabe tensed both calves, before springing forward like a coiled cobra, bolting through the space between the golem¡¯s knees. And, using whatever air mana he¡¯d managed to recover, Percy added to his host¡¯s momentum, as the latter reinforced his wings once more. The duo knew they wouldn¡¯t get through their foe¡¯s defences had they aimed for its torso or head, so they hadn¡¯t bothered trying. Their current goal was to sever another limb or two.


    The golem¡¯s shield was already on its way down, in a last-ditch effort to crush the pesky vermin by its feet before they completed their stunt. But it was too late.


    It wasn¡¯t just the shield, but the construct¡¯s entire upper body that landed in the black tar. It raised the tallest wave yet, submerging Gabe who was still in the process of climbing back to his feet.


    The golem squirmed, trying and failing to right itself. The liquid rushed to repair it, dirtying its previously polished surface with sludge.


    Gabe and Percy were out of mana again, though time was on their side for once. They estimated they would recover long before the construct did. And sure enough, they were able to finish the golem a couple minutes later without any surprises.


    Percy asked grimly.


    Gabe grimaced too, before nodding.

 Chapter 82: Fifth wave

    Percy asked.


    Another week had passed since their narrow victory against the fourth wave, though they had yet to challenge the fifth one. Acknowledging their inadequacy, they hadn¡¯t been in a hurry to move on, taking their time to get stronger, as they fought against the same opponent again and again. Challenging a previously beaten wave didn¡¯t reward any credits, but it was still good practice, letting them hone both their magic and their teamwork. Though Gabe was currently back in his room, as the two of them had plenty of work to do even during their downtime.


    he replied, before elaborating. exactly


    Percy asked.


    Gabe explained.


    Percy asked.


    However, his host shook his head.


    Percy frowned. If this was true, they¡¯d struggle to get the trick down in time. A possible solution was for Gabe to learn how to use his air magic by himself, but that would put too much pressure on him during the fight. Percy knew first-hand how difficult it was to keep track of two cores at once. It could easily take his host a couple months to get there. Especially since Gabe was in charge of the wings too¡­


    Percy exclaimed.


    Gabe raised an eyebrow. S§×ar?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy grinned.


    The golem stood motionless at the other end of the room, its cold gaze locked on Gabe. It looked exactly like the previous one, though its shield had been replaced by a second sword. On paper, that should mean it had sacrificed some defence for the sake of offense, but Percy doubted that was the case.


    he noted, getting a nod back from his host.


    That said, the two of them weren¡¯t the same as a week ago either. Percy had improved the most, having cleared plenty more channels and grown far more proficient with air mana. He¡¯d even briefly considered working towards Circulation, though he¡¯d quickly shot the idea down. Meeting the requirements of the Refined spell would take him way longer than they had.


    Oblivious to his guest¡¯s thoughts, Gabe summoned his wings, before readying his stance. Ironically, he was the one who¡¯d improved the least, despite being the actual owner of the second core. Still, he¡¯d grown more accustomed to fighting alongside Percy against the elite golems.


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    he suggested.


    Percy acquiesced, focusing his senses on the flow of ambient mana. He¡¯d already experienced Gabe¡¯s bloodline ability before, having briefly taken command of the wings back during his first day in the Vault.


    However, his plan was to do something slightly different today. The idea was fairly simple ¨C the only reason Gabe¡¯s wings manifested out of flames was because of his original affinity. Now that they possessed another core, there was no reason why they couldn¡¯t dig even more value out of the bloodline. Indeed, Percy identified a portion of the ambient mana being ignited at Gabe¡¯s back. He tugged at the flow to pry it from his host¡¯s control, as the latter fought to remain in charge.


    One of them focused on the blazing heat burning in their sternum, as the other imagined the softer air mana dancing in their abdomen. Responding to their thoughts, the river of ambient mana split into two components, one continuing to fuel the wings right below Gabe¡¯s shoulder blades, as a smaller stream was pulled a few inches lower, forming a second pair below the first.


    Percy was ecstatic, feeling the new ethereal limbs respond to his command.


    Gabe said.


    Percy sensed some mixed feelings from his host. The latter was happy he could use his bloodline with both cores at the same time, though he wasn¡¯t looking forward to juggling all these tasks by himself in the future. But this wasn¡¯t Percy¡¯s problem. Focusing back on the new wings, he quickly noticed they were both smaller and weaker than the other pair.


    It made sense. While the ability was fuelled by ambient mana, its strength was correlated with the corresponding cores¡¯ grades. Percy¡¯s control was a little clumsy too, but it would have to do for now. After spending a few minutes to adjust to the new appendages, the two looked back at the construct. It was still patiently waiting for them to make the first move.


    Gabe said, flapping his wings once, soaring halfway to the ceiling.


    Meanwhile, the second set remained folded behind their waist. Percy didn¡¯t want to interfere with his host¡¯s movements, so he¡¯d reserve the new limbs for a time when they actually needed them. For now, he simply augmented Gabe¡¯s speed the good old way. That said, their cooperation had grown a lot more refined over the past week. The air mana flowed underneath Gabe¡¯s wings, giving him an even greater boost than if Percy had tried to propel their body directly like before.


    And just like that, they dove upon the golem, finally beginning the battle.


    Surprising no one, the construct raised its swords to parry the white-hot axes, before trying to land a blow of its own.


    Gabe ducked and weaved to dodge the colossal blade by a hair¡¯s breadth, as he tiptoed around the golem, looking for an opening.


    The construct was even faster than the previous one, but Percy expertly unleashed small bursts of air around their body, elegantly augmenting his host¡¯s every move, using the minimum amount of mana each time.


    Two figures ¨C one man-sized, the other colossal ¨C danced amidst the flurry of slashes, the black ones parting the viscous tar in their passing, as the white-hot ones raised the temperature to a dangerous level.


    The axes were even hotter than before, with Percy¡¯s air mana adding more fuel to the flames, while sharpening them and accelerating them further than Gabe could manage on his own. By now, their skin was blistering and peeling, as a red sheen coated the obsidian golem.


    Every now and then, the weapons collided, sending loud shockwaves bouncing around the walls of the cube, throwing the previously calm surface of the swamp into turmoil. No side seemed to gain an advantage, as neither combatant managed to land a single blow. At least, that was the case until Gabe and Percy¡¯s mana was exhausted a minute later, leaving them at the golem¡¯s mercy.


    A massive sword descended, its edge sinking halfway through the floor, though Gabe was already a few meters back, Percy having saved their asses with the first flap of their new wings.


    The golem returned to its default state, giving them a chance to recover. Percy had yet to fully understand what the condition was for the constructs to bother chasing. His best guess was that disarming it would do the trick.


    he asked his host.


    While they seemed equally matched with the golem at the moment, they possessed an advantage their opponent sorely lacked.


    The ability to grow.


    Right now, they could only use their newer limbs as a way to disengage, but it wouldn¡¯t be long until they weaved them into their fighting style. Plus, it would only be a matter of time until they grew accustomed to the golem¡¯s movements too.


    Gabe shrugged.

 Chapter 83: Moment of truth

    ¡°Cube. Start the ¡®gauntlet¡¯ challenge. Green level. User ID: 004527945512.¡±


    ¡°Authorization granted. Starting ¡®gauntlet¡¯ challenge, Green level. The user has already cleared wave 5. Do you wish to resume at wave 6? WARNING: Wave 6 contains a far more powerful opponent.¡±


    Gabe asked his guest.


    Another month had passed since they first cleared the last wave, breaking Percy¡¯s record for the longest-lived clone, and by a huge margin at that. By now, they¡¯d already grown rather skilled at seamlessly weaving their two types of mana and both sets of wings into their fighting style.


    Though their strength was beginning to plateau. The only avenue that still left them a lot of room for improvement was mastering the Moirais¡¯ trick, fusing their affinities into one. Gabe and Percy actually made some progress in that department, but the result wasn¡¯t quite ready to be relied upon during the fight.


    Percy replied.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Gabe spoke out loud.


    ¡°Choice confirmed. Wave begins in 18 rits.¡±


    While it would have certainly been more prudent to wait longer, the two were already running out of time. Despite their relatively healthy body, Gabe¡¯s recent promotion, and the crazy amount of soul mana Percy had invested, the patches holding their souls together were finally beginning to come undone. Their most optimistic estimates gave them a few more days together ¨C though they figured it was best not to cut it too close.


    ¡°Wave begins in 12 rits.¡±


    All in all, they weren¡¯t particularly happy with their odds, but it wasn¡¯t like they¡¯d miraculously get stronger if they held on for another day or two.


    Naturally, the thought of turning Gabe into a familiar had crossed Percy¡¯s mind. While his stingy host wasn¡¯t always the most pleasant to be around, Percy had still grown fond of the jellyfish-person after spending so much time fighting alongside him. That said, he¡¯d rather not resort to that before exhausting all the alternatives. While Percy had never regretted creating his crow familiar, the jury was still out on whether he¡¯d done right by the original Micky, as his pal had yet to recover any of his old memories.


    ¡°Wave begins in 6 rits.¡±


    Not to mention the personal cost involved with his secret art. Perhaps, he could get Orin to take care of him for a few weeks if he ended up in a coma again, though he wasn¡¯t looking forward to explaining everything to the alchemist afterwards. Then there was the question of whether he¡¯d even find a suitable body for Gabe in the middle of the Guild¡­


    ¡°Wave begins. May your challenge be successful!¡±


    Black metal poured down the cube¡¯s walls once more, the level of the liquid rising to Gabe¡¯s knees soon enough. Only then did a blob of sludge swell on the floor about a dozen meters in front of them, as their latest opponent started forming.


    Of course, Gabe and Percy had tried attacking the golems in this vulnerable state in the past, but they¡¯d only wasted their time. Despite the cube¡¯s words, the challenge wouldn¡¯t officially begin until the construct was done taking shape.


    Not that it took very long, as the new golem stood tall before them mere moments later. This one had two pairs of arms, reminding Percy of the natives on Huehue. Each of its four hands held a curved sabre, their edges fanning out in a ferocious stance, tilted slightly towards Gabe. Even more unsettling was the construct¡¯s gaze, which seemed no less piercing than its weapons¡¯ tips, flooding the room with a palpable sense of oppression.


    Percy didn¡¯t wait for the golem¡¯s inscriptions to finish lighting up, hurriedly pulling the ambient mana towards their back.


    Following his lead, Gabe did the same, as the stream split off, coalescing into two pairs of nascent wings. The upper ones were the widest and most majestic, made of scorching blue flames. The others were more modest, elegantly crafted out of swirling gusts of wind, carrying a faint green tint. In any case, it was a good thing they hadn¡¯t waited¡­


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    This time, the golem didn¡¯t give them the chance to attack first, seizing the initiative instead. It pounced towards them like a tiger, a short-lived crater forming in the swamp where it had stood just a moment ago.


    Its visage rapidly enlarged in their vision as it flew mere inches above the black substance, two of the sabres carving waves into the formerly-serene surface of the liquid metal.


    As for the remaining pair, they were crossed in front of the golem¡¯s face, clearly impatient to taste Gabe¡¯s blood.


    Flapping all four of the half-formed wings, they barely managed to escape diagonally to their right, though not before losing both left wings and getting a nasty cut below their ribs.


    Percy moved their bottom-right wing opposite the upper-right one, to balance it out. It was a nifty trick they¡¯d come up with in the past few weeks, taking advantage of the fact their wings weren¡¯t actual body parts, allowing them to be shifted around somewhat freely. Their flight was a little lopsided, but hovering for a while longer wouldn¡¯t be an issue.


    Percy said as they rose higher, putting more distance from the ground.


    Gabe groaned.


    Had the gods in charge made the previous constructs passive out of kindness? Or had it all been a ruse to lure challengers into a false sense of security?


    Either way, their trouble had only just begun. Before the severed wings were done recovering, the golem tilted its head up, its eyes flashing a shade brighter, sending a chill down their spine. Then, it moved again!


    It tossed its sabres in well-spaced intervals, the colossal blades spinning as they sliced through the air towards them. Even in his current state, Gabe didn¡¯t have much difficulty manoeuvring around the projectiles, but that was beside the point.


    The shockwaves Percy had expected to hear never came, the weapons spluttering into blobs of liquid the moment they made contact with the cube¡¯s sides, rolling down the smooth walls. And the sludge constantly flowed to the golem¡¯s feet, its sabres reforming one after another, ensuring the construct would never run out of blades to throw.


    Percy noted.


    The barrage was a lot more forgiving than the rain of needles in the ¡®swarm¡¯ challenge, but it seemed like it could go on forever. While the wings didn¡¯t use up any of Gabe¡¯s mana, keeping them active and flying around was still mentally taxing.


    Gabe shrugged.


    Percy nodded.


    Their wings had recovered by now. They took a moment to rearrange them into their original configuration, before circling the golem cautiously. The good news was that the moment it threw each of its weapons, it was left with just two-and-a-half sabres, giving them a slight opening to attack. Though it wouldn¡¯t be long before the construct was back to its top shape.


    Percy suddenly suggested.


    Gabe raised an eyebrow.


    he protested.


    Percy reminded him.


    That was how Gabe had tried to escape from the ¡®swarm¡¯ challenge when things had gone downhill, though he¡¯d been a moment too late, leaving him riddled with fatal wounds by the time Percy found him.


    the former replied.


    As soon as they dodged the next incoming sabre, Gabe reinforced the upper pair of wings with fire mana, turning them white before flapping them. Percy mirrored the motion with the lower pair, while also skilfully distributing the air mana throughout their body.


    Their vision blurred for a moment, but they¡¯d done this so many times in the past month they didn¡¯t need to see where they were going. Reaching the golem, the first of their blazing axes cleaved at its neck, leaving a distorted afterglow in its wake.


    The concentrated mana burst into a wave of force and heat upon impact, spreading outwards from the point of collision. Gabe had to actually close his eyes to shield them from the flash, rendering the duo unable to gauge the extent of the damage they¡¯d dealt.


    Still, they felt their opponent¡¯s sabres bend and crack, though the attack ultimately failed to pierce through. But that was ok ¨C the second wing was just behind the first.


    This one finished the job, as shards of metal flew in all directions, the white blade slicing through the damaged weapons before delivering a diagonal slash on the golem¡¯s torso. The construct staggered, its inscriptions even dimming for a moment¡­


    But it didn¡¯t collapse. Soon, the runes on its polished surface shone brightly again, as it swung the broken sabres towards Gabe.


    Percy slammed the second pair of wings against one another, right in front of their chest. The burst of wind pushed them backwards, letting them narrowly dodge the fragmented edges of metal thirsting for their flesh.


    ¡°C-cube¡­ Abort wave¡­ End challenge!¡± Gabe barely got the words out as the golem was already airborne, falling rapidly towards them.


    The two stumbled backwards in their desperate attempt to buy an extra fraction of a second, the shadow of the golem¡¯s visage shrouding their vision, as the viscous sludge enveloped their back, hugging their sinking body.


    Their pupils widened as they stared in horror at the colossal fist just inches from their face, about to smash their head open like a watermelon!

 Chapter 84: Persistence

    The sickening sound of their skull cracking never came. Gabe thought it might have already happened ¨C too fast for them to register ¨C but Percy had experienced enough deaths to be confident this wasn¡¯t it.


    Still, they held their breath, remaining motionless under the surface of the dark swamp, unsure whether the challenge had stopped in time, or whether the golem had simply lost track of them. It was most likely the former, but neither of the two was feeling brave enough to check.


    Sure enough, the liquid¡¯s level dropped soon, draining into the floor, exposing their body once more. Only then did they reluctantly open their eyes, before bursting into laboured breaths a moment later, their chest heaving up and down.


    Gabe said.


    Percy berated him.


    Gabe didn¡¯t respond, focusing on refilling his cores for a while. Only after they¡¯d fully recovered did he speak again.


    Sadly, Percy had no good answer for his host, feeling just as lost. Of course, they¡¯d encountered many difficulties during the previous waves too, but they¡¯d had plenty of options at the time. They¡¯d adjusted their tactics, honed their cooperation and magic, or grown more used to their opponents¡¯ moves.


    This time, things weren¡¯t as simple. They had no idea how to improve enough in the next couple of days, plus the golem¡¯s response had been too fast to read. They¡¯d basically attacked it blindly, at a speed they could hardly even grasp, yet that hadn¡¯t been enough. It had parried their offense rather easily. Despite going all out, they¡¯d barely broken through its defences, and even then, it had deflected the trajectory of their slashes enough that they¡¯d no longer posed a threat to its integrity.


    Percy said.


    Gabe¡¯s jaw slackened.


    he complained.


    But Percy shook his head.


    Gabe groaned as he pushed himself up, his body hurting all over. While they¡¯d healed perfectly after the ¡°swarm¡± challenge, they¡¯d accumulated a lot of new injuries over the past few weeks. The peculiar thing was most of them had been self-inflicted. While he and Percy had done a commendable job dodging most of the golems¡¯ attacks, the intense heat of their own spells had caused plenty of nasty burns all over their skin.


    Naturally, mages possessed high innate resistance to their own magic. That said, Gabe¡¯s blessing and bloodline already pushed his spells close to his limits. Adding the extra air mana into the mix, and the flames had grown a little too hot for comfort.


    Unfortunately, beggars couldn¡¯t be choosers. They¡¯d needed every bit of firepower to even get this far. Plus, although Gabe been forced to splurge a few credits on ointments and other remedies ¨C ¨C none of these injuries were life-threatening, so they¡¯d chosen to endure them.


    he said resolutely.


    Soon, they began the challenge anew. Knowing what to expect, they¡¯d already prepared beforehand, waiting for the golem to toss a couple of sabres their way, before diving in for an attack. Again, the clash had been too quick and far too hectic to fathom, though it gone slightly better than the previous one. While the construct was still alive, this time it had lost two of its arms. Perhaps, this would have been the perfect opportunity for Gabe and Percy to finish it¡­ if they had any mana left ¨C which they didn¡¯t.


    ¡°Cube. Abort challenge.¡± the former spoke with a heavy heart once more, not giving their opponent the chance to retaliate.


    And about half an hour later, they went for their third attempt, managing to land a good blow on the golem¡¯s head, slicing a corner off. In fact, the injury had even left it disoriented for nearly half a minute, making them think this was their lucky break. Unfortunately, just when they repaired their wings enough to go for the finisher, the golem attacked, nearly beheading them before they hurriedly ended the challenge.


    Percy said.


    This time, they tried to sneak up on the golem from behind. To their great horror, they discovered it possessed eyes at the back of its head too! Not only that, but it could easily spin its arms around, causing the clash to go no better than the previous ones!


    Fifth attempt.


    Abort.


    Sixth. Seventh¡­ Tenth!


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    Abort. Abort¡­ Abort!


    Gabe was sitting by the side of the cube, resting against the wall. They¡¯d recovered a few minutes ago, but they weren¡¯t in a rush to try again. Verbally terminating the challenge and restarting whenever it suited them might seem like a great loophole ¨C and it was, to an extent ¨C yet it wasn¡¯t without cost. Recovering their mana between rounds wasn¡¯t difficult, but they had no way to heal their wounds.


    By now, Gabe was a complete mess, his skin peeling and bleeding, his flesh battered and sore. Not to mention the risk of incurring much more serious injuries with each attempt. Two tries ago, they came this close to losing an arm, narrowly getting away with a nasty gouge on their shoulder. And Gabe couldn¡¯t just ask for more life mana if they succeeded. He the soul mana, and he seriously doubted the cube would be generous enough to give him both.


    Also, they were running out of time. . Percy could feel the patches falling apart one after the other. By now, he had to get creative, shifting around the mana, trying to keep their soul from crumbling before its time.


    Gabe suggested.


    Percy considered it for a few seconds.


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    Gabe grinned.


    ***


    Whether it was Remior or the Vault of Magic, less than 1% of the population was born with a composite core. That said, these affinities were well understood, as they represented elements abundant in nature, such as mud, steam, or magma. So, while neither Gabe nor Percy had personally seen someone use the before, they had a pretty good idea what to expect.


    Sadly, that didn¡¯t seem to help them much in mastering it.


    Percy said, focused on the rotation and integrity of the small tornado between their palms.


    Gabe, on the other hand, was doing his best to lower the intensity and temperature of his own fire mana, trying to match his guest¡¯s output.


    he said, watching the flames spin.


    The air mana provided fuel for the fire, turning it hotter, while the heat allowed the air to move even faster. The two components were rapidly consumed, generating an effect more potent than the sum of its parts. The blue vortex grew brighter, though this wasn¡¯t due to Gabe¡¯s blessing. He was still doing his best to hold it back for now. Perhaps, they¡¯d need to add it to the finished product later, but for now their focus was on blending the affinities together. And as the scorching winds shrunk into a ball, their shape and colour shifted, turning the tornado into something different.


    A white sphere.


    It was so bright, it caused Gabe to look away. In fact, it seemed even hotter than his strongest flames, though it had lost much of its substance, turning matter into pure energy.


    Percy nodded.


    He couldn¡¯t help but salivate over the prospect of fusing his own mana back home. He knew it would be harder as neither of his affinities was elemental, which meant their fusion was inherently unstable. Still, the Moirais¡¯ books suggested it was possible.


    Gabe snapped him out of his thoughts.


    Percy replied as his attention returned to their project.


    This wasn¡¯t their first time getting to this point, but they needed to pour a lot more mana into the spell, and to control it much better before it could be used against the golem.


    The two coordinated to increase their input at the same rate, slowly expanding the radius of the sphere, as its blinding rays grew more intense. Gabe¡¯s eyes watered even through his closed eyelids, though they didn¡¯t stop. Running out of ideasthey tried to divert the beam away from their body.


    Partial success.


    About 70% of the light was directed to the front, though the remainder still hurt them. Even worse, the higher output combined with their rough attempts at manipulating the spell affected its stability, causing it to blink rapidly, putting it on the verge of fizzling out.


    ¡® Gabe winced, before allowing it to come apart.


    Smoke was coming out of their palms, which had received the full brunt of the fused mana.


    Percy noted.


    Gabe asked.


    Gabe plopped on the ground weakly, as Percy felt despair seeping through their connection.


    the former said.


    Gabe raised an eyebrow, prompting Percy to explain how his familiars worked.


    he asked.


    Percy said.


    His host didn¡¯t respond immediately, taking some time to consider his options. Eventually, he spoke.


    he said.


    Percy replied.


    Percy understood what his host was getting at.


    Gabe nodded.


    Naturally, they¡¯d only get one chance, as they didn¡¯t have the luxury of injuring themselves repeatedly to hone their suicidal attack to perfection.


    Gabe went through the motions, restarting the wave, as the two summoned their wings and took to the air. The duo looked ahead as the black metal began pouring down the walls of the cube, watching their opponent form once more. And this time, there would be no giving up. In a few short minutes, Percy would finally return to Remior.


    The only question was whether he¡¯d do so alone, or with company¡­

 Chapter 85: Gabe’s gamble

    Gabe¡¯s palms burned as the white sphere expanded between them. The dark blob rapidly took shape right below the duo, putting pressure on them to fuse their mana faster.Naturally, they¡¯d already abandoned all caution, willingly accepting the painful cost of the technique. Their eyeballs felt like they were melting in their sockets, the entire front side of their body peeling.


    Gabe said.


    Percy nodded.


    With the plan set in stone, the duo held their breath, focused on their opponent¡¯s form. Of course, they couldn¡¯t gaze at it directly, as their head was tilted away from the radiant star thrumming between their hands, but they could still observe it through Mana Sense.


    The vague outline of Green finally finished taking the shape of the golem, complete with four sabres tightly grasped in its fists. Not wasting a moment, the two rushed to their tasks before their enemy started hurling weapons at them.


    First, they stopped flapping the wings, only slightly adjusting them to maintain their orientation, allowing themselves to fall closer to the construct. Pushing all the mana out of their two cores, they let it gush through their channels, soon flooding the spell with an influx of fuel, causing it to burn brighter than ever before.


    The golem finally reacted, tossing the first sabre towards them. But they were ready for that. They dodged with a quick flap of their upper wings, before returning to their previous position using the second pair.


    Next, estimating they were already close enough to the golem ¨C hardly three metres away ¨C they finally folded all four wings to their chest, dipping the tips into the sphere.


    To nobody¡¯s surprise, the mana from their sternum had already dominated its counterpart, technically making the attack more of a fire affinity spell laced with hints of something else. Its temperature had already surpassed anything they¡¯d tried before, as it happily devoured part of the wings too.


    They heard the golem throw another blade, but they didn¡¯t care. This one never reached their body, melting mid-flight, unable to withstand the intense heat of the sphere.


    SSS


    A few scorching droplets landed on Gabe¡¯s skin, causing him to wince as his flesh sizzled even faster in those spots. If it hadn¡¯t been for his passive resistance to heat, he would have long turned to ashes by now. But the two were already far too deep to back down. When they were mere inches above the golem¡¯s head, they finally let go of the mana, doing their best to divert it away from their body.


    Making a shrill, high-pitched sound, the sphere burst out in every direction. The shockwave itself wasn¡¯t that powerful, as the spell¡¯s focus was its luminosity and heat.


    The last thing Gabe and Percy saw through their closed eyelids was a flash of white, as a warm trickle rolled halfway down their cheeks, before evaporating. They could also tell when their left hand literally crumbled into dust. The entire front side of their body felt like it was dropped on a frying pan.


    Yet, despite all the pain and worry, Percy couldn¡¯t help but feel some fleeting pride over the sheer power of the spell he¡¯d just helped cast. It had truly pushed the upper limit of what a Green core should be capable of. That said, his Status remained silent, as this wasn¡¯t something he could reproduce on his own. Though, had he been the one responsible for naming it, he did have an idea what to call it¡­


    The light affinity spell, Collapsing Star.


    Luckily for them, the viscous tar coating the room¡¯s floor cushioned their landing, sparing them from further injuries. Of course, the bubbling liquid was rather hot to the touch, but it couldn¡¯t compare to the attack they¡¯d just eaten to their face. Though it did aggravate their burns some more.


    Sinking to the bottom, they remained motionless on the floor, waiting with hope for their victory to be announced. And soon enough, the viscous metal was drained out of the room, as the soulless voice spoke again.


    ¡°Congratu¡­ cleared¡­ rewards¡­¡±


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    The two had some trouble making the words out through the ringing in their ears, but there wasn¡¯t any question as to their contents. Oblivious to Percy¡¯s thoughts, the system kept speaking.


    ¡°Awarded¡­ Current¡­¡±


    ¡°Wave¡­ Bonus reward¡­ request¡­ limited¡­¡±


    Percy prodded his host after realizing he¡¯d remained silent for a few seconds too long.


    the latter asked, apparently only now regaining consciousness.


    Percy advised.


    Gabe tried nodding, but even this slight motion hurt.


    ¡°H-Heal¡­ my soul¡­ and my body.¡± he spoke in a hoarse voice.


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    Percy sure hoped the cube had heard the message clearly. It would be so stupid to fail at the last stretch because of a simple miscommunication. Luckily his worries had been misplaced, though the response wasn¡¯t the ideal one. Not that they heard it in its entirety, but they still made out the gist of it.


    ¡°Evaluation complete¡­ outside parameters¡­ only eligible¡­ one type of mana¡­ prioritize soul¡­?¡± Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Before coming to the Vault, Percy had no intention of creating a second familiar anytime soon. While he¡¯d grown somewhat used to having two connections at the same time, it would inhibit his ability to send out more clones for the foreseeable future.


    Of course, it would be worth it if it was part of his project to get a Starry Wasp familiar, but that wasn¡¯t on the table right now. Sadly, he had no idea how to get his hands on a suitable egg. Still, he wouldn¡¯t abandon his new friend for his own convenience.


    the latter asked.


    Naturally, Gabe understood his own physiology better, but he knew Percy had possessed dozens of dying bodies in the past. Evidently, he could use a second opinion. Percy remained silent for a few moments, considering it. Every now and then, he tried moving a muscle, gauging the condition of his host¡¯s various body parts.


    Gabe sent a mental nod back. He¡¯d lost both eyes and one hand. What wasn¡¯t as clear was whether the remaining limbs could be salvaged. Even if they could, the numerous burns on his body would easily take several months to heal.


    At first, Percy had thought his friend could just look for a mortal with the life affinity to heal him, but Gabe had already explained that was unlikely to work. Mortals in the Vault were highly competitive, as the available resources were limited. There was no sense of camaraderie between them, plus the gods liked things this way, as it helped them cultivate the strongest ones. Sadly, Gabe would only have himself to rely on.


    Worse still, his next opportunity to fix his body was decades away, at best. Even if he mastered the rest of his arsenal after Percy left, he couldn¡¯t reach the twelfth wave in either the ¡°swarm¡± or ¡°gauntlet¡± challenge. Probably not even if he¡¯d been healthy. Certainly not in his current state. Plus, getting into magiscript would be much harder now that he was both blind and crippled. In fact, advancing to Blue didn¡¯t exactly guarantee he¡¯d clear the sixth wave either. It was entirely possible he was stuck like this forever.


    he spoke after a while.


    Percy didn¡¯t say anything, respecting his host¡¯s decision.


    ¡°Heal my soul.¡± the latter said.


    By now, the ringing in their ears had subsided somewhat, letting them hear the cube¡¯s next words more clearly.


    ¡°Accumulating soul mana. Healing begins in 6 rits.¡±


    Though they¡¯d been working towards this very moment for weeks, Percy was suddenly overcome by a wave of panic, realizing they were mere seconds away from parting for good. What was he even supposed to say to a friend he might never see again?!


    A crisp sound broke him out of his thoughts, as something soft brushed through the air. The familiar feeling of a cool droplet landing on their forehead was soon followed by a refreshing sensation spreading through their soul. Wherever it passed, the cracks in Gabe¡¯s soul rapidly closed. Not wishing to waste their last few moments, Percy said the first thing that came to mind.


    Perhaps he should have gone with something more positive, but he did feel strongly about this. While Percy had only promised to do his best to help Gabe, returning to Remior without knowing whether he¡¯d succeeded didn¡¯t sit well with him. Especially since he was leaving his friend crippled, and with a heavy secret to bear.


    However, a wave of amusement soon seeped through their bond.


    Gabe asked.


    Another droplet fell, causing Percy¡¯s soul wisp to recede even further down the mending cracks. The patches he¡¯d been struggling to hold together continued to fizzle out, no longer required. And as he started getting pushed out of the vessel, Percy noticed the pull of his main body had grown extremely strong, trying to pry him out of this world. But he wasn¡¯t thinking about that. His mind was focused on Gabe¡¯s words. Hearing his friend didn¡¯t blame him lifted a weight off Percy¡¯s chest.


    Gabe chuckled.


    Percy snapped back in mock outrage.


    He was part-joking around of course, though he did mean what he said. Percy fully intended to find a proper way of navigating the cosmos eventually. There already were one or two places he¡¯d like to return to, and he was sure there would be even more in the future.


    And just like that, the third droplet landed, the divine mana soon sealing the last few injuries in Gabe¡¯s soul, pushing Percy out. As the powerful cord on his back tensed, he was finally pulled away, as Gabe¡¯s final message echoed in his mind.

 Chapter 86: BUMP

    The moment Percy was dragged out of Gabe¡¯s body, and before he had the chance to pick up much speed, something strange happened.BUMP


    It was weird because the only things he had ever interacted with in this disembodied state had been other souls. Plus, it had always been him running into them ¨C if not intentionally then at least knowingly. Though he didn¡¯t think much of it, continuing on his way to Remior, not feeling any different after the collision.


    Instead, his thoughts were occupied by his recent experiences in the Vault. While the place was positively rich with magical secrets, Percy had only managed to scratch the tip of the iceberg. Magiscript was arguably the Vault¡¯s most valuable art, but he had lacked the funds and the time to study it too deeply. After all, he couldn¡¯t have asked his dying friend to waste his limited credits on books and tutorials for his sake.


    Consequently, leaving without learning how to inscribe a single rune was Percy¡¯s second greatest regret in this trip, only narrowly beaten by the bittersweet ending of Gabe¡¯s challenge. However, that was not to say he was without gains.


    And soon enough, the wisp was back in its rightful body, the two sets of memories now blending into each other. The process took a little longer than usual, probably due to the greater volume of divergent memories he had to sift through. In fact, the memories themselves were fine ¨C it wasn¡¯t very difficult to logically arrange them. The bigger issue were the emotions.


    As it turned out, Percy¡¯s clone and main body had developed some distinct feelings during their time apart, some of them even in conflict with one another. For example, the main body had spent several months compressing crystals, brewing elixirs and working on the new recipe with Orin. Suffice to say, he¡¯d grown a little fed up with alchemy by now. On the other hand, the clone had begun to miss it after the long vacation.


    So now that the two minds fused once more, Percy had to deal with all sorts of concurrent incongruities like that. By the time he was done, his head was throbbing, as he rested weakly on his bed. Only now did he remember it was the middle of the night. The clone¡¯s return had woken him up.


    All in all, there had been plenty of interesting developments on both sides, so Percy planned to spend tomorrow rethinking his priorities. For now, he figured there was no better starting point than reading his Status.


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Pure]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude][Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude][Quarterstaff ¨C Crude][Glove ¨C Crude][Crystallization ¨C Crude][Circulation ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened upon reaching the end of his Status, the new words carrying some shocking implications.


    He and Gabe had checked their Status a few hours before starting the last wave of the challenge. The new Decree hadn¡¯t been there at the time. More importantly, this was something targeting specifically, having followed him all the way home!


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    But what did this mean?!


    Obviously, their secrets had been exposed to the upper echelons of the Vault! Their hopes of hiding under the noses of a bunch of gods, while having all sorts of unusual interactions with the Vault¡¯s system had obviously been way too optimistic!


    Percy¡¯s heartbeat quickened, as all sorts of catastrophic scenarios flashed through his mind. A few minutes later, he realized panic wasn¡¯t helping, so he grabbed his shaking wrist to calm himself down. Only now did he register his bedsheets were stuck to his skin, drenched in cold sweat.


    The titan could have chosen to appear before Percy at any point, forcibly capturing him, or performing all sorts of experiments on him against his will. Instead, he had remained silent, waiting for him to leave before passing him what was essentially an invitation.


    The guy wasn¡¯t some sort of saint! Metatron was a callous man who had crafted one of the most brutal worlds Percy had ever heard of! Why would he care about the feelings of some random mortal?!


    Though, thinking about it from the god¡¯s perspective, it did make sense. The most precious thing his clones possessed was the Moirais¡¯ Decree. Of course, that was plenty valuable in and of itself, but Percy wasn¡¯t sure if Metatron could have snatched it by force.


    Maybe they could have tried extracting his soul from Gabe and placing it into a different body. However, he wasn¡¯t sure that would have worked. Perhaps he couldn¡¯t possess another body without using his ability first, or maybe they couldn¡¯t have fused his soul with somebody else¡¯s without his consent.


    Either way, it would have been a gamble. They¡¯d have risked everything to maybe grant one more person a second core. But had they failed, they would have lost their chance forever.


    However, Percy¡¯s main body possessed something far more valuable ¨C the very bloodline making all this possible in the first place! If they could get their hands on him, they could pass the Moirais¡¯ Decree to as many people as they wanted! And who knew what else they could do with it?!


    Percy could always choose not to go. In that case, Metatron would lose everything. In fact, as much as he wanted to check up on his friend and to uncover more of the Vault¡¯s knowledge, Percy would be a fool to even consider it. These people treated their own children as disposable experiments! Who would be stupid enough to willingly place themselves at their mercy?!


    Did he think Percy would eventually get into a situation where he¡¯d have to use the Decree? It was possible¡­ After all, he was just a weak mortal. He wouldn¡¯t risk his life when he was safe, but what if he found himself cornered by a powerful enemy? Possible death was better than certain death, wasn¡¯t it? Did Metatron count on that happening sooner or later?


    The possibility sent a shiver down Percy¡¯s spine, but he quickly shook his head. It shouldn¡¯t be that easy. If it were, Metatron would have taken over the universe already. Besides, even if he invade, it wasn¡¯t like Percy could do much to stop him. He had no idea how to get rid of the Decree and he wasn¡¯t selfless enough to kill himself or spill the beans to the Divine Order¡­


    How would the gods react if they were to learn about all this? Perhaps, their safest bet would be to execute him on the spot. If things developed in such a way, he might be forced to escape to the Vault in desperation.


    In fact, Gabe was the one in trouble¡­


    While Percy was by far the most valuable of the two, Gabe was still an important test subject. After all, Percy had already given him the Decree. Could his children inherit his second core? If so, Percy could see the Vault¡¯s gods forcing Gabe to sire a lot of kids.


    They could also try snatching it from him the same way Percy had passed it along in the first place. Though that was likely impossible. If this hadn¡¯t been a unique feature of the Clone bloodline, other races would have long stolen it from the Moirai. Soul affinities were rare, yes, but still abundant at the cosmic scale. It was the of Percy¡¯s affinity and bloodline that was probably unprecedented.


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    It wasn¡¯t hard to imagine. The Vault¡¯s deities were certainly self-centred, but also logical. Gabe had already been a Yellow-born with a blessing and a useful bloodline before Percy¡¯s interference. He was one of the chosen few they had kept around in the first place.


    Now, his value had gone up again. Perhaps they¡¯d treat him kindly, investing in him rather than squeezing him dry of all he was worth. And not just due to his own potential, but also as a bargaining chip to use against Percy in the future.


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but lament his powerlessness once again. And it was more pronounced than ever before, now that he found himself opposite a titan of all people. But at least, Metatron didn¡¯t seem like he was planning to move against him directly anytime soon. He was probably playing the long game. Or at least, Percy had no alternative but to assume as much.


    Thinking of a possibility, he grinned.

 Chapter 87: Advancement

    Percy tried ¨C and failed ¨C to get some more sleep following his clone¡¯s return. His insomnia was largely a symptom of his stress. He couldn¡¯t help but glance around the room every few seconds, fully expecting to see Metatron standing there, smirking at him.Only when the sun rose did Percy finally shake off his rampant paranoia. Of course, logic had told him hours ago he¡¯d most likely be alright, but it wasn¡¯t until the warm rays snuck past the curtains, gently caressing his face, that he managed to put his worry to rest.


    Though, the new Decree hadn¡¯t been the only thing keeping him awake. There was more ¨C some of it even being good news! While he¡¯d been exhausted after another day of brewing, he was always a little reinvigorated whenever a clone returned. The missing soul fragments tended to fill him with energy as they settled in their rightful place.


    And to top it all off, today was special in more ways than one.


    Percy struggled to contain his bubbling enthusiasm.


    Through an amusing stroke of luck, the end of his trip had coincided with another important development. The first strands of Orange had appeared in Percy¡¯s second core the day before!


    Estimating that around 12 hours had passed since the last dose, he sat cross-legged on the bed, before stretching his arm to grab a gemstone vial from the nightstand.


    POP¡­ PTUI


    Naturally, Percy didn¡¯t miss a beat, uncorking it and spitting out the lid with a single motion, gulping its contents down before the cork even landed on the floor. And as soon as the elixir settled in his stomach, he drew some mana from his abdomen, swirling the two substances together with practiced ease. Only when the deattuned beast mana finished bonding to his own did he begin circulating them back and forth to his second core.


    Percy activated Mana Sense, watching as wave upon wave of mana washed over the crystalline walls. Usually, one didn¡¯t need to directly observe the purification process, but he wouldn¡¯t miss this moment for the world.


    Whenever he pulled the mixture inwards, it chipped away at some of the dimmer Red segments, causing his abdomen to itch. And every time he pushed the mana outwards, the impurities were the first to go, leaving the ethereal organ a little emptier, though its contents purer.


    At the beginning, only a single new strand appeared during each revolution. At that speed, it would take several days for the promotion to be completed. Luckily, it didn¡¯t work like that, as the purification rate tended to snowball as one inched closer to the finish line. Two strands appeared together during the fourth cycle, while five of them popped up at once by the tenth.


    However, it was still a bit slow. Sear?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but crack a bitter smile.


    The advancement was around halfway complete, though the elixir in his stomach was already nearly exhausted. Not that it was the end of the world. It just meant he¡¯d have to complete the promotion in the evening. He¡¯d already waited years for this moment ¨C he could wait a few more hours.


    ¡®


    Accepting it simply wasn¡¯t meant to be, he watched the last traces of elixir about to be consumed.


    Yet, something suddenly changed.


    At first, a single new strand appeared. It wasn¡¯t enough to fill the core by itself, but that was only the beginning. Having crossed some kind of threshold, the newcomer soon attracted its neighbours, as the pure lines of Orange mana twisted together, forming a thicker band. And it seemed to exert some influence on the smaller ones, starting a chain reaction. More of them joined together, as the thicker ropes also began attracting one another.


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    Yet there was some final barrier preventing those from merging. They tried to, but couldn¡¯t take the last step, causing them to swirl around the organ even more violently than before. Their ends lashed out against the walls of the core, scraping more impurities out. This caused Percy¡¯s abdomen to burn more intensely than it usually did after a purification session.


    Of course, he didn¡¯t panic. Having experienced this before, he knew what to expect.


    As the thicker ropes purified the core, they allowed more of the thinner ones to appear. With nowhere to go, they had no choice but to merge much like their predecessors had done mere moments ago.


    The situation kept escalating, until the core was filled with only thick bands before long. By now, the Orange colour had overwhelmingly dominated the Red, leaving no more space for new strands to form. This seemed to push the reaction to its final stage, as the densely packed ropes overcame the barrier, fusing together.


    The rest happened too fast for Percy to register.


    With a satisfying sound reverberating through his body, all his core¡¯s contents fused into a singular blob of Orange, splashing down at the bottom of the organ. The new mana was a lot denser than before, only filling up about a third of the volume.


    Though that could easily be fixed. Taking a few deep breaths, Percy quickly replenished his reserves over the next couple of minutes, as a potent wave of vitality washed over his body and soul, elevating every inch of his existence. His senses grew sharper, letting him observe details in the room he¡¯d never quite noticed before. His thoughts became clearer, as time even seemed to slow down a little. But the greatest improvement was to his physical strength, as his muscles twitched, their fibres coursing with new vigour.


    Advancing to a higher grade was easily the greatest joy for a mage, comfortably beating even the exhilaration felt after mastering a new spell. It was something most people would only get to experience a few times in their life. Well, high-borns like Elaine might do it a couple more, but they also tended to live much longer, so it averaged out. Either way, Percy got to enjoy the rare privilege of going through each milestone twice!


    The thought reminded him to grab a bowl of cyan powder he¡¯d prepared on the nightstand before going to bed. Dripping a splash of water from a nearby cup, he hastily mixed the two materials into paste before downing it.


    It hadn¡¯t been that long since he began using the miraculous substance, but it had already proven its worth, having shaved several months off his advancement time. In fact, he¡¯d probably just set a brand-new record ¨C unbeknownst to anyone ¨C for the fastest promotion on Remior!


    Furthermore, it would probably become even more effective when he and Orin finalized the new recipe, fully integrating the cyan powder into the elixirs. Something they were extremely close to doing!


    Percy had already notified his mentor he was going to take the day off. After all, he had a new toy he couldn¡¯t wait to play around with. And it wasn¡¯t even just for fun. He need to get used to how his spells felt after the advancement, to avoid any surprises in case he ended up in a fight. Furthermore, this promotion would have a significant impact on his ability to condense the crystals, hopefully letting him produce more of them per day. Right now, he could still barely keep up with his needs, but he had to greatly increase his output if he wanted to make money off the new elixirs.


    It had been around a year since Percy made the switch to full-time alchemy. Suffice to say, his combat skills had probably grown a little rusty, making this a great opportunity to get in shape again. He could put his new power to the test, while also stretching his limbs.


    Leaping to his feet, he took a couple minutes to wash up, before grabbing another dose of elixir and paste for the road.


    Leaving his house, he sent a message to his familiar.


    the crow sent him a questioning sound back.


    From the bird¡¯s perspective, they¡¯d only met a couple days ago. Well, technically the same was true for Percy, but he was still sorting through his conflicting emotions.


    he said, not bothering to explain.


    A few hours later, Percy stood on a giant mushroom, with Micky sitting a few metres away. The former took deep breaths, appreciating the colourful motes boosting his regeneration. Of course, they had them in the settlement too, but fewer made it indoors where he spent most of his time. It was nice getting some fresh air for a change.


    Around three dozen paces ahead, a wasp the size of a man was strolling carelessly atop the colossal fungus, completely oblivious to the grim fate that awaited it.


    Two sets of glowing lines thrummed underneath Percy¡¯s skin, as he cracked his fists, eagerly eyeing his prey.

 Chapter 88: Synchronization

    The soldier stabbed repeatedly with its stinger, trying to poke holes into Percy¡¯s brain. Though the latter didn¡¯t have much difficulty dodging.he thought, sniffing the acrid odour, unbothered by the slight burning sensation in his nostrils.


    Ok¡­ perhaps he needed to get out of the lab more. Brewing nonstop was clearly driving him insane.


    In any case, Percy had yet to summon any of his weapons, nor had he used a spell other than Circulation. Maybe it was a little reckless of him, taking on a beast a full grade higher barehanded ¨C especially right after such a long break from hunting. That said, his newly sharpened reflexes seemed to carry him just fine.


    Not that he wasn¡¯t a little out of shape, yet it wasn¡¯t nearly as bad as he¡¯d expected. Fighting alongside Gabe over the past month must¡¯ve helped. While Percy had only been in partial control of his friend¡¯s body, and while his host¡¯s style had been very different to his own, they¡¯d still faced off against elite opponents at Green. That was a level Percy wasn¡¯t even remotely ready to touch by himself. Evidently, the experience had been more than a little eye-opening.


    He¡¯d already casually evaded dozens of lunges, his agility having grown to a monstrous level following the promotion. The wasp even showed signs of tiring by now. Yet, Percy just couldn¡¯t shake this irritating feeling he wasn¡¯t giving it his all.


    Oblivious to his thoughts, the insect suddenly disengaged, flying a little higher. Percy wasn¡¯t surprised, having expected it to resort to this move sooner or later. He tensed his calves, preparing for the incoming attack. Probably realizing it was outmatched, the wasp didn¡¯t hold back, desperately releasing all its venom at once. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Three blobs of purple spread above Percy. Yet it only took him two steps to escape the splash zone, comfortably leaping out of the expanding shadows with plenty of time to spare.


    SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS


    Perhaps, the sheer ease by which he¡¯d evaded the deadly acid should have satisfied him. However, it only exacerbated the feeling there was . It simmered beneath the surface, waiting to be unleashed.


    Putting some distance from the bug, he turned his senses inwards. This arrangement suited the wasp fine, as it wasn¡¯t in a hurry to follow, instead taking the opportunity to recover a little.


    But Percy didn¡¯t care about his cowardly opponent, his focus now entirely on the ethereal organ in his abdomen. The core was filled to the brim with mana, as more kept flowing in and out to his channels. In fact, the pathways were all stretched to their limits too, making them unable to accommodate another drop.


    Or well¡­ that have been the case. However, they didn¡¯t seem quite as strained as usual upon further examination. Shifting his gaze towards the one in his sternum, he noticed the same phenomenon happening in the second set of channels. The flow coursing through them was about as potent as it normally was, yet he felt he could push it further if he really tried.


    The interesting thing about Circulation was it both strengthened one¡¯s body and required it to be stronger. That was why Percy had needed to exercise for several months before he could use it. It was all about finding the highest stable level at which the spell could operate without harming him. But what happened if a mage had two cores and just as many instances of Circulation?


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    Taking another breath, Percy pushed more pure mana into his abdomen, forcing it into the corresponding channels. He encountered a lot of resistance ¨C his whole body hurt ¨C but the pathways ultimately swelled a little further to accommodate his wishes. Next, he repeated the process with soul mana, which was even more painful. He couldn¡¯t help but wince as the maelstrom swirled more violently, carving nasty grooves in his soul.


    But it held.


    Percy paused for a moment to examine his body. Overall, the gains were minuscule ¨C hardly worth the trouble so far. That said, he couldn¡¯t help but notice his channels felt slightly less saturated once more.


    ¡°CAW!¡± Micky called out to him, a trace of worry worming its way into his voice.


    Over the next few minutes, Percy continued to push his body further and further, one tiny step at a time. Eventually, there seemed to be no more room for improvement, as both sets of channels settled at their new upper limit.


    Only then did Percy stop using Mana Sense, examining himself through his eyes. His muscles had swollen even more than they usually did, his flesh now painted a deep crimson colour. His veins throbbed, as the glow from the cyan and silver lines was almost blinding. And most curiously, motes of mana leaked out of his pores about as fast as they were being replenished, giving his skin a magical sheen, shrouding his body in a dual halo.


    Everything ached, from head to toe. Not just his flesh, but his soul too. And that was without even mentioning how taxing it was on his mind. While Percy could normally use Circulation all day long, he¡¯d be lucky if he could keep this version up for a couple of hours.


    Still, he couldn¡¯t help but crack a smile, eager to put this power to the test. He stretched his limbs and flexed his muscles, hearing all sorts of popping sounds coming from his joints. Then he took a step forward.


    BZZZZZZZ


    The Starry Soldier had spent the last few minutes staring at him cautiously, but it appeared to have run out of patience, Percy¡¯s current appearance scaring it out of its mind. It turned around without missing a beat, fleeing at top speed, leaving Percy staring at its back with his mouth agape.


    ¡°Seriously?! Come back here!¡± he yelled, running after it.


    At first, the wasp looked like it was going to get away ¨C it was a fast one even among Yellow beasts. It also didn¡¯t help Percy¡¯s steps were measured, as he was careful not to overexert his body before understanding his limits.


    However, he didn¡¯t need to be so cautious, as the spell seemed to work as advertised. It greatly boosted both his mobility and resilience, letting him easily keep up with the creature, accelerating with each stride. Before long, he was confidently gaining ground on the bug, leaving it no choice but to fly upwards, trying to escape to the sky.


    Percy quickly formed a silver sickle before throwing it above the creature, blocking its path. The chase went on for a little longer as he drew nearer and nearer, tossing projectiles at his prey whenever it tried taking an inconvenient turn.


    Eventually, the wasp understood it wasn¡¯t going to get away, suddenly turning around to land a sneaky stab in Percy¡¯s eye. But the young man grinned, his passive Soul Vision having already warned him. With some elegant footwork, he pivoted around the giant insect, soon finding himself staring at it from behind. Before the beast could even tell what was happening, he jumped to its back, stepping on its smooth exoskeleton, grabbing a membranous wing with each hand.


    The Starry Soldier crash landed on the giant mushroom, sliding along its surface for about a dozen metres before coming to a halt. It struggled weakly for a few moments, trying to shake Percy off. Not particularly bothered, he took his time pulling out the thin plates of chitin held in his palms.


    At some point, the insect did manage to shake him off, but only because his footing loosened after ripping the wings out of their sockets. Next, the creature pounced on him, the two rolling atop the giant fungus engaged in a slugfest.


    Of course, Percy could easily put an end to this charade at any point with a Parting Gift. But he didn¡¯t. He wanted to savour his new spell, exploring the limits of his physical strength.


    He dodged the bug¡¯s sharp mandibles, ignoring the putrid droplets of spittle they spread every time they moved. With every opportunity, he tore out another of the wasp¡¯s limbs, slowly wrestling the beast to the ground, ripping it apart inch by inch.


    Eventually, he stood alone amidst a sticky pool of green, filled with severed chunks of bug flesh. His face and hands were covered in the substance too, though his robes had done their job once more, the enchanted fabric looking about as immaculate as it had earlier that morning.


    Percy breathed hard, the fight ¨C or at least the way in which he¡¯d stubbornly chosen to conduct it ¨C having taken its toll on him. Yet his face beamed with a radiant smile, as he revelled in his new strength. And only now did the Status see fit to announce his latest accomplishment.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Circulation ¨C Refined -> Synchronization ¨C Refined!]

 Chapter 89: Condensing crystals

    ¡°Neat!¡±Strictly speaking, Synchronization was only classified as ¡®Refined¡¯, like Circulation. However, this was still impressive in many ways. Generally, the Status avoided registering an upgrade within the same class, unless the spell in question was a qualitative improvement over its predecessor.


    Of course, Percy didn¡¯t know how to get his hands on the final step of the technique. The only clue Micky had left him was it had something to do with ambient mana, but that wasn¡¯t much to go with. That said, he hoped he wouldn¡¯t have to choose between that and Synchronization.


    CAW!


    The crow landed next to him, diving into the mess of wasp parts. It tossed the bigger chunks away with its beak, occasionally swallowing one of the smaller pieces, while searching for the core.


    Percy complained in a faux-offended tone.


    Though Micky just ignored him. Only after the familiar was done eating did the two head back to the settlement. They took their sweet time catching up, as they weren¡¯t in a rush, wanting to make the most of this rare vacation while it lasted.


    Due to his unique circumstances, Micky was more than smart enough to learn the language. Communicating via feelings and images was certainly convenient, but it wouldn¡¯t hurt to have the ability to talk to other people. Well, assuming his physiology even allowed it.


    Percy sighed.


    His original goal for today had been to test his entire kit, though his overindulgence in his new toy had left his body battered and sore, forcing him to leave earlier. It was a bit of a bummer, especially since he also looked forward to fusing his affinities.


    Once they approached the bridges leading to the ground level, they finally parted ways. Entering the Guild, Percy headed straight to Freddy¡¯s stand, waving at the plump vendor as soon as he came into view. The latter waved back absentmindedly at first, though his eyes widened upon noticing Percy¡¯s condition.


    ¡°Holy shit! What happened to you?!¡±


    ¡°I got in a messy situation out there¡­¡± Percy replied vaguely. However, upon seeing the colour fade from his friend¡¯s face, he hurriedly added, ¡°Ah! But don¡¯t worry about it! I¡¯m not injured! Just tired¡­ and filthy¡­ and¡­ very, very hungry!¡±


    The response seemed to calm Freddy down, though the man still raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Since when did you return to hunting anyway? I thought you switched to alchemy a while ago.¡±


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°I did. I was on a break today.¡±


    Freddy chuckled, thinking it was a joke. It wasn¡¯t until a moment later he seemed to realize Percy wasn¡¯t kidding.


    ¡°Seriously?! Who goes hunting on their break?!¡± he asked in exasperation. ¡°Man, you should really get yourself a hobby!¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t take any offense, knowing the guy was just looking out for him.


    ¡°You know what they say¡­ Happy is the man who turns his hobby into a profession.¡±


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    ¡°Oh? Is that what you did? Turned your hobby into a profession?¡± Freddy scoffed.


    ¡°Well, not exactly.¡± Percy admitted, before grinning. ¡°But I think I¡¯m close to turning my former profession into a hobby!¡±


    Freddy rolled his eyes, though Percy didn¡¯t miss the subtle smile tugging at his pal¡¯s lips.


    ¡°Anyway¡­ You¡¯re here for the usual I assume?¡± Freddy asked, changing the topic.


    Percy nodded before passing him a brown chip. Freddy handed him the Honey Roll, grimacing as he tried and failed to wipe the grime off the change. Percy didn¡¯t pay him much attention, his focus soon shifting to his snack. Pouncing on it like a famished wolf, he¡¯d already devoured half of it by the time his friend finished cleaning the coin.


    ¡°Wow. It¡¯s almost like you didn¡¯t have one last night.¡± Freddy said, getting another shrug back.


    A few minutes later, Percy arrived at his house. Though he¡¯d been too tired to keep fighting the bugs, it was still bright outside, so he wasn¡¯t going to bed just yet. There was something else he wanted to figure out before returning to work tomorrow.


    After taking a quick shower, he sat on the floor, pulling some pure mana out of his abdomen. He¡¯d shaven a lot of time off Crystallization over the last year, but each marble still took him over an hour to make, which wasn¡¯t ideal.


    Forming the cyan blob between his hands, he exerted all his strength, pressing down on it with physical and magical might alike.


    Normally, Percy hated producing the crystals more than anything else he¡¯d done over the years. It was no less exhausting than his most difficult fights, and even more monotonous than alchemy. At least when brewing elixirs, every batch was unique, making the process interactive and somewhat engaging.


    This, instead, was sitting still for hours on end, doing the exact same thing over and over. In fact, he couldn¡¯t even think about something else to distract himself. The tedious task required nothing short of his full attention and willpower. Of course, he didn¡¯t really have a choice. It wasn¡¯t the first sacrifice he¡¯d had to make during his magical journey, nor would it be the last. S§×ar?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Then again, this was a special occasion. The mere idea of evaluating his gains post-advancement filled him with anticipation, breathing some fresh air into the stale process.


    The sphere continued to shrink as Percy kept pushing. He felt no different than when he usually did it ¨C he was just as tired, his body drenched in sweat. Yet, the results spoke for themselves.


    POP


    He wiped his forehead with his arm, his chest heaving up and down. Perhaps he shouldn¡¯t have been in a rush to take a shower before starting. Though having to wash up twice was definitely preferrable to getting wasp goo all over his room.


    he estimated, pinching the cyan marble between his thumb and index finger.


    Then, he grinned.


    her


    Having a one-sided competition against a sick old lady struggling to provide for her village admittedly wasn¡¯t Percy¡¯s classiest moment. Especially since the poor woman hadn¡¯t the slightest idea some random kid across the cosmos had set her as a personal goal to surpass. But hey, Percy thought being a little competitive was one of his better traits! It motivated him to keep improving! Plus, he wasn¡¯t hurting anybody!


    In any case, the experiment wasn¡¯t over yet. In fact, the main event had yet to begin.


    Taking a few deep breaths, he activated Circulation with both cores, though he didn¡¯t push it beyond the usual limit. For now, this was the state he¡¯d be using most of the time while compressing the crystals ¨C at least until he grew more accustomed to Synchronization. Repeating the process once more, he soon ended up with a second marble in his palm.


    It was good. Over three times faster than before the promotion, which was definitely going to help once the new recipe was complete.


    However, Percy wasn¡¯t done.


    While he still had to iron the kinks out of his latest spell, he just couldn¡¯t wait to put it to the test. Retracing his actions from earlier that morning, he incrementally raised the intensity of the two instances of Circulation, until his channels couldn¡¯t fit any more mana.


    Realizing the process had taken him a while, he frowned.


    But that was a problem for the future. Manifesting another blob between his hands, he quickly began the compression process again, soon beating his record for the third time that day.


    The difference wasn¡¯t huge, but Percy knew an opportunity when he saw it. If he spent as long as possible making the marbles with Synchronization active, he¡¯d not only increase his output a little, but it would also help him get used to the new spell, killing two birds with one stone.


    he smiled, though his expression soon soured.


    Now that his end of the manufacturing process was settled, he had a few more obstacles to deal with, standing between him and untold riches.

 Chapter 90: Compromise

    The blueish-green concoction stopped boiling, giving Percy a moment of reprieve.But he couldn¡¯t relax for long. The mixture was currently unstable, so delaying could easily cause the yield to suffer. Moving quickly, he grabbed a pinch of ground leaves he¡¯d prepared earlier, tossing the colourful dust in the cauldron. Next, he turned up the temperature much higher than before, stirring it again.


    ¡°The rainbow grass seems to work!¡± Orin exclaimed as he watched it bubble.


    Upon learning of the cyan paste¡¯s ability to mend one¡¯s core, Percy had been trying to incorporate it directly into the elixirs, aiming to maximize its effectiveness.


    The first additional step had been relatively simple. He¡¯d only needed to mix the powder with a finished elixir. Naturally, it had involved some heating and stirring, much like the previous steps. That had allowed the crystallized mana to bond with the beast mana already present. And of course, this hadn¡¯t been very complicated, so Percy had actually succeeded on his first try!


    However, the resulting elixir hadn¡¯t worked as intended. The moment he added his own mana to the concoction, it reacted violently inside his stomach, nearly injuring him. After some reflection, the problem had become clear. The recipe for the regular elixirs involved three stages, commonly referred to as the ¡°three pillars¡± of alchemy.


    First, the pacification step delayed the activation of the beast mana, allowing the elixir to work gradually over several minutes rather than surging through the mage¡¯s body all at once. During the redirection step, the beast mana was modified to target impurities more strongly than the rest of the core, enhancing the elixir¡¯s purifying effects. Finally, the deattunement step allowed the beast mana to blend more easily with the first new type of mana it encountered, so that it could be guided through the user¡¯s channels.


    And this was exactly where the problem lied. It was precisely because of deattunement that the cyan powder could bond with the beast mana. However, that meant the elixir was no longer deattuned afterwards.


    Of course, the solution had been rather obvious too. Since the deattunement was ¡°used up¡± after adding the cyan powder, all Percy had to do was deattune it a second time. Essentially, the new recipe required five steps now: pacification, redirection, deattunement, bonding and then deattunement again!


    Though that came with its own set of challenges.


    To start, the same ingredient used for the first round of deattunement couldn¡¯t be used again. At least not without massively impacting the yield and quality of the elixir. In fact, the same was true for the overall procedure. Percy and Orin had discovered it was best to perform the second deattunement at a much higher temperature. That meant they¡¯d needed to modify the procedure, fine-tuning everything to accommodate the changes. Furthermore, not all ingredients could handle the increased heat, greatly narrowing down their options. Ground rainbow grass was simply the most recent in a long string of experiments.


    ¡°It¡¯s done!¡± Percy said once the mixture settled into a turquoise gel.


    Distilling the contents of the cauldron into a vial was a struggle, his hands shaking from excitement.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not get ahead of ourselves. We need to make sure it works first.¡± Orin said, though Percy didn¡¯t miss the grin on his mentor¡¯s face.


    Stretching out his arm, he offered him the experimental product, but the old alchemist shook his head.


    ¡°You do the honours. It¡¯s your recipe.¡± Orin said.


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    Percy had led the whole endeavour, testing all the provisional iterations by himself. As for his mentor, he¡¯d only taken on a supporting role, giving him tips and advice whenever he got stuck.


    ¡°Bottom¡¯s up then.¡± he said, before gulping down the liquid.


    It tasted just as bitter as the regular elixirs. At least, the second round of deattunement seemed to have done its job, his soul mana easily blending with the substance, guiding it to his core with no issues.


    And the moment it reached the ethereal organ, it behaved in a very peculiar way. His sternum both burned and itched at the same time. The exotic substance washed over the core¡¯s walls, chipping away at the impurities, mending the resulting scars right afterwards. It was somehow even more unpleasant than the regular elixirs!


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    While the damage it left behind was greatly reduced, the dual action of the two materials was rather intense. That was in stark contrast to the refreshing effect of the cyan paste Percy had grown fond of over the past year.


    ¡°Well?¡± Orin impatiently asked about half an hour later.


    Only then did Percy shift his gaze back to his mentor, remembering he was still in the latter¡¯s lab.


    ¡°I guess we¡¯ll have to wait a few hours to make sure, but I believe it works.¡±


    ¡°How effective do you think it is?¡±


    Percy spent a few moments gauging the state of his core. It was better than if he¡¯d used the elixir and paste separately, though it was hard to estimate exactly by how much.


    ¡°I think I¡¯ll be able to drink three of these per day.¡± he ultimately concluded.


    The old alchemist drew a sharp breath, clearly finding Percy¡¯s assessment difficult to accept. Perhaps, he wouldn¡¯t have been so surprised if his student had come clean about the details of the cyan powder and paste. Percy had actually held back a lot of information about the substance. For example, he¡¯d yet to disclose where he got it from, nor had he told Orin it could be used even without fusing it into the elixirs.


    Obviously, the old alchemist wasn¡¯t dumb ¨C he could tell Percy hadn¡¯t been entirely honest. Though they¡¯d tacitly agreed to postpone their inevitable argument for after the recipe was perfected. Which, unfortunately, . Pulling a couple of chairs from a nearby desk, Orin moved one close to Percy, before sitting on the other.


    ¡°Percy¡­ you know we have to talk about this, right?¡±


    The young man shrugged, taking a seat.


    ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m surprised you didn¡¯t bring it up before now.¡±


    ¡°I considered it. But to tell you the truth, I wasn¡¯t entirely convinced by your claim you could improve the elixirs. It sounded too good to be true. That said, this has been a fun project, so I figured I¡¯d indulge you and see where it went.¡±


    Percy remained silent for a while, contemplating his mentor¡¯s words. The latter¡¯s explanation was pretty much in line with his guess.


    ¡°Now what? You know where I stand, don¡¯t you?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I imagine you want to keep this knowledge to yourself. Otherwise, you wouldn¡¯t have been so secretive in the first place.¡± Orin said, getting a nod back.


    ¡°Yes! I need this! I¡¯m just a Red-born! I worked hard for a chance to catch up to my peers!¡±


    But the old alchemist shook his head.


    ¡°You understand me well enough too. I can¡¯t agree with that.¡±


    Of course not. Orin was too nice and too principled to hold back such a huge breakthrough from the rest of Remior¡­ It was why Percy had been dreading this conversation. In fact, he would have tried modifying the recipe on his own if it had been an option. Sadly, he¡¯d need years to accomplish that without help.


    Orin smiled bitterly.


    ¡°Son, I know it¡¯s not fair. You work hard for this¡­ But this is bigger than you or I. Our whole world can benefit from this knowledge! Everyone will reach higher grades! We¡¯ll get more Violet cores! More gods!¡±


    Percy clenched his fists.


    ¡°I care about Remior! Believe me, I ! And I get how important this is. If some faction invades us, this recipe might make the difference between everyone I know surviving or getting enslaved!¡± he said.


    It was the same conundrum he had about sharing any of the other gains his clones brought back. Though this was a little different. It was easier to claim he¡¯d accidentally stumbled upon the cyan powder. That wasn¡¯t the case with an intricate spell like Circulation, or the Moirais¡¯ Decree.


    ¡°But I need to think about myself too! Nobody else will! I¡¯m currently at the bottom of the barrel. This can help me climb higher. Even if Remior was the strongest world in the universe, it won¡¯t mean a damn thing when a random noble steps on me like a bug!¡±


    Orin placed his hand on Percy¡¯s shoulder, gently squeezing it.


    ¡°Kid, even if we publicize the new elixirs, you¡¯ll still benefit from them. I¡¯ll make sure you do! If you can¡¯t afford them without my help, I¡¯ll brew you some personally! If you don¡¯t want people to know you came up with the recipe, I¡¯ll pretend it was my idea! No matter what, I promise I won¡¯t let you suffer a loss!¡±


    Percy felt a fuzzy feeling in his chest. Orin had already done so much for him. He¡¯d mentored him, sponsored him and even helped him with the new recipe. Now he was offering to shield him from all the repercussions too.


    Still¡­


    ¡°It¡¯s not that simple. Power is relative. If everyone gets an advantage, then nobody does. Besides, it¡¯s not just about the advancement speed. I was planning to monetize the new recipe. I need the funds...¡± Percy¡¯s voice trailed off.


    He couldn¡¯t tell Orin about Micky, or the enlightenment potions. As much as the man cared about him, his reaction would be the same. And unlike the cyan powder, none of his other secrets were safe to leak. With this, he could at least cut his losses if things went downhill. At worst, he¡¯d miss out on a potential advantage. But the rest could actually endanger him. Orin was about to say something, but Percy raised a hand to stop him. Flashing him a resolute look, he made an offer.


    ¡°How about this¡­ Give me a head start. Just 200 years. With the new elixirs, I can advance a couple of times by then. After that, you can share the recipe with whomever you like.¡±


    The old alchemist didn¡¯t immediately decline, which was good news. All things considered, it wasn¡¯t a terrible suggestion. Two centuries might be a long time for a young man like Percy¡­ However, it wasn¡¯t much for the leader of a Great House or a god of the Divine Order. Though, Orin shook his head in the end.


    ¡°Normally centuries come and go without much happening at the cosmic scale. But we could still get unlucky. Remember the incident with the lotus a couple years ago? It was a good thing, yet it could easily go differently next time.¡±


    Percy¡¯s expression fell, thinking his mentor wouldn¡¯t agree. Suffice to say, his heart skipped a beat when the man ultimately extended his hand.


    ¡°20 years. That¡¯s the highest I¡¯m willing to go. It¡¯s still a gamble, but I suppose you deserve much.¡±

 Chapter 91: Deal

    In the end, Percy shook his mentor¡¯s hand, the weight of their agreement settling between them.Twenty years were just a touch more than he needed to reach Yellow. It wasn¡¯t that much in the grand scheme of things, but he hoped his clones would bring back some additional advantages in that time. While the deadline added a tinge of pressure on his shoulders, he understood the enormity of Orin¡¯s concession.


    Wanting to show his gratitude for everything the old alchemist had done, Percy offered to brew the new elixirs for him. The man was already at Blue, which would have normally been his upper limit as an Orange-born. However, thanks to the new recipe, he now stood a real chance of reaching Violet in his lifetime!


    Yet his mentor¡¯s response surprised Percy.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need for that.¡± Orin said with a dismissive wave. ¡°The whole point of this twenty-year delay is to give you a head start. If I had you tied up brewing elixirs for me, it would defeat the purpose. Besides, I¡¯ll still need nearly two thousand years to advance. A couple of decades aren¡¯t going to make that much of a difference.¡±


    Percy was moved by his mentor¡¯s words. Especially because he knew it wasn¡¯t as simple as Orin had made it sound. Twenty years saved before his promotion would translate to sixty afterwards. Even for a powerful mage, it was still a sizeable amount of time to just give up on.


    But he didn¡¯t insist, mainly because he understood he wouldn¡¯t be able to deliver anyway. After all, he was planning to leave the Guild in a couple years. So instead, he tried to make it up to Orin by sharing the details about the cyan powder, explaining how somebody with a pure affinity could condense the crystals. That way, the old alchemist could look for another way to brew the elixirs by himself.


    Of course, Percy still left a few things out. As much as he trusted Orin, there was no reason to tell him how he¡¯d stumbled upon this discovery, nor did he need to reveal the existence of his second core. Instead, he said he had a friend helping him get the powder.


    In any case, this exchange solved most of Percy¡¯s immediate problems. The recipe was finally complete, and he¡¯d successfully negotiated an acceptable deal with Orin. Yet, there remained one final obstacle to overcome.


    It was already a struggle preparing four doses of elixir and cyan paste per day. Plus, he required even more now that he could consume them every eight hours. Not to mention the points he needed to afford Micky¡¯s potions. Suffice to say, his only path forward was to commercialize the new recipe.


    Sadly, he had no experience trading, nor did he think he¡¯d manage to learn the art anytime soon. He also had no connections, meaning he¡¯d have a difficult time finding a customer by himself. Especially since he had to do it without alerting others. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    He did ask Orin if he could help, but the man always dealt with the Guild¡¯s official stores directly ¨C whether to purchase materials or sell his products. Regrettably, the old alchemist couldn¡¯t be of much assistance in these shady ventures. Consequently, Percy had no choice but to place his trust in one more person.


    Of course, he was thinking about Nesha. Though he didn¡¯t know her that well, and some of her personality traits would probably make her a little difficult to work with, it wasn¡¯t like he had any other options.


    At least, she clearly had a good business sense, having established herself quite nicely over the past couple of years. Furthermore, their limited interactions had given him the impression she was honest.


    More importantly, Percy had learned some more information about her since their last meeting. While he hadn¡¯t been aware of her lie detection bloodline originally, it wasn¡¯t exactly some great secret. Nesha actively publicized it upon establishing her gambling den, presumably to build up prestige. And the gossip had eventually reached Percy¡¯s ears too ¨C mainly thanks to Freddy. If nothing else, this ability of hers would help them gauge whether their future business partners could be trusted.


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    There was quite a crowd waiting outside the building, all of them surprisingly quiet. The corner of Percy¡¯s mouth twitched at the sight.


    ¡°Hey, doesn¡¯t she live next door? Have you guys tried knocking?¡± he asked a random guy in a yellow robe.


    ¡°Shhhhhh!¡± the latter replied, placing his index finger over his lips.


    Then, he pointed at a sign propped-up against the building. In typical Nesha fashion, the words were written sloppily, and she hadn¡¯t even bothered nailing the sign to the wall properly.


    Percy failed to suppress a chuckle.


    ¡°Seriously? Has she actually banned people before?¡±


    The guy seemed taken aback by the question.


    ¡°Keep your voice down.¡± he hissed, before pointing at a different sign, a few meters away from the first one.


    This one was also propped-up, but at least the handwriting was much neater. In fact, it seemed to have been authored by multiple people ¨C none of them being Nesha. Upon closer examination, it contained a list of names, each written slightly differently to the one above, probably added on different occasions.


    Percy raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Wow. Did all those people get banned just for knocking on her door?¡±


    ¡°Well, most of them. Though a few were rude to her or tried to cheat.¡±


    Ok, perhaps the last two transgressions did warrant the treatment, but not the first one. Looking up at the sky, Percy noticed the sun was still just a little below its apex, partially obscured by the thick cloud of colourful motes descending from the Spire.


    It was early afternoon. Nesha should have opened by now, yet she was clearly content chilling at home instead. Not just that, but she¡¯d apparently gone to great lengths to ensure nobody would disturb her.


    ¡°Why do you guys even put up with this nonsense?¡±


    The guy shrugged.


    ¡°What else are we supposed to do? This place is pretty much the only source of entertainment around here.¡±


    Percy scratched the back of his neck.


    ¡°Well, why doesn¡¯t anybody else try opening a gambling den then?¡±


    But the guy shook his head.


    ¡°Some people have tried, but it¡¯s not so easy. Obviously, you need to rent a building for this sort of thing. A street stand isn¡¯t very suitable. Unfortunately, due to the high rent for independent businesses in the Guild, you need to manage things really well for it to survive.¡±


    Hearing the man¡¯s words, Percy¡¯s expression was mixed. On one hand, he couldn¡¯t help but be impressed that Nesha had achieved so much in so little time. Though her ruthless nonchalance towards her clientele was more than a little concerning. As was the prospect of collaborating with her.


    he thought, casually walking towards her front door.


    The crowd drew sharp breaths, seemingly shocked by his boldness. Many stepped away from Percy, presumably to dissociate themselves from him. He didn¡¯t miss the disdainful looks aimed his way either.


    KNOCK, KNOCK


    Looking back, he noticed their expressions growing even more incredulous after he dared to go through with it. Shaking his head, he turned back towards the door, waiting a few seconds.


    No response.


    Percy was a little more forceful the second time.


    KNOCK!!! KNOCK!!!


    ¡°Nesha?! I know you¡¯re in there!¡±


    Yet it wasn¡¯t until a couple minutes and twice as many escalating knocks later that the door finally opened.


    ¡°Can you idiots not read a simple sign?¡± she asked in an irritated tone.


    It was a little funny actually. Percy could tell she was annoyed enough she wanted to yell, but raising her voice was too much of a bother for her. Luckily, her expression did seem to ease ever-so-slightly upon failing to recognize him as one of her regular customers.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m really sorry for the intrusion, but I¨C¡± Percy started speaking, though he cut himself off after thinking of something.


    Looking around, he saw the crowd still staring at them curiously. Dialling down his voice, he shielded his mouth, muttering his next words as softly as he could manage, making sure nobody but Nesha heard them.


    ¡°I have a business proposal for you. I promise it¡¯ll be worth your time.¡±


    Nesha narrowed her eyes, staring at him silently for a few seconds.


    ¡°I remember you.¡± she eventually said. ¡°You¡¯re the guy who wrote me a new sign a while back. I can¡¯t recall your name though.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s Per¨C¡±


    She raised a hand to stop him.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. You interrupted me in the middle of a nice bowl of strawberries. I¡¯ll let it slide this once, but if you have something to tell me, wait until I open shop.¡±


    BANG


    And just like that, she slammed the door right in Percy¡¯s face, leaving him staring with his mouth agape.


    ¡°Hey, at least you didn¡¯t get banned.¡± some guy consoled him a few seconds later.


    Percy frowned.

 Chapter 92: Negotiations

    Nesha remained holed up in her house for a couple hours, much to the crowd¡¯s dismay. She did walk out eventually, casually strolling towards the building next door, yawning along the way. Everyone but Percy quickly masked the frustration in their expressions, unwilling to risk pissing her off.


    As eager as Percy was to approach her, he decided to blend with the others at first, waiting patiently for the opportune moment. Nesha finally opened the gambling den, letting her customers inside. Only after everyone was sitting at different tables, engaging in various games involving dice or cards did Percy grab the chance to talk to her.


    ¡°About that thing I mentioned earlier¨C¡± he started saying, before she interrupted him.


    ¡°You¡¯re really keen on this, aren¡¯t you?¡± she rolled her eyes.


    Percy frowned.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be too? I told you it¡¯s going to be worth your time. And you know I¡¯m telling the truth.¡±


    ¡°I know believe that. If I had a brown chip every time somebody made a similar claim, I wouldn¡¯t have needed to open the gambling den in the first place.¡±


    Realizing she was going to take some convincing, and also understanding this wasn¡¯t the place to make a scene, Percy opted for a subtler approach. He handed her a small pouch, before speaking.


    ¡°Look, words are cheap. Open it when you¡¯re back at home and try out the thing inside. I swear it¡¯s safe. I¡¯ve included instructions on how to use it. We¡¯ll discuss the rest later.¡±


    Seeing her accept it, Percy left the building. He genuinely had no clue how Nesha would react to the new elixir. Its value would definitely speak for itself, but that still wasn¡¯t a guarantee she¡¯d be willing to collaborate with him. Perhaps, she wouldn¡¯t want to take the risk, or she¡¯d be too lazy to bother.


    Returning home, he spent the rest of the day compressing crystals. It appeared he could only keep Synchronization active for a couple hours at a time. That said, he estimated he could use it three times per day, assuming they were adequately spaced apart. Taking everything into account, he calculated how many doses of the new elixir he could brew per day. He needed to figure that out before discussing specifics with Nesha.


    The improvement was minuscule, though that was to be expected, as gains truly slowed down past 30%. Still, that meant his yield was a little under 68% for every one of the three steps. Each brewing session currently took him around 40 minutes. However, all those numbers would change drastically if he brewed the new elixirs from scratch, as the recipe involved five steps now. That meant his overall yield would drop to 14% and each batch would take over an hour.


    Percy quickly shook his head.


    If he bought pre-brewed elixirs to use as his materials instead of nectar, he¡¯d only have to go through the last two steps. A quick calculation revealed his yield would climb to over 45% that way, and he could cut the brewing time to under half an hour.


    Of course, it would cost him much more, but he guessed that would ultimately be negligible in the grand scheme of things, as the new steps would be the most profitable ones by far. That way, he could start with 400 drops of regular elixir and 4 cyan crystals every session, ending up with about 180 drops of the new product. And he could do that twice an hour.


    That wasn¡¯t too bad. He currently needed 6 for himself, though that might go up to 9 depending on what Micky¡¯s second affinity ended up being. The rest he could sell.


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    Making up his mind, Percy was about to head off to Freddy¡¯s, when somebody knocked on his door, startling him.


    he thought, crossing his fingers.


    Rarely getting visitors, he knew it was either Nesha here to make a deal, or an official of the Guild here because she ratted him out. Opening the door, he was relieved to see it was the former. In fact, she looked a little different to how she usually did, her expression being a touch brighter, an ambitious glint noticeable in her eyes. Percy couldn¡¯t help but smile, realizing she had taken the bait, when a mischievous idea crossed his mind. Perhaps, he should slam the door in face, to get back at her for earlier.


    Still, it was difficult to keep the smugness out of his voice.


    ¡°Well, I take it you¡¯re interested all of a sudden?¡±


    Nesha ignored him, rolling her eyes. She shoved him inside before letting herself into the house, closing the door behind her.


    ¡°Do you have any idea what this means?!¡±


    This was Percy¡¯s first time hearing actual excitement in her tone.


    ¡°Duh, why do you think I came to you?¡± he asked back.


    Nesha let the response sink in for a couple of seconds, before walking over to Percy¡¯s kitchen and plopping down on a chair. She then crossed one leg over the other before speaking again.


    ¡°Who else knows about this?¡±


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°My alchemy mentor helped me perfect the recipe, but he¡¯s promised to stay quiet for the next twenty years. I can brew them by myself.¡±


    Nesha nodded.


    ¡°You do realize what you¡¯re asking of me, right? It¡¯s not easy smuggling anything out of the Guild, let alone something like this. You need to pull all sorts of strings to make this happen. And that¡¯s just to get them out of the settlement. Let¡¯s not even mention the difficulty involved in finding a rich, reliable customer.¡±


    Percy grabbed another chair, setting it a couple metres in front of Nesha before joining her.


    ¡°Can you make it happen, or not?¡±


    She grinned.


    ¡°I want 50%.¡±


    But Percy failed to suppress a chuckle.


    ¡°Talk about a rip off. I¡¯m the one who has to spend all day in a lab. 30%.¡±


    ¡°No way. It¡¯s really time consuming on my end too. 40%.¡±


    Percy shook his head. S~ea??h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°You can¡¯t do this without me, but I can do it without you.¡±


    ¡°Need I remind you that I can tell when you lie?¡± she smiled.


    ¡°Fine. I admit I don¡¯t have any other options available right now. Still, I can take my sweet time finding somebody else. Good luck reinventing the recipe by yourself.¡± Percy didn¡¯t back down.


    Though Nesha was clearly just as stubborn.


    ¡°You won¡¯t find a better middleman than me. Even ignoring my bloodline, I have connections to the Asclepius House.¡±


    Percy raised an eyebrow.


    The Asclepius House was one of the 7 Great Houses. Their prestige aside, one of their most important traits was they possessed a lot of people with the Memory Bank bloodline. It allowed them to freely manipulate or even erase their own memories.


    One of the House¡¯s most valuable assets was a specially trained order known as the Oblivious Agents. They could execute a sensitive task and then erase all memory of it afterwards, thus eliminating all trails leading back to the one who commissioned it.


    If Percy and Nesha went through them to contact their potential buyer, they would more easily keep themselves anonymous, cutting their losses in case they got betrayed. Not to mention that she could also use her own bloodline to ensure they didn¡¯t cheat her.


    ¡°Fine, 35% and we have a deal.¡± Percy conceded.


    ¡°35% is just share.¡± she emphasized. ¡°Keep in mind that hiring an Oblivious Agent is going to cost us a lot too.¡±


    Percy wasn¡¯t happy to hear that, but he knew she was telling the truth.


    ¡°How much do you think the elixirs can even sell for?¡±


    ¡°Beats me.¡± Nesha admitted. ¡°If I was free to auction them all over Remior, they could easily sell a hundred times more than the regular ones.¡±


    ¡°That much?!¡± Percy was shocked.


    He knew it was a big deal, but that was still more than his estimates. After all, they could only be used three times as often.


    ¡°These things don¡¯t scale linearly. It¡¯s a item. Do you have any idea how many people would fight over them? Imagine how much money somebody close to Violet would be willing to spend to save themselves a few centuries.¡±


    Percy swallowed a lump of saliva as he pondered the implications. It was true. It wasn¡¯t easy to put a price tag on something that could save a noble House from the verge of extinction, or even elevate them to a Great House.


    ¡°But you can¡¯t auction them freely, can you?¡± he caught the caveat in her words.


    ¡°Naturally not.¡± she said, exhaling in disappointment. ¡°If I did that, everyone who lost the auction would just publicize the elixirs to get back at us. Needless to say, everything would go to shit at that point. I need to investigate potential candidates and only approach those I think will pay the most.¡±


    ¡°So how much do you think we can make?¡± Percy asked again.


    She shrugged.


    ¡°It¡¯s hard to say before doing my due research. We can¡¯t push too far given the circumstances. Still, I guess it shouldn¡¯t be too difficult to sell them for over a dozen times as much as the regular elixirs.¡±


    Percy nodded. That was a lot of money. Even after keeping most doses to himself and taking out Nesha¡¯s share and the rest of their expenses, it would still be enough to afford Micky¡¯s potions after a few months.


    ¡°Very well.¡± he said, extending his hand. ¡°But I¡¯ll need your help with a couple more things.¡±

 Chapter 93: Aurora Dew

    Nesha couldn¡¯t help but wonder.


    Countless experienced alchemists had failed to improve the elixirs after tens of millennia, yet here Percy came ¨C one lone Red-born boy ¨C revolutionizing the field in no time. Obviously, there was some secret behind his success, though Nesha knew better than to ask. It wasn¡¯t her job to snoop around Percy¡¯s business. She had her own end of the deal to worry about. Entering her house, she made her way to her bed, before lying down.


    she sighed.


    While she hadn¡¯t lied to Percy, getting this to work was a lot more complicated than she had let on. It was true the Great Houses were scrutinized a lot less by the Guild¡¯s officials, but the Oblivious Agent would still have to regularly smuggle goods in and out of the settlement. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Naturally, they¡¯d have to bribe lots of guards to turn a blind eye, though that would only leave more trails leading back to her and Percy. The only solution would be for the Agent to place the bribes himself, ensuring all knowledge pertaining to the operation would be forgotten.


    At least, they wouldn¡¯t be the first people hiring an agent inside the Alchemists¡¯ Guild ¨C lots of noble Houses did that, to keep their dealings secret from one another. As long as Nesha was careful, nobody would link the appearance of the new elixirs to her movements, even if something went wrong down the line.


    This was going to be a recurring transaction, not a one-time deal. Naturally, the request might raise a few eyebrows in the Asclepius House¡¯s management. Fortunately, the higher-ups also erased their memories after sending out their subordinates, but Nesha would still have to be cautious not to reveal anything too sensitive in her correspondence. After all, even a Great House could crumble under the pressure of the Divine Order, should the secret eventually leak.


    ¡°And Percy isn¡¯t making things easy for me either¡­¡± she grumbled.


    Before sealing the deal with her, he¡¯d asked her to help him procure over 110,000 doses of enlightenment potion!


    Naturally, the request had truly left Nesha flabbergasted! She hadn¡¯t the slightest clue what that madman needed all those potions for, but getting them was no trivial thing. First, they didn¡¯t even know if the Guild had so many in stock. Even if they did, they couldn¡¯t exactly explain how there was suddenly such a great demand for a previously dead product.


    But Percy had insisted, telling her this was one of the main reasons why he¡¯d even wanted to sell the new elixirs in the first place. Begrudgingly, Nesha had agreed to help, though not before making it clear they¡¯d have to do it very carefully. They couldn¡¯t buy all the potions at once, nor could they purchase them directly within the Guild.


    Over a period of about six months, the agent would slowly buy the potions a few at a time, transporting them outside the settlement. In fact, they could make that the agent¡¯s official reason for being there. The unusual request might raise a few eyebrows, but ultimately the Guild¡¯s higher-ups would assume some noble House had found a purpose for the potion.


    Meanwhile, the agent would unofficially sneak them back into the settlement whenever he returned, delivering them to Percy. Obviously, going through these extra hoops would add to the cost, but it was a small price to pay to sleep at night. Besides, Nesha estimated the gains from the new elixirs would more than cover the expense.


    Grabbing a quill and a few pieces of parchment, Nesha started writing down the names of all the noble Houses she knew of. It took quite a lot of head scratching, as it had been years since she¡¯d last dealt with people outside the Alchemists¡¯ Guild. Still, she¡¯d studied Remior¡¯s geography, politics and economics extensively in her youth, so a lot of it had stuck.


    she frowned.


    Stolen novel; please report.


    She couldn¡¯t remember all the noble Houses, nor was she up to date with recent developments. Some of the ones she¡¯d written down might have been destroyed by now.


    she shrugged.


    The oldest Houses were also the richer ones, and the ones most likely to have survived. Their client would probably come from those. Plus, she could cross-check the House¡¯s details to make sure everything was in order before following through. Happy with the list, she started adding a few details next to each name ¨C whatever she remembered about their leaders. After all, the Violet cores in charge would be the ones buying the elixirs.


    Once she was done, she began crossing out some of them. The ones with younger leaders were definitely out. A recently promoted Violet core still thousands of years from reaching White wouldn¡¯t be desperate enough to buy the elixirs at a premium. The same was true for the poorest Houses who lacked the funds. Upon narrowing the list to just under a hundred candidates, she started paying attention to more details.


    Nesha didn¡¯t even notice when the sun rose. She couldn¡¯t recall the last time she¡¯d been immersed in her work enough to pull an all-nighter. Ever since her House¡¯s downfall, she hadn¡¯t been that motivated to do much. At some point, she put down the quill, though it wasn¡¯t because she¡¯d grown tired.


    Nesha had just run out of ink!


    There were only ten Houses left on the parchment. Nesha was certain all of them would be interested in the elixirs. The only question was how much each of them would be willing to spend.


    In any case, she figured it was best not to delve any further before getting some recent information on them. She¡¯d ask around to bring herself up to speed over the next couple of days before finalizing her choice.


    Leaving her house, Nesha walked to one of the official shops to buy some ink before returning. Her next order of business would be to write the letter to House Asclepius, requesting the services of the Oblivious Agent.


    she wrinkled her nose in disgust.


    There was a reason why Nesha felt confident she could contact the Great House. It was because House Veritas used to have strong ties to them. In fact, Nesha¡¯s ancestors were rumoured to have derived their own Truthseeker bloodline from a branch of the Great House.


    After all, House Asclepius was one of the wealthiest even among the Great Houses, specializing in commerce and information trading. They had multiple related bloodlines to aid them in those ventures. The Memory Bank bloodline the Oblivious Agents possessed was only one of them.


    Nesha had no idea why the Great House hadn¡¯t lifted a finger when her family got butchered and, frankly, she didn¡¯t much care about House Asclepius¡¯s internal politics either. That said, the thought of doing business with them again made her stomach churn.


    So far, she¡¯d taken things slow ¨C well, at least according to her. From an outsider¡¯s perspective, establishing such a popular gambling den within three years of joining the Guild was rather impressive. Still, Nesha knew she could have done much more in that time had she put her mind to it. However, she hadn¡¯t been too motivated to rush things, as she hadn¡¯t expected it would be easy to get back at her enemies with money alone.


    But things were different now.


    This new opportunity Percy had given her could change everything. Not only would it be far more profitable than her gambling den, it could also help her grow her personal strength. Before, Nesha had completely ignored her own magic, assuming she wouldn¡¯t get very far as an Orange-born. Now, even reaching Violet wasn¡¯t out of the question.


    she decided, her eyes glinting with resolve.


    ***


    KNOCK, KNOCK


    The door opened a few seconds later, Percy soon greeting her. He was drenched in sweat, his eyes looking tired.


    she raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°What¡¯s up? Do we have news already?¡± he asked after she remained silent for too long.


    Hearing him, Nesha scowled.


    ¡°It hasn¡¯t even been a day since we made the deal! I haven¡¯t sent the letters yet, nor have I settled on a candidate!¡±


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°Alright, no need to get angry. What do you want then?¡±


    Nesha took a deep breath to calm down before speaking.


    ¡°Well, I was thinking¡­ We can¡¯t keep calling these ¡®the new elixirs¡¯. Coming up with a catchy name is half the battle.¡±


    Percy¡¯s jaw slackened upon hearing her.


    ¡°What are you looking at me like that for?!¡± she asked in irritation.


    ¡°Are you the same Nesha who patches her signs up? Since when do you care about optics? Or marketability?¡±


    Nesha felt some heat gather in her cheeks.


    ¡°Look... What I¡¯ve done in the Guild so far hasn¡¯t been a huge deal. It would have succeeded regardless. But this is a high-profile business we¡¯re trying to build here. Every little bit helps if you want some extra money from our clients.¡±


    Percy smiled.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re the one in charge of the sales. Any good suggestions?¡± he asked.


    Nesha nodded.


    ¡°Aurora Dew.¡±

 Chapter 94: Affinity fusion

    It had been two weeks since Percy and Nesha settled on the name of their product, and progress had been steady.


    Nesha had already reached out to the Asclepius House and hired the Agent. She¡¯d also narrowed down the potential customers to three, having promised to finalize her decision and send the letters by tomorrow at the latest.


    Meanwhile, Percy had focused on brewing. Granted, he¡¯d initially lacked the contribution points to purchase the sheer volume of materials necessary ¨C over 40 doses of the regular elixirs per day! Luckily, Nesha had chipped in, buying him the ingredients through the Agent. They both knew they¡¯d make everything back a dozen times over once the sales kicked off anyway.


    But none of that was on his mind today.


    Estimating he¡¯d prepared enough Aurora Dew to start their upcoming venture, Percy was free to take another day off alchemy. He wanted to practice his magic some more while he still had time to spare. So, he found himself standing atop a softly glowing mushroom once again, the fantastical landscape around him humming with latent energy. Shimmering motes fell lazily from the fungal fronds above, painting his surroundings in all sorts of colours. And another unfortunate wasp grazed carelessly a few paces ahead, the loud buzz of its wings betraying its location no less than its oversized visage did.


    Percy took a deep breath, the cool, earthy scents of the Spire mixing with the sharper tang of magic in the air. He activated Circulation with both cores, feeling the familiar rush of mana flooding his channels with power. But he didn¡¯t stop there. Having grown a little more accustomed to Synchronization since first discovering it, he could now activate it a bit more quickly. Though keeping it up for long was still difficult.


    The moment the technique took effect, he gathered both types of mana in his hands, manifesting his tools. A layer of pure mana formed a pair of gloves. At the same time, the soul mana coalesced into the shape of silver sickles, the ethereal glint of their curved blades resembling crescent moons. Meanwhile the bug darted erratically in the distance, only now spotting Percy, the undeniable pressure he exerted finally revealing his presence.


    Tightening his grip on the weapons, he launched forward with no warning, as his boots sank slightly into the spongy surface of the mushroom. He closed the distance in a couple powerful strides, his heart racing in tandem with the steady beat of his magic.


    The bug barely dodged the vicious slashes, and only because Percy allowed it to. Naturally, he had no intention of eliminating his training dummy so soon into the fight. Still, the creature was instantly on the backfoot, unable to do much besides clumsily evading his attacks.


    Man and insect danced, the former swapping out his spells every few minutes to test them all, as the latter constantly hovered all over the place, struggling to match his footwork.


    Over the next few minutes, Percy tried the alternative variants of the Parting Gift ¨C the silver daggers, as well as some throwing stars with three curved blades apiece. He¡¯d developed those in the months before he quit hunting. Later, he even brought the Quarterstaff back from retirement to see how much sturdier it had grown. Finally, he manifested the cyan sheet he¡¯d used to shield himself from the acidic rain, though his Status had never deigned to register it.


    Obviously, his pure magic had benefited the most from his advancement. Not that the spells were particularly potent, the flimsy constructs falling apart rather easily upon colliding against the creature¡¯s exoskeleton. It was to be expected, really, due to their lower grade and lacking affinity. That said, they¡¯d grown at least marginally usable again. As for his Parting Gift, it had already been lethal enough before Percy¡¯s promotion, and it had grown more powerful still, mostly thanks to Synchronization.


    Satisfied with his improvements, Percy was ready to move on to the next phase. With a quick flick of his sickle, he casually dispatched the soldier, the bug¡¯s luck having finally run out. The man-sized creature might have given him a tough fight a couple years ago, but that time had long passed. With its soul cleanly bisected, the wasp¡¯s carapace collapsed lifelessly upon the giant mushroom.


    ¡°CAW!¡±


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    In typical Micky fashion, the crow eagerly leapt on the carcass, activating Circulation to more easily dig the core out of the bug¡¯s sternum. Not paying his familiar any heed, Percy then concentrated on his mana, gathering both types between his palms.


    Every affinity had its own properties, meaning each pair was unique and had to be fused in a different manner. While Gabe had run into his share of difficulties, he also had an advantage over Percy. He possessed two elemental affinities. Their fusion was a composite one ¨C ¨C which existed in nature, making it inherently stable.


    Meanwhile, Percy had it easier in other ways, as he controlled both of his cores, and they were currently at the same grade. However, he was also disadvantaged in that his affinities could not achieve a stable fusion. The good news was they could still merge, according to the book he and Gabe had read.


    Unfortunately, fusing two otherwise incompatible affinities was trickier. It required the user to actively exert their will upon the mana even more forcefully, essentially commanding it to behave contrary to its nature. Sadly, there were too many possible combinations, and while the documents they¡¯d found had listed a few examples, a pairing between pure mana and soul mana hadn¡¯t been one of them.


    In Gabe¡¯s case, it had been straightforward as his affinities both had physical properties, interacting with one another. Air fuelled the flames, causing them to burn more intensely. From there, Percy and Gabe had only needed to take the reaction to its extreme, ultimately consuming the two substances, converting them to light.


    Yet in Percy¡¯s case, that wasn¡¯t an option. His soul mana was incorporeal, and simply phased through the pure mana. The two energies occupied the same space without interacting. sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Focusing on that clue, Percy allowed most of the mana between his palms to dissipate, the overlapping blobs now shrinking to the size of a strawberry. Perhaps he¡¯d been too greedy trying to fuse more than that on his first attempt.


    Next, he concentrated on a single thought ¨C giving the soul mana a physical form. He pictured the silver orb as something he could grab, trying to squeeze it between his hands. Percy had held his soul constructs before of course, but he¡¯d done so with his soul, not his flesh. Next, he imagined the cyan mana touching it and pushing against it.


    Nothing.


    After going through all sorts of mental exercises over the next hour, he failed to induce any noticeable change.


    Without much to lose, Percy spent some more time attempting the opposite ¨C robbing the cyan mana of its substance, hoping it would interact with his soul.


    But he failed once more.


    He had to force the mana to behave contrary to its nature, but he couldn¡¯t just ignore its nature entirely¡­ And the nature of soul mana¡­ no, the nature of , was to occupy living bodies, controlling them.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened in realization.


    Confident he was onto something, he overlapped the spheres again. Next, he willed them into cubes, then pyramids, cones, cylinders and other shapes. He observed them with both regular sight and Soul Vision, paying attention to his timing. At first, it was a little off, as he¡¯d never done anything like this before. Sometimes the pure mana would transform sooner, while other times the soul mana would.


    But he gradually improved, the transitions slowly beginning to sync up more and more. Percy intentionally allowed himself to fall into a trance, trying to trick his mind into thinking of the two objects as one in the same ¨C components of a greater whole. He imagined the silver shape as nothing more than the soul of the cyan one, hiding within its vessel, obligated to follow its every movement.


    At first, this seemed like another exercise in futility. Yet Percy wasn¡¯t in a rush to give up. He had a hunch it was worth trying for a while longer. He could swear he felt some faint feedback from the two objects every now and then. It was as if the silver mana latched onto the cyan shape at times, requiring less prodding from Percy to copy its transitions.


    ¡°CAW?¡±


    Percy vaguely heard his familiar call out to him. It was only then he realized he¡¯d deactivated Synchronization entirely at some point, having grown too tired to keep it up. He wasn¡¯t sure how long he¡¯d been at it, but the sun was close to setting.


    he thought, diving into the exercise again.


    More time passed, as Percy continued to play with the two types of mana between his palms, his attention glued to the twin shapes.


    ¡°CAW! CAW!!!¡±


    Hearing the crow¡¯s cries, the young man noticed it was dark already. Probably late at night too, in fact. Remembering the settlement was a few hours away on foot, Percy decided to finally call it a day. It sucked to return empty-handed, but perhaps this wasn¡¯t the sort of thing he could master after a single session.


    he replied, allowing the mana to dissipate.


    However, something unexpected happened. Right as the two spheres shattered into motes of silver and cyan, they revealed a third, smaller shape resting inside. It was only about the size of a pea, but it looked like it was made of an entirely different material than the others.


    Unable to contain his excitement, Percy carefully pinched the substance between his thumb and index finger, noticing it was corporeal. It felt exactly like his pure mana to the touch, though its colour was different ¨C an amalgamation of its components.


    A pale shade of teal!

 Chapter 95: Teal fog

    As much as he would have liked to stay and practice some more, Percy knew he¡¯d have to resume brewing tomorrow. He couldn¡¯t afford to pull an all-nighter on the Spire.


    he groaned.


    Granted, adhering to a tight schedule wasn¡¯t exactly new to him. He¡¯d done that for years already. That said, it was one thing working nonstop for himself ¨C out of discipline ¨C and another thing entirely to be held accountable to a third-party like Nesha or their customers.


    he sighed.


    In any case, he could at least take his sweet time on the way back to the Guild, playing around with the minuscule quantity of teal fog he¡¯d managed to create. It wasn¡¯t enough to form a proper spell, but perhaps he could discern some of its properties.


    Splitting the exotic substance in half ¨C to avoid wasting all of it by accident ¨C he pinched a portion with his other hand. Next, he willed it to solidify, forming a marble smaller than his fingernail.


    It worked, allowing Percy to curiously fiddle with the tiny sphere for a few minutes, before ultimately crushing it between his fingers. Many of the fragments dissipated on the spot, though he did manage to salvage a few. He melted them again before merging them back to the rest of the material in his other hand.


    Percy drew a trickle from his second core, manifesting a cyan orb about the same size as before. Then he handled it in a similar manner for a while, comparing the two objects in his mind.


    Once he was satisfied with his observations, he shattered it too, noting the teal sphere hadn¡¯t been any more durable than the cyan one. Percy had exerted about the same amount of force to crush both. Other than the colour, the only difference was the pure mana dissipated completely into motes, making it a little harder to retrieve.


    If that was the case Percy would be disappointed. Gabe¡¯s light spell had been both hotter and quicker than either of its components. Though that had come at the cost of its mass, it would still be the superior option in many circumstances.


    Meanwhile, the only advantage to the teal fog so far was that Percy might be able to chain his magic, reshaping one spell into another smoothly. It wasn¡¯t nothing, but he¡¯d certainly expected more.


    he shook his head.


    Glancing back at the substance in his palm, he focused on its ethereal nature this time. He flushed out all thoughts related to his pure mana from his mind, visualizing only his original affinity. Hopefully, that might draw out any latent effects the teal fog had yet to reveal.


    Taking it a step further, he shaped it into a miniature Parting Gift. There wasn¡¯t that much of the fused mana, but he still managed to form a tiny sickle in the end ¨C though it looked more like a strange earring. Still, his self-induced illusion seemed to have yielded some results.


    he raised an eyebrow.


    The small weapon looked the same, but its tiny handle had partially sunk into his skin. Percy could tell from experience he was pinching it with his soul now ¨C not his flesh. His eyes widened.


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    Percy walked onto another suspension bridge absentmindedly, retracing the way home by instinct. Next, he played around with the teal construct some more, trying to change it between the two states at will. Getting himself into the correct frame of mind took some effort, but he did get the sickle to transition between corporeal and incorporeal a few more times. Yet, there was more.


    Percy raised an eyebrow. He¡¯d only stumbled upon this by accident, having not even tried to rob the construct of its colour. In fact, he¡¯d almost forgotten his soul mana was invisible by default. After all, he rarely used it without activating Circulation first, which came with passive Soul Vision. Not just that, but his constructs were much denser than they used to be, making them faintly visible to the naked eye. Still¡­


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    Currently, his options were essentially set in stone. Half his mana was invisible and intangible, while the rest was both opaque and corporeal ¨C albeit flimsy. But what if he could control his entire mana pool, freely assigning his constructs whatever effect was convenient at any given time?!


    Eager to confirm if that was possible, Percy resumed his experimentation, playing around with the teal fog some more. And sure enough...


    Percy could definitely think of a situation where he might need a construct that was corporeal yet invisible. For example, if he wanted to trick an enemy immune to soul damage. Or to shield his face from a physical attack without inhibiting his own vision in the process. Likewise, the opposite could be handy ¨C a spell that was opaque yet able to phase through objects. Perhaps he could conjure illusions with it, or pass a message through a wall.


    The possibilities were endless!


    It had taken him all day to fuse the tiniest amount of teal fog. Changing its properties wasn¡¯t exactly easy either. And Percy also doubted recycling the mana from one spell to the next would be trivial. Each of these steps would take a lot of practice to learn.


    Percy nodded in appreciation once he fully understood the path which lay before him. His fused mana might not be ¡®stronger¡¯ than its two components in the traditional sense ¨C but it did open some interesting doors for him. If he had to use one word to summarize it, it would be¡­


    Versatile.


    Without realizing, Percy had reached the settlement. Today had definitely been productive, as he¡¯d not only familiarized himself with the rest of his magic post-advancement, but also taken another step along the prestigious path the Moirai had paved. By all means, he should be happy. Yet¡­


    GRUMBLE


    Percy grimaced.


    Since his first day in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild, he¡¯d never gone once without a Honey Roll. Sadly, he¡¯d returned way too late tonight. Freddy should have long closed already.


    Walking along the empty streets of the settlement, Percy tried his best to keep his mind on the colourful particles dancing in the wind, ignoring his protesting stomach.


    Eventually, he arrived at his house, pressing his badge against the door to open it. As a newcomer, he used to appreciate the mysterious runes making conveniences like this possible. That said, his recent trip to the Vault of Magic had truly put Remior¡¯s relatively primitive technology into perspective.


    Entering, he paused, noticing a sealed envelope by his feet. Percy wasn¡¯t very surprised, having expected Elaine¡¯s reply. The two had kept in touch since her first mail a few months back. Picking the letter up in a hurry, he dropped it on his nightstand for later, before rushing to the preservation box. Desperately digging through the container for scraps, he soon realized there wasn¡¯t much there ¨C just some stale bread and a few vegetables of questionable quality.


    Making a mental note to restock at some point, he then begrudgingly stuffed his face with as much food as he could tolerate. Next, he took off his robes. He tossed the immaculate fabric a passing glance, appreciating how his clothes had remained spotless after another hunting trip. Then, he dove into the shower, eager to finish his chores as quickly as possible.


    Soon, he found himself resting on his bed. There was only one last item left for today. Extending his arm, he grabbed the envelope from the table. Technically, he didn¡¯t have to read the message right now ¨C he could leave it for tomorrow. But Percy would rather get it over with, having grown a little worried over the recent developments back at home.


    Ripping the envelope, he took the letter out, before unfolding the light indigo paper, his attention falling on his cousin¡¯s words.

 Chapter 96: Happy 20!!!

    Percy paused for a moment, calculating the date. With everything going on, he¡¯d honestly forgotten about his birthday, which had actually been a couple days ago.


    he shrugged, returning to the message.


    GRUMBLE


    he thought, grabbing his aching stomach.


    His arguably spoiled dinner hadn¡¯t done much to fill him up, but that didn¡¯t stop it from stirring a storm in there, preparing for its prison break.


    Percy chuckled. Even after all those years, his cousin knew him so well.


    Training on the Spire wasn¡¯t exactly relaxing, but it was fun. He fully intended to negotiate with Nesha about properly weaving it into his timetable ¨C at least once or twice a month. As nice as it was to make money, his new trick wouldn¡¯t master itself.


    Reading Elaine¡¯s words, Percy couldn¡¯t help but revisit what he¡¯d recently learned about Decrees. It was technically possible for children on Remior to awaken their cores before taking the affinity test, though it was exceedingly rare. The very contact with Phoebe¡¯s mana seemed to not only give them access to their Status, but also catalyse their cores ¨C or something ¨C allowing them to discover them and begin filling them up.


    Either way, Percy sure hoped his new cousin wouldn¡¯t be a Red-born like him. Granted, the odds weren¡¯t on the baby¡¯s side, though his life would certainly be a lot easier if he got lucky.


    YAWN


    Sensing the shift in tone, Percy couldn¡¯t help but perk up a little.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened. His relationship to that cousin of his had never been great ¨C the older boy having mocked and bullied him his whole life. Still, Percy had never wished him such a grim fate.


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    he gritted his teeth.


    In normal times, House Tantalus wouldn¡¯t have gone so far. Though they¡¯d gained the upper hand since their raid a few decades ago, the two families¡¯ strength wasn¡¯t that far apart. Typically, they would have laid low, dealing a blow whenever a good opportunity presented itself, yet without escalating the conflict too fast, risking an all-out war. After all, such a development wouldn¡¯t benefit either party.


    Part of Percy wanted to return and help. While he didn¡¯t get along with all his relatives, there people back home he did care about. However, he also knew he couldn¡¯t do much as he was. He might have grown enough to hold his own against anyone at Yellow, but a noble House of that size had scores upon scores of people at Green.


    PLEASE


    It was probably true. She should be able to handle herself against any of their juniors, thanks to Circulation. Even those with the bloodline.


    They couldn¡¯t count on those scumbags to play fair, so he certainly hoped baldy was keeping an eye on his granddaughter.


    Folding the letter, he placed it in a drawer with the rest. Percy wasn¡¯t the most sentimental guy, but he¡¯d kept all of their correspondence. He didn¡¯t really have many other possessions anyway ¨C other than his alchemy equipment. Then, he let his head sink back into the pillow.


    His current plan was to spend another couple of years in the Guild, raising his and Micky¡¯s strength some more. He¡¯d only leave a few months before the lotus bloomed, to compete for a petal.


    that


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    A couple more weeks went by without any hiccups. Luckily Nesha had managed to strike promising deals with two customers in that time, the contribution points having started flowing in already.


    The first was Aeneas, the current leader of House Priam. He was actually one of the oldest Violet cores on all of Remior, widely considered to have the best chance of reaching White. Should he succeed, he¡¯d elevate his family to the eighth Great House. Adding to that, House Priam was fortunate in other ways. Located in a fertile yet remote region, they were free to develop without many enemies. Suffice to say, Aeneas was rich, and had nothing better to spend his money on.


    Percy was shocked when Nesha told him.


    Sadly, their second customer wasn¡¯t so lucrative. The leader of House Talos was a relatively young Violet core, thousands of years from White. His family was constantly at war against their neighbours, House Antaeus. Naturally, they didn¡¯t have too many resources to spare. That said, it also made them desperate to spend what little they have, to grasp any edge they could get their hands on.


    Ultimately, Nesha had chosen them over their rivals because they had a Blue core closer to Violet. That person would probably end up as the recipient of the Aurora Dew. In the end, House Talos had agreed to purchase the new elixir at 8,000 points apiece which ¨C although much less than what House Priam was paying ¨C was still a hefty sum. Percy would have been happy to leave it at that. He personally only needed six doses per day and ¨C after selling just as many to their customers ¨C he could save the rest for the future.


    However, Nesha had made him an unexpected offer. The girl had wanted to purchase another set of Aurora Dew, this one for her own use. Specifically, she¡¯d pay 8,000 points per dose, matching what they made from House Talos. According to her, they wouldn¡¯t make more if they approached a third customer anyway, and her share of the profits was more than enough to cover the expense.


    Naturally, Percy hadn¡¯t had any reason to decline.


    Though his partner¡¯s offer surprised him. Nesha had never struck him as the type who cared much about her own magic ¨C a pity too, as he thought she was wasting her rare and powerful space affinity. Evidently, she intended to change that. And that was on top of all the other things she had to do. Namely, managing their deals and even keeping the gambling den open, to avoid drawing suspicion.


    In a strange turn of events, the lazy girl had turned a lot more hardworking!


    he couldn¡¯t help but wonder.


    But he shook his head. That wasn¡¯t any of his business. He should respect her privacy as she had respected his. In any case, Percy was currently standing at the ground level of the Fungal Spire. He had plenty of training plans for today, though those were for later. Right now, he was waiting for somebody.


    He was about to meet the Oblivious Agent for the first time.

 Chapter 97: Oblivious Agent

    Generally, Percy didn¡¯t have to interact with the Agent much. His primary responsibility was to brew the elixirs. As for everything else, it was taken care of by Nesha. However, there was one task Percy couldn¡¯t delegate to anyone else.


    Today, he wore a full-body shroud to conceal his face and the colour of his robes. To further disguise himself, Percy stuffed a pillow under his shirt and crouched slightly, making him appear shorter and bulkier than usual. Maybe it was a bit overkill, but he preferred being overly cautious than careless. Of course, the Agent might still discern his grade via Mana Sense. That¡¯s why he¡¯d asked Nesha to procure him another enchanted bandage, wrapping it around his chest.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t need to go to all this trouble. I won¡¯t remember anything about you or this meeting five minutes from now.¡± a man spoke.


    The newcomer faintly appeared on the horizon, casually walking towards Percy. He seemed to be wearing a dark cowl, though it was hard to tell from the distance. The air shimmered with colourful motes, obscuring his figure further. Percy guessed the man must¡¯ve used a spell to project his voice from so far away. It had sounded distorted, yet oddly clear ¨C likely due to a sound affinity.


    ¡°I¡¯d rather not take any chances.¡± Percy replied, deepening his own voice too.


    Nesha¡¯s arrangements had admittedly grown quite complex, yet thorough. She was clearly just as paranoid as him ¨C if not more. The Agent had to juggle half a dozen tasks, plus she had him erase any memories the moment they ceased being necessary. She also met him regularly, to update him on any information he required for his next moves. Finally, she took every chance she could to use her bloodline on him, confirming he had no intention of going off script or betraying them.


    ¡°Fair enough.¡± the man said once he drew closer.


    He placed a heavy-looking pouch on the ground about a dozen metres from Percy, its contents making all sorts of crisp sounds as they tumbled over one another. A cursory glance via Mana Sense revealed the Agent¡¯s core was concealed too, which admittedly made Percy feel a little uneasy. For all he knew, the guy could be at Blue ¨C more than capable of casually killing him with nobody ever finding out.


    ¡°Why do you guys even do this?¡± he asked out loud, partly to conceal his inner turmoil and partly out of genuine curiosity.


    ¡°It¡¯s no big deal. We have a unique talent, so we¡¯re using it in service of our family.¡± the Agent replied.


    ¡°Well, sure¡­ but isn¡¯t the cost too high? Aren¡¯t you worried you¡¯ll look back one day only to realize you can¡¯t remember half your life?¡±


    The man shrugged.


    ¡°You¡¯re overestimating the importance of these memories.¡±


    Contemplating the Agent¡¯s words, Percy felt they made sense. If anything, the man was probably better off forgetting every time he assassinated a target or spent weeks trekking through a forest. It was more of a blessing than a curse, really. Unaware of Percy¡¯s thoughts, the Agent then left, having completed this part of his mission.


    Only when he was gone did Percy dare approach the pouch, opening it. It was large enough to fit two watermelons inside, filled to the brim with small vials about the size of his pinkie. Each contained a deep crimson liquid that looked a bit like glowing blood. And there were thousands upon thousands of them in there. Naturally, these were the enlightenment potions ¨C or at least the first batch. Percy had asked to be paid in this manner for the near future.


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    The crow was busy hunting Starry Workers on the mushrooms above. Percy hadn¡¯t called it over sooner, as he hadn¡¯t wanted to risk the Agent spotting it. While waiting for his familiar to arrive, he took off his disguise. Folding everything, he stashed it on a nearby tree, hiding it carefully in the vibrant canopy. Truth be told, the meeting with the Agent had largely assuaged his worry ¨C the man didn¡¯t seem like he had any intention of hurting him. Still, there wasn¡¯t any harm in dressing up next time too.


    ¡°CAW!¡± Micky greeted him a few minutes later.


    The bird hastily grabbed the pouch in its beak before flying away. It was heavy, straining the crow¡¯s flight somewhat, though Percy figured it would manage to carry it to its nest.


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    They¡¯d already confirmed the potions worked as intended ¨C so the only thing left was for Micky to consume them. Of course, it would take him hours to drink so many, but that was a small price to pay. Seeing his familiar leave, Percy headed off too. It was still early, and he had other plans for today.


    Ascending to the second level of the Spire, he walked about a quarter around it, reaching a region by the west side which he knew was already plenty far from prying eyes. Next, he spent a few minutes searching for the nearest Starry Worker. After finding one, he sat cross-legged on the fungus, some distance away from the bug. Then, he took a deep breath.


    Soon, a series of silver lines lit up underneath his skin, drawing a maelstrom around his sternum. Of course, Percy didn¡¯t bother activating Circulation with his second core, as he didn¡¯t need the pure mana for what he wanted to do. As for Synchronization, it would certainly help, but he couldn¡¯t keep it active for long enough yet.


    Once the technique began empowering him and replenishing his reserves, he sent out a pulse of mana from his sternum, rippling through his soul. He directed the waves to converge a few inches below his chest, before swiftly grabbing the resulting bump in a familiar manner. That¡¯s right! Percy had been ready to create another clone for a while, and he intended to do so right now, on the hunting grounds!


    Naturally, there were a bunch of reasons why he¡¯d chosen this open location over the safety of his house, the first of which having to do with the very body he intended to possess.


    By the time Percy was done cultivating the bulge and filling it up with soul mana, several hours had passed. Micky had already finished drinking the potions, and he¡¯d returned to the second level too, to help Percy with the next step.


    Pinning the wasp down wasn¡¯t very difficult for the crow, though it did take some extra care to avoid killing it or injuring it too badly just yet. Grabbing the bug¡¯s thorax from behind, he clenched it tightly within his talons.


    BZZZZZZZZZ


    It struggled desperately of course, trying to escape the crow¡¯s clutches. However, it never stood a chance, as Micky didn¡¯t have much trouble overpowering it ¨C especially with the amber lines currently decorating his plumage, reinforcing his already superior strength.


    A couple minutes later, the bird dragged the Starry Worker to Percy, who was holding a silver orb thrumming with power in one hand, forming an ethereal dagger with the other.


    Glancing at the wasp before him, Percy considered how to best approach this. Given the potency of his soul constructs, even the slightest injury he inflicted would likely prove lethal. That much was fine ¨C part of the plan even ¨C as the creature wasn¡¯t going to survive either way. However, it did matter the bug died. In the end, he went with a relatively shallow cut at its sternum, right around the centre of its soul.


    The wasp let out a terrible, shrill sound. While Percy was ashamed to admit he didn¡¯t particularly care about the bug, he still couldn¡¯t help but feel a pang of guilt hearing its pained cry.


    A moment later, the creature stopped squirming, making him fear it was already dead. However, a cursory glance at its soul soon revealed that ¨C although not in a great condition ¨C it held on for now.


    ¡°Please last a couple more hours!¡± Percy pleaded, before falling on his back.


    With his torso and, by extension, the nascent clone in his grasp facing towards the sky, he finally willed his bloodline ability to activate. The ghostly claw awakened in his core once more. It leapt into the glowing orb with glee, twisting and severing it from Percy¡¯s soul.


    And as Percy clenched his teeth in pain, the silver meteor shot towards the stars above, soon disappearing from his sight.

 Chapter 98: Tests

    Percy had several goals for this particular clone.


    Though exploring the cosmos was arguably the most important tool in his arsenal ¨C and by a huge margin ¨C he¡¯d decided to take a short break from that, to test other potential uses for his ability.


    Naturally, the first thing he wanted to know was whether he could create local clones on Remior. He could imagine several scenarios where that would be handy ¨C whether it was because he found an interesting body worth possessing, or because he needed another assistant to aid him back home.


    But there was more.


    If his only goal had been to possess that Starry Worker, he wouldn¡¯t have aimed his torso towards the sky. Instead, he could have launched his soul fragment directly at the creature ¨C much like he¡¯d done to the egg when creating his familiar. However, he hadn¡¯t done that. That was because Percy wanted to check one more thing.


    he wondered, scanning the sea of souls surrounding him.


    His reasoning was simple. He might not always have access to the body he wanted to take over. It would serve him well if he could learn to navigate in this state better, developing a way to accurately reach a more distant target.


    While outside a body, Percy had a very distorted sense of time and space. Two seemingly nearby souls might not even be located on the same world as one another. But he did have something he could use as a makeshift compass.


    In all his previous expeditions, Percy had gazed outwards, searching for a suitable host while ignoring the ethereal cord linking him to the rest of his soul. Yet, the connection was always there, constantly trying to draw him back. Its pull kept growing stronger and stronger, until it became irresistible. So far, he¡¯d only ever treated this phenomenon as a nuisance at worse, or a timer at best ¨C indicating how long he had to complete his mission. Not today though. This time, he was going to approach his main body on purpose.


    Percy only allowed himself the most fleeting of glances. And it was a good thing he¡¯d held back too. The moment his attention even brushed by his own soul, it attracted him far more forcefully than any foreign entity ever had. Percy felt the familiar glow enlarge in his mind rapidly, as he did everything in his power to halt his movement.


    He desperately fought against the connection, willing with all his strength to accelerate the exact opposite way. So lost was he in that frame of mind, in fact, that he didn¡¯t even register he had succeeded, until much later. By the time he regained awareness, he noted he wasn¡¯t moving, though the cord was even tenser than before.


    Either way, he couldn¡¯t afford to waste another second. Glancing at his own soul was no longer an option. He was far closer than before. If he did that again, he¡¯d be absorbed for sure. Instead, he tried something else. Drawing some of his stashed mana, he pushed it into the ethereal cord. It flowed through it without any resistance, leaving his control.


    Nothing happened for a while. Yet, when Percy was starting to think he¡¯d failed, a trickle of soul mana poured into him.


    His main body had already saturated the clone before cutting it off, so it couldn¡¯t fit much more. It only took him a moment to replenish the minuscule quantity he¡¯d sent away, as well as any other traces he¡¯d lost over time. The rest, he had to release outside, in the empty expanse between worlds, wasting it. But that wasn¡¯t important. The only thing that mattered was what this meant.


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    Percy would have grinned if he could.


    While the ethereal cord allowed him to communicate and even transfer mana over vast distances, it wasn¡¯t without limit. He¡¯d only ever managed to use it like that with Micky, who had never been more than a few miles away from him. As for his clones, Percy had never successfully sent them any mana before. The moment they left his body, they had always been on their own. sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Consequently, he couldn¡¯t even tell what the maximum range was. For all he knew, it might only stretch as far as the distance between his house in the settlement and Micky¡¯s hunting spot on the second level of the Spire. Or it might cover all of Remior and then some.


    Percy was a bit stuck. He couldn¡¯t get any closer, nor did he dare to send a message. He was afraid attempting to communicate with his main body was more likely to draw him in, which was why he¡¯d opted to send mana instead. He couldn¡¯t move away either, as it still took a lot of effort to maintain his current distance.


    Thinking of something, he focused outwards once more, as the sea of souls manifested in his periphery. He could try approaching a different host to escape from his main body¡¯s pull.


    Of course, he wouldn¡¯t actually do that. After all, that would only waste his previous efforts. He had a better idea. As his mind brushed over the souls, he searched for one in particular. He knew it to be close!


    He found it. It was the only healthy soul besides his own that didn¡¯t reject him. If anything, this one also exerted a pull on him, though it was much weaker than his main body¡¯s. Naturally, it was Micky!


    There was no cord connecting him to the familiar, as all his wisps were linked to his main body ¨C not each other. Still, he felt it was possible to possess the crow if he wanted.


    He didn¡¯t dare to look at them directly, to avoid being pulled, but he could tell their general direction. That said, locating the Starry Worker wasn¡¯t exactly trivial. In the material world, his main body and his familiar were standing next to each other, with the insect right alongside them. However, this wasn¡¯t the material world. A straight line there wasn¡¯t quite as straight in the world of souls.


    SOME


    Percy sensed hundreds of souls where he expected the bug to be. He¡¯d have to go through them, one by one. Most of them he could easily ignore, as they were too healthy. It helped to know his target was on the verge of death. Of course, it wouldn¡¯t be the only one that met the criterion. This was the Fungal Spire, where lots of people spent all day hunting bugs.


    he remembered.


    Other people hunted in the upper levels. While Percy had struggled to tell the souls¡¯ grades apart back when he began using his bloodline, he¡¯d improved a lot since then. Having sent out dozens of clones already, he was confident he could tell the Starry Worker apart from its stronger cousins. And sure enough¡­


    The soul was fading, on the verge of fizzling out. Since he¡¯d taken care not to injure the bug too badly, it could only mean he¡¯d spent too long looking for it.


    Without missing a beat, he concentrated on his suspected target, accelerating towards it. The very next moment, he found himself in a familiar situation, stuck inside a foreign vessel. Though this one wasn¡¯t as crammed as usual. Much of his host¡¯s soul had already evaporated, leaving him ample space to move about.


    Carefully reaching out to the creature, he soon discovered two things. First, he was semi-positive this was indeed a Starry Wasp, thanks to the few foggy memories he managed to access. Though he¡¯d have to properly bond to it before he could confirm it was an Orange variant ¨C and the specific one he¡¯d meant to possess. Second, the dying insect was in a delirious state, making negotiations a little tricky.


    he said, leaving out the part that all of this was his fault in the first place.


    The good news was he was an expert at getting through to beasts by now. Most of his hosts fell in this category, so he¡¯d had plenty of practice placating them. Simple-minded creatures as they were, it was all about honing into their instincts and desires, telling them what they wanted to hear. Usually, this meant promising them food or shelter.


    It took him a couple minutes, but eventually he succeeded. Well, it certainly helped he already knew what the bug wanted ¨C to escape from his familiar¡¯s clutches! After establishing the preliminary connection to his host, he stretched his soul wisp, touching as many of the soul fragments as he could, before releasing all the stashed mana. Naturally, he didn¡¯t care about the expenditure this time. His main body was here to top him up if necessary ¨C a luxury he wasn¡¯t used to!


    Once he finished patching everything up as best as he could, he finally managed to tap into his host¡¯s senses. The insect¡¯s vision wasn¡¯t that great ¨C much too blurry for his liking. Still, he couldn¡¯t complain about what he saw. Standing in front of him, was the most handsome man he¡¯d ever laid eyes upon.

 Chapter 99: Buggy vessel

    the main body asked.


    He was holding a half-formed sickle made of teal mana in one hand. Clearly, he hadn¡¯t remained idle, practicing the affinity fusion while waiting.


    the clone replied.


    A moment later the bird lifted its talon, letting the bug move about, getting a better feel of his body.


    he couldn¡¯t help but notice.


    Naturally, this wasn¡¯t his first time possessing a beast at Orange, or even Red. Since their size was often correlated with their grade, some of his past incarnations must¡¯ve been tinier. That said, he¡¯d never had an adult from Remior available for comparison before. Standing up, his new vessel struggled to reach the main body¡¯s knees. Even the crow was larger than he was.


    As for his limbs ¨C Percy was already accustomed to having an extra pair. A cursory buzz of his wings revealed they still worked too, which was a welcome bonus. It was a miracle they¡¯d survived the rough handling.


    he asked the original.


    the main body replied.


    That certainly explained the extent of his host¡¯s deterioration. Still, it could¡¯ve been worse. At least, the first test had succeeded. They¡¯d confirmed he could return to Remior and even take over a specific body. Of course, it would be harder if said body was further away, though that was a project for another day.


    he said.


    They¡¯d already taken their biweekly break yesterday. Percy couldn¡¯t afford another day off.


    the original asked again.


    While his host¡¯s soul wasn¡¯t in great shape, the clone could probably survive for a very long time with the others helping. In fact, it should be possible to heal the bug completely over time, if he wanted ¨C though that would only kick him out of the vessel.


    As for his physical body, it was lucky they¡¯d taken extra care to leave it intact, since there was no way to repair it. The second core would suck all the life mana out of the healing potions before they had the chance to do much.


    Nodding, the original waved him farewell before heading off. The crow soon followed, flying down to the first level. The two had already wasted too much time on him ¨C they had their own roles to return to.


    Stretching his legs, he took a few minutes casually strolling atop the giant mushroom, getting used to his new body. He wasn¡¯t feeling brave enough to try flying just yet. It was probably best to leave it for tomorrow, assuming he got a hang of the ropes by then.


    he groaned.


    Since the moment he first tapped into his host¡¯s senses, he¡¯d felt a constant buzz in his brain. Had Micky smacked his head too hard or something?


    But it wasn¡¯t all bad news. The air here quite refreshing. Pausing, he activated Mana Sense to observe the phenomenon in more detail. Like most bugs, Starry Wasps didn¡¯t inhale through their mouth. They didn¡¯t even have lungs! Instead, they breathed through openings in their exoskeleton. Still, that didn¡¯t stop him from absorbing the colourful motes around him. In fact, he seemed especially efficient at it ¨C nearly none of the particles entering his body ever escaped.


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    What could he do with all that ambient mana though? He clearly didn¡¯t need that much to survive, nor could he store any more inside his core¡­


    Examining himself for a few minutes, Percy soon had his answer. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The excess was converted to beast mana inside his core, before flowing out, accumulating in a special organ a few inches below his sternum. That was where it would presumably end up condensed into the familiar amber fluid everyone knew and loved. In fact, tapping into his host¡¯s instincts, Percy realized he could¡­


    BLUUUUURG


    he thought as he looked at the tiny pool of nectar he¡¯d just vomited.


    Using a forelimb, he swirled the viscous liquid a few times, before making up his mind.


    Not like his main body drank six doses of it per day or anything¡­


    And with that, Percy had some idea of what his current vessel was capable of. Well, there was the stinger too, but he wasn¡¯t particularly interested in it. The worker¡¯s acid wasn¡¯t very potent. Plus, he hoped he wouldn¡¯t ever have to fight in this body either. He had other plans for it.


    Creating a local clone was only the first item on the agenda. The second one involved his Status.


    Percival''s clone


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[Moirais¡¯ Decree (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.


    There it was!


    Percy felt the urge to laugh ¨C though he doubted his host¡¯s physiology allowed that. Ever since he returned from the Vault, he¡¯d been itching to go back. But he couldn¡¯t risk travelling there with his main body. Even on the off-chance Metatron let him be, Percy would be stuck there. Yet¡­


    His clone had inherited his latest Decree too!


    Percy had hoped it would be the case, but it hadn¡¯t been a sure thing. Each Decree worked differently, so it was a matter of chance. From personal experience, he¡¯d placed his odds at two out of three.


    his main body suddenly asked through their link.


    The clone wanted to roll his eyes, but they appeared fixed in place.


    But the original wasn¡¯t having it.


    The clone remained silent for a while, amused by the novelty of arguing against himself. Though a wave of irritation soon seeped through the cord, snapping him out of his reverie. In the end, he didn¡¯t keep his main body in suspense much longer.


    The annoyance was replaced by excitement, though the original didn¡¯t say anything else.


    In any case, this was massive! With this, they could access the Vault¡¯s secrets at a much lower risk! Of course, it would ultimately depend on Metatron¡¯s stance. Percy was sure the titan would notice and could easily put an end to his ambitious plan if he wanted.


    Either way, this wasn¡¯t the time for that. The Starry Worker wasn¡¯t a suitable body to send there. Percy was probably better off waiting for a sentient host. Preferably one at Yellow or higher too. That way, he¡¯d stand a better chance of communicating with the locals and practicing magiscript. Anything less and he might be killed on sight.


    Then, there was the question of whether it would be moral to bring an innocent person to such a dangerous place to begin with. Generally, Percy wouldn¡¯t do that without consent ¨C though it would also depend on who his host was.


    But the clone shook his head. One of the perks of not being the original was that it wasn¡¯t his job to waste time on ethical dilemmas. Besides, he had his own task to worry about. After all, there was a reason Percy had chosen a wasp as his host.


    While he¡¯d ignored them all these years, the Fungal Spire was full of openings leading to its interior. Many of these entrances could be found on the mountainside itself, but it was possible to enter the natural wonder through plenty of the colossal mushrooms too. Of course, most of the people hunting on the Spire wouldn¡¯t dare doing that, not only because it was strictly forbidden by the Guild, but also because they didn¡¯t have a death wish.


    Percy wanted to grin, but the mandibles didn¡¯t help.


    Walking around the mushroom, he failed to see any openings. Neither did he find any on the next three fungi. Though he did eventually get lucky, spotting a narrow tear along the underside of one of the stems. The hole was a few metres long, but quite narrow ¨C only about a quarter of a metre wide. Just enough for Percy to barely squeeze through.

 Chapter 100: Into the Spire

    Percy¡¯s adventure hit a roadblock sooner than expected.


    Upon stepping inside the massive stem, the buzz in his head grew a dozen times louder, eliciting a visceral response from his host. Jolted awake from its stupor, the bug fought for control over its body. Driven purely by instinct, it quickly turned and stumbled back out, only calming once the headache subsided to a bearable level.


    Unwilling to retreat so easily, Percy steeled himself before entering the Spire again, more prepared this time. The bug really didn¡¯t want to be there, but the clone resisted as much as he could, determined to press onward.


    Venturing further, he noticed the tunnel expanded after a few more steps, making it a little less cramped. Contrary to his expectations, it was quite bright in there, the flesh of the fungus glowing more vividly than the cap outside, giving the walls of the living cavern an otherworldly appearance. The air was thick with shimmering motes too ¨C three or four times denser than on the surface.


    Sadly, his host soon rebelled again, pulling him towards the exit. Reluctantly, Percy let it have its way this time. He couldn¡¯t afford to push too hard, lest he got evicted.


    Though his stay had been brief, Percy had glimpsed a couple more Starry Workers ¨C the same class as his host ¨C grazing comfortably inside the mushroom, basking in the mana-rich environment. The rumours that the hive¡¯s interior was teeming with wasps appeared true. More importantly, the rest of the creatures showed no sign of suffering from his host¡¯s ailment.


    Perhaps it wasn¡¯t a natural phenomenon. There might be some intelligence behind the scenes, imposing its will on only of the bugs ¨C for some reason. And it didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out its source¡­


    Though he couldn¡¯t tell for certain, he felt it was a reasonable guess. Even regular wasp colonies were highly hierarchical, let alone one as large and powerful as this. And there was no telling what a Violet cored beast might be capable of. Much like he used his ethereal cords to communicate with his clones and familiars from afar, it was possible the queen had her own means to relay her orders from a distance.


    As for what those orders might involve? Well, most of her subjects were apparently meant to stay inside, taking advantage of the abundant resources. Percy¡¯s host, on the other hand, presumably belonged in the minority tasked with venturing outside, to gather what little mana strayed there.


    Percy would be damned if he lost to a couple of insects. He spent the next couple of hours ¡®negotiating¡¯ with the creature, trying to get through to it. That was easier said than done, as it was arguably the dumbest host he¡¯d ever had the misfortune of possessing.


    Yet, as simple-minded as it was, the wasp seemed hell-bent on following its mother¡¯s will above all else. Approaching the problem from various angles, Percy started by trying to filter the buzz out of their head, hoping to eliminate it entirely. Unfortunately, there was a limit to how much he could tamper with his host¡¯s senses. Next, he attempted to convince the bug its hive was under attack, its mother in danger. Perhaps it might be more open to breaking a rule or two in the face of an emergency.


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    Initially, his efforts bore no fruit. Eventually, he thought of a way to take advantage of his mental connection to the creature, which seemed to yield some results. Essentially, Percy fed the bug memories of the buzzing sound whenever it did something he disagreed with, to dissuade it. It was the equivalent of impersonating the queen, establishing a second line of command.


    The wasp was really confused. While Percy¡¯s fake signal appeared to work as well as the real thing, it wasn¡¯t like the queen had stopped transmitting her own. Torn between two ruthless rulers, the bug kept walking back and forth, entering and leaving the cave repeatedly, unable to comprehend why its mother was so hard to please today. Some more manipulation later, Percy convinced the creature to remain inside, though he knew they wouldn¡¯t get very far before he lost control again.


    Finally delving a little deeper, Percy couldn¡¯t help but stare at his surroundings in awe. The tunnel they were in kept getting wider and wider, as the population of wasps didn¡¯t stop increasing. Most of them were workers like his host. Percy guessed the fungi on the upper levels contained more mana, making them more suitable for the higher grades.


    Though he did spot the occasional drone or soldier. Admittedly, the first Yellow cored insect he saw frightened him. While he could easily handle them with his own body, he couldn¡¯t do much in his current state. The fact they looked larger than horses right now wasn¡¯t helping.


    Sure enough, the creatures just ignored him, continuing whatever it was they were doing. Still, the cavern was already so full of bugs they now had to crawl over one another. Suffice to say, the sight was more than a little unsettling for a human.


    However, Percy gritted his¡­ mandibles¡­ and pressed on, knowing he didn¡¯t have much longer. The queen¡¯s signal was already beginning to overpower his own. Even worse, these other bugs released all sorts of pheromones, probably to let each other know which tunnels contained the most mana or something. Affected by all the external stimuli, his host stirred in rebellion once again. S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    he demanded, tuning the buzz up to eleven.


    Moving a little further, he noticed the walls of the hive were starting to change. At first, it wasn¡¯t easy to tell. His poor eyesight, combined with the turbulent river of bugs only allowed him a few sporadic glimpses here and there.


    Still, he eventually pieced together what was happening. The mushroom¡¯s flesh had given way to rocks and minerals. Everything was filled with mana like before, though it manifested differently. Unlike the softly pulsating organic matter of the fungus, the tunnel¡¯s surfaces were now decorated with crisscrossing veins of enchanted ores.


    Percy would be lying if he said he wasn¡¯t tempted to bring some of the colourful metals back. Granted, he had no idea what they could be used for, and it wasn¡¯t like magical craftmanship was particularly advanced on Remior either. Yet, there was no question everything here was valuable.


    But he held himself back. There was a reason the Guild didn¡¯t let people enter the Spire and, honestly, Percy agreed with them. This was their world¡¯s most precious asset and the only source of the elixirs they needed to survive. Nobody ¨C Percy included ¨C was willing to damage this place.


    he reminded himself, suppressing his greed.


    Suddenly, he ran into a fork in the tunnel, breaking him out of his thoughts. It appeared he had to make a choice. Neither of the paths particularly stood out ¨C both were about equally wide, with the same number of wasps of all sizes crawling throughout. However, the buzz in his head spiked at the mere thought of going right. Naturally, his host wanted nothing more than to go left ¨C or better yet, back ¨C but Percy wasn¡¯t having it.


    At the risk of frying the poor worker¡¯s tiny brain, he overloaded it with the strongest signal he could muster, essentially challenging the queen to a battle over his host¡¯s body. He did manage to force the bug a few metres into the new tunnel, though he quickly realized the creature was finally approaching its limits. Its legs wobbled and he got a little dizzy.


    Begrudgingly, he turned around, deciding to call it a night, much to his host¡¯s relief. In any case, even if he could somehow reach the eggs, he didn¡¯t exactly have a plan for snatching one under the watchful gaze of a Violet cored beast. Nor did he think it would be easy to escape from the thousands upon thousands of wasps that would presumably try to stop him.


    For all he knew, taking an egg outside might cause the entire colony to rush out of the Spire, unleashing their wrath on not only himself, but the rest of the Guild too. Percy would have to take his time carefully mapping out the interior of the hive and coming up with a plan.

 Chapter 101: Whirlpool of Four Streams

    Percy dropped the marble in the jar with the others, before pausing for a second to catch his breath.


    Then, he pushed the soul mana he¡¯d just recovered through the ethereal cord, sending it to his wasp clone to do whatever he wanted with it. As for the pure mana, he gathered some between his palms, forming another sphere in preparation for the next crystal.


    This was his routine now. Percy started his days by drinking two doses of Aurora Dew ¨C one for each core, before spending all morning condensing crystals. He could even keep Synchronization active for about half the time already!


    Twenty minutes later, Percy added another marble to the pile, before deactivating Circulation, relieving his body of the excess mana. Sealing the jar, he carefully placed it inside a leather pouch along with the rest of his alchemy tools. Only then did he dare open the curtain. Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Opening the window too, he stood in front of it for a minute, inhaling as much fresh air as he could, basking in the warmth. If it was up to him, he¡¯d stay there longer. Unfortunately, he had other things to do. For one, it was already a couple hours past noon, and he was positively famished. Walking to the kitchen, he scanned the interior of his preservation box, ultimately settling on an apple. He was about to close it, though he hesitated. In the end, he grabbed a banana too.


    After devouring his snacks quickly ¨C ¨C he begrudgingly closed the window and curtain again, picking two more vials of Aurora Dew from a cupboard. It was time for the second set of elixirs already.


    Perhaps it was ungrateful of him to complain. Most people would kill for the opportunities afforded to him by his bloodline. All things considered, shutting himself inside a room for part of the day sounded like a small price to pay¡­


    In the end, he shrugged, before biting both corks at once. Spitting them out, he drank the elixirs one after the other!


    Pulling mana from both cores, he split each stream into two, before sending them to his stomach. The ones made of pure mana passed horizontally by the front and back regions. They flowed in opposite directions, causing the contents of his stomach to churn, forming a miniature whirlpool inside his belly!


    As for the other two streams ¨C the ones made of soul mana ¨C they flowed along the left and right sides of his stomach. They merely phased through without causing any physical changes. However, the brief contact was enough to blend with the augmented beast mana released by the Aurora Dew.


    Finally, all four streams ended back at their respective cores, purifying both organs simultaneously!


    Naturally, Percy wasn¡¯t the one who¡¯d invented this technique. The Moirai books had mentioned more than just the affinity fusion. After all, they contained the distilled knowledge of an entire culture of people who¡¯d spent eons learning to live with two cores. Suffice to say, they¡¯d had plenty of time to come up with a couple nifty tricks!


    This one was called the Whirlpool of Two Streams.


    As its name implied, it allowed one to purify both cores simultaneously, saving time. It worked by using two opposing flows of mana ¨C one from each core ¨C which then induced a rotation inside the stomach, spreading the beast mana uniformly. It sounded simple, but that couldn¡¯t be further from the truth.


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    Core purification was a delicate process, and there was a reason mages carefully measured how much elixir they consumed per day. Going over that, they risked damaging their cores more than they should, while using less meant slowing down their advancement speed.


    What made this technique so profound was that it allowed the user to play around with the intensity of the flows, controlling how much beast mana reached each core. From there, it was all about manually balancing the two, so they got cleansed at the same rate.


    Sadly, Percy¡¯s affinity had forced him to modify it. The soul mana was incorporeal, rendering it unable to physically affect the contents of his stomach. That meant he needed two streams of pure mana to properly form the whirlpool. Consequently, he had to split the soul mana too, otherwise his pure core would end up drawing more beast mana.


    Then again, they must¡¯ve had plenty of people with the soul affinity in the past. Percy was probably just reinventing the wheel. In any case, the elixir was soon exhausted. Examining his cores, Percy realized he was off by a little again. His soul core burned slightly more than it was supposed to, which meant he¡¯d have to skip the next purification session. As for the one in his abdomen, it had only benefited from around 85% of the substance.


    Percy clicked his tongue. Ever since he began practicing the technique, he¡¯d experienced quite a few losses. Every wasted drop of Aurora Dew was like a dagger in his heart ¨C especially since he knew exactly how valuable it was. And judging by the rate at which he improved, it would be a few more weeks until he perfected the art.


    Though he¡¯d mastered cleansing his cores while doing other things, it was no longer enough. After all, he now had to drink six doses per day, which added up to about three hours if taken separately. Granted, he could do it while brewing, but the distraction affected his yield. Consequently, learning to cut the time in half was a no brainer.


    Shaking his head, he opened a different cupboard, grabbing a few dozen vials filled with the regular elixir. Stuffing them in his satchel, he slung it over his shoulder before hurrying out.


    Percy still had some more crystals to condense in the evening, but he¡¯d arranged for his brewing sessions to go in-between. That way, he¡¯d be able to recover his stamina, allowing him to use Synchronization again later.


    In any case, his walk to Orin¡¯s place was the perfect opportunity to take in some more fresh air, and to catch up with his clone.


    The clone had spent some time exploring the Spire, though he¡¯d never managed to delve too deep before getting kicked out by the queen. While Percy had thought it was worth mapping out the interior of the structure at first, he was beginning to reevaluate the usefulness of the clone.


    Percy nodded. They¡¯d already discussed this. Next time he was on a break, he¡¯d work with the clone on drawing a map of the outer layers of the colony. Not that it would be particularly helpful, but it felt like a waste to not even document his progress. After that, they¡¯d destroy the wasp and resume sending regular clones for a while.


    Naturally, he hadn¡¯t given up on the project entirely, but it was proving even more challenging than expected. A Starry Soldier might move faster and withstand more mental pressure from the queen. He didn¡¯t know if it would be enough to reach the nest, but there should be an improvement.


    Reaching Orin¡¯s lab, Percy set his plans aside, clearing his mind of anything unrelated to alchemy. Over the rest of the afternoon, he processed the most recent batch of crystals into Aurora Dew, before bidding his mentor farewell.


    He only met up with Nesha once a week to hand her the merchandise, but today happened to be the day. In any case, he had enough time to stop by Freddy¡¯s. Only after he was done getting his daily fix of socialization did he return to his place. There, he found Nesha standing outside, a grimace marring her face.


    ¡°You realize every minute I spend here, people might figure we¡¯re up to something, right?¡±


    Percy rolled his eyes before letting her inside.


    ¡°It¡¯s not my fault. You¡¯re early.¡± he replied in a nonchalant tone, keeping up the appearance of the aloof badass that he was.


    At least until Nesha¡¯s next words caused him to deflate.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got honey on your cheeks.¡±


    The girl left as soon as he handed her the elixirs, letting him return to his routine. He started by drinking another dose of Aurora Dew for his second core, before activating Synchronization. Only then did he resume condensing crystals, keeping at it until around midnight. At that point, he decided to call it a day, taking a quick shower before going to bed.


    He''d be lying if he said he wasn¡¯t tired. Working for eighteen hours a day was brutal, but he always focused on the next milestone to keep himself going. Right now, that was Micky¡¯s second core.

 Chapter 102: Micky’s second core

    ¡°A bit overkill, don¡¯t you think? I¡¯ll forget everything after I leave anyway.¡± the Oblivious Agent said upon noticing Percy¡¯s disguise.


    ¡°I¡¯d rather not take any chances.¡± the latter replied, regurgitating his side of the conversation word for word.


    ¡°Fair enough.¡± the man nodded once he drew closer.


    Then he carefully dropped the pouch on the ground like all their previous meetings.


    ¡°Why do you guys even do this?¡± Percy asked again.


    ¡°I can¡¯t speak for the others, but I¡¯m just using my ability for the sake of my family.¡±


    Percy thought.


    By now, he¡¯d met the man about a dozen times. He¡¯d always repeated the exact same words to the Agent, gauging his responses. While there were some minor permutations, the gist of what the guy said was more or less the same. At the very least, he¡¯d never given him any reason to suspect he remembered any of their previous conversations.


    ¡°Well, sure¡­ but isn¡¯t the cost too high? Aren¡¯t you worried you¡¯ll look back one day only to realize you can¡¯t remember half your life?¡± Percy asked the final set of questions, carefully observing the Agent¡¯s reaction.


    ¡°No offense, but forgetting you isn¡¯t that big a deal.¡± the Agent shrugged.


    ¡°None taken.¡± Percy nodded, relaxing.


    Either the Agent had truly erased his memories as he was supposed to, or he was the best actor ever. In any case, this was the most Percy could do to contribute to the operation¡¯s security.


    After watching the man leave, he called his familiar over, hoping this latest batch of enlightenment potions would seal the deal. By now, he¡¯d already fed Micky over 110,000 of the darn things which, according to his original estimates, should have been enough. Clearly, he¡¯d miscalculated how much mind mana each dose contained, though he didn¡¯t know by how much.


    Of course, even if they were still months away, he¡¯d have no choice but to keep going. It wasn¡¯t like he had an alternative.


    ¡°CAW!¡± the crow greeted him upon reaching his location.


    Percy didn¡¯t miss the hint of annoyance in its tone. While he¡¯d explained many times how everything was for Micky¡¯s benefit, the latter hated gulping down potions for hours on end.


    he rolled his eyes.


    Why was the crow even complaining? He was the one who¡¯d spent weeks brewing elixirs so they could afford the potions anyway¡­


    ¡°CRAA!¡± the bird groaned but ultimately obeyed, flying to its nest.


    Over the next few hours, Percy remained on the ground level of the Spire, practicing his affinity fusion while waiting for the familiar to finish. As for his wasp clone, he¡¯d already retired him a couple months ago. Right now, he had another one active somewhere in the cosmos. Though he doubted he¡¯d accomplish anything of note. His successful expeditions so far could be counted on one hand.


    He¡¯d placed the infiltration mission on hold for the time being, to focus on more pressing matters, like mastering Synchronization and affinity fusion. But he¡¯d already grown much better at both. Also, his time in the Guild wasn¡¯t infinite. While the lotus was still over two years from blooming, Percy couldn¡¯t afford to waste a second if he wanted to have the wasp familiar ready before leaving.


    Suddenly, Micky called out to him. For a moment, Percy thought the bird had finished the potions, but it was too early for that.


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    he asked with hope in his eyes.


    the crow affirmed.


    Not missing a beat, Percy activated Synchronization, rushing to his familiar at top speed. The bird¡¯s nest was a few miles away, but the young man crossed the distance in under a minute, stamina be damned. It was only when he got there that he remembered he could check Micky¡¯s Status from afar.


    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s familiar)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C ???]


    Spells:


    [Circulation ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    As usual, the bird lacked most of his Decrees. Percy was particularly relieved it didn¡¯t have Metatron¡¯s either. He didn¡¯t know if Micky could enter his portal should he ever open one, but he was certainly glad the crow couldn¡¯t create its own by accident.


    Beyond that, everything was as expected. Not to say he wasn¡¯t over the moon seeing Micky¡¯s second core finally repaired! They¡¯d worked on it for !


    ¡°CAW!¡± the bird seemed to share his enthusiasm, though not for the same reason.


    It was just glad it could finally stop drinking all those potions.


    Over the next couple of hours, Percy showed his familiar the ropes, explaining how it was meant to locate the new core and start clearing the corresponding channels. It helped he¡¯d personally experienced the process twice already, as he had plenty of related memories to send over, getting the message across.


    As impatient as he was, he knew the crow wouldn¡¯t be done for a few days at the earliest. Begrudgingly, he left the hunting grounds, though not before emphasizing to the bird that it should contact him the moment anything happened.


    Percy knew there was a high chance of that happening. After all, he¡¯d never heard of a beast possessing anything else. Then again, he¡¯d never heard of one with two cores either. This would probably be an anomaly even on the Moirais¡¯ world.


    Though getting another beast affinity wouldn¡¯t necessarily be a bad thing. It was responsible for the mutations and enhanced physical strength of its owners. With a second one of those, Micky would probably grow even larger. In fact, Percy couldn¡¯t think of any other affinity that would synergize better with the crow¡¯s first one.


    That would be convenient at first, though it would come with its own share of downsides. For example, the crow wouldn¡¯t be able to get as much juice out of Circulation with only one set of channels across both cores.


    Micky had devoured thousands of wasp cores over the years. Percy wasn¡¯t sure how close the bird was to advancing again, but it shouldn¡¯t be far. As soon as that happened, he¡¯d have a two-grade gap between its cores. Even worse, the second one might never catch up, even with Aurora Dew. In the end he shook his head.


    Well, as long as it wasn¡¯t another pure affinity. Now, would suck big time¡­


    ***


    It wasn¡¯t until three days later that Micky informed him he managed to draw some mana into his abdomen, activating the core. Only then did the bird finally come to appreciate the value of those potions, basking in its new strength.


    On the other hand, Percy couldn¡¯t help but frown. The affinity was still listed as a bunch of question marks. At the very least, it meant Micky hadn¡¯t gained another beast affinity, as he would have recognized it.


    The bird followed his instructions, soon showing him a burst of mana emanating from the underside of its wing, brushing over the dark feathers. It carried a faint green tint¡­


    ¡® was Percy¡¯s first reaction.


    In fact, he recognized it the very next moment, having personally used this particular affinity the most outside his own.


    he informed his familiar, before elaborating.


    Micky remained silent for a few seconds, apparently recalling their journey to the Guild. Eventually, he excitedly sent a mental nod back.


    Either way, this was great news!


    Besides a second beast affinity, this was essentially the best they could¡¯ve hoped for. Though it would likely end up falling behind the crow¡¯s first core, it would support the bird well, allowing it to augment its flight.


    He couldn¡¯t help but grin at the thought. The irony of a human teaching a bird how to fly faster wasn¡¯t lost on him. Still, there was no reason to waste all that training he¡¯d undergone in the Vault.


    Whether or not he succeeded in creating the wasp familiar, Percy hoped to amass enough resources by the time they left, to last him for a while. Hopefully even for a decade or two. Admittedly, that was an ambitious goal but not impossible, assuming he could maintain his current income for the following two years.


    Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t have predicted what would happen just three short months later¡­ sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

 Chapter 103: House Talos

    ¡°Lord Bronn, the bastards have taken over the iron mine!¡± the boy reported.


    The former¡¯s features twisted into a grimace. While a powerful mage could tear a sheet of iron apart as easily as paper, it was still a valuable resource across Remior. After all, most people were at the lower grades. They relied on everyday tools made of the mundane metal. Consequently, House Talos regularly exported it, making the mine an important economic asset for their family.


    ¡°What about the casualties?¡±


    ¡°Sixteen dead. Over thirty injured.¡±


    Bronn wanted to clench his fists, yet he had enough awareness to hold back. Even the tough gemstone vials would shatter into powder in a Violet¡¯s grip. It would be a shame to spill their contents ¨C the elixirs had cost him an arm and a leg. Forcing himself to calm down, he spoke again.


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°Most of the dead were Red-borns. Only four were Orange-borns¡­ though¡­ one of them was uncle Zin.¡±


    Bronn sighed. It could have been worse. At least they hadn¡¯t lost any Yellow-borns. Still, Zin had been at Blue, making him one of the family¡¯s strongest fighters, regardless of what grade he¡¯d started with. It was a significant loss. Bronn¡¯s only consolation was they hadn¡¯t been that close. The man had only been a distant nephew of his.


    ¡°Do we know who¡¯s stationed there?¡±


    The boy scratched his head for a few moments.


    ¡°Only a couple of our people made it back, so we aren¡¯t too clear on the details. All we know is they have at least two Blues. Rellan is among them.¡±


    Bronn¡¯s eyes widened. Rellan was a Yellow-born and one of House Antaeus strongest mages. Perhaps the third or fourth from the top.


    ¡°Are you certain?¡±


    The boy nodded before clarifying. ¡°There¡¯s no mistake. We spotted him from afar after he used his ability.¡±


    Houses Talos and Antaeus actually had the same bloodline, Gigantification. This was a common occurrence on Remior, as neighbouring families often shared ancestors. Rogue mages frequently left their homes for various reasons, establishing rival branches nearby.


    In any case, Gigantification allowed a person to increase their size based on their grade. At Red, one could only double their height, while a Blue core like Rellan could grow six times as tall. People jokingly referred to it as a poor man¡¯s beast affinity, though the transformation wasn¡¯t nearly as drastic.


    ¡°Tell Lorin, Sedon and Hert to pick ten Greens and go drive those assholes away.¡±


    ¡°But Lord Bronn! What if it¡¯s a trap?!¡± the boy protested.


    Bronn shook his head.


    ¡°It isn¡¯t. They never intended to keep the mine. It¡¯s much closer to our estate. They know they can¡¯t hold it. They just wanted to hurt us.¡±


    The boy bobbed his head in understanding before bolting out. However, the door didn¡¯t get the chance to close before another person ran into the office.


    ¡°What is it now, Floria?¡± Bronn asked in exasperation.


    The girl bent over, holding her knees as she caught her breath.


    ¡°Grandpa¡­ they¡¯ve attacked Oakbridge town¡­ they took the guards out and razed the warehouse down.¡±


    Bronn couldn¡¯t stop himself this time. Slamming his free fist on the desk, he crushed it into a rain of splinters. It was lucky Floria was at Green, or he could¡¯ve hurt her.


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    ¡°Are they still there?!?!¡±


    Oakbridge town was one of three under their jurisdiction. Unlike House Talos¡¯s estate where the members of their family lived, the towns in their control were full of commoners. This was another relatively widespread convention on Remior. Still, these towns were far from worthless. They constituted important trading hubs for the noble Houses. Even more notably, the nobles often married Yellow-born commoners, bringing new blood into the fold, enhancing their strength.


    Flinching at her grandfather¡¯s outburst, the girl took a moment before answering.


    ¡°No. They left as soon as they were done.¡± she muttered, her voice barely a whisper.


    Bronn rubbed his eyelids.


    Truth be told, he had expected their enemies to escalate at some point. While House Antaeus currently had the upper hand, both sides knew this wouldn¡¯t last forever. Bronn¡¯s son was getting closer to Violet. As soon as he advanced, the tides would change. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Of course, a single Violet core couldn¡¯t take on an entire family by themselves, but their strength still couldn¡¯t be ignored. On paper, a Violet core was about three times as strong as a Blue. However, conventional wisdom was that it would usually take about five Blues to pin one down. That¡¯s because they¡¯d fight less efficiently, some of their strength wasted due to bad teamwork. Then there was the entire morale aspect of having another powerful leader at the head of an army.


    Overall, getting a second Violet core would be a huge deterrent. It might even let House Talos go on the offense.


    ¡°Call Fyn over.¡±


    Floria scurried away, probably glad to be out of her grandpa¡¯s sight right now. A few minutes later, a man walked into the office. He threw the broken desk a passing glance before chuckling.


    ¡°Dad, you have to stop smashing desks. We can¡¯t keep up with you.¡±


    Bronn almost snapped at him, but he caught himself. Instead, he plopped down on his chair ¨C at least this piece of furniture was still standing ¨C before tilting his head up at the ceiling. Then, he laughed bitterly.


    ¡°This is the fifth attack in the last two months. We¡¯ve already lost about 10% of our men.¡±


    Fyn stopped smiling.


    ¡°The bastards must really want to build up their advantage before my promotion¡­¡±


    Bronn nodded.


    ¡°At this rate, they¡¯ll succeed. How close are you?¡±


    But Fyn shook his head.


    ¡°Dad, you know this is my third promotion already¡­¡±


    It was true. Fyn had been cleansing his core for centuries. It wasn¡¯t easy to calculate the exact date it would bear fruit.


    ¡°Give me your best estimate.¡±


    Fyn appeared to ponder his words for a while.


    ¡°Well, before you brought me these new elixirs, I would have said maybe between eight and fifteen years.¡±


    And it had already been around nine months since he¡¯d started taking this so-called Aurora Dew. It meant he was anywhere between two and four years away now¡­


    For Blue and Violet cores like them, four years were . If only those assholes had waited just longer¡­ They could have caught them by surprise and wiped their stench off the region!


    But alas¡­


    ¡°We can¡¯t wait that long. At this rate, they¡¯ll burn everything to the ground by then.¡±


    ¡°They can¡¯t eliminate us completely. As soon as I advance, we¡¯ll turn everything around.¡± Fyn protested.


    Yet Bronn disagreed.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry son. We can¡¯t afford to do that. We might win in the end, but half our family will be ruined by then.¡±


    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re the boss¡­ It¡¯s your decision.¡± Fyn shrugged, before adding. ¡°But I¡¯m confused. What¡¯s the alternative?¡±


    ¡°What else? We flip the table.¡±


    The two men looked down at the broken pieces of wood as Bronn scratched his head.


    ¡°¡­figuratively speaking.¡±


    Then, he crouched by the remains of his desk, digging through the pile. A few seconds later, he found what he was looking for inside a somewhat-intact drawer. It was a bottle of ink.


    ¡°You mean¡­?¡± Fyn asked, realization flashing in his eyes.


    Bronn nodded. He handed his son the elixirs, before walking to a cupboard. There he found a quill and a piece of paper. Dipping the quill in the ink, he held the paper against the wall as he began writing.


    ¡°We¡¯ll reach out to the Divine Order¡­ Ask them to get those bastards off our backs¡­¡±


    Fyn didn¡¯t say anything. He stood by silently, watching Bronn compile the letter. What the latter had left unsaid, was that the Divine Order wouldn¡¯t interfere in a conflict between two Houses just because one of them asked nicely. They¡¯d only do so if they gave them a good reason to...


    About half an hour later, Bronn reread everything, nodding in satisfaction. Folding the letter, he slid it into an envelope, before digging through his desk¡¯s remains again, this time for his seal. Then, he extended his hand towards Fyn, holding out a red candle. The latter heated it up with his fire mana, before Bronn splotched a blob of wax on the envelope, stamping it down with the seal. Only then did he hand it to his son.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Fyn. I suppose you¡¯ll have to reach Violet with the regular elixirs like everyone else.¡±


    ¡°Two years¡­ Thirteen years¡­ It¡¯s not that big a difference.¡± Fyn shrugged, before assuming a more serious tone. ¡°But¡­ are you sure about this?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the only way.¡± Bronn smiled bitterly. ¡°Take the letter and the elixirs to the Divine Root.¡±


    Father and son looked each other in the eyes, knowing they were about to turn Remior upside down¡­

 Chapter 104: Smooth sailing no more

    Percy was on the way back from Orin¡¯s place, when he saw an unusual group of people heading towards him.


    he raised an eyebrow, stopping in his tracks.


    None of them wore the Guild¡¯s robes ¨C they were outsiders. Of course, that alone wouldn¡¯t have shocked him. Lots of merchants passed by every day. What left him speechless was that he recognized the insignia on their clothes. It definitely wasn¡¯t one he often saw on the streets. Depicting a series of roots emerging from the underside of a cloud, there was no mistaking it ¨C these were members of the Divine Root.


    Even among the seven Great Houses, the Divine Root was a special existence, as they were closely affiliated with the Divine Order. The inner circle of the Divine Order consisted only of gods, or of the mortals deemed talented enough to have a chance of ascending to divinity one day. Their job was to look outwards, guarding Remior against external threats. While they were the undisputed leaders of Remior, they didn¡¯t have the time to manage all the worldly affairs beneath their feet. Consequently, the deities delegated many of those tedious tasks to their subordinates. The Divine Root was essentially their outer circle, consisting solely of mortals who lacked the potential to attain godhood.


    Not that it made them weak! While the gods viewed the members of the Divine Root as talentless rejects ¨C the failed children who weren¡¯t good enough to join them ¨C the rest of Remior could only look up to them, as they stood at the top even among the rest of the Great Houses! After all, many were direct descendants of the deities themselves, making the organization the largest gathering of blessings and powerful bloodlines in the world!


    Percy clenched his fists, knowing there was no escaping. There was a Blue core in the group! He was a tall man with gunmetal-grey hair whose piercing gaze sent shivers down his spine. Though this person was the same grade as Orin, the two couldn¡¯t be further apart in strength.


    As the men approached ¨C six of them in total ¨C Percy couldn¡¯t help but instinctively hold his breath, the suffocating auras they passively radiated making it difficult to do otherwise. And when they were only a couple metres away, he closed his eyes too, bracing for the worst¡­


    The group passed right by him, most of them not sparing him a glance. The only exception was a blond young man who appeared the same age as him. He was already at Green ¨C probably a Yellow-born. He scanned Percy for the briefest of instants, his derisive sneer soon giving way to cold indifference.


    Only once they were all behind him did Percy remember to let out the turbid air in his lungs, cold sweat trickling down his face.


    Sadly, he didn¡¯t even get to the end of that thought before the world proved him wrong. A shockwave suddenly coursed through him, making everything around him shake. It was followed by a gust of wind that sent the colourful particles of mana southward. The bizarre event felt extremely familiar ¨C the last time something like this happened being firmly engraved in Percy¡¯s memory¡­


    ¡°Attention, denizens of Remior! This is Hermes again.¡± the eccentric god¡¯s voice boomed from everywhere at once.


    ¡°It¡¯s quite rare for me to be making announcements like this so often. So, hooray for you, I guess! You get to hear a god speak twice in a few years! What¡¯s more, it¡¯s good news again, so double hooray! Trust me, it¡¯s better than the alternative ¨C you don¡¯t want me to come out here informing you that Remior has fallen and you¡¯re all about to die.¡±


    The god chuckled.


    ¡°Relax, that was a joke. Well, not really. It actually happen ¨C I just found it funny. In any case, you might be wondering why I¡¯m contacting you again. No, the lotus hasn¡¯t bloomed early. That¡¯s still over two years away, as originally planned. Today, I¡¯m reaching out for a different matter.¡±


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    Percy swallowed hard, holding some hope deep down that it wasn¡¯t about him, though it was evaporating quickly ¨C it would be way too big of a coincidence.


    And sure enough¡­


    ¡°You see, one of the brilliant folks in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild has invented some new elixirs that can be consumed three times as often! I trust I don¡¯t have to explain what this means for Remior.¡±


    Percy smiled bitterly as his worst fears came to light.


    ¡°Speaking as somebody who¡¯s seen lots of amazing treasures out there ¨C each of which would make your mouths water ¨C this is Even for We¡¯ll get more gods, and you¡¯ll get more Violet and White cores!


    The only ones who¡¯ll get squat are the Red-borns, but then again¡­ who cares about them anyway, right? It¡¯s not like we had enough elixirs to waste on them before, let alone now. However, everyone else will benefit! Well, as soon as we can mass-produce this so-called Aurora Dew, that is. Big fan of the name, by the way! Props to whomever came up with it!


    In any case, this is all nice and dandy, but we¡¯ve sadly run into a small problem¡­¡±


    Knowing where this was heading, Percy took off, hurrying towards Nesha¡¯s gambling den. Contacting her right now was risky, but so was waiting around until the Divine Root homed in on them.


    ¡°Apparently, the smartass who came up with the recipe chose to keep it to himself, sneaking around to sell it to a small number of people at a premium. Honestly, I get the temptation, but we can¡¯t have that. Whoever you are, we¡¯re willing to pretend the last few months never happened, provided you come forward right now. We¡¯ll give you something for your trouble, and a nice god-approved pat on the back, and we can all have a great time moving forward.


    We know you¡¯ve gone through a lot of trouble to hide from us, but trust me, that isn¡¯t going to last long. We¡¯ve already sent a group from the Divine Root to interrogate all the registered alchemists in the Guild, and they¡¯ll find you sooner or later. Until then, security at the Guild¡¯s borders will be tripled, and nobody will be allowed to enter or exit without being searched from head to toe.


    I suppose I needn¡¯t say anything else. If you were smart enough to come up with such a marvellous elixir, you can probably tell what¡¯s best for you. The rest, I¡¯ll leave to our capable underlings. Ba-bye!¡±


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but curse in his head.


    This was about as bad as expected. The only upside was that he¡¯d never taken the test to officially register as an alchemist. That was probably why the men had ignored him earlier. Well, that and the fact he was dressed in orange robes. Nobody would have expected of all people to be behind such a breakthrough. But his cheap veil of anonymity wouldn¡¯t last forever. As soon as the Divine Root ran out of people to search, they¡¯d branch outwards, until they eventually got to him or Nesha.


    Even if they destroyed all the evidence of the operation by then, Percy still had plenty of other secrets he couldn¡¯t afford to leak. If anyone wondered why he had a bandage wrapped around his abdomen, it could easily lead to them learning about his second core. From there, the gods would get involved directly, discovering Metatron¡¯s Decree too. Realizing how quickly he was running out of time; Percy quickened his steps.


    He knew his mentor wouldn¡¯t hurt him on purpose, but the man had been opposed to keeping the secret from the beginning. If the old alchemist thought he was doing Remior ¨C or even Percy ¨C a favour, he might choose to come forward.


    Reaching Nesha¡¯s place, he forced himself to calm down, trying not to look too suspicious. Entering the building, his ears soon buzzed with a cacophony of cheers and loud discussions. The den was packed to the brim with Nesha¡¯s regulars, but none of them was playing right now. They¡¯d all forgotten about the chips, dice and cards in their hands, instead excitedly talking about the announcement they¡¯d just heard.


    ¡°Can you believe it?! I¡¯m only seventy years old! I can actually reach Violet and become the leader of my House one day!!¡± somebody shouted.


    But his mate slapped him on the back.


    ¡°Yeah right. The Yellow-borns will get the elixirs too, remember? By the time you get to Violet, Remior will be unrecognizable. There might be dozens of Whites and thousands of Violets by then. I doubt the number of noble Houses will increase that much though. It¡¯ll only raise the bar higher¡­¡±


    The first guy appeared to ponder his friend¡¯s words, but somebody else spoke next.


    ¡°Screw politics! With this, we¡¯ll live much longer!!¡±


    Though the new guy got shot down fast too. S§×arch* The N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°You idiot! Most people don¡¯t die of old age anyway¡­ When¡¯s the last time you met somebody older than 600? We¡¯ll still get killed in some war like before¡­¡±


    More shouts ensued, but Percy ignored them, pushing forward. Luckily, nobody seemed to pay him any attention either. Eventually, he reached Nesha. At first, neither of them said anything, as they merely exchanged a knowing glance. Only a few seconds later did she speak.


    ¡°Two hours.¡±


    Percy nodded, before turning around and leaving. They¡¯d already made plans for the worst-case scenario. After all, they¡¯d always intended to stop the operation within a couple of years anyway. Naturally, their clients wouldn¡¯t have taken kindly to the supply of Aurora Dew getting cut off abruptly, so Percy and Nesha had prepared an exit strategy. Of course, they¡¯d originally planned to be long gone by the time the shitstorm reached the settlement. Sadly, it was too late for that now, complicating things.


    That said¡­

 Chapter 105: Escape

    Percy tapped his foot.


    Standing at the base of the Fungal Spire, he was waiting for Nesha to arrive. The two hours she¡¯d mentioned were nothing more than the time until she closed the gambling den for the night. Despite the urgency of the situation, she couldn¡¯t just drop everything and run away abruptly, as that would raise more than a couple eyebrows.


    Evidently, the Divine Root had only bothered to increase the security at the gate leading outside the Guild, and presumably the Spire¡¯s perimeter. Even in normal times, they mostly cared about people leaving the settlement, to ensure they weren¡¯t carrying any nectar with them, breaking the Guild¡¯s monopoly on the substance.


    It was why Percy hadn¡¯t been checked thoroughly upon first arriving. Also, why the Agent hadn¡¯t encountered too much trouble smuggling the Aurora Dew or the enlightenment potions over the past few months. As for the people hunting on the mushrooms, nobody ever bothered to track their movements.


    Noticing something by the corner of his eye, Percy turned to see his familiar swiftly approaching.


    ¡°CAW!¡± the bird greeted upon landing.


    Percy replied, before sifting through the bandage wrapped around Micky¡¯s abdomen.


    It was the same one he¡¯d used back when he still met the Agent regularly. Since he no longer had to do that, he¡¯d long passed it to the crow to conceal its new core. Not that a beast adorned with an accessory wasn¡¯t conspicuous, but it was certainly better than the alternative. Especially since Percy had purposely commissioned for the bandage to be crafted out of a dark fabric, to more easily blend in with the bird¡¯s plumage.


    Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat after failing to find what he was looking for.


    ¡°KRAA! KRAA!!¡± the bird protested in indignation before pecking his shoulder.


    It was only a few seconds later that he finally located a small object somewhere between the cloth and the feathers, dousing his rising panic. Next, Percy wore it around his neck. It was a pendant, with a weirdly shaped gem as its focus. Cut into a perfect cube, the lustrous stone somewhat resembled onyx, though that wasn¡¯t quite what it was. Countless tiny lights glittered like stars across its faces, contrasting against the ebony backdrop they dotted. Looking closer, the particles weren¡¯t splayed randomly, instead forming orderly constellations. Percy knew those were the runes responsible for the enchantment.


    ¡°I admit rushing to buy the spatial amulet was the right move.¡± Nesha said, having arrived at some point.


    He shrugged.


    ¡°Well, we couldn¡¯t exactly carry everything around without it.¡±


    After awakening the familiar¡¯s second core, Percy hadn¡¯t really had much else he¡¯d wanted to spend his money on. His only goal at that point had been to amass enough brewing materials to last him for some time. Of course, considering his and Micky¡¯s rate of consumption, and his less-than-stellar-yield, Percy currently needed around twenty doses of the regular elixirs per day, which translated to thousands over the course of a single year.


    Luckily, he¡¯d made plenty of contribution points during the past nine months. Over eight in total!


    Of those earnings, he¡¯d spent more than a million on the enlightenment potions and another million on the amulet. As for the other tools and secondary materials he needed to brew on the run¡­ Well, those cost peanuts comparatively speaking. In any case, that had still left him over six million to buy the primary ingredients of the Aurora Dew ¨C the regular elixirs. ???????????§¦?


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    ¡°I can¡¯t believe there are nearly twenty thousand doses in this tiny necklace.¡± he mused.


    Though one cubic metre of space wasn¡¯t that much, it could easily fit enough of the pinkie-sized vials to last him for years. Nesha had also pitched in, converting her own share into materials, storing them in Percy¡¯s amulet. With these, they could both keep drinking Aurora Dew for the next two years.


    Of course, he¡¯d originally planned to remain here longer. Sadly, that wasn¡¯t possible now. As things stood, they¡¯d run out of elixirs right after the lotus bloomed. And depending on how their escape went, they might not be able to return to the Guild for more.


    ¡°Are you sure this is the best move?¡± Nesha suddenly asked, fidgeting.


    ¡°For me, yes.¡± Percy replied, before elaborating. ¡°Coming clean to the Divine Root is admittedly tempting, but I have other secrets besides the elixirs that I don¡¯t want them to learn.¡±


    Nesha gave Micky a cursory glance.


    ¡°You mean this Orange cored beast you¡¯ve somehow tamed?¡±


    ¡°Among other things¡­¡± he replied vaguely.


    Even if he could somehow guard all his secrets from them, he wasn¡¯t entirely convinced they¡¯d treat him as fairly as they claimed. After all, he¡¯d seen the disdainful looks the people of the Divine Root had given him, and he¡¯d heard the sheer contempt with which Hermes talked about Red-borns. The moment they realized how easily the pure mana could be crystallized, he¡¯d lose all worth in their eyes.


    Not Nesha¡¯s though. Glancing at her, he pondered the implications of what he was asking her to do. Depending on how everything went, they might end up as fugitives on the run from actual gods.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to come with me.¡±


    Nesha raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°They¡¯re more likely to notice my involvement. I was the one in charge of everything. And unlike you, I won¡¯t be able to give them what they want. They¡¯ll skin me alive¡­¡± she said, biting her lip.


    But Percy shook his head.


    ¡°My mentor knows the recipe. Find him and work together to make a deal with them. They only want the elixirs. They don¡¯t really care what happens to you.¡±


    What Percy had left unsaid was that this way, he¡¯d lose both his advantage and his means of making money. In a few years, he might be the only one on Remior who afford the Aurora Dew.


    Still, it wouldn¡¯t be fair to force his problems on Nesha. The girl nervously crossed her arms, apparently considering it. At first, he gave her a couple of minutes to think. It was a huge decision, and he didn¡¯t want to rush her. However, as she continued to remain silent, he was about to urge her, when she suddenly spoke.


    ¡°I¡¯ll come with you.¡±


    Percy carefully scanned her. Nesha had stopped shaking, her eyes now burning with determination. He didn¡¯t mind her tagging along ¨C he trusted her after working together for so long. Plus, she was useful, not only because of her bloodline and commercial skills, but also due to her affinity.


    Though there was one thing he needed to know first.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Nesha furrowed her brow, apparently contemplating the question.


    ¡°Before we started collaborating, I was working towards a certain goal¡­ Though I suppose I always knew deep down that it wasn¡¯t a very realistic one.¡± she ultimately said.


    ¡°What changed?¡± Percy asked.


    She shrugged.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve made more money in the past year than I would¡¯ve made in a decade. Not to mention, the elixirs gave me hope of catching up to my enemies in this lifetime.¡±


    ¡°Lifetime?¡± Percy failed to suppress a chuckle. ¡°If you come with me, I can¡¯t even promise we¡¯ll be alive . Plus, the recipe is going public in nineteen years regardless of what we do.¡±


    She certainly knew he was telling the truth, though she didn¡¯t seem deterred.


    ¡°I have a hunch that sticking with you will give me a chance to get my revenge. That¡¯s enough.¡±


    Percy grinned.


    ¡°Welcome to the team then. By the way, the bird is Micky.¡±


    She nodded.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the plan? Are we going to look for a weak point in the perimeter?¡± she asked.


    But Percy shook his head. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Even on the off chance we get out, they¡¯ll spot us. It¡¯ll only be a matter of time before they let the people in charge know. And we can¡¯t outrun a Blue core.¡±


    ¡°What other choice do we have? We can¡¯t leave through the front gate¡­¡±


    Percy smiled.


    ¡°How about below the Guild?¡±


    Nesha tilted her head. She appeared about to voice her confusion when¡­


    CRACK


    A loud noise came from a bunch of boulders a few dozen metres away from them. There seemed to be a hole in the rocky formation, though it was only big enough for something the size of an apple to squeeze through. The sounds escalated, as the stones by the tiny entrance began to shake.


    A few moments later, a pair of oversized mandibles pierced through, followed by a head, and a torso¡­ Before long, a man-sized wasp emerged, widening the tunnel in its passing. Nesha took a step back, already drawing mana from her core, as a pitch-black bubble manifested in her hand. But she didn¡¯t stop there, gathering more as she stared at the bug.


    ¡°How the hell did a Starry Soldier end up on the first level?!¡± she asked nobody in particular.


    Percy placed his hand on her shoulder.


    ¡°Stop. The bug is our way out.¡± he said, eliciting an odd expression from his friend.


    Nesha turned towards the wasp again, her features twisting in incredulity upon seeing the creature wave at her with its forelimb.

 Chapter 106: Unsettling

    Percy removed his robes, carefully folding them before placing them on the ground.


    so


    Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t risk being seen wearing his Guild attire outside. Doing so would only needlessly increase the risk of people connecting him to the elixirs. The same went for his old clothes. He was better off masquerading as a commoner, to avoid bringing his House trouble. That was why he¡¯d brought two sets of plain, linen outfits ¨C one for himself and one for Nesha.


    ¡°How do you even control these beasts? The wasp is a higher grade than you!¡± her voice rang out from the other side of the tree, where she was also changing.


    ¡°I¡¯ll explain if we survive¡­ No point wasting my breath before then.¡± he replied as he pulled up the boot on his right foot.


    ¡°Fair enough¡­¡± she said, though she caught herself a moment later. ¡° What do you mean ?! How confident are you in this plan?!¡±


    Percy shrugged, though she couldn¡¯t see him. But neither party spoke much over the next few minutes, as he waited for her to finish. At some point, he remembered the Honey Roll he¡¯d bought in a hurry before rushing out of the settlement. Digging through his folded robes, he found the snack in one of the pockets, gleefully biting a chunk off. It had grown cold, but he wasn¡¯t deterred.


    It was debatable whether stopping by Freddy¡¯s had been wise given the circumstances, though Percy had wanted to chat with his pal one last time before leaving the Guild for good. While he hadn¡¯t dared to bid the man farewell, afraid to get the poor guy involved in his mess, he knew that might have very well been his last chance to see him.


    Slowing down to savour it, he looked up at the mushrooms above. They still showered the ground level with their wondrous particles. Percy would never forget the first time he saw them, on that fateful night some three years ago¡­


    A couple minutes later, he and Nesha stood by the mouth of the tunnel his clone had dug up, gazing at the colourful glow emanating from within. Swirling motes of light danced in the air, reflecting off the tunnel¡¯s slick walls, casting a mesmerizing, almost dreamlike atmosphere around them. Despite its beauty, Percy keenly felt the weight of the danger lurking beneath them.


    he silently conveyed to his clone.


    That was when the Starry Soldier approached, opening its jaws wide before suddenly spitting something at him. Percy barely closed his eyes in time to avoid the green goo splattering all over his face. This serving of sludge had nothing to do with the nectar in the bug¡¯s gland. Rather, it had come from its . It was thick like mucus, sliding slowly down his neck. Its stench, a disorienting blend of musk and rot, hit him instantly.


    ¡°Ugh¡­¡± he grunted, resisting the urge to gag as he used his hands to smear the creature¡¯s vomit all over his clothes. The insect continued to throw up more of the disgusting substance.


    Nesha retched, recoiling back in horror at the sight. Percy would have grinned if not for the fear of accidentally swallowing some of the foul goo. After another mouthful of vomit splashed onto him, he nodded in satisfaction, before waving a hand toward the bug, sending it after his partner.


    ¡°Eeeek!!! Keep that thing away from me!!!¡± she shrieked, stepping back as the creature advanced. Though the clone ignored her, closing in against her protests.


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    ¡°Let it do it if you want to survive.¡± Percy said, wiping his mouth on the last clean patch of his shirt before explaining. ¡°The interior of the Spire is filled with wasps. This is the only way to keep them from attacking us¡­¡±


    he kept that last part to himself.


    Nesha groaned, wrinkling her nose in disgust as she reluctantly began slathering the vomit on her clothes. Eventually, she broke the long silence as soon as she was done. ¡°Isn¡¯t it forbidden to enter these tunnels?¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡± Percy admitted. ¡°But we¡¯re already criminals. Or we , if people find out what we¡¯ve done. Also, nobody is going to know about this. They can¡¯t monitor all these openings ¨C there are too many. Not that they need to, as entering is a death sentence in and of itself.¡±


    ¡°Lovely.¡± she spat sarcastically.


    Then, Percy turned to his familiar. Over the next few minutes, he had his clone cover the crow with the sludge too, taking the opportunity to strap their old clothes on the wasp¡¯s back. The idea was for it to dispose of them somewhere in the tunnels below, as soon as they escaped the Guild. Before long, he was done ¨C as was the bug.


    ¡°KRAAAA!¡± Micky cawed in annoyance, trying to peck some of the goo out of his feathers.


    Percy considered letting him fly away on his own, but they didn¡¯t know how tight the security was around the perimeter.


    ¡°Are you ready?¡± he asked Nesha.


    Getting a nod back, he embraced the bird with his left elbow, before offering his right hand to his partner. She stared at it for a moment before reluctantly grabbing hold.


    ¡°Whatever happens inside, don¡¯t let go.¡±


    The two then walked into the vibrant cave, the Starry Soldier right behind them. As soon as they were all inside, the bug turned around and lunged at the walls of the tunnel, clawing at them with its thin forelegs, biting at them with its mandibles.


    ¡°what¡± Nesha asked as the cave¡¯s opening collapsed, sealing the way back.


    ¡°The tunnels on the first level aren¡¯t supposed to be large enough for people.¡± Percy explained.


    As they delved deeper into the hive, the bug kept digging at the walls, collapsing everything in their wake. If anyone saw what Percy was doing to the interior of the Spire, they¡¯d have rushed to skin him alive.


    Which was technically correct. The tunnels his clone was currently destroying were the very ones he¡¯d personally widened over the past few weeks. Naturally, he couldn¡¯t have possibly built the entire tunnel leading outside ¨C it would be too long for a single bug to pull off in such a short time. Even for one at Yellow. Percy¡¯s clone had merely expanded some sections, linking the ground level of the Spire to the network a few dozen metres underground. Most of the tunnels the group would be using had already existed beforehand.


    Even though his latest clone had delved much deeper than the worker, he still hadn¡¯t managed to reach the eggs. It was one of the reasons Percy wanted to return to the Guild in the future, to try again after possessing one of the Green bugs. After all, the prospect of a Starry Wasp familiar was too tempting to give up on. Sear?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    BZZZZZZZZ


    Percy was taken out of his thoughts as the trio encountered the first few bugs. There were only five drones in front of them, but a quick scan via Soul Vision revealed twice as many lurking around the corner. Nesha¡¯s grip tightened, the girl appearing a little shaken. A few Red beasts were nothing to a Yellow core, but she didn¡¯t have much experience hunting, and the current circumstances were more than a little claustrophobic.


    ¡°Listen. The further we go, the more of them there will be. Higher grades too. Don¡¯t try fighting them or running away. If the goo fails us we¡¯ll be overwhelmed anyway.¡±


    At first, his words seemed counter-productive, only causing the colour in her face to drain further. Still, Nesha bit her lip to calm down, before forcing a strained smile.


    ¡°Great. Let¡¯s hinge all our lives on bug vomit.¡±


    Percy grinned too, mostly to suppress his own bubbling unease, as he pressed onward, bringing the others along. The drones paused upon noticing them, eyeing them curiously. From his clone¡¯s experience, Percy understood they were trying to discern whether they posed a threat to the colony. No wasp below Yellow would attack him unprovoked outside, but things here were different.


    ¡­


    After approaching and giving them a cursory feel with its antennae, the bug turned away, seemingly satisfied with their credentials. Its pals returned to their jobs too, back to grazing the concentrated mana off the tunnel¡¯s walls.


    ¡°So far so good.¡± he muttered, keeping his voice down.


    The others seemed to have grown a touch more confident too, as Nesha picked up the pace, probably eager to get the hell out of here before the scent wore off.


    Sadly, no amount of confidence could have prepared them for what followed¡­

 Chapter 107: Hell

    Countless legs poked Percy from all sides, pushing him around like a boat amidst a sea of insects. They came in all sizes, from the rod-like limbs of the soldiers pinning him to the ground, bruising his body with each heavy step, to the stick-like legs of the drones crawling all over his skin. Their soft, frequent taps were as intrusive as they were unnerving.


    The young man had to lean on both knees and one elbow, desperately trying to resist the weight of the wasps above, doing his best to keep Micky from getting squashed in his embrace.


    ¡°Ugghhh!¡± Percy couldn¡¯t help but groan in pain, as the frightened crow clenched its talons, digging into his flesh and soul both.


    As for his right hand, it didn¡¯t fare much better, creaking as Nesha clasped it tightly, short-lived but frequent tremors coursing through his bones every few moments. It was nearly impossible to make out what was happening around them, as the flurry of insect shadows bled into the dizzying glow of the cavern, plunging Percy¡¯s surroundings into chaos. Still, he vaguely spotted his partner trying to shield her head with her free hand, her face a nauseated green.


    ¡°Hold on!¡± he shouted, though his voice barely pierced through the buzzing cacophony of the hive.


    At first, he wasn¡¯t sure Nesha heard him, but a prompt squeeze of her palm soon revealed she indeed had. Percy gathered all his strength to crawl forward, forcing himself against the current.


    Even with two Orange cores and a trained body, enduring the current of bugs without his boosting art was a struggle. The thought of resorting to it was tempting, especially since the dense accumulation of mana inside the tunnel promised to make the act easier than ever.


    But he shook his head.


    Inducing such a conspicuous flow of ambient mana risked drawing the wrong type of attention from the insects. Gritting his teeth, he pushed through the river of wasps with brute strength alone, still protecting his familiar with one hand, guiding the girl forward with the other. Inch by inch, they made some progress, though it would take them days to reach the exit at this pace. Not to mention, the constant scratches caused by the bugs¡¯ limbs threatened to tear what little remained of their clothes off, and the soldier¡¯s goo with it.


    he realized, before calling out to his clone.


    The latter had to deal with the rushing bugs too, but his hard exoskeleton ensured he had an easier time doing so. His body was built for precisely this environment after all. Heeding Percy¡¯s call, he dove forward, alleviating some of the pressure with his frame, finally allowing the trio to move a little faster.


    With the immediate danger warded off for the time-being, the group ¨C two humans, one bird and one wasp ¨C crawled closer to one another, doing their best to not fall into the same predicament again. Of course, some of the insects still climbed over them, but there were fewer now, as the clone focused on clearing the path ahead.


    Yet¡­


    Percy swallowed hard as a soldier¡¯s stinger brushed right by his cheek, narrowly missing his eye. Had it landed a couple inches to the right, it would have skewered his brain, pumping his skull full of acid.


    he realised in relief.


    Not that he particularly cared about souring his relationship with a random bug, but had the creature intentionally attacked, it would have meant the rest of its kin were about to follow suit. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The party continued like this for several hours, each of them visibly fighting both the exhaustion, and to keep the contents of their stomachs from spilling. Percy handled the situation slightly better than his companions, but only because he¡¯d already experienced this many times before, through his clone¡¯s memories. Even so, there was a stark difference between merely recalling his clone¡¯s second-hand experience ¨C ¨C and actually enduring it with his real body.


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    Eventually, the slope beneath their feet tilted upward, the density of bugs in the winding tunnel dropping about half an hour later. They were still some distance from their destination, but they appeared to have crossed the half-way mark.


    Suddenly, Percy stopped. Nesha flashed him a questioning look, but he ignored her, busy communicating with his clone instead. Soon, the bug turned around, spitting a new round of vomit on him. Understanding his intentions, the girl then closed her eyes, silently inviting the clone to renew her own cover too. She appeared to have finally overcome her disgust for the sludge.


    that he chuckled.


    Only after the whole group had undergone the process did they resume their journey. Honestly, Percy wasn¡¯t sure the substance was necessary anymore, as the entire hive reeked with the foul stench this far in. From what he understood, this was how the bugs communicated to one another who was a friend.


    he shrugged.


    In any case, the party of four continued their trek through the colourful tunnel, finally able to appreciate the scenery now that the flood of bugs had grown less chaotic. Percy had seen the lustrous deposits decorating the walls before, though they looked twice as beautiful now that he sported a better pair of eyes. Nesha gawked at the sight too, seemingly having set her fears aside. Percy didn¡¯t blame her for it either. The view was truly mesmerizing, especially for someone stumbling upon it for the first time. ?????


    A couple hours later, the traffic of bugs nearly disappeared entirely, as the group approached the artificial part of the hive the clone had personally dug up. At last, the most dangerous part of the trip was already behind them¡­


    ¡­or so they thought.


    Suddenly, a massive insect head smashed through the ceiling a few metres ahead, the crumbling debris raising a cloud of dust as it hit the floor.


    Percy nearly stumbled backwards, dragging Nesha with him.


    He coughed, wanting to cover his mouth, but neither of his hands were free, forcing him to awkwardly use his shoulder instead. From the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the intruder. Luckily, it didn¡¯t seem to have noticed them yet, still struggling to dig itself out of the hole. Yet, what little Percy could see was frightening enough. The bug¡¯s head was as large as his clone¡¯s thorax, meaning the creature¡¯s entire body was probably as big as an elephant.


    It was his first time seeing one in person, though his clones had run into a few in the past. Not many, as they seemed much scarcer than their weaker relatives ¨C at least in the sections of the hive he¡¯d managed to access. Only a few seconds later did Nesha spot the oversized bug, Percy feeling her shudder. Part of him wanted to comfort her, but the priority right now was to figure out how to get past the monster in one piece.


    he openly wondered through the cord, letting his clone listen in.


    Percy gritted his teeth. Bug or not, he didn¡¯t dare underestimate a Green core¡¯s intelligence.


    he asked again.


    He¡¯d considered turning back, but there was nowhere to go. His clone had only dug one exit to the surface, and this was the only tunnel leading to it.


    Then, realizing they were almost out of time ¨C the knight having nearly extricated itself from the hole ¨C the clone spat another mouthful of sludge on each of them for good measure. Next, it turned around to negotiate with its giant cousin.


    The creature had to scrunch up to fit inside the tunnel ¨C it clearly wasn¡¯t meant for the Green variants. Each of its movements scraped ores and crystals off the walls. Glancing at the group, it perked up, noticing something out of place.


    Not missing a beat, the clone stood before it, trying to block its view, as he opened his mandibles. The stench of rot and musk intensified further, as Percy¡¯s clone released more of it, this time in a gaseous form.


    Releasing a high-pitched screech that made Percy¡¯s ears hurt, the knight tried to brush the clone aside with its head, though the latter fought to stand his ground. Confused, the Green wasp felt the clone with its antennae, probably trying to discern whether he was truly its kin.


    Though the knight seemed convinced, it still stubbornly tried to look past the clone, sensing something wrong. Percy held his breath throughout the whole ordeal, a quick glance revealing that Nesha was doing the same. Unable to hold on much longer, however, he ended up gasping for air a few seconds later, a whiff of the putrid stench nearly making him gag.


    Thinking of something, he let go of his partner¡¯s hand ¨C much to her surprise ¨C discreetly placing it behind his back, hidden behind the bandage. Luckily, the enchanted fabric was still in one piece, unlike many of the tattered rags they wore.


    Then, he began gathering some soul mana, just in case. The standoff continued for several minutes, as cold sweat trickled down his back. At some point, the knight seemed to back down a little, making Percy think it had finally agreed to let them go.


    Relaxing, he noticed the noxious odour had, at some point, given way to a different, less unpleasant scent. It was sweet, faintly reminding him of bananas¡­


    the clone suddenly screamed through the connection.

 Chapter 108: Starry Knight

    With a violent snap of its mandibles, the knight tore nearly halfway through the clone¡¯s torso, before slamming him against the wall. Nesha stepped back, seemingly about to run away, when Percy stopped her.


    ¡°DON¡¯T!¡± he yelled, not leaving room for debate.


    Putting aside whether they could outrun the creature, they couldn¡¯t risk diving back into the sea of bugs behind them. The knight could easily set the whole colony off!


    No, there was only one way out, and it was !


    The monster lunged towards them, its pillar-like legs punching craters in their wake, the rocky protrusions sticking out of the tunnel¡¯s surfaces barely hindering its advance.


    Out of time, Percy swung his right hand, launching the Parting Gift. A faint distortion passed through the air, spinning towards the bug. He¡¯d poured everything in the attack, not leaving even a drop behind for Soul Vision. He¡¯d have used Circulation too if he had a few more seconds.


    KREEEEEE!!!


    The bug let out an otherworldly screech ¨C even louder than before ¨C as the invisible sickle found its mark, landing between its eyes. Percy counted his lucky stars that the narrow tunnel had robbed the knight of its greatest strength ¨C its agility. He assumed he¡¯d have never managed to hit it outdoors. Not if it was any faster than the soldiers, just as they were quicker than the workers.


    Missing a step, the monster stumbled on the ground, though its momentum continued to carry it forward at a dangerous speed. Thinking on his feet, Percy shoved Nesha against the wall, leaping towards the opposite one himself, hoping they¡¯d fit in the gaps by the bug¡¯s sides.


    The impact shook him, though he¡¯d made sure to absorb all of it with his body, still cognisant of the crow in his arms. Though that was only the beginning of his struggle, as the knight¡¯s limp frame finally reached him, pushing him against the hard stone. Percy instinctively pressed both knees and elbows against the wall, desperate to leave enough space for Micky. He felt all his bones creak and crack as the rough carapace of the giant wasp peeled a layer of skin off his back.


    ¡°AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!¡± he screamed, enduring the pain as he did everything in his power to keep both himself and his familiar alive.


    Eventually, the wasp came to rest about halfway past him. Its body still pressed against his own, though the weight was more bearable now that it wasn¡¯t moving. Well, for a while at least¡­


    Suddenly, the creature spasmed, sending a wave of force through him.


    Percy realized in horror.


    His Parting Gift had never failed before ¨C at least not when he managed to land it. Then again, a two-grade gap was probably too much to bridge, especially without Circulation.


    The creature cried and squirmed, each tiny movement slamming into Percy with the force of a charging ram. He had no idea if Nesha had survived, but he didn¡¯t have the luxury to worry about her now.


    Taking advantage of the pauses between the bug¡¯s pained jolts, he crawled against the wall, ignoring his protesting limbs, trying to reach the rear of the creature before it recovered completely.


    he thought as its spasms grew more frequent.


    It was fortunate it lacked the awareness to attack him on purpose, as he doubted he¡¯d survive any deliberate blows. Yet he understood it was just a matter of time until his luck ran out¡­


    He inhaled as much air as he could with every chance the creature gave him. His efforts , as a broken rib seemed to have pierced his lung, slowing down the process. At least, the extreme density of mana in the air helped, letting him slowly refill his cores despite the obstacles.


    A few seconds later, he found some space beneath the wasp¡¯s abdomen, finally letting him stretch his limbs a little. However, a new issue had arisen, giving him pause. Glinting by the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the bug¡¯s stinger. The lethal weapon was longer than a lance, thick droplets of purple dripping from its tip. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    SSSSSS


    A pool had already formed beneath it, and the acid seemed even more potent than that of the soldiers. Percy was standing a few steps away, yet the scarce vapor alone was enough to make his eyes burn and water, leaving an acrid aftertaste at the back of his throat.


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    Just as he was contemplating how to best bypass it, the knight suddenly lashed out with a hindleg, sending him bouncing against the wall, before tumbling down a few metres behind it.


    COUGH, COUGH


    Percy¡¯s coughs were wet, and his body felt like it had been stomped on by a herd of buffalos.


    he reasoned, before registering that the bug had kindly helped him around the pool of acid.


    Even better, a quick glance revealed that Micky was ok. , yes, but otherwise unharmed. It was more than he could say about¡­


    Only now did he remember his companion, scanning his surroundings for her. Luckily, he didn¡¯t have to look far, as he found her sitting by a wall nearby, having also managed to escape the bug¡¯s clutches somehow.


    He was about to call out to her, when he noticed her condition. She had a hand pressed against her right temple, a stream of red seeping through her fingers. One of her eyes was closed, the other sporting a vacant gaze. There were several more cuts and bruises throughout her body, though her blood was mixed with a different liquid. .


    Percy recognized it, having encountered it countless times while hunting. There was no mistaking it, as it gleamed in a brighter shade than his clone¡¯s vomit.


    A piercing screech reminded him they weren¡¯t out of the woods quite yet, as the knight had stood up again, and it was trying to turn around.


    Breathing faster, Percy hoped to activate Circulation in time. The boosting art put a strain on one¡¯s body ¨C which wasn¡¯t an issue for him normally ¨C but his current state made everything a challenge.


    he noted, as he watched the wasp claw some extra space out of the walls so it could turn.


    That was when Percy spotted some nasty gashes by its side, a bright green liquid oozing out of its exoskeleton.


    Checking Nesha¡¯s core with Mana Sense, he saw it was empty. She¡¯d probably used everything she had to extricate herself from the creature, wounding it in the process.


    The bug finally managed to orient itself, its compound eyes locking onto Percy, sending a shiver down his spine.


    he thought as a silver maelstrom came to life underneath his skin.


    He hadn¡¯t bothered to use his second core, as he knew the pure mana wouldn¡¯t even put a dent on the knight¡¯s carapace. Plus, Percy¡¯s body couldn¡¯t handle another round of boosting right now.


    Placing Micky on the ground, he briefly considered asking him to help. Though he quickly shot the idea down. While the crow was in a better state than him, it didn¡¯t have anything in its arsenal that would make a difference here. It wouldn¡¯t even be able to fly properly inside the narrow tunnel. Realising it was all up to him, he manifested two silver sickles, each larger than the one before.


    The bug was about to charge towards him, but Percy wouldn¡¯t give it the chance to pick up speed a second time. Unleashing both of his weapons, he watched as they stabbed his opponent¡¯s soul. It had clearly learned its lesson, however, jerking its head at the last second to ensure only one of the constructs landed on it, letting the other hit its torso. The projectiles definitely hurt.


    Still, the monstrosity simply refused to collapse. It lashed erratically against the tunnel with everything it had ¨C limbs, stinger and mandibles ¨C causing chunks of stone larger than Percy¡¯s head to fall all over the place.


    The young man had no choice but to jump around, while keeping an eye out for Nesha and Micky both, ready to intercept a rock with a blast of cyan if he had to. At the same time, he rushed to replenish his soul mana, preparing to hit the wasp again.


    But it wasn¡¯t going down that easily, it seemed. Snapping out of its frenzy sooner than last time, it crawled towards Percy, hell-bent on chomping down the annoying pests that dared to injure it.


    Percy wanted to run. Unlike before, the exit was behind him. Still, he was in a worse shape than the creature. It would definitely catch up. Besides, he couldn¡¯t leave the others at its mercy.


    ¡°Then¡­ Just already!!!¡± he yelled, launching another sickle with what mana he¡¯d managed to recover.


    It hit, but the wasp kept coming.


    ¡°DIE!!¡± he threw one more, draining his channels out too, bringing him right out of Circulation.


    This one halted the knight¡¯s movements, causing it to fall to its side, the impact sending a shockwave through the cavern. Yet, the horror wasn¡¯t quite over, as the bug¡¯s limbs twitched just moments later, letting it resume its march.


    ¡°JUST¡­!! FUCKING¡­!!¡±


    The young man screamed between strained breaths, resorting to random blobs of pure mana that splattered harmlessly against the creature.


    Looming over him, the wasp looked like it was about to pounce, when someone interfered¡­


    Percy had written the soldier off, as he was in the worst condition out of everyone in the tunnel. His upper body was barely held together by a few scant shards of chitin. Though that hadn¡¯t been enough to put the clone out of commission, apparently.


    Having waited for the knight to walk right over him, he bit at one of its legs, hugging it tightly. Then, he plunged his stinger right into the wound Nesha had inflicted, pumping the monster¡¯s carapace full of acid.


    Screeching in agony once more, the Green bug stomped on the clone¡¯s head with a different leg, this time crushing it directly. It only took a moment for the soul fragment to slam into Percy, flooding his mind with memories. The young man forcefully brushed them aside, however. This wasn¡¯t the time to sort them out.


    Having exhausted all his trump cards, Percy stared at the beast, his expression grim. He knew he couldn¡¯t retreat another step. Tightening his grip around a half-formed sickle, he prepared for his final stand against the bug.


    Satisfied with its handiwork, the knight tossed the broken clone aside, turning back toward Percy. It opened its jaw wide, sending a rain of spittle at him. Man and insect looked each other in the eyes, both keenly aware that only one of them would survive.

 Chapter 109: Regal intent

    The knight¡¯s mandibles opened wide, preparing to chomp the pesky human in half. Reading his adversary¡¯s intentions via Soul Vision, the young man was ready to crouch beneath the monster at a moment¡¯s notice, clenching the half-formed sickle tightly in his fist.


    Yet just as they were about to clash, something strange happened. The beast¡¯s body suddenly relaxed, its expression easing.


    At first, Percy thought it was an act. A ruse to get him to drop his guard. But he doubted the creature was smart. Besides, it didn¡¯t really need to trick him to end this. Honestly, his odds of surviving the frontal assault of the elephant-sized beast were abysmal. More importantly, he could the wasp¡¯s bloodlust had all but evaporated, not finding any trace of hostility in its soul.


    Whatever the reason was, he wouldn¡¯t waste his chance. Swinging his weapon at the knight¡¯s face, he gouged another deep wound into its soul. What was it, the now?


    An advantage of fighting in close range was that he could more easily maintain his constructs. A chunk of it still crumbled away, but he needed less mana to repair it than to form a new one, soon delivering another strike after the first.


    No reaction.


    For some reason, the towering monster that had savagely fought to slaughter them all just minutes ago was now standing motionless, eating Percy¡¯s attacks with no intention of fighting back.


    he wondered, as the silver maelstrom finally formed within his torso once more.


    Yet, just when he was about to redouble his efforts to slay the knight, another change occurred. A spark of intelligence suddenly flashed inside its compound eyes, gazing at the young man not with hatred or hunger, but curiosity.


    Percy shivered, leaping backwards by instinct.


    He knew his best course of action was to continue hacking at the monster, but his body refused to listen, a primal wave of terror now coursing through it. , the bug¡¯s pensive look was even more frightening than its previous demeanour.


    But the wasp didn¡¯t stop there. Tilting its head, it unleashed a suffocating aura inside the narrow corridor. Physically, nothing happened ¨C Percy didn¡¯t need to use Mana Sense to see the colourful motes dancing through the air like before, many of them flowing towards him. The bug hadn¡¯t moved an inch from its spot either¡­


    Still, he couldn¡¯t help but feel like he was stuck in amber, as a palpable presence flooded the cavern, holding him in place. No Green beast should be able to exert this kind of tangible authority!


    This¡­ it felt almost


    It appeared the Starry Queen had taken notice of their actions! Percy had no clue why she had stopped the knight from killing him, or why she seemed intent on capturing them alive¡­ and honestly.


    Summoning every shred of willpower, he fought to twitch his thumb, eventually managing to point it towards his palm. Then, he pushed some soul mana through it, extending a sharp point off its tip.


    ¡°AAAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!¡±


    The pain was immense. . Gritting his teeth, he intensified his breaths as he formed another sickle in his right hand, still stabbing himself with his left.


    ¡°GO TO HELL ALREADY!!!¡± he yelled, dashing towards the creature.


    It raised two forelimbs to stop him, though Percy saw its reaction coming from a mile away. He didn¡¯t know if the previous damage had slowed the wasp¡¯s movements, or if it was the queen¡¯s control over her subject that was clumsy, but it worked in his favour either way.


    Crouching beneath the knight¡¯s legs, he slid underneath its carapace, as he relied on his momentum to slice a long line through its soul. If a dozen small attacks weren¡¯t enough to take it down, Percy would have to go big!


    The rough floor of the tunnel further shredded his already injured back, but he didn¡¯t let the pain dull his offensive.


    The sickle¡¯s edge met a lot of resistance ¨C it was like trying to chop a tree with a rusty axe ¨C but Percy wasn¡¯t deterred. He kept flooding his weapon with mana, as his core and channels emptied again, bringing him out of Circulation a second time.


    In the end, the construct shattered right around the wasp¡¯s sternum, Percy¡¯s body coming to a halt not much further. He wasn¡¯t sure if that had been enough, but he knew he shouldn¡¯t remain in that spot either way. Kicking against a rocky protrusion, he rolled to the side, colliding violently against the wall.


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    And just in time too¡­


    BOOOOOOOOOOOOM


    With a deafening sound, the heavy carapace of the colossal bug fell limp on the floor, countless cracks spreading out from the impact.


    Instinctively, Percy wanted to hold his breath until the results came in, though he knew the fastest way to check if the beast was alive was to gather enough mana for Soul Vision. And a few seconds later, he had his answer¡­


    He finally exhaled in relief, plopping back onto a hard crystal. It hurt a bit, but not as much as everything else. Still, Percy ignored his protesting body, pushing himself up. There was no time to waste. Limping towards Nesha, he placed two fingers on her neck, checking for a pulse. It was faint, but she was alive.


    Luckily, he had the means to save her. Reaching for the spatial amulet around his neck¡­


    his heart skipped a beat upon realizing it wasn¡¯t there.  Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The artifact contained From the two years¡¯ worth of ingredients he¡¯d painstakingly accumulated, to the healing potions he needed to save his partner¡¯s life. Hell, without them, he wasn¡¯t sure he¡¯d be in any condition to escape the tunnel himself, before the queen sent her troops after him.


    Percy scanned his surroundings, looking for the pendant. He to find it. And he had to do it fast! He still wasn¡¯t sure what the queen wanted from him. Perhaps she had seen how useful Circulation was, or maybe she just wanted to kill him personally.


    Either way, the sea of bugs they had left behind was only a few hours away, and that was assuming there weren¡¯t any other nearby tunnels filled with the darn things. It didn¡¯t take a genius to guess they were probably all heading their way already.


    Had it happened back when the wasps were crawling all over them, there would be no retrieving it. His only hope was to have lost it during the fight with the knight. But the odds of that being the case were swiftly fading as he failed to spot it anywhere around him.


    The only thing more difficult than walking back to the knight was lifting its oversized carcass. Percy¡¯s limbs were already purple and swollen. Even the slightest exertion resulted in a series of popping sounds all over his body. Still, he persisted, knowing he wasn¡¯t getting out of here without that amulet.


    Reactivating Circulation was torture. To make matters worse, a single application didn¡¯t seem to be enough. Gritting his teeth, he pushed as much mana into his channels as his body could handle, eventually managing to budge the knight slightly.


    It took everything he had and then some, only to roll the body a couple inches to the side. Percy was starting to lose all hope when he finally caught a glimpse of a dark object about a metre to his left.


    ¡°HAHAHAHA!!!¡± he laughed like a madman, his sheer joy giving him the strength to lift the carapace just a little more.


    ¡°Micky!! Grab it! ¡±


    The bird didn¡¯t need to be told twice, eagerly fluttering towards the artifact, happy to finally be useful. Percy hadn¡¯t had the time to think about it earlier, but he knew the crow had felt guilty letting him fight on his own, unable to help.


    Only after the familiar retrieved the pendant did Percy lower the corpse again, falling back weakly. Micky then brought him the object, as he wasn¡¯t in any condition to move.


    Confirming that it wasn¡¯t damaged, the young man stuck his thumb on one of the cube¡¯s faces, releasing three brief pulses of pure mana. He didn¡¯t know if these enchantments worked with every affinity, but they certainly did with his.


    The cube emitted a satisfying sound, before expanding severalfold, reaching the size of a crate. The same side he had just tapped then opened, revealing a stash of tools and vials within. Most of them contained a turquoise liquid, but those weren¡¯t the ones he needed.


    ¡°There!¡± he exclaimed, clumsily pulling a handful of green potions out.


    Sadly, he hadn¡¯t bought too many of them ¨C only a couple dozen. Given the state of their injuries, he wasn¡¯t sure they¡¯d suffice. Nesha was at Yellow and the potions had grown less effective on him too, ever since his second core advanced.


    he smiled bitterly.


    But he couldn¡¯t have. Not about the Divine Root forcing them to leave two years in advance, and not about the Starry Knight beating them within an inch of their life. He shook his head. There was no point regretting things he couldn¡¯t change, nor any time for it.


    Uncorking three of the vials in quick succession, he quickly guzzled their contents down, hoping they¡¯d fix him up enough to move.


    His wounds itched as the potions took effect, though it was modest as expected. Still, he feel a little better about a minute later, able to move his limbs again. Making his way to his companion, he soon panicked upon seeing how pale she was, her skin cold as ice. Lifting her chin, he helped her swallow potion after potion, only pausing after the sixth one.


    ¡°Come on¡­¡± he muttered, biting his lip.


    Scanning her intently, he saw many of her wounds begin to close, though that didn¡¯t seem to be enough. She didn¡¯t regain consciousness either. He fed her another four potions, drinking a few more himself. Finally, her injuries faded away, as did his own.


    Turning Soul Vision on, he examined her again. She was right on the verge ¨C bad enough that he could probably possess her if he wanted, though not completely beyond the pale. He did have a few more potions, though this wasn¡¯t something life mana could fix.


    Pouring all his soul mana into her, he did mend the injuries slightly. Given enough time, he should be able to heal her completely. Yet time was the one commodity they were swiftly running out of. He could speed things up with Circulation, but his own soul wasn¡¯t exactly healthy either¡­


    he remembered.


    With Micky¡¯s help, the colossal carcass could provide them all the soul mana they needed, and then some. The only problem was getting through its hard exoskeleton. Neither his pure constructs nor Micky¡¯s talons could pierce it. Examining the corpse, Percy¡¯s gaze briefly lingered on the wound Nesha had inflicted. However, his clone had filled it with acid, rendering it too dangerous for the crow.


    Then there was the soldier¡¯s body too, but it was a lower grade. It had also died even earlier, and more thoroughly. There wouldn¡¯t be anything left¡­


    ¡°Micky!¡± Percy called to his familiar, thinking of something.


    ¡°CAW?¡± the bird gave him a questioning look.


    ¡°I need your help, but you aren¡¯t going to like it.¡±


    ¡°CAW! CAW!¡± Micky replied resolutely, eager to contribute however he could.


    ¡°Go into the knight¡¯s mouth and eat its soul from inside.¡±

 Chapter 110: Devourer

    The crow remained silent, staring at the young man as if he had lost his mind.


    ¡°Please buddy¡­ Can you do this for me?¡±


    Micky looked back and forth between Percy and the carcass a few times, seemingly pondering the request. Eventually, he begrudgingly hopped towards the bug, resigned to his fate. Pushing a mandible open with his talon, he crouched inside the gaping maw, disappearing into the dead knight¡¯s horrid throat.


    Letting his familiar do his thing, the young man turned to Nesha again, watching her with bated breath. Luckily, he didn¡¯t have to wait long. Soon, a flood of soul mana gushed through the connection, filling up his frame. It was a lot. Too much, even.


    Without missing a beat, he poured everything into the girl, until she couldn¡¯t handle another drop. Both his and her wounds greedily drank the tonic as fast as they could, though more kept rushing in, forcing him to spill it out of his pores. It was a waste, but he couldn¡¯t help it. The two remained like that for several minutes, their frames saturated with mana, slowly but steadily patching them up.


    ¡°Please work¡­¡± he whispered, not knowing if anyone could hear him.


    Well, Nesha seemed to. Her eyelids twitched, before she finally opened her eyes weakly. Regaining their lustre, her pupils darted around a little, before locking onto Percy. She blinked a few times, and then spoke.


    ¡°Have you seen my glasses?¡±


    The young man was taken aback by the question. Instinctively, he shook his head. While the sturdy amulet had survived the violent fight, he doubted the glasses would be equally lucky. They hadn¡¯t packed any spares either.


    That was when Percy jerked his head away, only now registering their bodies were barely covered. Nesha looked confused for a second, though her cheeks lit up with a rosy tint a moment later. Sifting through the cube, the young man handed her a fresh change, before wearing another pair of trousers himself. He was out of shirts, , so he¡¯d have to go around bare chested for the time being.


    he sighed.


    Percy stood before helping Nesha up too.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. We barely have an hour to get the fuck out of here. ¡±


    ¡°What about the knight? What happened?¡± Nesha asked, looking around.


    Soon, she saw the giant wasp ¨C ¨C her body visibly tensing at the sight. A couple seconds passed before she found the courage to approach it, to examine it more closely, her poor eyesight not doing her any favours. Realizing it was dead, her expression twisted into an odd blend of shock and relief, as she turned to Percy, clearly ready to unleash a barrage of questions.


    ¡°Later.¡± he dismissed with a wave, before calling out to his familiar.


    No response. Percy waited a moment before trying again.


    the bird finally replied, though it sounded odd. Lethargic perhaps or¡­ bloated?


    Considering a possibility, the colour drained from Percy¡¯s face.


    The familiar sent him a series of images, confirming his fears. It was eating a path through the wasp¡¯s flesh, when it spotted something glowing in the darkness. It was an orb thrumming in an intense amber colour ¨C Green through Mana Sense. Unable to resist, the bird pecked at it and¡­ it wasn¡¯t hard to guess what happened next¡­


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    Percy panicked, though in hindsight, he should have seen this coming.


    He¡¯d already known the crow would overtake him sooner or later, and it HAD spent the last three years stuffing its face full of Orange and Yellow cores. Dozens of them per day, even. It would¡¯ve been stranger if the knight¡¯s core hadn¡¯t pushed it over the edge. Still¡­ ?


    ¡°Nesha!¡± he shouted, startling the poor girl. ¡°Change of plans. I have to stay here a while longer¡­ But we can¡¯t have you wait with me.¡±


    ¡°W-What? Why? ¡±


    Percy pinched the bridge of his nose, thinking of the best way to explain it.


    ¡°Keep heading down the tunnel until you reach the end. Don¡¯t worry about losing the way, it¡¯s just a straight path towards the exit ¨C there aren¡¯t any more forks. Once you get there, you¡¯ll find yourself at a dead end.¡±


    ¡°A ?!¡± Nesha asked in horror.


    ¡°It¡¯s not as bad as it sounds. It should only be around a dozen metres from the surface. We never finished digging the tunnel, because we hadn¡¯t expected to escape from the Guild so soon. My plan was to have the wasp dig us out, though that isn¡¯t an option anymore¡­¡±


    Percy gestured at his broken clone, whose memories he was still suppressing.


    ¡°In any case, you¡¯re a Yellow. I¡¯m sure you can dig us out with a few spells.¡± he explained.


    ¡°What about you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll meet you as soon as I can. But you need to get a move on. We won¡¯t have enough time to expand the tunnel later, so I¡¯m counting on you to get it done by then.¡±


    The girl stared at him in silence for a couple seconds, letting his words sink in. Percy could practically see the questions bubbling up but, understanding the urgency of the situation, she didn¡¯t voice them. In the end, she simply nodded, before placing her hand by the wall to orient herself, heading off. Only then did Percy turn back towards the carcass.


    Activating Mana Sense, he examined the dead knight, observing his familiar¡¯s advancement. The wasp¡¯s body itself was now void of mana ¨C whatever had remained in its channels was already gone, its core consumed. The crow was the only thing still visible within Percy¡¯s sixth sense. The carapace did obscure it slightly, but a core¡¯s advancement was a difficult thing to hide.


    Micky¡¯s entire silhouette shone in a vibrant Orange colour. His core burned a shade brighter, filled with strands of Yellow twisting and rolling within. More of them appeared each second, as they joined and banded together in a familiar manner.


    Thinking of something, Percy walked to his clone¡¯s remains, picking a broken chunk off the ground. The gruesome piece of flesh was tough to identify, but he was almost sure it contained the creature¡¯s core. Scanning it, he confirmed it was indeed there, though more than half had already crumbled, the rest of it dim.


    he shrugged, tossing it into the knight¡¯s mouth.


    The bird complained of course ¨C ¨C though it ultimately acquiesced, probably recognizing through Percy¡¯s tone he wasn¡¯t in the mood for nonsense. As expected, the extra push increased the pressure in Micky¡¯s sternum, forcing the strands to fuse faster. The young man estimated it would be done in a couple minutes.


    Sadly, their time had already run out.


    Everything shook, from the shimmering crystals filled with mana, to the colourful ores lodged in the cavern¡¯s walls, to the corpses of the two bugs, all the way to Percy¡¯s very bones. Feeling the vibrations coursing through him, he could tell the army of insects was already upon them, his body oozing cold sweat. Then, he heard their wings. There were countless of them, their incessant buzzing echoing through the vast cavern, growing louder by the second.


    Looking at the carcass again, Percy saw it shrivel and sink, as Micky had already moved to the second phase of his advancement, his core shining in a bright Yellow. Honestly, the young man was tempted to grab the bird right then and there, getting the hell out while he still could.


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    He had no idea if they¡¯d find enough outside. They might even run into other problems there. Unwilling to place his familiar at risk, he allowed him to continue devouring the Starry Knight, turning its flesh into his own. Percy¡¯s heart did ache a little at the sight, as he couldn¡¯t help but imagine the Green clone he could have crafted out of the corpse. But that was just a pipe dream ¨C he hadn¡¯t had the luxury of taking it easy on the creature to leave its body intact, nor to spend hours using his bloodline inside the hive.


    Shaking the distracting thoughts out of his mind, he took a deep breath and then another, drawing the shimmering motes into both cores, preparing to fight.


    The first bugs to appear were the workers. While the wasps grew faster with each grade, that was provided they were free to fly. Within the tight walls of the hive, a different dynamic manifested. Nothing above Orange had enough space to stretch its wings, so this wave of insects was the quickest to reach him.


    Gritting his teeth, Percy formed a sickle in each hand, as two sets of glowing lines lit up underneath his skin. But he didn¡¯t stop there. Now that he¡¯d managed to heal his flesh and soul both, he pushed the boosting arts to their very limits, as his muscles bulged and his skin reddened, a twin halo of cyan and silver shrouding his frame. Next, he poured even more mana into his weapons, sharpening them and growing them another touch, as he stared intently at the depths of the tunnel ahead.


    And finally, the dense river of fox-sized wasps appeared, rushing him in all their maddened fury, as Percy pounced into the swarm, determined to survive¡­

 Chapter 111: Slaughter

    Percy had come a long way since joining the Alchemists¡¯ Guild. He¡¯d learned a lot and honed many of his spells over the years, though if there were two things he¡¯d gained the most experience in... well¡­ it would be and .


    The latter was precisely the skill he was currently exercising, to survive the onslaught of Starry Workers rushing him like a torrential river amidst a downpour. Most of them were headed to their doom of course, but the mad beasts didn¡¯t seem to care, heeding their ruler¡¯s command without complaint.


    Horizontal slice.


    Five dead.


    Vertical slash.


    Three more.


    Sidestep and swing.


    Another two killed and one attack evaded.


    It had already been over five minutes since the bugs reached him, and Micky had yet to finish mutating. From the fleeting images he sent over, Percy could tell the knight¡¯s carcass was already halfway eaten ¨C he wasn¡¯t sure the rest would suffice. But he didn¡¯t exactly have the time to worry about that, as he was busy trying to prevent the creatures from getting past him.


    The workers never truly stood a chance against his oversized sickles, the crescent edges slicing the wasps¡¯ very souls apart like hot knives through morsels of butter. The constructs were frankly overkill for the job, as was the young man¡¯s speed and ferocity, rendering the poor creatures without any means of defending themselves. Thus, no single insect posed a problem by itself, though their sheer numbers .


    With a diameter of nearly three metres, the tunnel was more than wide enough for a dozen workers to arrive at once without bumping into one another. Moreover, they dove upon him in waves spaced apart by mere fractions of a second, never giving him a moment to catch his breath.


    Percy smiled bitterly.


    So many had he slain already, that their fox-sized corpses littered his surroundings, forming multiple large mounds. It was to the point some of the oncoming insects had to waste time flying around ¨C or digging through ¨C their fallen comrades, relaxing the pressure on him slightly. Of course, every now and then, one of them crashed violently onto the piles of bodies, sending their limp frames tumbling through the tunnel.


    Given his recent advancement, the upgraded boosting art and his many years of experience, Percy was doing a decent job holding on. That said, he couldn¡¯t help but notice he owed some of his success to his enemies not giving their all. Their endgame was to bypass and overwhelm him from every direction, apparently still intent on capturing him alive.


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    The mere thought of being delivered as a prisoner to the titanic monster would have sent a chill down his spine, if only Synchronization wasn¡¯t cooking his body inside out.


    ¡°CAW!!¡± Micky suddenly cried.


    It was hard to make his voice out through the cacophony of the buzzing wasps and the endless rumble of the tunnel. Still, Percy could¡¯ve sworn it sounded a little deeper and slightly more piercing than before.


    he asked through the cord, too occupied to turn around.


    Taking the hint, the crow used the connection this time, sending him another glimpse of the knight¡¯s carcass. Only a chunk remained, though it was the part Percy¡¯s clone had filled with acid. Micky couldn¡¯t eat that. And it appeared the bird still needed some food to finish evolving¡­


    ¡°For fuck¡¯s sake!¡± Percy spat through gritted teeth. ¡°Just eat the smaller ones!! They¡¯re all over the place!!!¡±


    Intensifying his efforts, he advanced through the chaotic corridor, leaving his cover behind. Slaughtering a path through the workers¡¯ ranks, the young man turned into a violent hurricane of flesh and soul, his weapons unleashed in a lethal flurry against the insects.


    The incessant buzzing gave way to the rhythmic sounds of dead bodies, some making dull noises as they crashed against stones and metals, a few forming crisp tunes as they collided with the crystals instead. Step by step, slash by slash, Percy pushed back the rush of beasts with sheer grit and force of will, his muscles burning and his bones aching as he left a graveyard in his wake.


    ¡°Well?! What¡¯s the hold up?!¡±


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    Fortunately, it didn¡¯t take Micky much longer to complete his transformation. The giant corpse had left him very close, and the veritable buffet Percy had prepared for him was more than enough to seal the deal. But it wasn¡¯t all good news. A fleeting glance revealed the crow was now as tall as a human! It had already been impossible for it to fly inside the narrow tunnel before, yet now even fluttering through it was out of the question.


    Percy felt like banging his head against the wall.


    The bird didn¡¯t sound particularly happy but then again, it wasn¡¯t the one that had to keep an army at bay. Jolting off, it disappeared into the colourful corridor as Percy also backtracked, conceding some ground to the insects to keep up with his familiar. Under different circumstances, the young man might have found the bird¡¯s awkward dash hilarious ¨C Micky actually looking like a chicken as he skittered through the tunnel!


    This wasn¡¯t the time to laugh at the crow¡¯s antics, however, as another change occurred with his attackers. . Spilling into the tunnel, the drones filled in the gaps between the workers, blotting out Percy¡¯s view. Pathetically weak as they were, he knew he could crush each of them with a finger.


    As the cloud of palm-sized wasps reached him, he made the split-second decision to ignore them entirely, focusing his Mana Sense solely on the Orange creatures. Continuing as before, he simply allowed the drones to do as they pleased, many latching onto his body, as a few made their way to his familiar.


    ¡°KRAAA!!!¡± the bird cried in annoyance, shaking the bugs off with a powerful flap of its wings as a series of amber lines lit up on its plumage.


    Percy on the other hand was having a tougher time, as he was neither a beast, nor at Yellow. The blanket of insects crawled all over his skin, inhibiting his joints, trying to slow down his movements.


    ¡°Piss off!¡± he shouted, sending a powerful burst of cyan out of his pores, blasting the pests to smithereens. His pure mana might have not been that useful against the knight or the workers, but for the drones? .


    And thus, they continued ¨C a man and a bird, desperately inching towards the exit, struggling to resist the suffocating grasp of the magical hive trying to steal their freedom.


    They must¡¯ve run for half an hour like this, and Percy wasn¡¯t sure he¡¯d last much longer. While he¡¯d grown far more proficient with Synchronization over the past few months, he¡¯d never fought at such intensity and for such a prolonged period of time.


    Yet, even more than his dwindling stamina, Percy had another thing to be worried about. The tremors beneath his feet had grown fiercer, indicating the soldiers were about to reach them too! Luckily, there didn¡¯t seem to be another knight nearby, or it would have long caught up by now. Still, it wasn¡¯t like he felt confident handling a legion of the Yellow creatures in his current state.


    Micky suddenly called out to him ecstatically, sending a vivid image through the cord.


    It was bright, but different than the magical glimmer of the cavern. They¡¯d reached the exit! Moreover, the fact the sun could peer into the tunnel meant Nesha had succeeded too, digging them a way out of this infernal deathtrap.


    Percy said, the literal light at the end of the tunnel renewing his vigour.


    Keenly aware of the danger they were in, the two drew on any lingering dregs of strength they¡¯d yet to tap into, hoping to make it in time.


    Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat, as the first hint of Yellow appeared in his Mana Sense. Realizing the soldiers would get to him before he made it out, he decided to change tactics. Fighting the workers one-armed, he allowed the sickle in his other hand to transform, soon taking the shape of half a dozen throwing stars. Next, he launched them towards the bugs, the projectiles piercing long lines through his enemies, killing scores of them as they flew into the distance.


    This seemed to ease the pressure on him momentarily, letting him manifest a sheet of cyan in his now-free hand, as he continued to hold off the rest of the wasps with the other. Finally, he flung the cloth of pure mana against the creatures, ensnaring many of them and forcing them to collide, before turning the second sickle into another set of projectiles and throwing that too.


    Having exhausted all the mana he could spare while retaining his boosting art, he then turned around, sprinting towards his familiar. Picking him up, he slung him awkwardly over his shoulder, before crossing the last few metres separating them from the exit. And without even waiting until he took his first step out of the hellish tunnel, he called to his partner.


    ¡°NESHAAA!! COLLAPSE THE ENTRANCE!!! NOW!!¡±


    Catching a glimpse of a dark shape by the corner of his eye, he barely ducked in time to avoid the bolt as it crashed onto the ceiling.


    CRACK, CRAAAAAAACK, BOOOOOM!


    Percy didn¡¯t bother glancing back at the aftermath as he leapt out of the cave, hoping the girl had poured everything into the spell.


    ¡°What the fuck is that?!¡± she asked upon seeing Micky.


    But the young man didn¡¯t register her words, only now managing to examine the devastation behind him. The bolt of space mana had done its job, shattering a layer of stone off the ceiling, leading to a cascading demolition. Still, this wasn¡¯t going to hold them off for long ¨C he was certain the wasps were already busy clawing their way out.


    ¡°No time to waste!¡± he told his companions as he picked a handful of dirt off the ground. ¡°Scrub your bodies with it.¡±


    Their only shot at survival hinged on eliminating their trail. No way they¡¯d outrun the wasps in an open space. The others followed his advice, even Micky tossing a few beakfuls of mud onto his plumage. Finishing first, Percy helped the crow speed up the process as he noticed a dark bandage hung over its neck.


    That was quite some foresight from the bird. Percy had been too busy to think about that but, had his familiar evolved with it still wrapped around his abdomen, they¡¯d be in need of a new one by now.


    Micky said, flashing him an annoyed ¡°I¡¯m not a moron¡± look.


    A minute later, the entire group was done masking their scent ¨C and just in time too. The loose pebbles resting atop the recently collapsed entrance were already shaking violently, intense tremors seeping through the ground.


    ¡°Good. Now let¡¯s get the hell out of here.¡±

 Chapter 112: Mutations

    The trio ran for hours until they felt safe enough to take a break. And even then, they only gave themselves a few minutes to catch their breath and rub some more dirt on, before resuming their journey until nightfall. Perhaps, the Green or Blue bugs could still track them down, but Percy guessed the queen wouldn¡¯t bother sending her elites that far from the hive.


    he asked his familiar.


    Ever since they exited the tunnel, he¡¯d had Micky fly lower than usual, to ensure he didn¡¯t get spotted by anyone on the Spire. It wasn¡¯t until the colossal structure was naught but a distant silhouette on the horizon that he gave him permission to climb higher, acting as a scout.


    Percy¡¯s eyebrows shot up.


    the bird repeated.


    The young man was sure he hadn¡¯t misheard. His familiar hadn¡¯t merely transmitted his thoughts ¨C he¡¯d sent an actual over! Of course, the bird hadn¡¯t uttered a sound ¨C it was all in Percy¡¯s mind ¨C but Micky had through their connection in a high-pitched, childlike voice.


    Percy frowned.


    The bird kept going for a while until the young man cut it off.


    Micky¡¯s vocabulary wasn¡¯t too varied, and it didn¡¯t seem like he could form a complete sentence just yet, but this was promising. While he might have been able to achieve all this even before the evolution, it would have probably taken more effort.


    As expected, the promotion had boosted Micky¡¯s intelligence. All advancements did that to an extent, but not as much as other aspects of one¡¯s existence. For instance, while Percy¡¯s thoughts had grown a little clearer upon reaching Orange, he certainly hadn¡¯t turned three times as smart or anything crazy like that. Still, as far as he knew, beasts tended to benefit more than sentients in this regard, and he had a hunch his familiar was an outlier even among them. After all, he doubted other beasts started to speak upon hitting Yellow ¨C though he wouldn¡¯t rule it out for the higher grades.


    Percy sure hoped that was the case. At least, this was the first real sign his friend was on the road to recovery. However, it had taken them nearly five years to reach this point, so if the past was any indication, it was going to be a long road¡­


    In any case, this wasn¡¯t the only change Micky had undergone during his advancement. As early as back in the tunnel, Percy had noticed some additional differences in his appearance ¨C besides the obvious size increase ¨C though he hadn¡¯t had the time to dwell on them. Now that they were finally free, he could examine them in more detail.


    Hearing him, the familiar dove downward at great speed, partly to show off, and partly to simply revel in his newfound strength ¨C as he had been doing ever since they escaped the claustrophobic walls of the underground cavern.


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    He landed in front of the young man, raising a cloud of dust with a flap of his wings. Percy rolled his eyes at the theatrics as he stepped closer, scanning the crow¡¯s body carefully. ?


    Just like the last time, Micky¡¯s nature as a familiar seemed to have bled into the rest of his being, furthering his evolution towards this unique direction. They¡¯d have to test the sharpness of the bird¡¯s claws in an actual fight, but Percy suspected they were on par with his sickles now.


    However, the crow¡¯s abnormal soul wasn¡¯t the only thing to have induced some unexpected mutations. Looking closely, the young man noticed Micky¡¯s plumage had undergone a subtle shift too. The dark feathers were now tinged with a hint of green at the edges. The difference was minuscule ¨C barely perceptible under the soft moonlight ¨C but Percy knew his friend well enough to spot it. S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Nobody could answer that, of course, as Micky was possibly the only beast in the universe to have a second core. They were pretty much in uncharted territory. Still, this sounded about right ¨C nothing else could explain this oddity. In fact, Percy had a hypothesis as to why the crow was mutating in such a manner.


    They¡¯d tried to combine Micky¡¯s two mana types before, though they¡¯d never succeeded. At first, Percy had chalked it up to the mismatch between the two grades, though he was now confident there was more to it than that. Even on its own, the beast affinity seemed to revolve entirely around empowering and transforming its user¡¯s body. Perhaps all its fusions involved incorporating other mana types into the body, resulting in mutations like this.


    Percy felt his speculation was close to the truth, though at the end of the day it didn¡¯t really matter. Whatever the cause of these changes, the most important thing was figuring out how to take advantage of them.


    Micky heeded the request, releasing a faint green aura by the underside of his wings. Percy had watched him do this many times before, but it was different now. Bathed in the air mana, the crow¡¯s feathers lit up, apparently resonating with the substance! Activating Mana Sense, the young man observed a layer of Red coating them, sticking to them without dispersing!


    ¡°Fly?¡± the bird asked, clearly eager to put its new trick to the test.


    ¡°Fly.¡± Percy nodded.


    Taking off, the crow sped through the night once more, this time doing so with even greater ease as the air seemed to part in its way, aiding rather than hindering it.


    ¡® the young man noted.


    It wasn¡¯t the first time Micky used his second affinity to augment his flight, but the effect had never been quite as pronounced. This, in tandem with Circulation and just the overall boost from the advancement, and the crow was guaranteed to be a menace in aerial combat!


    ¡°Are you two done playing around?¡± Nesha asked in annoyance, snapping Percy out of his thoughts.


    The girl had remained oddly quiet since their frantic escape, apparently contemplating a great number of things during their journey.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you have a lot of questions.¡± Percy said.


    Honestly, he felt a little guilty over letting her join without knowing much about him. It was true she¡¯d followed him of her own volition but, in hindsight, he should¡¯ve probably come clean beforehand. Between Micky, his clone, Circulation and his second core, there was plenty he¡¯d have to bring her up to speed with.


    ¡°I do.¡± she nodded, but then shook her head. ¡°There¡¯s only one thing I want to know right now, however.¡±


    Percy tilted his head, waiting for her to elaborate.


    ¡°Where are we going?¡±


    Ah, that! They hadn¡¯t really discussed their plans for after leaving the settlement, had they? In Percy¡¯s defence, it was a miracle they¡¯d even survived this long.


    ¡°Well, I did have a place in mind.¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s a small town about two weeks from here. I have my reasons for going there. Unless you wanted to go somewhere else?¡±


    ¡°No, that sounds fine. Anywhere is good, as long as I can buy a new pair of glasses.¡±


    Percy¡¯s jaw slackened upon hearing what her priority was.


    Shrugging, Percy gestured at her to follow him as he strayed away from the dirt path. The road was easier to walk on, but it wasn¡¯t the safest place to camp the night. Moving a couple hundred metres, they made their way around a hill, hoping to rest behind it, hidden from plain sight until sunrise.


    he asked Micky.


    It was a rhetorical question. Percy knew he some sleep after fighting a damn army of wasps for his familiar¡¯s sake. Picking a nice-looking patch of dirt, he patted it a few times to soften it, before lying down. Sadly, they hadn¡¯t brought any camping equipment, as the amulet had only had enough space for some food and water. But it was ok. With his enhanced physique, even weathering the frigid midnight winds with his bare chest shouldn¡¯t be too difficult.


    Thinking of something, he turned to Nesha who was also preparing her own resting spot, before speaking.


    ¡°I thought advancing fixed things like poor eyesight.¡±


    ¡°It does. You should have seen me at Orange.¡±

 Chapter 113: Search

    ¡°What do you mean you can¡¯t find anything?¡± Deimos¡¯s voice boomed, the entire room shaking.


    The idiot in his grip trembled as he was held by the collar, not even daring to blink as the spittle splashed all over his face.


    ¡°S-Sir, we¡¯ve searched the settlement inside out. We¡¯ve already interrogated all the registered alchemists too. Nobody knows anything about this Aurora Dew. Or well¡­ at least nothing they¡¯re willing to share.¡±


    Deimos felt his blood freeze at the mere thought of returning to his father empty-handed. Hermes might have given the rest of Remior the impression of an easy-going eccentric, but Deimos knew the truth about the fickle god. If he failed to deliver the elixirs, his father might just beat him to death.


    ¡°Look again! Leave no stone unturned! Interrogate everyone from the most senior alchemists to the lowest Red-born trash selling junk food on the streets! Don¡¯t show your ugly mug to me again, unless you have something useful to report!!!¡± he yelled, tossing him out of the room.


    The fool was lucky he still needed him.


    Pinching the bridge of his nose, Deimos then walked out of the temporary lodging the Guild had so ¡°kindly¡± bestowed him, eager for some fresh air. At least the mana density was rich here ¨C the only silver lining in a mission too troublesome to be worth it. Walking along the cobblestone road, he breathed the colourful motes in, trying to calm himself down.


    A few minutes later, he reached a grand building ¨C one of the largest in the settlement ¨C climbing up its stone steps. Upon seeing him, an attendant in a green robe rushed to greet him, but Deimos just waved him away.


    ¡°I know the way.¡±


    ¡°But sir¡­ the elders are currently in a meeting¡­ I¡¯m sure if you wai¨C¡±


    ¡°No meeting is more important than this. Your elders know that too.¡±


    Without even waiting for the man to reply, Deimos walked past him, making his way to a large chamber. The door had been left wide open ¨C he could see the five old alchemists locked in a heated discussion from here. Though no sound escaped, as the room was clearly warded. Another attendant was stationed outside, the man looking at him in hesitation, probably considering whether he should try stopping him. But Deimos didn¡¯t care, ignoring him as he entered the hall.


    The elders went silent upon noticing him, their features twisting into a grimace following his ¡°rude¡± entrance. Dressed in their violet robes as they were, it had probably been centuries since the last time anyone dared to treat them this way. But he wasn¡¯t afraid of the old coots. Their status was no higher than his given the circumstances. One of them was about to speak, but Deimos beat him to it.


    ¡°How the fuck have you managed to miss something like this happening right under your noses? Somebody comes up with a one-in-a-million-years recipe, pumping out some miracle elixir next door from you, and you¡¯re the last people to find out?!¡±


    Deimos¡¯s voice shot up again, crushing against the warded walls like a tidal wave, the power of his blessing nearly shattering the soundproofing runes.


    But the elders didn¡¯t seem rattled by his outburst. Unlike his minion earlier, they merely unleashed a sliver of their own presence, shielding their bodies from the annoyance. Next, the oldest of them ¨C a short man with black hair that had begun to grey around his temples ¨C spoke.


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    ¡°Deimos¡­ Have you ever considered that people might be more willing to give you what you want if you ask them nicely?¡±


    Listening to the old man¡¯s patronizing tone, Deimos felt his rage bubbling up again. But he pressed it down. The only thing that mattered here was finding those elixirs, and snapping at these fossils wouldn¡¯t help.


    ¡°As I see it, you have exactly two options in front of you.¡± he said. ¡°Either you find out how this happened, or you figure out the recipe yourselves. And you better do it fast, or my father might come here personally and ¡®¡±


    This time, all five of the elders ¨C their leader included ¨C shuddered at the god¡¯s mention, their expressions turning grim.


    The two sides discussed for another ten minutes, before the alchemists assured Deimos they would continue to do everything in their power to get to the bottom of this. Then, he handed them one of the vials that Talos guy had sent, asking them to work on the recipe. Of course, everyone involved knew that figuring the base ingredients out from the finished product was a tall order. That said, it was something they had to try, in case they failed to locate its maker. sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Once he was done, Deimos returned to his place, finding the blond kid waiting outside. His features eased slightly, as he knew the boy was the most capable of his subordinates. Hopefully he¡¯d done a better job than the other morons.


    ¡°Since we couldn¡¯t find anything about the elixirs directly, I looked into other strange happenings over the past few days.¡± Jason cut to the chase.


    ¡°And?¡±


    ¡°A popular gambling den closed a few hours after we arrived. It didn¡¯t open the following day, and nobody has seen the owner since.¡±


    Deimos gave the boy a questioning gaze, not knowing what a random gambling den had to do with any of this. Still, he knew Jason wouldn¡¯t have approached him with this if he didn¡¯t have something more. ?


    ¡°The owner was a girl from the Veritas House. She¡¯s only been in the Guild for a few years, but she¡¯s made quite some money in that time.¡±


    ¡°Veritas¡­?¡± the name did ring a bell, but Deimos was having trouble placing his finger on it.


    Jason shrugged.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know them either, so I asked around. Apparently, they were affiliated with the Asclepius until they got the shaft right around when the girl joined. She has a bloodline.¡±


    Deimos¡¯s eyes narrowed at the revelation. Indeed, a girl with a good business sense, the ability to detect lies, and a possible connection to the Oblivious Agents just vanishing out of the blue was a bit conspicuous. Of course, people in the Guild died all the time while hunting ¨C it wasn¡¯t exactly the safest job. But something told him the girl didn¡¯t spend her days on the giant mushrooms. And nobody could have left the settlement the normal way either due to the lockdown they¡¯d imposed.


    ¡°I trust you¡¯ve already followed through?¡±


    The boy nodded, before snapping his fingers. Another man in a green robe approached them at the sound of that.


    ¡°Tell him what you told me.¡± Jason commanded, prompting the guy to swallow a lump of saliva.


    ¡°Y-Yes¡­ I was on guard duty at the gate leading to the hunting grounds on the day of the message. I remember her going out that night, but I never saw her return.¡±


    Deimos raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Are you bullshitting us, or do you memorize the faces of everyone who goes through?!¡±


    Startled, the man took a step back at the outburst.


    ¡°N-No, sir¡­ I-I remembered her because I¡¯m one of her r-regulars¡­ It made an imp-pression because I¡¯ve n-never seen her go h-hunting b-before.¡± he stuttered, his words an affront to the ears.


    ¡°If he¡¯s telling the truth, the girl must be hiding on the Spire. Scan every level with the others. Get one of the elders to help you search the top level.¡± he said, before scratching his head. ¡°Not that she would have survived surrounded by Blue beasts¡­ But look there too, just in case. I want to know what happened to her, and I want to know it ¡±


    Jason nodded before taking off.


    Deimos reasoned, rubbing his chin.


    Based on what they¡¯d learned, there was indeed a high likelihood she was involved with the distribution of the product, but she wasn¡¯t an alchemist. She couldn¡¯t have been as well. So, whoever came up with the recipe was somebody else entirely. Probably one of the veterans in the Guild ¨C maybe even one of those five coots themselves. Chances were, they got rid of the girl too, disposing of her body to hide their tracks.


    But Deimos shrugged.

 Chapter 114: Ripples

    ¡°Grandpa!! Why are they taking you?¡± Floria cried as the members of the Divine Root placed Bronn in handcuffs, escorting him out of the building. The man could free himself of course ¨C ¨C but he didn¡¯t seem to have any intention of resisting.


    The girl just couldn¡¯t understand how things had come to this. Hadn¡¯t her grandpa been the one who came forward with the information the gods wanted? Why was he getting punished?! Panicking, she rushed behind them, ready to fight against the powerful mages if she had too ¨C blessings be damned. Of course, she wasn¡¯t stupid ¨C she knew she¡¯d probably get killed too, but how could she just watch them take her grandpa away?!


    A firm hand descended on her shoulder, however, locking her in place. Floria instinctively tried to lash out, but withdrew her mana upon noticing who it was.


    ¡°Dad! Are we going to let them take him?!?! This¡­ it isn¡¯t fair! They should be treating him like a hero!¡±


    But Fyn shook his head.


    ¡°This all happened because we went behind the Order¡¯s back to buy those elixirs¡­ . We¡¯re lucky the Divine Root agreed to our terms. They¡¯re going to place our House under their protection for the next two hundred years. And they¡¯ll even spare me, letting me reach Violet and replace father. That way, we¡¯ll have a chance to recover. This is what we wanted ¨C what we traded the information for¡­¡±


    ¡°But then why?!¡± the girl shouted, her voice cracking.


    ¡°They can¡¯t just let us go entirely unpunished. It would send the wrong message¡­¡± her father patiently explained.


    Listening to him, Floria couldn¡¯t help but shudder. She hadn¡¯t realized how close her dad had come to being arrested too. Turning back to her grandpa, she noticed he¡¯d been escorted quite far already. She frantically wiped her tears away, trying to look at Bronn one last time, just so she could remember him. .


    ¡°Floria¡­ Your grandpa knew this would happen when he sent that letter. He a hero. To our family at least. Remember that¡­¡±


    The girl nodded, her gaze still glued to the group in the distance.


    ***


    ¡°Lord Asclepius, care to explain this situation?¡± an authoritative voice asked, the passive presence it radiated leaving all the others in the room with their heads bowed. Nobody dared lift their eyes. Not the dozens of Blues, nor even the handful of Violets. None but Lord Asclepius himself ¨C .


    ¡°Theseus, we¡¯ve known each other for thousands of years already. I thought we were on first name basis by now.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m here on official business, Machaon. I do need to maintain appearances, lest I wrongly give the impression that I¡¯m going easy on you.¡± Theseus clicked his tongue, before scanning the others in the room, each shuddering as his eyes brushed over them.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter whether you go easy on me or not, old friend. The answer will be the same. You know how our agents operate. Better than most in fact. I hope you haven¡¯t conveniently forgotten how often the Divine Root employs our services.¡± Machaon replied sharply.


    ¡°Be that as it may, I¡¯m sure you understand how much pressure I¡¯m under to get to the bottom of this.¡± Theseus said.


    ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do to help you. Just like our field agents, the people who registered the mission have also erased all details from their minds. Nobody can recall anything about the one who hired us.¡±


    ¡°How the hell did it even come to this?!¡± Theseus snapped. ¡°Your agent should have never agreed to transport those elixirs! They should have rejected the mission and reported it right away!¡±


    But Machaon shook his head.


    ¡°How was anybody supposed to know those were elixirs ¨C let alone ones as revolutionary as this? Lacking any other information, our agent must have assumed they were just a new variety of potions or something. Or did you want them to taste them too?!¡±


    Theseus didn¡¯t respond right away, considering his words. Next, he looked Machaon in the eyes before speaking.


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    ¡°At the end of the day, it doesn¡¯t matter whether your House is in the right or not. You know that, right?¡±


    Machaon clenched his fists as he unleashed his own presence, pushing back Theseus¡¯s as the two domains collided, prompting the others to retreat a few steps just in case. The clash went on for several minutes, as neither of the powerful Whites was willing to back down. At least, not at first. ?


    ¡°This is as stupid as it is pointless¡­¡± Machaon eventually waved in exasperation, withdrawing his aura. ¡°Just tell me what you want from me...¡±


    ¡°A scapegoat.¡± Theseus cut to the chase, before elaborating. ¡°We both know there¡¯s no way to identify who employed you, but a head is going to roll today all the same. If you can¡¯t find the specific agent who took the mission, . I don¡¯t care who.¡±


    Machaon¡¯s eyes widened at the sheer audacity of the request. It wasn¡¯t until a moment later the words sank deep enough for him to grit his teeth.


    ¡° we resort to such a barbaric outcome?!¡±


    ¡°Machaon¡­ I¡¯m not playing games here.¡± Theseus said, his tone not leaving room for debate. ¡°Either you sacrifice one of your agents, or it¡¯s the two of us who¡¯ll lose our heads.¡±


    ***


    ¡°This is amazing!¡± Uncle Gareth exclaimed. ¡°If we get those elixirs, even could reach Violet!!¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you a little too excited for something that would still be over a thousand years away?¡± Dad shut him down, though it didn¡¯t last long.


    ¡°Still, I¡¯ll reach Blue much faster too!¡± Gareth spoke again after a few moments, his enthusiasm clearly not so easy to douse down.


    ¡°Silence.¡± Uncle Galahad said. ¡°If and when the Divine Order decides to mass produce this Aurora Dew, we will give priority to the Yellow-borns. Whether anyone else gets any will depend on the cost and availability.¡±


    Hearing them discuss the topic of the elixirs, Elaine gave her grandpa an odd look, as he also tossed a fleeting glance her way. It hadn¡¯t been long since they allowed her to attend these strategy meetings. Yellow-borns were given the privilege younger, as they represented the future leaders of the family. Though she didn¡¯t say anything. Today, she was only here to listen.


    Archibald cleared his throat. S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Just a reminder that we¡¯re here to discuss House Tantalus. Not the fancy new elixirs.¡± he said, putting the debate to rest.


    Hearing him, Uncle Balin slammed his fist, shaking the long table. He must¡¯ve held back too, or it would have shattered to splinters.


    ¡°What¡¯s there to discuss?! I say we attack them head on already! Are we afraid of those bastards?!?!¡±


    The others averted their gazes following his outburst, Elaine included. Everyone still stepped on eggshells around him, knowing the man was grieving. It hadn¡¯t even been a year since Hector¡¯s death.


    ¡°Calm down, son.¡± Grandpa said. ¡°We¡¯d probably win an all-out war, but our losses would be greater that way. Though I agree we need to escalate our attacks too, if we want them to stop.¡±


    It had already been months since their House started fighting back, having killed many of House Tantalus¡¯s members in that time. Still, that only seemed to pour oil in the fire, as their enemies retaliated even more aggressively. They appeared determined to weaken them regardless of the cost, their goal probably being to prevent Galahad from consuming a petal. After all, they already had their hands full against Archibald ¨C a Violet core with a powerful bloodline. They clearly didn¡¯t want to deal with a second one in possession of a composite affinity.


    Elaine smiled bitterly.


    The meeting continued for a few hours, as everyone exchanged ideas and plans on how to best defend the western side of the Camelot province from their enemies. River Glein had always served as a natural barrier, splitting the province in two down the middle, but the recent unrest had made the rival House a lot more daring.


    It wasn¡¯t until the meeting was over that Elaine approached Archibald. She waited until they were alone in the room before speaking.


    ¡°Grandpa¡­ Those elixirs¡­ Do you think¡­?¡± she trailed off, though the man clearly caught her meaning.


    ¡°Hard to say. The fact he managed to become a full-fledged alchemist in a few years is impressive¡­ But coming up with a new recipe so quickly? That sounds a little farfetched.¡±


    Elaine nodded in agreement, though Archibald wasn¡¯t done.


    ¡°Still, it¡¯s quite the coincidence this happened so soon after he arrived there. The old elixirs had remained mostly unchanged for tens of thousands of years¡­ I suppose it¡¯s not impossible he was involved, given his ability¡­¡±


    She gasped.


    ¡°Do you think he might be in trouble?!?!¡±


    ¡°How should I know? We aren¡¯t even sure it¡¯s him. If it is, it was smart of him to not tell us through the letters. These things are better shared in person. Let¡¯s just hope he knows what he¡¯s doing¡­¡±


    ***


    Similar scenes played out all across Remior, as those involved with the new elixirs tried to hide, and everyone else couldn¡¯t wait to get their hands on the miraculous product. Percy would have been shocked had he seen how far his actions had reached.


    In fact, the ripples extended all the way to a dark room hidden in some remote location, where no sound was ever heard, nor any soul did ever visit. It was a simple room, lacking any furniture. There was only a mat, with two incense burners lit up on either side. The faintly sweet scent of agarwood permeated the place, as a hooded figure meditated silently atop the mat.


    Had somebody stumbled upon the room, they might have thought the person was a corpse ¨C and not a very important one at that. After all, they were dressed in naught but the cheapest clothes, a ragged outfit of worn linen. It was as if somebody had picked the lowest commoner off the street and left them here to starve for whatever reason.


    Yet, here, in this room in the middle of nowhere, amidst the thick veil of darkness and hidden beneath the unassuming hood¡­


    ¡­a pair of lips curled upward.

 Chapter 115: Clothes

    the young man asked, sensing the crow¡¯s urgency through their bond.


    Getting used to hearing actual words from Micky would take a while.


    He sighed. They were bound to run into somebody sooner or later ¨C it was the downside of travelling along a paved road. Especially one leading to a destination as popular as the Alchemists¡¯ Guild. If anything, it was more surprising it had taken three days for this to happen.


    Percy guessed most merchants would steer clear of the Spire for the next couple of weeks, waiting for the dust to settle. Yet some people didn¡¯t care, apparently.


    The young man nodded, assuming they had at least one person below Yellow with them. Ideally, it would be nice to know their exact grades, to decide the best course of action, though that might be asking for too much. Micky couldn¡¯t get too close to them, or they might notice something was off. That¡¯s why Percy had asked his familiar to fly wide circles around him and Nesha, scouting the area while remaining at least a mile away. That way, he might pass for a wild bird that just happened to roam the region.


    Back when they¡¯d first headed to the Spire, things hadn¡¯t been as bad. Orange beasts weren¡¯t nearly as rare, nor as dangerous, so one flying above somebody wouldn¡¯t raise an eyebrow. Now that Micky had evolved, however, he was more than a little conspicuous. Not to mention, it would be easier to spot the crow¡¯s bandage from up close. Naturally, Percy had wrapped it around his familiar¡¯s abdomen again after escaping the hive, though it looped fewer times now.


    ¡°Nesha.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a group behind us. Let¡¯s find some cover just in case.¡±


    Honestly, Percy was confident they could handle them. He doubted they were too strong and, if they were, they were unlikely to be bandits. Nobles and Yellow-borns didn¡¯t need to dabble in petty crime. That said, he¡¯d prefer to avoid them altogether ¨C ¨C for multiple reasons. First, he was still half-naked, his body covered in dirt and grime. It made the prospect of meeting people a little embarrassing. Second, he¡¯d rather not be seen anywhere close to the Spire.


    Making up their minds, he and Nesha upped the pace, to keep their distance from their unwitting pursuers. They scanned the surrounding scenery for a good place to hide. Most of it was flat, entire fields of yellow grass stretching to the horizon. Though it wasn¡¯t tall enough to shroud them properly. Finding something they could work with took about an hour. Straying from the path once more, they made their way to the first hill they spotted, hoping to wait there for the group to pass.


    Alas, despite their caution ¨C ¨C they were caught off guard by what happened next¡­


    ¡°Well, well¡­ what has the wind delivered today?¡± a creepy voice asked. It sounded quite off ¨C as if the man behind it was wheezing.


    In front of Percy stood a trio in mismatched leather outfits, all of them sporting scraggly beards, grinning with yellowed teeth. The one who¡¯d spoken appeared to be their leader, standing in the middle of the bunch. He had a nasty scar marring the upper half of his neck and up his chin, all the way to his bottom lip. Right where it ended, the man¡¯s canine was missing.


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    ¡°How¡­¡± Nesha began to ask, though she trailed off as she put two and two together.


    This was the only place in the surrounding area where one could take cover, so¡­ ? Evidently, it also made for a great ambush spot. In fact, if Percy¡¯s guess was right, the other three were probably on their way here, the two groups being in cahoots.


    ¡°Hahaha. I¡¯ll tell you what. Hand over that enchanted bandage and the girl, and we¡¯ll let you go. We don¡¯t get off killing punks.¡±


    Yeah, right. Fat chance they were willing to leave a survivor behind. Especially once they found out about the spatial amulet hidden beneath his bandage. But Percy wasn¡¯t paying attention to the bandit¡¯s ¡°offer¡±.


    It wasn¡¯t that intimidating a lineup. Nesha didn¡¯t have much experience fighting, but she shouldn¡¯t have much trouble dealing with the weaker guy. As for the other two, Percy felt confident fighting them by himself. Stepping forward, he took a couple breaths in quick succession, building up his reserves. His body was still sore from all that madness in the hive, but otherwise uninjured.


    ¡°Brat, are you deaf? Toss me your bandage, or else¡­¡± the leader spoke.


    Then, he manifested a fireball the size of a watermelon above his palm, trying to spook him. He must¡¯ve thought it was working too, judging from the smirk on his face. Though Percy didn¡¯t blame him. Seeing him breathe rapidly, they were probably under the impression he was hyperventilating or something. Well, if the idiots thought so, they were in for a rough awakening.


    ¡°Let me make you a counteroffer.¡± Percy replied, the calmness in his tone eliciting a frown from the bandit. ¡°Back off , or it¡¯ll be too late once I start.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± the criminal just stared at him for a few seconds, blinking a couple times. The others also looked at each other, until one of them broke into a cackle, causing the others to follow.


    ¡°Hahahahaha!¡±


    ¡°Start what?¡± the rightmost guy asked, but Percy remained silent. .


    The young man wasn¡¯t concerned about his familiar¡¯s safety in the slightest. Following his promotion, the crow might even be stronger than he was. As long as the other group didn¡¯t have somebody at Green, there shouldn¡¯t be anything to worry about.


    Truth be told, this situation felt a little nostalgic. Hadn¡¯t they run into bandits on the way to the Guild too? Back then, Percy had relied on deception and sneak attacks to survive. Rick¡¯s group had been weaker than today¡¯s enemies too.


    The bandits¡¯ eyes widened as a series of cyan lines lit up underneath Percy¡¯s skin. They were static and orderly, spreading out of his abdomen, reaching every corner of his body. At the same time, a silver maelstrom raged within, carving violent gushes through Percy¡¯s soul, drawing a constantly shifting vortex around his sternum.


    Panicking, the leader tossed the fireball right at him. S§×ar?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    But Percy had seen the attack coming before the man even launched it. Hooking his arm around Nesha, he leapt backwards, calmly watching the spell blast a patch of grass into ashes where he¡¯d previously stood.


    Everyone gave him odd looks. The girl had seen his boosting art back when he rushed out of the tunnel, though they hadn¡¯t discussed it. Now that it appeared again, she couldn¡¯t help but examine him curiously. As for the bandits, they now sported a strange mix between greed and caution they had lacked a moment ago.


    The young man didn¡¯t care about any of them, however. He¡¯d already decided to not keep much from Nesha anymore. They were in this together now. As for his enemies? Well, their fate had been sealed the moment he activated Circulation. Though he didn¡¯t stop there. Inhaling again, he pushed his body further, his muscles tensing as they brimmed with strength, his abs causing his bandage to stretch. Beads of sweat popped up all over his reddened skin, as motes of two colours leaked out of his pores, shrouding him in a twin halo of cyan and silver.


    ¡°Nesha. Take the rightmost guy on. I¡¯ll handle the others.¡± he muttered, though the bandits must¡¯ve heard him too, as all three began to prepare their own spells. The guy in the middle formed a new fireball, as the other two both used water.


    ¡°W-What?! By yourself?! They¡¯re both at Yellow!¡± the girl was taken aback. ¡°What are you going to do?¡±


    Percy shrugged. If anything, this was a good opportunity to test something else he¡¯d been working on. Neither the Starry Knight, nor the horde of wasps had been suitable opponents, but these people were. Next, he focused on his mana, as the two halos around his frame began to change. Cyan and silver blended together into a single aura, as smoky wisps of teal enveloped him.


    ¡°What else? I¡¯m going to get myself some new clothes.¡±

 Chapter 116: Mantle

    Oversized fireballs and blasts of pressurized water rained upon Percy one after the other, keeping him on his toes. The surrounding patches of grass had all been reduced to soggy cinders, his boots leaving dozens of prints as he danced along the soot and mud, dodging the apocalyptic storm of magic.Had it been a single enemy, he wouldn¡¯t have had as much trouble evading. He¡¯d already done something similar years ago in the Guild, back when he¡¯d been much weaker. However, the situation that night had been a little different. His opponent had been an earth user ¨C an affinity not exactly famous for its speed. Also, comparing that person to the two bandits, Percy was starting to think he might have been drunk.


    And that wasn¡¯t all. Percy¡¯s ability to dodge the spells heavily hinged on reading his targets¡¯ intentions via Soul Vision. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t exactly keep his eyes on two people at the same time. Of course, the situation wasn¡¯t that bad. He could easily put some distance from them if he wanted, as he was much faster, and they had no way of catching up. It was approaching them he had trouble with. So, the two sides were essentially at a stalemate, as neither one could land a hit on the other unless they made a mistake.


    Percy grinned. ¡®


    He¡¯d already grown used to combining his two types of mana, but he hadn¡¯t had much opportunity to test that in the heat of battle as neither the Starry Knight nor the horde of wasps had been suitable opponents. And he did need to knock a few kinks off his new trick. Constantly aligning and maintaining his mana while watching his enemies and dodging their attacks was tough. Yet, that was exactly what made this fight so valuable. Sure, he could probably find a way to win without it, but why waste such a willing pair of whetstones?


    As for the outcome of the battle, he wasn¡¯t too concerned. He knew he had the advantage, though the bandits hadn¡¯t noticed. Due to his outlandish regeneration, they¡¯d exhaust their cores before he did. Now it was just a question of whether they¡¯d realize it in time, prompting them to take a risk he could pounce on. Either way, they were screwed.


    Retreating a few paces to give himself some space, he tossed his companion a quick glance to check whether she was ok. So shocked was he by what he saw, he nearly caught a fireball to his face, yet even that wasn¡¯t enough for him to pick his jaw off the ground.


    The girl and the final bandit had put some distance from them, and were just standing around, doing nothing. Forget about fighting, the morons didn¡¯t even bother to look at one another, their attention glued to his own battle.


    ¡°Mind lending a hand since you¡¯re free?¡±


    He didn¡¯t really need help, but it irked him to see her chilling while he did all the work.


    ¡°If I do, he¡¯ll butt in.¡± she pointed at the bandit with her elbow.


    And the guy actually nodded at that! It was ridiculous but it made sense. . Neither of them felt confident joining the bigger fight, so their fate would inevitably be decided by the victor.


    Percy shook his head, focusing back on his own enemies.


    The two were nearly out of breath already. They threw each other a quick glance, seemingly communicating something, before drawing most of their remaining mana out of their cores.


    Readying his stance, Percy tensed his calves and scanned the two souls carefully, as he began to gather the teal wisps into his hand. He was going to meet the all-out offensive of two Yellow cores with his own!


    Six condensed balls of azure shot at him in quick succession, trying to block out all his escape routes. Each punched a foot-deep crater into the ground before exploding in a splash of water. None of them hit but, together, they forced Percy into an awkward stance, right as the seventh projectile flew towards him.


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    Percy¡¯s eyes widened at the sight of the rapidly expanding flame, but he didn¡¯t panic. With a swing of his arm, he coalesced all the fused mana he¡¯d gathered since the start of the battle, forming a large teal sheet, three metres long and half as wide. Then, the fluttering cloth slammed onto the incoming projectile like a whip, forcing it to explode before reaching its intended target!


    The shockwave shot Percy butt-first into the mud, as the heat scorched a layer of skin off his frontside. Luckily, he¡¯d thought to shield his eyes with his elbow in time.


    ¡°Percy!!¡± a female voice yelled, as a cloud of steam enveloped him.


    ¡°Is he dead?¡± the bandit leader also asked, more relieved than disappointed.


    Evidently, he¡¯d grown more concerned with keeping his life than covetous over Percy¡¯s secrets by now. Sadly for him, however, he wasn¡¯t walking away with either today.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± the young man replied, pushing himself up.


    In their corporeal state, his teal constructs were no stronger than pure mana, which meant they couldn¡¯t survive a frontal collision against an elemental spell a full grade higher. However, Percy could still use them to collapse an incoming spell early, lessening the damage he took greatly. And¡­ that was just the start.


    As the steam faded, the bandits¡¯ eyebrows shot up upon seeing the young man standing, a cyclone of tattered strips of teal cloth spinning around him while inching closer to his hand. There, they latched onto one another, quickly restoring Percy¡¯s latest tool back to its original shape. Within mere seconds, it was complete again ¨C though a little smaller than before.


    ¡°My turn!¡± he said with a toothy grin.


    Next, he dashed towards the leader, swinging the teal sheet again as soon as he reached the halfway point.


    The spell shifted mid-movement, the cloth now replaced by a couple dozen throwing stars, their curved blades making shrill sounds as they spun through the air toward their target.


    ¡°Fuck!¡± the bandit shouted as he tried to shield himself with whatever dregs of mana he could still summon.


    Which wasn¡¯t much! He¡¯d exhausted most of it in that last attack. A pathetic spark lit up in each of his hands, but the man didn¡¯t give up, slamming them against one another. Apparently, he wanted to imitate Percy¡¯s trick, using the small explosion to block the projectiles!


    Unfortunately for him, it wasn¡¯t meant to be. So caught up was he in this last-ditch effort to protect himself, he didn¡¯t notice the blades had gone silent at some point! Through Soul Vision, Percy watched the projectiles phase through the shockwave unaffected, before stabbing countless holes into the bandit¡¯s soul. The man dropped limp in the mud a second later.


    By the time he turned to the other one, the poor guy was running for his life! Gritting his teeth, Percy gave chase. Whatever happened, he couldn¡¯t let a witness go after revealing all his secrets. Catching up wasn¡¯t easy, however. It should have been, but Percy suspected his opponent was using some minor bloodline to boost his physical speed. The two men ran, one hot on the other¡¯s tail, as they both tried to recover some mana amidst their dash.


    The familiar sent him an image of the corpses. All of them were covered in nasty gashes from head to toe, lying in bloody pools. Only one showed a Yellow core within Micky¡¯s Mana Sense ¨C the very same he was currently feasting on.


    Percy said. For some reason, he had this sneaking suspicion Nesha wouldn¡¯t bother chasing him.


    Turning back to his own target, he tossed a handful of teal daggers at him. But the bandit had learned his lesson. He didn¡¯t try blocking, instead summoning a splash of water beneath his feet, sliding away from the projectiles.


    Clicking his tongue, Percy formed the teal sheet again. He continued his pursuit, drawing and pouring mana until it was back to its full size, before swiping his arm again.


    Once more, the man used what little water mana he¡¯d managed to recover, evading the barrage by the skin of his yellowed teeth. Sadly for him, however, Percy¡¯s spell could do more than just turn incorporeal. In his rush to dodge, the bandit had made a terrible mistake. Relying solely on his eyes, he had completely failed to notice a second bunch of daggers, these only visible through Mana Sense¡­


    And just like that, he joined his former boss in the afterlife¡­


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new spell: Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined!]


    ***


    Nesha watched Percy as he picked clothes from the dead bandits, testing them until he found some his size. Whenever he was done with a corpse, he¡¯d toss it to his crow to feast on. Suffice to say, the sight was more than a little disturbing, but that wasn¡¯t what she was concerned about.


    She¡¯d known her partner had harboured his fair share of secrets for a while now, but the things she¡¯d seen over the last few days had vastly exceeded her wildest imaginations. From the powerful beasts he seemed to effortlessly command, to the bizarre techniques he had unleashed on the bandits, each layer he revealed was more shocking than the last. In fact, she was pretty sure by now that he and his pet had two cores each, ! Hell, she¡¯d just watched the duo dismantle an entire band of bandits by themselves. Was Percy really just a Red-born?!


    Nesha was sure of it! She¡¯d seen him return from his hunts worn out, with barely a couple vials full of nectar!


    But then¡­ the revolutionary Aurora Dew that had turned Remior upside down¡­ compared to this¡­ it was nothing!!! Just the tip of the iceberg ¨C a mere afterthought! S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The realization sent a chill down Nesha¡¯s spine. Unbeknownst to everyone, biding its time away from politics and wars, hidden beneath the shadow of the Fungal Spire, in some corner where nobody ever bothered to look¡­


    ¡­a monster had been born.


    [END OF BOOK 1: WHISPERS OF THE GHOST ALCHEMIST]

 Chapter 117: Destination

    ¡°I look like a bandit¡­¡± Percy groaned, glancing down at his mismatched outfit.¡°You stink like one too.¡± Nesha said, pinching her nose as she inched further away from him.


    ¡°Hey, remind me again¡­ Who was it that took all my spare clothes?¡± Percy asked in a faux-offended tone.


    But the girl just shrugged unapologetically.


    ¡°Woohoo, I¡¯m dressed as a commoner.¡± she said flatly. ¡°What an upgrade.¡±


    Percy shook his head, not seeing any point in continuing the argument. Though he did pick up the pace, eager to find some water to wash up. If his memory served him, they should be reaching River Glein in the next few hours. They could look for a good spot to camp there.


    he asked his familiar.


    the crow replied.


    The young man frowned at the prospect of eating rodent meat for the second day in a row. Sadly, there was only so much space in his amulet, so they had to ration their supplies for a rainy day. Still¡­


    he sighed.


    The duo walked in silence until nightfall, only stopping once the body of water came into view. Next, they spent a while longer travelling along the river, looking for a decent camping spot. It wasn¡¯t easy as their surroundings were still mostly flatlands, but they did eventually stumble upon a semi-concealed place between a few large boulders. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it would do.


    After drinking his fill, Percy scrubbed his clothes a few times until he was somewhat satisfied. Of course, he knew no amount of washing would ever completely rid him of the stench, but he hoped it wouldn¡¯t be quite as nauseating over the remainder of their journey.


    Once he was done, he set his alchemy tools up. Unfortunately, he had yet to condense tomorrow¡¯s crystals and brew the corresponding elixirs. It was annoying he had to spend five hours every night doing this, but it couldn¡¯t be helped. He¡¯d only waste his previous efforts if he started skipping days.


    After confirming with Micky that the coast was clear, Percy activated Synchronization. Next, he formed a blob of cyan between his palms before beginning the first of his daily chores. Surprisingly, Nesha didn¡¯t slack off either while he worked. She lit a campfire, taking it upon herself to cook their dinner. Apparently, the crow had found a snake too, so their meal was quickly turning into a veritable buffet.


    As soon as Percy was done, he drank his third set of Aurora Dew for the day, using his Whirlpool technique to cleanse both cores. Having mastered it some time ago, he could get the full benefit from the elixirs now. Micky and Nesha joined him too, consuming a dose each. Only after they were done did the humans finally pick their kebabs up, taking a bite. As for the crow¡­ Well¡­ He preferred his food raw.


    ¡°It tastes nice!¡± Percy exclaimed.


    The girl didn¡¯t reply, though he didn¡¯t miss her lips curving slightly at the compliment. Evidently, she wasn¡¯t that bad a cook. Still, knowing where the food had come from did dull his appetite somewhat, so he didn¡¯t eat much in the end.


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    ¡°So, are you going to tell me where we¡¯re going?¡± Nesha suddenly asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°Home.¡± Percy replied. Then, he scratched his head. ¡°Well, kinda¡­¡± he added vaguely.


    By now, the group had almost entered the Camelot province, where his family was based. However, the young man wasn¡¯t planning to return to the Avalon House¡¯s mansion directly. While his home was probably the safest place to brew elixirs and send out his clones, he knew getting there wouldn¡¯t be easy. After all, House Tantalus¡¯s goons constantly patrolled the borders, looking for opportunities to hurt his family. £Ò????


    That said, Percy still wanted to be close to his House, so that he could reach them more easily when the lotus bloomed. As a result, he figured it was best to settle somewhere within the province. And he¡¯d picked the exact spot too.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to Bogside town.¡±


    Nesha raised an eyebrow, prompting him to explain.


    ¡°Returning to my family is currently not an option, so staying in a small town nearby is the next best place for the time being. We¡¯ll just have to keep our heads low for a while.¡±


    ¡°Why that one specifically though? I¡¯m sure the Camelot province has multiple.¡±


    Percy nodded. Indeed, the western side had three of them, but Bogside town wasn¡¯t among them. Instead, it was on the eastern side, being one of the two under their enemies¡¯ control!


    ¡°The members of House Tantalus are currently roaming my family¡¯s territories like sharks, eager to take a bite. But I doubt they¡¯d look twice at a couple of commoners passing through their own side of the province. We¡¯ll enter from the north and make our way to the town. We¡¯ll hide there, right under their noses, looking for an opportunity to reach my House in the next two years.¡± sea??h th§× N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Nesha creased her brow at the explanation. She didn¡¯t seem convinced.


    ¡°If the only issue is the blockade, there are other ways around it. We could circle the province and enter your family¡¯s side from a different spot.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, we could.¡± Percy said, before grinning. ¡°But I have another goal in Bogside town.¡±


    ¡°Which is?¡±


    ¡°Remember how I said we only have enough elixirs to last as two years?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡± the girl tilted her head in confusion, apparently unsure what this had to do with anything.


    ¡°Well, we can¡¯t return to the Guild anytime soon, so there¡¯s only one other place where we could possibly restock on elixirs.¡±


    Nesha¡¯s eyes widened as she realized what he intended to do. Indeed, after the Alchemists¡¯ Guild, the next best place to find a large amount of elixirs was a noble House¡¯s warehouse!


    After all, a family of that size had over 500 members, of which around 200 would receive elixirs regularly. Assuming they had enough in stock to last them a couple of years ¨C which was the norm for his family at least ¨C it meant their combined stash would last Percy and Nesha for over a decade!


    And if he was going to raid a noble House¡¯s storage, what better target than his family¡¯s enemies ¨C the very ones who murdered his parents?


    ¡°Have you lost your mind? How are we going to accomplish something like that?¡±


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°Well, I admit that¡¯s the part I haven¡¯t figured out yet¡­¡± he said with a sheepish grin plastered all over his face. ¡°Still, we have two years to find a way!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re nuts¡­¡± the girl shook her head but didn¡¯t say anything else.


    There was actually one more reason why Percy had picked that particular town over the other. Now that Micky had advanced, they needed a good place for him to stay ¨C a place where he¡¯d have access to all the higher-grade food he now needed. And as it so happened, Bogside town was located right next to a dangerous swamp filled with Orange and Yellow beasts ¨C the Grisly Bog.


    Putting out the fire, Percy cleaned the camp up a little before finding a decent spot to sleep. Then, he reached out to his companions.


    ¡°Nesha. Micky. Can you two do me a favour and split tonight¡¯s shifts between yourselves? I¡¯ll make it up to you later.¡±


    The two groaned at the prospect of staying up longer, but ultimately agreed. Naturally, Percy had a reason for voicing this request ¨C and it wasn¡¯t because of laziness. He needed to get a good rest, as he had something important to do the following day.


    Their target was still a week away, but that wasn¡¯t the only place Percy would be visiting in the near future. While it hadn¡¯t been that long since his latest wasp clone got destroyed, the colossal amount of soul mana his familiar had harvested from the Starry Knight had been more than enough to fully heal his soul.


    Now that his ventures inside the hive had been placed on hold, it was finally time for the young man to resume sending clones out of Remior.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope it¡¯s a lucky one.¡±

 Chapter 118: Takeo

    ¡°Takeo¡­ Don¡¯t leave the village. It¡¯s too dangerous.¡± Father said sternly.But he wasn¡¯t having it.


    ¡°This is exactly why we have to go! We can¡¯t just wait here like cowards!¡±


    Sengo reached for his son, but the boy shook the hand off his shoulder. Grabbing his father¡¯s latest creation from a table, he bolted out of the room.


    ¡°Come back!¡± Sengo yelled, though his voice only grew more distant as the boy ran through the empty streets, his wooden sandals clacking against the paved dirt.


    Takeo circled around the house by the corner of the road before heading straight, right into the dense thicket. The pale moonlight was already faint to begin with, though it vanished entirely as the young man dove into the black vines. The infernal things blotted out the sky, greedily shrouding the world in their demonic embrace. At least the young man¡¯s eyesight had always been the sharpest in the village, so he could still see where he was going.


    He strapped the object he had taken from his father to his waist, before unsheathing his own machete from the other side. He ducked and squeezed through the vines whenever he could ¨C his smaller frame making things easier ¨C though he still had to hack an opening once in a while.


    Every few steps, the boy caught one of the thorn-covered tendrils shift by the corner of his eye. Had this been a few years ago, he might have chalked it up to fear, but he knew the time of the feast was almost upon them.


    The young man roamed the jungle for hours, though he never extended too far from the village. If he was going to kill somebody, he figured he might as well look for a raider targeting his people. Plus, he had the advantage in his own turf. Knowing the place like the back of his hand, it would be harder to fall into an ambush here.


    Eventually, he stopped upon spotting a few broken vines. Somebody must¡¯ve passed through recently. In the last few minutes too, otherwise the jungle would have repaired the damage already.


    Putting his machete away, Takeo grabbed the hilt of the other object, clenching it tightly in his grasp. Twisting the blade upwards, he pulled it slightly from its sheath. Then he crouched, advancing through the thicket with more caution. At the same time, he scanned his surroundings for more signs of activity. And it wasn¡¯t long before he found another broken vine, and then a third. Soon, Takeo was hot on his prey¡¯s trail, inching closer by the second.


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    Aware he was probably close enough they could hear him; he held his breath before brushing a vine aside and peering through a gap in the undergrowth. One of the thorns stabbed into his palm, causing him to wince, but he didn¡¯t utter a sound as his gaze finally locked onto his prey.


    Examining his targets, he firmed his stance, ready to pounce on them. Though he hesitated at the last second. One of them was a kid ¨C a boy even younger than he was. Of the adults, only the man was holding a hatchet in his hand. The woman was unarmed.


    Takeo felt his heart clench at the sight, having second thoughts about doing this. These people weren¡¯t raiders ¨C they were probably just running away from all the chaos, looking for a safe place to hide before the feast. Chances were, their home had been destroyed already.


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    The young man clawed into his arm with his free hand, his fingernails digging into his skin as he tried harnessing the pain to move. But his legs refused to listen. No matter how hard he forced himself, he just couldn¡¯t find it in his heart to murder the trio.


    Suddenly, a vine broke under the pressure, causing the family to jerk their heads in his direction. The kid almost screamed, though his mother covered his mouth. At the same time, the man¡¯s features twisted in fury at the sight of Takeo¡¯s sword. The latter stepped back, looking for the words to explain himself. But he couldn¡¯t find any. After all, he was still considering the act a moment ago.


    ¡°Leave my family alone you fucker!¡± the older man hissed, dashing towards Takeo with his hatchet ready.


    Realizing they were long past words, the young man calmed himself down, as he resumed his stance. His enemy was larger and probably stronger, but no fighter. His movements were crude, his steps uneven. Another wave of hesitation bubbled up, but Takeo pressed it down as he drew his sword, its edge the only source of light in the dark jungle as it reflected whatever scant rays reached it.


    THUD, THUD


    The mother covered her child¡¯s eyes to shield him from the horror as their world came crashing down. Takeo exhaled the turbid air in his lungs before looking at the two in shame. He knew he should finish the job, but he also understood he didn¡¯t have the stomach for it. His arm fell weakly by his side as he dropped his weapon.


    Of course, he didn¡¯t expect the woman to thank him for sparing them. Naturally, she glared at him with unconcealed hatred, occasionally tossing a glance at her husband¡¯s decapitated body, the colour draining from her face at the gruesome sight. But in the end, she knew what had to be done. Grabbing her son, she ignored his sobs as she suppressed her own, running away before Takeo changed his mind.


    The young man looked at the corpse one more time. Blood still gushed out of the wound like a fountain, but there wasn¡¯t any beneath the body. The jungle had already sucked the pool dry.


    Takeo picked his sword up before heading off, in search of another group. As disgusted as he was by his actions, the vines wouldn¡¯t be satiated with a single meal. , for that matter. Others would have to help too if they wanted to delay the feast.


    Over the next few hours, he continued roaming his village¡¯s vicinity, not stopping until he cleared the whole area twice. In that time, he found a dozen more targets, though luckily, none of them were civilians. Heavily armed and in groups of at least three, they posed a much higher threat to Takeo than his first unfortunate victim. Still, between his father¡¯s masterfully crafted katana and the sharp combat skills he had honed his whole life, none of the skirmishes gave him much trouble.


    he smiled bitterly.


    The lives he had sacrificed today weighed heavily on his conscience, but for the vines? . Maybe a few hours of peace if they got lucky. Takeo knew he¡¯d have to come back tomorrow. And the day after. And even then, he was only delaying the inevitable¡­


    In any case, there wasn¡¯t much he could do about it right now. Turning back towards his village, he was about to return home, when something lashed at him. By reflex, he swung the sword at it, managing to intercept the vine in time. The severed tendril twitched a couple of times by his feet before dying down.


    Takeo didn¡¯t even get the chance to complete that thought when he felt an impact on the back of his head, a sickening crunch reverberating through his skull. His vision blurred as he fell to the ground. At the same time, another tendril wrapped itself around his neck, squeezing it.


    ¡®Can¡¯t¡­ b


    The young man tried to chop away at the vine, when he realized he had dropped his sword at some point. Drawing his machete with his left hand, he was about to use that, when another tendril lashed at his wrist, stopping him. Out of options, he resorted to brute strength, though he was no match for the demonic wood. Takeo pummelled the vine again and again, though it didn¡¯t do him much good. Each hit was weaker than the one before, until he couldn¡¯t go on. Finally, the boy¡¯s resistance fizzled out into smoke, as his eyes fell shut, the very jungle he had spent all day feeding becoming his undoing.


    Though this wasn¡¯t the end of Takeo¡¯s story, as one last chapter had yet to be written¡­

 Chapter 119: Infestation

    Percy was a little bummed out by his latest venture. This was his first clone outside Remior in months, though luck hadn¡¯t been on his side. He¡¯d spent the entire trip looking for a suitable host, but all he¡¯d found were crumbling souls that wouldn¡¯t last a minute once he took over. In the end, he went with the least damaged option, though their grade left much to be desired. It was somewhere between a Red and an insect ¨C which was a first for him.At least, the actual possession went smoothly. For some reason, his host appeared completely absent this time. It was nothing like the lizard or the furball, which had remained passive yet still present in the background. No. This body¡¯s owner was . Encountering zero resistance, Percy slid between the gaps, patching the broken soul with unprecedented ease. A few memories flashed through his mind in the process, though they were too disorganized to piece together.


    Tapping into the body¡¯s senses, Percy finally pried his eyes open, only to be greeted by endless darkness. After a moment, some vague shapes started coming to focus, but he didn¡¯t have the chance to worry about them, as he discovered he couldn¡¯t even breathe. Something was squeezing his neck tightly.


    Trying to move his hands, he soon realized his left was bound too, leaving him only his right to pummel the object with. Whatever it was felt slimy, its surface smooth and damp. It slowly slithered around his throat, a small spike tracing a shallow cut along his skin as it did so.


    Not getting anywhere barehanded, Percy summoned a sliver of his stored mana, forming a weapon in his hand. Soon, a teal flash sliced a line through the darkness, severing the tendril off him.


    Percy filled his lungs with air a couple of times as he practically felt the colour return to his face. But he was still trapped. Hacking again with his sickle, he cut another three ¡°snakes¡± a second later, freeing the rest of his limbs. Jumping to his feet, he activated Mana Sense, hoping to scan his surroundings better. . For some reason, his current body couldn¡¯t even use Mana Sense!


    Accepting that his impaired eyesight was all he could rely on, he examined the ground around him, attempting to decipher what had happened to his host. Faintly illuminated by his mana construct, he spotted five severed vines ¨C all of them black like tar, covered in spikes of various sizes. The dead ones weren¡¯t moving right now, but the living ones were ¨C wriggling ominously as they waited for another opportunity to pounce.


    Making a note to keep an eye on the strangely animated plants, Percy¡¯s attention was drawn to a couple of manmade objects glinting nearby. Picking the first one up, he noticed it was a slender sword, sporting a single, curved edge. A quick test revealed its sharpness wasn¡¯t a joke, as it cut a couple inches into another vine with minimal effort.


    There sure weren¡¯t any runes visible on its surface, nor the typical glow he would expect from a mana-rich alloy. Finding a scabbard matching the sword strapped to his waist, he sheathed it, before picking the second object off the ground. This one was a machete, crafted from the same material, though its edge had dulled a little from overuse. Still, it was better than any steel tool he¡¯d seen on Remior.


    Allowing his construct to crumble, he collected as many of the teal shreds as he could, storing them back inside his soul. Some strange force was pulling on them, trying to pry them from his control, but Percy would be damned if he let his limited supply get snatched so easily. Exerting all the willpower he could muster, he forcibly dragged most of the substance into his body, ultimately recovering about three quarters of the amount he¡¯d used.


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    Percy couldn¡¯t help but nod in appreciation.


    The young man had naturally been thrilled upon discovering he could supply his clones with the teal mana as long as it was stored in its ethereal form. Not only did this let him essentially ¡°cheat¡± some pure mana into his clones, it was highly recyclable too, allowing him to get a lot more value from it before it ran out. ?


    There was a lot to think about, but this wasn¡¯t the time or the place. Looking around, Percy realized he recognized the scenery somewhat. Despite the poor lighting, his host seemed to be extremely familiar with the area. In fact, he could even tell which way ¡°home¡± was.


    Heading towards the village he scarcely remembered, he soon noticed his body was rather weak. Exhausted and injured all over, yes ¨C but that wasn¡¯t it. It reminded Percy of his youth, from before he advanced to Orange.


    No wonder he couldn¡¯t even use Mana Sense. Had his host not even awakened his core?!


    Suddenly, a vine lashed at him from his right, though he was prepared for it. With a semi-awkward swing of his machete, he cut it to pieces, though he didn¡¯t relax just yet, knowing more could attack at any moment. Ignoring the soreness and pain, he picked up the pace, practically running towards his host¡¯s village, hacking at whatever obstacle stood in his path.


    If the black vines sucked all the ambient mana in this world, it would explain why his host had never managed to awaken his core. For all Percy knew, the poor sap might have been born with a Yellow one, but he¡¯d lived and died without ever enjoying its benefits.


    And as if that wasn¡¯t enough, the hateful plants weren¡¯t satisfied with all the mana they stole, seemingly thirsting for blood too. In fact, this situation felt a little familiar to Percy, as he couldn¡¯t help but recall something he¡¯d read about on Remior.


    The gods of the Divine Order weren¡¯t that open about their operations, but a few morsels of information did trickle down to the mortals like him. From what he knew, foreign races weren¡¯t the only threat the deities had to deal with. Other than the fierce competition over resources and territories, gods across the universe had another major enemy ¨C this one in common.


    Demonic infestations.


    Supposedly formed from the accumulation of negative thoughts, they sprouted randomly like cancers, dooming whatever unfortunate world spawned them. Infestations came in many shapes and sizes ¨C from imps and gremlins as weak as the weakest mortals, to great devils as powerful as the strongest gods, to mindless entities spanning entire worlds, bringing calamity upon their residents.


    Evidently, this jungle belonged in the latter category. Percy¡¯s confidence in his guess grew as he scanned the living vines around him. This didn¡¯t seem like a natural phenomenon. Unlike the brown fog he had encountered before, this disaster was alive, dripping with malice and cruelty, its only mission to drive all life to extinction.


    It was only once he finally reached the edge of the dense thicket that he exhaled in relief, leaving the demonic jungle behind him, as he stepped into the pale moonlight. The small village standing before him looked both alien and familiar, as his host¡¯s memories bled into his own.


    Part of him was curious about the infestation. He knew it was close to some turning point, and it was his first time experiencing one with any of his clones. Not that there was anything to be gained from it, but he was sure he¡¯d run into more in his future travels, so it wouldn¡¯t hurt to get a taste.


    On the other hand, his current clone might be a good candidate to return to the Vault with. Stumbling upon a host that was both sentient and brain-dead was a rare stroke of luck. He had free reign over the body, and he wouldn¡¯t even have to feel guilty over dragging someone else into his mess.


    That said, he didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d be able to practice magiscript without a functioning core. Perhaps, he could awaken it inside the Vault, but his body wasn¡¯t in great shape, so it might not last long enough. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    At the very least, Percy wanted to learn more about the crafting technique of the locals here. The strength and sharpness of his steel tools almost rivalled that of his pure constructs, which was quite impressive for a pair of mana-less weapons. Maybe he could learn to make similar tools back home.


    Summoning his Status, Percy read his host¡¯s details at last.


    ___


    Takeo Muramasa (Percival''s clone)


    ___

 Chapter 120: Sengo

    ___Takeo Muramasa (Percival''s clone)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Red ¨C ???][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude][Quarterstaff ¨C Crude][Glove ¨C Crude][Crystallization ¨C Crude][Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[Moirais¡¯ Decree (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.


    ___


    As it turned out, his Status was able to recognize Takeo¡¯s grade. It was at Red, which wasn¡¯t exactly great news. Even if Percy could fill it up inside the Vault, it wouldn¡¯t help him much.


    There wasn¡¯t really anything of note here. The only silver lining was that his stash of teal mana allowed him to use most of his spells. He still couldn¡¯t use Circulation without his cores, but everything else was on the table, at least until his reserves ran out. If everyone else was incapable of using magic, it would give him a significant advantage over the locals. Of course, he wasn¡¯t sure he¡¯d even need it.


    Shrugging, Percy walked along the paved dirt, tracing the way to his host¡¯s house by instinct. The first thing he noticed as he travelled through the small village was that the buildings looked a little strange. They were made of some pale, uniform material which looked nothing like the stone buildings they had in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild, nor the wooden walls in his family¡¯s mansion.


    Despite the lack of any engravings or magical materials, the houses appeared in decent condition. At least, he couldn¡¯t spot any signs of age on their simple walls. Evidently, the crafting techniques of the natives extended beyond their steel tools. Sear?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Though it wasn¡¯t that odd, considering they didn¡¯t have magic to fall back to. Back on Remior, people used it as a crutch to solve all their problems. Why bother improving the quality of your materials when you could just carve a couple runes on them to compensate for their deficiencies?


    Percy decided.


    Luckily, he didn¡¯t meet anyone on the deserted streets, saving him some time. Apparently, they were all holed up in their homes ¨C evident by the faint shadows he occasionally saw shifting through the windows. Every now and then, he caught a glimpse of a villager, which might have startled him under different circumstances. Their deep crimson skin and bright yellow eyes made them more than a little intimidating. Not to mention their sharp features, or the four fangs each had sticking out of their mouth.


    However, Percy wasn¡¯t scared in the slightest. And that wasn¡¯t merely because he could defend himself. Seeing these people through Takeo¡¯s eyes, he realized he could put a name to each face. They were his family ¨C the very people he had grown up with.


    he thought, feeling his heart tighten.


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    He¡¯d sent plenty of clones, but this was his first time meeting the loved ones of his host. Perhaps he should have prepared himself for this eventuality, though the guilt was hard to stomach. What was he supposed to tell them? Pretend that he was Takeo, only to die in front of them a few days later? Or explain how he had taken over the boy¡¯s corpse? The fact that Takeo appeared to be in his early teens only made the situation more tragic.


    Percy stopped right in his tracks, realizing he couldn¡¯t in good conscience return to his host¡¯s house like this. He knew the boy had a father waiting for him there, and neither of them deserved to be put in that situation. Yet, just as he was contemplating whether to open a portal to the Vault right then and there, or leave the body behind and return to Remior, his worst fear came to light.


    ¡°Takeo!¡± a rough voice yelled.


    It was only now the young man saw the person he recognized as his host¡¯s father standing some distance away, staring at him intently, his expression a blend of concern and relief.


    Percy wanted to turn around and leave, but he never got the chance. The older man sprinted towards him, only stopping once he was a few steps away. Sengo ¨C Percy thought his name was ¨C scanned him up and down, shuddering at the sight of his son¡¯s gruesome injuries.


    Tears rolled down Sengo¡¯s face, forming two pink trickles on his cheeks. It was only now that Percy managed to recall another titbit of information from the shattered prism that was Takeo¡¯s mind. Apparently, all the people in this world cried red tears, but Takeo¡¯s clansmen were a little unique in that theirs were a few shades paler. This was the source of the village¡¯s name ¨C Torui. ?


    Seeing the man remain quiet, Percy wanted to speak first. To explain that he wasn¡¯t Takeo. But the words got stuck in his throat. The two just stood there, staring each other in silence for a few minutes, before Sengo pulled Percy into a firm hug, sobbing as he clenched him tightly.


    ¡°I told you not to go!¡± the man said in a stern tone. At least Percy could understand him, as Takeo¡¯s memories breathed meaning to the words.


    ¡°Look what happened to you!¡± Sengo spoke again, gesturing at his son¡¯s wounds.


    Though it was only now that Percy registered some of the blood on him wasn¡¯t his own. In fact, it didn¡¯t take much effort to recall where it had come from. Perhaps it was because those memories were more recent, or because they¡¯d had a greater impact on his host. Whatever the reason, he vividly remembered killing over a dozen people, including a scared father protecting his wife and kid.


    Percy frowned, suddenly feeling a little less sympathetic for the boy. The brat had been a cold-blooded murderer, ruining a family just like that. But he shook his head a moment later, remembering the situation that had led Takeo to do that.


    Probably realizing what Percy was thinking about, Sengo placed a hand on his shoulder, before lifting his chin with the other. He looked him in the eyes as he spoke.


    ¡°What¡¯s done is done.¡± he said sternly. ¡°Sometimes, taking lives and saving them are one and the same.¡±


    The young man nodded, though his guilt had more to do with his charade than his host¡¯s crimes. He knew it was cowardly of him to remain quiet, but he just couldn¡¯t find it in his heart to turn Sengo¡¯s world upside down.


    was what Percy thought, but he wasn¡¯t sure he believed it.


    Following the man to their house, he placed his hand on the pale wall, feeling its rough surface. Digging into his memories, he tried to recall what the material was called. It took a few seconds, but it eventually came through.


    ¡°Do you want to help me repair miss Kimiko¡¯s house tomorrow?¡± Sengo asked as he saw him tracing his finger on the material. ¡°Feeding the jungle isn¡¯t the only way to protect our village you know. We can build strong houses, and arm everyone with weapons to prepare for the feast.¡±


    Percy nodded.


    In any case, it wouldn¡¯t be long until the infestation reached its final stage. If his host¡¯s memories could be trusted, they only had days at most. And each feast was more severe than the ones before. The demonic jungle had existed as far as Takeo could remember, having nearly driven the world¡¯s inhabitants to extinction already.


    Perhaps the few remaining villages would be gone too in another decade or so. After all, infestations were mindless and vicious. They didn¡¯t care about self-preservation in the slightest. The only thing they knew was destruction ¨C first of their surroundings, and ultimately themselves.

 Chapter 121: Concrete

    Percy watched the strange contraption grind the materials into fine powder. They swirled through the long metallic cylinder, its interior filled with steel teeth, rotating thanks to the heat from the furnace. It was actually ingenious how the locals harnessed the movement of the hot air to accomplish tasks otherwise impossible with brute strength alone.As for the materials Sengo had placed inside the machine ¨C they weren¡¯t anything special. Just some limestone and clay. They had those back on Remior too. In fact, Percy was pretty sure he¡¯d seen both of them in many of the other worlds he¡¯d visited.


    A few minutes later, the crushing process was complete. Sengo removed the pipe venting the excess air into the tube, before emptying its contents into several buckets, filling them with an unassuming grey dust.


    ¡°This is called cement.¡± the man explained to his ¡®son¡¯ after noticing Percy¡¯s perplexed expression.


    And the latter wasn¡¯t faking it either. While Takeo had seen his father work many times before, Percy struggled to find many details in his host¡¯s memories. Evidently, the boy had never helped Sengo much, their relationship having always been rather rocky.


    ¡°It¡¯s an important ingredient of concrete, but not the only one.¡± the man continued, oblivious to his thoughts.


    Next, he picked a bucket with each hand, gesturing at Percy to do the same. The young man didn¡¯t miss his ¡®father¡¯ wincing as he lifted them, probably suffering from some old injury or ailment.


    The two then walked to a different room where a second machine was located. It looked a little like the one from before, though it was wider and didn¡¯t contain any teeth inside. Clearly it was only meant for mixing, not crushing. Sengo placed the buckets on the ground, before picking a different pair up, filled with other materials.


    ¡°Concrete is mostly made of gravel, mixed with fine sand to fill in the gaps.¡± he explained as he poured the buckets into the device. ¡°The cement we created earlier is used along with water to hold everything together.¡±


    Percy nodded along, as he watched Sengo work, occasionally helping out when the latter had to lift something heavy. Even with the aid of the machines, a lot of physical effort still went into this. Though from what the young man had seen, the results were more than worth it.


    Once they were done, they emptied the new material into the buckets again, this time ending up with a viscous grey sludge. Leaving the house, they walked over to a building down the street, stopping by one of the walls. It was broken, as a few chopped vines thicker than Takeo¡¯s thigh were lying motionless next to it.


    Two men were also working there ¨C the first people other than Sengo that Percy saw outside since coming here. One was an older man ¨C maybe a few years younger than Sengo, while the other was a boy around his age. The two barely spared them a cursory glance, busy as they were. They seemed to be uprooting the malignant growth that had sprouted the vines, before it had the chance to do so again.


    ¡°Akio, Haruto.¡± Sengo greeted. ¡°I see you¡¯ve had a busy day.¡±


    ¡°Aaahhh! We¡¯ve been trying to dig this infernal thing out for hours!¡± the older man groaned. ¡°Kimiko kept complaining about it. Well, I sure don¡¯t see her pulling the roots out!¡±


    ¡°Hahaha! Listen to your wife Akio. You know how important it is to get rid of the darn things whenever they pop up inside the village. If we leave them be, they¡¯ll only get worse.¡±


    But Akio shook his head.


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    ¡°What¡¯s even the point? We both know an extra vine or two won¡¯t matter when the whole jungle comes alive! Old friend¡­ I¡¯m afraid this is going to be our last feast¡­¡±


    Sengo didn¡¯t say anything, but Percy didn¡¯t miss how everyone¡¯s mood turned more sombre after the brief exchange. They all understood they were living on borrowed time. As things stood, they couldn¡¯t even venture out to forage for food or more materials. Even if they survived the massacre, who knew if there would be anything edible left out there¡­


    ¡°Come on, Takeo. We need to patch the wall up before the concrete starts to dry.¡±


    Percy nodded, though being called by his host¡¯s name reignited his guilt. He had yet to tell the man the truth, and he was starting to think he¡¯d never find the courage to do so. It wasn¡¯t like the village¡¯s situation was great, but at least Sengo seemed to find peace in his work. Percy didn¡¯t want to rob him of that minor consolation during his last couple of days.


    The two worked in silence over the next few hours, filling the broken segment of the wall with the sludge. They used a few metallic sheets propped against the wall to keep the liquid from spilling out. By the time they were done, the others had finished too, returning to their house. Nobody in the village seemed to be in the mood to do much else, besides waiting for the calamity with their loved ones.


    ¡°See, Takeo?¡± Sengo suddenly asked. ¡°Most of the buildings won¡¯t survive the feast, but every wall might just be enough to save an extra life. It¡¯s more productive to do this than to go out there killing people.¡±


    Percy could tell the man really disapproved of his host¡¯s actions. Their differing philosophy on how to approach the feast was probably the core of their strained relationship.


    Whether it was slaughtering innocents to delay the disaster by a few minutes or trying to build a few extra houses that weren¡¯t likely to survive, none of it sounded like a particularly effective strategy. Of course, it wasn¡¯t like they had a better option. Percy hadn¡¯t personally experienced a feast, but from what he knew about infestations, these people were screwed no matter what they did.


    Young and hot-blooded as Takeo was, he had clearly gone with the less moral option. Yet, getting out of this place with his hands clean might not be in the cards for Percy either¡­ Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Aaaahhh!!¡±


    Hearing the scream, Sengo and Percy looked in a certain direction, spotting a few hooded men holding hatchets and sabres in the distance. Percy couldn¡¯t make their faces out, but something told him these people weren¡¯t from the village. One of them dragged a weeping lady across the street, heading towards the jungle. She was the one who had screamed.


    Drawing his machete, Percy hastily dropped it by Sengo¡¯s feet so he could defend himself. Next, he unsheathed his sword as he ran towards the raiders. Strictly speaking, he didn¡¯t really have any skin in the game. After all, he wasn¡¯t the real Takeo and this wasn¡¯t his village. Consequently, fighting the raiders to save a local was arguably pointless. That said, watching them butcher innocent people while doing nothing just wrong.


    ¡°Hold on, son!¡± Sengo shouted, causing Percy to look back.


    The older man was running behind him, clutching the machete in his hand. He looked like he was in pain as he exerted himself, but he carried the aura of a fighter all-the-same. Peace-loving as he was, he clearly knew how to defend himself.


    Glancing around, Percy noticed more of the villagers rushing out of their homes, each armed with a finely crafted weapon like his own. It seemed nobody here was a vegetarian.


    Seeing all the familiar faces, Percy couldn¡¯t help but recall some more of his host¡¯s memories. He remembered the countless hours spent practicing with these people, sparring with them, being taught by them how to hold his sword, how to use it. They were all his teachers¡­ and his friends¡­


    Soon, the villagers stood before the raiders, outnumbering them by about 15 to 10. Percy would have expected them to give up and leave, but they hadn¡¯t done that. And why would they? The more blood that got spilled today the better things would be for the survivors. Evidently, the raiders would rather take their chances.


    But Percy wouldn¡¯t.


    ¡°I¡¯ll give you one chance to run away. Nobody has to die. Not , at least.¡± he said before anybody had the chance to.


    The villagers gave him odd looks. Takeo was probably the last person anybody expected to douse the conflict. But he had to do this. Whether it was the locals or the raiders, all of these people were just trying to survive. Percy didn¡¯t want to hurt anybody if he didn¡¯t have to. Sadly, his enemies didn¡¯t seem to agree. They only tightened their grips on the weapons, silently giving Percy his answer.


    Watching some of the last surviving natives prepare to kill each other, Percy couldn¡¯t help but recall Sengo¡¯s words from earlier.

 Chapter 122: Steel

    As it so happened, the two sides weren¡¯t evenly matched at all. Their numerical advantage aside, the villagers seemed to completely outclass the raiders in both skill and the quality of their weapons. Hell, even if their numbers were reversed, Percy was confident ¡®his¡¯ people wouldn¡¯t have struggled much.Within mere minutes, over half of the invaders were dead, gutted like fish by the sharp slashes of the villagers. At least, Percy had to give credit to the survivors as they showed no intention of surrendering. They probably reasoned that it was better to die here than to go back to the jungle. After all, everyone could see the vines already swaying in unrest in the distance.


    he smiled bitterly, as he looked back at his opponent.


    He was a man seemingly in his thirties ¨C though Percy wasn¡¯t an expert on these people¡¯s physiology He donned a crudely forged cutlass, its edge dull and its blade covered in dried bloodstains. Evidently, Sengo¡¯s advanced crafting techniques weren¡¯t quite as widespread as Percy had originally thought. Of course, he could have defeated the raider already, had he put his heart into it. However, Percy was still struggling to rationalize killing a stranger just to help more strangers.


    As early as their first exchange, he had noticed an impulse to move and react in a specific manner ¨C in a way he wasn¡¯t used to. Apparently, his host¡¯s muscle memory bled into his own combat instincts, driving him to switch up his fighting style.


    Percy could have easily resisted the impulse and made quick work of the man if he wanted. After all, he had plenty of experience himself. Besides, it wasn¡¯t like Micky¡¯s fighting style was any inferior to the locals¡¯. But he didn¡¯t do that. He was curious to see how Takeo fought.


    The Dance of the Savage Gods involved a lot of exaggerated movements and quick footwork. Its central concept was achieving dominance over the battlefield, wearing down an opponent with multiple opportunistic blows. The natives¡¯ style on the other hand couldn¡¯t have been more different. It involved much smaller movements, focusing on the delivery of sharp, deadly strikes at an opponent¡¯s vitals.


    It was easy to see why. Both worked better with sharp weapons and were best at ending a fight in an instant. Recognizing the value of this art, Percy allowed himself to sink into Takeo¡¯s memories as he entered a kind of trance.


    His enemy tried to cut him open with the cutlass, but Percy wasn¡¯t in a rush to fight back, merely sidestepping the blows one after the other, waiting for an opening of his own. Some of the attacks come dangerously close to injuring him, but he didn¡¯t care too much. Worst case scenario, his clone died a couple days sooner.


    Percy thought after seeing the man overextend.


    Taking a step forward, he swung his katana as swiftly as he could, barely stopping an inch before his opponent¡¯s neck. The raider stumbled back, swallowing a lump of saliva after realizing how close he had come to losing his head. Though he frowned a second later, upon seeing Percy hadn¡¯t tried to finish him. sea??h th§× NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Again.¡± the latter said, gesturing at him to stand.


    The man complied, soon engaging Percy into another round. The two fought for several more minutes, as the young man continued to use the raider as a whetstone, trying to mix and consolidate Micky¡¯s and Takeo¡¯s styles in an accelerated manner.


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    His body was weaker than he was used to, but not as bad as it could have been. While at Red, Takeo had clearly pushed himself to his limits. In fact, Percy was confident he could have used Circulation with it if he had a functioning core and the necessary channels cleared. Though there wasn¡¯t any need for that right now, as he had plenty to learn from even the mundane bout.


    Dodge after dodge, slash after slash, his body oscillated between the two styles as he circled the raider and pivoted on his feet, trying to use the dance to create opportunities for the finishers. As for his opponent, he was constantly on the backfoot the entire fight. That said, he seemed to have calmed down after a certain point, realizing Percy had no intention of killing him.


    ¡°Stop.¡± the man spoke eventually, raising his hand.


    Percy barely halted mid-swing, only now registering what was happening. The other villagers had long finished their own opponents and were all gathered around him, giving him strange looks.


    ¡°Why?¡± the raider asked again, clearly as confused as the rest of them.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to kill you.¡± Percy shrugged, before sheathing his weapon. ¡°Though I don¡¯t really care what the others do with you. After all, you attack us.¡±


    Turning around, he headed for his house, but not before tossing his father a glance. Sengo¡¯s expression was cold as ice, probably realizing that Takeo was acting out of character.


    ***


    Percy watched silently as Sengo hammered the red-hod lump of iron, losing himself in the rhythmic sound. Every now and then, the old blacksmith would dip the metal in water to cool it, before using a brush to coat it in a layer of clay mud. According to Sengo, this treatment would prevent the sword from rusting.


    Next, Sengo placed the lump back inside the forge to reheat it, before resuming the tempering process. Each time, he folded the thinned sheet back onto itself, forcing more of the impurities out with each cycle.


    They actually have steel back on Remior, the idea of fusing multiple metals into alloys not being that foreign to them. However, Percy was willing to bet they hadn¡¯t perfected the process to this degree. Sengo¡¯s work bordered on obsessive.


    Once he was done, Percy watched the man sharpen the blade against a rotating grindstone, powered by heat like all of Sengo¡¯s tools. Soon, an intricate wavy pattern took form along the edge of the katana. It was probably only a side-effect of the forging process ¨C not there intentionally. Still, that didn¡¯t detract from the sword¡¯s beauty at all. It could probably fit inside a gallery just as well as it could on a battlefield.


    Percy thought.


    Of course, it wasn¡¯t the same, as his spells were made of mana, not metals or stones. Still, he did have some ideas as to how he could approach this when he returned.


    But Sengo hadn¡¯t finished quite yet, breaking Percy out of his thoughts as he attached a wooden hilt to the blade. Next, he wrapped it in a thin strip of cloth several times, forming a vertical pattern of diamonds. Finally, he checked the sword one last time, hammering it some more here and there, to straighten any lingering imperfections along its length. As for a scabbard, he didn¡¯t seem to have one ready, so he just rested the sword on a cushion before turning to his ¡®son¡¯.


    He appeared like he wanted to speak ¨C to explain something perhaps ¨C but he ultimately remained silent. His eyes wavered for a moment, before he averted his gaze entirely. Even looking at Takeo was difficult.


    Percy realized.


    Sengo hadn¡¯t spoken a word since the altercation with the raiders. While Percy had never found the courage to tell him the truth about his son, the man seemed to have figured it out on his own. After all, what sort of father wouldn¡¯t have noticed something like


    he decided.


    Though he didn¡¯t get the chance.


    A tremor suddenly shook the house, as Percy heard a couple of screams coming from outside. Both he and Sengo rushed to the window, trying to understand what had happened. The sight before them was horrific. Multiple tendrils as thick as a tree¡¯s trunk had sprouted all over the village, all of them covered in countless thorns. The demonic vines lashed at any building within their reach, trying to tear the cement walls down one blow at a time.


    The sound of something breaking came from behind them, as Percy and Sengo both turned around, only to see another of the tendrils digging out right in the middle of the workshop.


    ¡®Father¡¯ and ¡®son¡¯ both clenched their weapons tightly in their grasp, ready to face off against the demonic jungle.

 Chapter 123: Torui village

    Swinging with as much strength as he could muster, Percy cut through the vine. At first, the blade slid right through the black growth, slicing it apart like butter. However, this was the thickest one he¡¯d encountered by far. Consequently, the edge kept slowing down, before ultimately coming to a halt about halfway through its width.¡°Shit¡­¡± Percy pulled, trying to pry the sword out of the tendril, ducking in the meantime to dodge its erratic lashes.


    ¡°Pull again!¡± Sengo yelled, kicking the spot right above the trapped blade, helping his ¡®son¡¯ free it.


    Percy considered hacking at it again to finish the job, but the vine had already mended the damage. Realizing this was a lost cause, the two ran out of the workshop, hoping the situation was better in the rest of the house.


    Sadly, that was just wishful thinking. The demonic vines had already sprouted everywhere, upturning chairs and tables, smashing through the walls and blocking the exits.


    ¡°Upstairs!¡± Sengo shouted again, pushing Percy towards the staircase, running right behind him.


    Another vine broke through from their left, though this one was slightly thinner. Without a moment¡¯s hesitation, Percy swung downward, using gravity to add even more strength to the blow, slicing the tendril apart before it had the chance to stop them.


    ¡°Faster!¡± he said, pulling Sengo up the stairs as the vine was already growing back.


    The two entered a bedroom ¨C Takeo¡¯s, according to an influx of memories flooding Percy¡¯s mind. Not that trapping themselves here was particularly wise, but it wasn¡¯t like there was anywhere better to go. The whole village was a shitshow by now. At least here, the elevation coupled with a few layers of concrete might keep of the gluttonous jungle at bay.


    Brandishing their weapons, they prepared themselves again, as more vines broke through. This time, there were two of them ¨C one digging through the floor, another climbing into the house from outside, breaking through the window.


    Realizing their swords would only get stuck again, Percy gestured at Sengo to take care of the thinner of the two vines, as he tossed his katana aside, manifesting a sickle of teal mana. Next, he hacked at the infernal thing, cutting about two thirds into it again before the sickle stopped. Unlike before, however, Percy had a response this time. Switching the construct to its immaterial state, he freed his weapon before swinging it again, finally cutting the tendril apart.


    Sengo raised an eyebrow at the scene, but didn¡¯t say anything. Given the circumstances, the mystery that was Percy¡¯s identity was clearly the last thing on his mind right now. Using his own weapon, he took care of the second vine, leveraging his bigger build ¨C his muscles forged from decades of gruelling work.


    But their trouble wasn¡¯t over yet. In fact, it had only just begun. Two more vines smashed through the walls, and then two more, and then a fifth one right after. Father and son unleashed a flurry of strikes at the demonic plants, desperately trying to hold them back, to keep them out of the bedroom. S~ea??h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Through all their efforts, they did manage to carve out a small space amidst the vines, but their house was already surrounded. The wall of tendrils had blocked out the last traces of moonlight seeping through the window, forcing Percy and Sengo to fall back to their inherent night vision.


    Percy didn¡¯t even want to imagine how the rest of the villagers were faring. Even if any of them survived the ordeal, it would take them months ¨C if not years ¨C to clear out the village again.


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    The young man¡¯s movements slowed down as he contemplated how pointless his efforts were. He was fighting for a lost cause, to help a doomed people he didn¡¯t even know merely delay their inevitable demise. He wouldn¡¯t even be here tomorrow!


    Lost amidst his thoughts as he was, he failed to evade an incoming blow. A vine hit him right in the chest, slamming him against the wall. The taste of iron filled his mouth as blood trickled down his chin. Some of his ribs had also cracked, the vine greedily sucking him dry through the spots where its thorns had stabbed him.


    he couldn¡¯t help but wonder as his body grew cold.


    It was true he couldn¡¯t do too much for the villagers, but that had never stopped him before. He¡¯d always tried to help people in need, even when the odds were stacked against him.


    Thinking back to his actions since coming to this place, Percy couldn¡¯t help but recognize he¡¯d really been acting strangely throughout. Whether it was his reluctance to tell Sengo the truth, or his indecision against the raider, it was like he was a different person.


    Was it possible the demonic jungle devoured more than just mana and blood? Could it be gnawing at his very willpower too?


    The realization sent a chill down his spine. These demonic infestations were even more insidious than he had originally thought.


    Suddenly, he felt the pressure on his chest ease as somebody pulled the vine right off him. Percy winced as the thorns were removed from his wounds, but at least he was free now. Making out his saviour¡¯s figure through the darkness was tough, but who else could it be?


    ¡°Thanks.¡± he said, before pushing himself up.


    Most of the fused mana in his construct was gone already, but he repaired the sickle with some more from his stash before helping Sengo again. The two fought for what felt like an eternity, as the jungle continued its relentless assault, determined to devour every last morsel of flesh, every last drop of blood on this forsaken world.


    Sengo might have been the stronger of the two, but he was also older, his movements slowing as his stamina dwindled. Even Percy wasn¡¯t doing too great, his wounds ¨C both the old and the new ¨C holding him back. At least, he now knew to consciously fight back against the jungle¡¯s influence, but his host¡¯s soul wouldn¡¯t last much longer either.


    Suddenly, he felt the ground disappear from beneath his feet, the floor having apparently sustained too much damage. He fell by about a metre before somebody grabbed his arm, slowing his fall. Both he and Sengo slid down the now inclined surface, rolling right onto another vine. They were back in the workshop, though the place now looked more like the jungle Percy had seen the day before.


    Stabbed in multiple spots against the tendril¡¯s thorns, the young man knew this was it. Even if he could somehow unlodge himself, he wouldn¡¯t be in any condition to move. Sengo wasn¡¯t doing much better either. The man had been lucky enough to avoid impalement, but Percy could vaguely see the blacksmith¡¯s legs bent in the wrong direction through the darkness.


    Percy didn¡¯t know whether to cry or laugh at the irony. The feast was probably close to its end, yet that was little consolation to him and Sengo. Their wounds were already lethal. The two just remained in that spot, the only sound breaking the sombre silence being their ragged breaths, alternating in irregular intervals.


    ¡°Sengo¡­¡± Percy muttered, forcing himself to say what he should have said a long time ago. ¡°You know I¡¯m not your son, don¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    The man didn¡¯t reply immediately, though Percy faintly saw him nod after a while.


    ¡°When did you find out?¡± he asked again.


    ¡°¡­the first moment I saw you.¡± Sengo said, causing Percy¡¯s eyes to widen.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t say anything¡­¡± Percy said, feeling his heart tighten. ¡°But why didn¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°I was afraid you¡¯d leave¡­¡± Sengo spoke, his voice cracking. ¡°¡­and my boy¡¯s face would rot.¡±


    Percy had no words for the man. All this time, all the lessons. Teaching him about steel and concrete. Showing him how to repair a wall. Demonstrating how a sword was forged. Was it all just a grieving father¡¯s desperate attempt to see his dead son¡¯s face for a few more hours?!


    ¡°Sengo¡­ I¡¯m sorry about your son¡­ and your village¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°I know it¡¯s not much, but I promise I¡¯ll use what you¡¯ve taught me to help others.¡±


    Percy wasn¡¯t sure, but he thought he saw two pale trickles flowing down Sengo¡¯s cheeks as he nodded. Two more were rolling down his own as his soul crumbled apart, bringing his journey to an end.


    There wasn¡¯t much he could have done for these people, but there was one last thing.


    ¡°Torui village¡­ I promise I¡¯ll remember it.¡±

 Chapter 124: Blighted bloodline

    ¡°Percy¡­ seat¡­ all day¡­¡± Micky said.¡°Sit.¡± Nesha corrected him.


    ¡°Sit.¡±


    Bored as she had been over the last couple of weeks, the girl had volunteered to teach Micky how to speak. By now, the crow¡¯s vocabulary had expanded greatly. Even his ability to vocalize much of it had grown shockingly well. The bird still struggled to form complete sentences, but he was learning faster than a human toddler would.


    ¡°Yeah, Percy is sitting all day, ¡± the young man quipped in an irritated tone after overhearing them.


    Following the creation of his latest clone, the trio had paused their journey, camping at a spot outside the Camelot province. Had they kept walking, they would have certainly reached their destination by now, though Percy had his reasons for delaying.


    He wanted to spend some time brewing a few weeks ahead, just in case he didn¡¯t get the chance later. Having spent about three weeks waiting for his clone to return, he had already brewed enough elixirs to last them for the next two months.


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s not like we¡¯re lazing around.¡± Nesha argued back. ¡°We keep watch and gather food for you too.¡±


    ¡°No. keeps watch and gathers food. You just chat with him for a few minutes whenever he returns.¡±


    ¡°Well, I cook...¡± the girl shrugged, but didn¡¯t say much else.


    At least Percy had shaved a few more seconds off Crystallization again. By now, he only needed a little under eight minutes for each crystal. If only he¡¯d been this fast back when they started selling the Aurora Dew, they would have made so much more money¡­


    He sighed. Drawing another sliver of mana out of his core, he was about to resume his work, when a silver blur caught his attention, flying in the horizon at an insane speed. What¡¯s more, it seemed to be heading right towards him!


    But the young man didn¡¯t panic, already knowing what it was.


    A moment later, the wisp slammed into his stomach, lodging itself inside the hole in his soul. Then, a flood of memories flashed through his mind. An insidious vine strangling him, a trek through a black jungle, a finely crafted blade, a bitter reunion, a guilty conscience, a master of the forge, a forsaken village, a bloody feast¡­


    There wasn¡¯t much there, as Percy¡¯s clone had only spent a couple of days in Takeo¡¯s body. Most of the elapsed time had been spent searching for a host. However, what the clone did bring back was valuable. And he¡¯d already promised to keep it all close to heart.


    The tragic fate of the small village made him shudder. This was his first encounter with an infestation, and it was far more scarring than he could have ever imagined. Robbing an entire world of its mana, dooming all its denizens to short, difficult lives? Forcing people to kill each other to delay their own deaths? Draining their very will to live, crippling them? R


    he thought grimly.


    Percy didn¡¯t know too much about these cosmic cancers, but he did know they could appear pretty much anywhere life dwelled, with next to no warning. While that hadn¡¯t happened to his world yet ¨C ¨C it didn¡¯t mean it .


    The young man¡¯s feelings on the topic were mixed. He certainly had his differences with the Divine Order ¨C heck, he was currently ¨C but he couldn¡¯t help feeling reassured knowing that should the sky fall, somebody was there to hold it up. That said, relying on those pompous assholes definitely irked him.


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    ¡°Is your clone finally back?¡± Nesha asked, noticing the commotion.


    Percy had already brought her up to speed on his secrets. He¡¯d even offered to teach her Circulation, though she hadn¡¯t given him a direct answer yet. His guess was that she wasn¡¯t looking forward to years of intense workouts.


    ¡°Yes.¡± he said. ¡°Tomorrow, we¡¯re finally entering the province.¡±


    ¡°Finally¡­ Food¡­¡± Micky cawed excitedly.


    Spoiled after stuffing his face full of Orange cores over the last few years, the crow hadn¡¯t enjoyed living off Red vermin during the past month. Especially since his needs had grown greatly following his advancement. The only decent meal he¡¯d eaten recently was the bandit group.


    Percy smiled.


    ¡°Just a few more days buddy.¡±


    ***


    Percy and Nesha walked along the paved road, looking at the post ahead. Three men stood watch, all dressed in fine silken clothes, decorated with yellow insignias. They depicted a human mouth sporting a set of strangely elongated canines.


    ¡°Members of House Tantalus¡­¡± he muttered, warning his companion.


    While the enemy family had deployed most of their forces to exert pressure on the western side of the province, it wasn¡¯t like they had completely abandoned their own territories. Going through a rudimentary check at the border was only to be expected.


    ¡°How do we handle this?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°They have no clue I¡¯m from House Avalon, nor that we came from the Alchemists¡¯ Guild. It¡¯s already been weeks since Hermes¡¯ announcement. Just act like a commoner and let me do the talking.¡± he said, getting a nod back.


    Nearing the trio, he noticed something that gave him pause, however. One of the guards was extremely pale, his eyes drooping and his features sickly. He was hunched over and appeared to be having a tough time just standing there.


    Percy realized.


    Through his correspondence with Elaine over the past year, he had come to learn a lot more about the conflict between the two Houses. Apparently, the founder of House Tantalus was originally a member of House Avalon! In fact, he was Percy¡¯s great-great-great-granduncle or something!


    Centuries ago, that person was born with a mutated strain of the Clone bloodline, called Its effect was similar, but it essentially worked in reverse. Rather than forming living clones out of life mana, it instead allowed its users to break living tissue life mana. Had this been all it did, the Drain bloodline would have certainly been a powerful asset for House Avalon. With it, Percy¡¯s family might have grown even more powerful by now. Sadly, this wasn¡¯t meant to be, as the Drain bloodline was .


    Blighted bloodlines were those that had mutated severe detrimental side-effects, plaguing their owners more than blessing them.


    In this case, those with the Drain bloodline constantly needed to it, as their bodies rapidly broke down in the absence of life mana. Worse still, the Drain bloodline wasn¡¯t bundled with the life affinity ¨C unlike its predecessor ¨C which meant its owners had no way around their curse. From there, it was easy to see how the originator of the bloodline had ended up at odds with the rest of his family, driving him to leave and start a rival House nearby. And the two sides had been enemies ever since, their conflict partly driven by hatred and partly by disputes over territory. sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    But there was more.


    The one thing the owners of the blighted bloodline wanted more than anything else, was to their curse, creating a brighter tomorrow for their descendants. And what better way to fix the Drain bloodline, than to mate with members of House Avalon who had the Clone bloodline?


    If they got lucky, the detrimental side-effects would disappear, or maybe they could even get the life affinity bundled to their own strain, letting them solve their issue indirectly. Consequently, it was common practice for members of House Tantalus to kidnap those with the Clone bloodline, subjecting them to¡­ .


    ¡°Change of plans.¡± he told his companion while also speaking through his bond. ¡°Micky, start flying towards us. Nesha, be ready to defend yourself.¡±


    Taking a deep breath, he began accumulating mana into his channels, knowing the situation had a high probability of devolving into violence. Originally, he¡¯d thought the guards wouldn¡¯t have had much reason to suspect him ¨C which was still the case. However, that wouldn¡¯t matter. Would the sickly noble think twice before killing a couple of commoners to alleviate his symptoms?


    Preparing his boosting art, he inched closer to the trio, as the latter finally took notice of him.


    ¡°Halt.¡± one of them yelled. ¡°What¡¯s your business in the Camelot province?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a blacksmith by trade. This is my wife. We¡¯re originally from Riah town in the Sentin province, but the situation there has been a little chaotic lately. We figured we¡¯d try our luck elsewhere.¡± Percy spoke his rehearsed lies.


    The guard nodded, gesturing at them to keep walking, though Percy didn¡¯t miss the sickly guy eyeing them with greed, practically salivating.


    Taking another breath, he finally pushed Circulation past the point of no return, as a bird¡¯s shadow brushed over him, blotting out the sun, accompanied by a shrill cry.

 Chapter 125: Rare affinity

    As it turned out, the people Percy had previously faced weren¡¯t exactly the best the Yellow grade had to offer. Neither the guy he had killed in the hunting grounds, nor the bandits seemed to hold a candle to the nobles from House Tantalus.One of them had the earth affinity, but he used it much more skilfully than that other guy. Rather than wasting a ton of mana to form long stone javelins, he instead concentrated it into smaller projectiles like knives and needles. Percy initially thought they¡¯d be weaker at least, but he couldn¡¯t have been more wrong. It was much easier to accelerate them to a high speed, so they packed as much of a punch, if not more. The only difference was that his opponent could launch way more of them, and each was much harder to evade.


    he groaned as he leapt back, narrowly dodging another sharp stone whizzing by his ear.


    He¡¯d already nearly been hit a couple of times, despite having his attention glued to the guy. So focused was he, in fact, that he barely had the chance to observe what his second opponent was doing. His mana was transparent, causing faint distortions wherever it passed. At first, Percy had thought it was an air affinity, but it lacked the characteristic green tint that Micky¡¯s mana had. S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Apparently, today was the day Percy would finally find out how it felt to be on the receiving end of a rare mana type. At least, the guy didn¡¯t seem to be targeting him directly. Instead, he formed a strange structure in the air in front of him. It looked a bit like a lens, though it was rotating clockwise, picking speed with each revolution. Once the construct was fully formed, its master moved it in front of the earth mage, who began to launch his own projectiles it.


    Every time one of them passed through the transparent screen, a deafening explosion sounded, the stone daggers instantly appearing where Percy had stood a moment before. Each stabbed a deep, wide crater into the ground, with several cracks branching out of its centre.


    The young man had no idea how this affinity worked, but it made the projectiles impossible to dodge. The only reason he was still in one piece was because he could glimpse his opponent¡¯s intentions, guessing the spells¡¯ trajectories before they were unleashed.


    His only other guess was space, but it looked nothing like Nesha¡¯s mana. Either way, he was forced to put more distance from them again, making it even harder to launch his own counterattack. It was lucky Micky was keeping the third guy ¨C the one with the bloodline ¨C busy, or Percy would have lost already. As for Nesha, she was sitting this one out. Perhaps one day she¡¯d grow into a decent fighter but, right now, her clumsy spells would only get in the way.


    Percy thought as he used all the fused mana he¡¯d accumulated since the start of the battle, forming a teal sheet.


    Swinging it towards the earth mage, he turned the outer half of the Mantle into a wave of visible, corporeal projectiles to capture his enemies¡¯ attention. Secretly, however, he had turned the second half of the sheet invisible, still holding it in his hand. A second later, he discreetly swiped it one more time in a wider arc, releasing another wave of projectiles ¨C these ones invisible and immaterial. They branched outwards more than the rest, travelling a few metres behind them.


    A couple seconds later, the tangible batch reached the mage, though he had already sidestepped them. But Percy grinned, having expected this. He watched the second layer of throwing stars head straight towards his oblivious opponent¡¯s location, about to stab his soul full of holes. Though it wasn¡¯t meant to be.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened as he saw the projectiles slow down to a snail¡¯s pace about a metre before reaching their mark.


    ¡°Get out of the way you idiot!¡± the suspected time mage yelled.


    It was only now that the others realized what had happened. The earth mage clumsily dodged out of the way of Percy¡¯s attack, the colour draining from his face as he must¡¯ve finally activated Mana Sense, realizing how close he¡¯d come to dying. As for Percy, he noticed the time mage had moved his construct at some point, forcing the invisible projectiles to go through it. Though it had the opposite effect on his own magic, decelerating the spell rather than speeding it up.


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    Percy clicked his tongue.


    His opponents weren¡¯t complete idiots this time. At least one of them had been on-guard for his sneak attack, and now both of them would be. As for the time affinity, it was annoyingly good at supporting them both offensively and defensively.


    he decided, starting to accumulate fused mana again.


    Percy could see the earth mage was pacing himself well, so it would take him a long time to run out of mana. His only hope was that the time spells were more costly to maintain. And so, the two sides continued like that for several more minutes, unleashing a barrage on each other whenever they could, to keep up the pressure, both waiting for the other to exhaust their reserves first.


    Percy smirked.


    Sure enough, the time construct crumbled at some point. Its owner fell to his knees, breathing heavily. Seizing his chance, Percy ran towards him, aiming to execute him before he had the chance to recover. Of course, the stone daggers were still difficult to dodge, but it wasn¡¯t as bad without the time spell supporting them.


    Yet, as Percy reached the halfway point, he realized something was wrong. The time mage had wrapped the last traces of his mana around his body, coating himself in a translucent halo. He looked very odd, as he breathed three or four times faster than normal, a lot of mana accumulating in his lungs.


    Percy frantically retreated, but not before unleashing another barrage of invisible blades. Sadly, the time mage raised another screen to slow them down before they reached him, looking at Percy with a savage glint in his eye. As for Percy, his features twisted into a grimace as he narrowly dodged more of the sharp stones. This was his first time running into somebody who could match his regeneration!


    Realizing he wasn¡¯t getting anywhere like this, Percy tried something different. Upon manifesting another Mantle, he began dashing towards the time mage again, as the earth mage began to shoot the deafening blasts at him.


    Percy zigged and zagged to avoid them, timing his steps against his opponent¡¯s moves, as he closed part of the distance separating them. Upon nearing as much as he dared too, he unleashed all his mana into a single set of incorporeal throwing stars, aiming straight towards the time mage. The latter frowned at the predictable attack. He merely moved the screen in front of him to slow the projectiles down, before sidestepping them with ease, letting them fly away harmlessly.


    But Percy didn¡¯t stop running. Instead, he turned, circling around the time mage, making it more difficult for the earth mage to target him. The two men had to pivot around too, so that they could continue shooting at Percy. As for the latter, he gathered more fused mana, trying to form his Mantle again.


    ¡°Uuugghh!!!¡±


    Playing dangerously as he was, Percy was eventually hit by one of the stone daggers. Not directly ¨C fortunately ¨C as that would have probably torn a limb off, but even getting glanced by one was enough to carve a nasty gash on his thigh, sending him tumbling on the ground. Though he pushed himself immediately, rolling out of that spot, knowing he couldn¡¯t afford to stop for a single moment. Sure enough, another blow landed right where he previously was.


    Out of options, Percy swung the half-formed Mantle once more, aiming towards the time mage. But he didn¡¯t even stop to check whether his attack landed, as he continued running away towards a certain direction.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if you¡¯re really an Orange core or some kind of monster, but it¡¯s impressive you¡¯ve lasted this long.¡± the man sneered as he casually negated the invisible daggers again. ¡°But it ends now.¡±


    The time mage¡¯s smile froze on his face, however, when he saw his partner fall limp on the ground, his eyes glazed over.


    ¡°W-What?! How?!¡± he exclaimed in disbelief. ¡°You sent all the daggers my way! I made sure of that!¡±


    Percy cracked his neck, looking at the time mage with a cold smile. He slowly walked towards him, manifesting a set of silver knives in each hand. Yet, he didn¡¯t speak. Why bother explaining himself to a dead man?


    Indeed, he had thrown the last of his fused mana towards the time mage, but that wasn¡¯t what he had killed the other guy with. Instead, he had retrieved the daggers he had launched during his previous attack, recycling the mana into a new Mantle after circling around the entire battlefield!


    Of course, Percy could have never done this on his own. It was impossible to outrun his own spell ¨C not even with Synchronization. That was why he had relied on the time screen to slow the projectiles down for him, allowing him to catch them on the other side!


    The man panicked as Percy approached. Clearly, he didn¡¯t have a single offensive spell in his arsenal, his kit limited to support magic. He looked like he was about to beg for his life, but Percy never gave him the chance.


    Tossing the knives at him, Percy forced him to defend with the screen. Though he didn¡¯t stop after the first wave. The man might be able to regenerate mana faster with his time magic, but he spent it more quickly too. Knife after knife, minute after minute, Percy continued until the man was lying on the ground breathing heavily.


    Finally, he manifested a sickle in his hand, throwing it at the mage, watching it cleave his soul apart as if it were a sheet of paper.


    And just like that, the second guy died too.

 Chapter 126: Dessert

    A few minutes earlierMicky flew in a wide arc around the pale man, trying to figure out how to attack him. Using the annoying trick Percy had taught him, he made his heart beat faster, and his body glow yellow. He was a lot stronger like this!


    Micky had really wanted to slap Percy when he first showed him how to do it, as it always made him really hungry afterwards. But Micky forgave Percy, as the trick allowed him to get even more food, so it was a good thing. The new changes to his feathers helped him a lot too, but the pale man still didn¡¯t let him approach.


    A glowing indigo net shot at him, giving him a tingly feeling all over his body, as some smoke came from his feathers. The magic was really hard to dodge! The fire and air of the guys he had fought before wasn¡¯t that bad! At least, it didn¡¯t hurt him too much from this far, but Micky was a little scared to get closer. And not only because of the zappy thing.


    Percy had warned him to not let the pale guy touch him with his hands. Micky didn¡¯t know why, but he always listened to Percy when he was being serious like that. He knew he wanted what was best for him.


    ¡°Eat!!¡± Micky yelled at his opponent angrily.


    Percy had told him not to speak when strangers were around, but this one should be ok, right? After all, the man had already seen them use their tricks. . Percy rarely let Micky eat human cores ¨C which made sense, as Percy was a human too. But Micky felt guilty because he really liked them! After all, they tasted differently from the bugs and other animals. . He looked sick, so his core might taste bad.


    Micky shrugged. It couldn¡¯t be much worse than the mice and snakes.


    ¡°What the fuck is up with this bird?! Did it just speak?!¡± the man asked.


    Micky felt insulted hearing him. Did the bad man think he was stupid or something? Nesha always said he was learning fast!


    Pulling some air mana from his new core, he tried to throw it at his enemy with a flap of his wing. He normally preferred using it to make himself faster, but there was no reason why he couldn¡¯t fling spells around like humans did, right?


    Though the blast didn¡¯t travel far before dispersing. In fact, that happened behind Micky, as he was flying even faster than it. . How did the humans even do this? The mana was much more useful when it clung to his feathers! In fact, even if he could reach the man with it, he doubted it would be as good as his talons or beak.


    Another indigo flash zapped him, taking him out of his thoughts. A few weeks ago, Micky had killed several people with Yellow cores at once. Now this guy was giving him so much trouble by himself. It was that irritating indigo light! Percy would make fun of him later if he didn¡¯t finish this quickly! Micky glanced at the pale guy in hatred, peering into the silvery thing.


    It flickered!


    With another flap of his wings, Micky avoided the indigo light before it was even released. Just like Percy had explained. Micky had always been able to see the silvery things, but he¡¯d never relied on them much during a fight. By the time he learned he could kill the bugs more easily with it, he could already predict their movements on his own.


    This was good!


    He could get closer to the pale guy now! Sticking more mana to his feathers, Micky flew as fast as he could, spiralling towards his opponent. The man kept trying to shoot him down, but his speed coupled with his ability to see the silvery thing helped him dodge most of the spells.


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    Every now and then, he did get hit, which wasn¡¯t great. The blasts hurt more from this close. At least, the air mana seemed to reduce the pain a little. Micky couldn¡¯t wait until he could use the trick with his second core too. Sadly, he hadn¡¯t finished clearing his mana channels yet, as it was really boring to sit around doing that. Though Percy had promised him it wouldn¡¯t make him hungry when he used it with his second core. ?


    Micky got burnt again. This time, the damage made it a little harder to fly, as each flap hurt. And he still hadn¡¯t solved the problem of the guy touching him when he pounced on him. While Micky knew he was fast, he didn¡¯t think he could avoid both the indigo lights and the man¡¯s hands from that close.


    But it wasn¡¯t like he had many options. The only thing he could do was to use his air mana to fly faster. Gathering it on his wings, he paid more attention to how it interacted with his feathers. It made them feel wider, causing them to push against the wind .


    However, they weren¡¯t all the same. Some parts of his wings received more pressure as he flew. Micky tried to gather more mana on those feathers, removing it from the parts that didn¡¯t help as much. Then, he flapped his wings.


    He leapt even further than before, narrowly dodging another indigo net. Micky kept at it, fine-tuning how his mana interacted with his flight. It was hard, because his second core was so much weaker than his first one. He had to use what little he had more intelligently. But that was ok, as he was the smartest bird on Remior!


    Flap after flap, Micky grew faster as weird greenish vortices formed behind the tips of his wings. He had expected this to be louder too ¨C flying faster always made more noise. But that didn¡¯t happen. For some reason, he had grown quieter instead. The wind just parted naturally in his passing, propelling him forward rather than holding him back.


    More.


    Micky circled the pale man from a distance of about a dozen metres, whizzing around him at an insane speed. Everything in his eyes was a blur, but that was ok. If Micky was having this much trouble seeing, his opponent should be even worse. Indigo flashes shot randomly, but few even came close to hitting him. Feeling ready, Micky banked towards the man, opening his talons wide.


    ¡°Aaaagggghhh!!!¡± the man screamed as Micky carved several deep gashes along his arm and soul both. The bird didn¡¯t miss how his opponent had tried to grab him at the last second, but he was moving too fast for that.


    Again.


    After the second strike, the man knelt on the ground, several fountains of blood pouring out of his body. The silvery thing was greatly damaged too. If the man hadn¡¯t shielded his torso with his arms, he would have died already. S§×arch* The ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Aiming for his opponent¡¯s neck, Micky dove one last time, to deliver the finishing blow. So focused was he on doing so, that it was too late to change course once he glimpsed the man¡¯s sinister intentions.


    Slamming his fists against one another, the pale guy unleashed the remainder of his mana into a bright shockwave of indigo. The pressure arrested Micky¡¯s momentum, inflicting several nasty burns on them both. Though the man received much less damage from his own mana.


    Plopping gracelessly on the ground, Micky still tried to pounce on the man, to tear his throat out, but the latter wasn¡¯t planning to go out without a fight, it seemed. He held the bird back with both hands, as a strange suction force emerged from his palms.


    This was the thing Percy had warned him about! Micky felt his strength leave his body, as his hunger reached an all-time high. Unwilling to let himself get devoured, he tried to lift his talons, but he couldn¡¯t move his legs. Falling back to his beak, he tried to peck the man¡¯s eye out, but the latter desperately pushed back, keeping him at bay.


    At first, Micky had the advantage, inching closer with each snap of his beak. Unfortunately, that didn¡¯t last long. The man started gaining ground as the amber glow faded out of Micky¡¯s body, his power evaporating at a scary rate. At the same time, Micky saw the pale man¡¯s grievous wounds closing in real time, as the latter stole his life one drop at a time.


    Just when Micky thought he was a goner, however, he caught a shadow flying towards them rapidly. As for his opponent, he didn¡¯t seem to notice, until the dark ball passed right through his head, leaving nothing but a bloody spring behind.


    Only then did the suction force cease, as the headless corpse fell limp on the ground. Micky nearly collapsed too, but somebody propped him up gently at the last second.


    ¡°Micky¡­ are you ok?¡± Nesha¡¯s voice was tinged with concern.


    ¡°Hungry¡­¡± he replied weakly, causing a faint smile to tug at the girl¡¯s lips.


    ¡°Then eat.¡± she said gesturing at the body, before the two of them looked over at Percy¡¯s side of the battlefield.


    ¡°And hurry up. It looks like he¡¯s about to bring you dessert.¡±

 Chapter 127: Wild Art

    Percy limped over to the others as he dragged a corpse with each hand, his expression gloomy. He was glad he and Micky had won the fight without casualties, but it would have been better to avoid it entirely. Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.he grimaced.


    Of course, if they took good care of the bodies and reached the town by then, it shouldn¡¯t be too easy to link the murders to them. Still, the resulting unrest would only make their stay in the Camelot province needlessly complicated.


    Reaching his companions, Percy dropped the bodies nearby, before noticing Micky¡¯s state was a little odd. The bird was always keen for a snack ¨C especially when it came to humans for some disturbing reason. Still, his gluttony was strangely exacerbated, but it was tinged with an unusual lethargy. It was as if he was positively famished, yet too tired to go through with his meal. On closer inspection, his plumage was a mess too, many of his feathers charred or torn.


    ¡°What happened here?!¡± he turned to Nesha.


    ¡°The guy had a lightning affinity which gave Micky trouble. He managed to push through it but got hit by the bloodline in the end.¡±


    The colour drained from Percy¡¯s face, as he realized how close his familiar had come to losing his life. The only reason he had asked him to take care of the mage was because he¡¯d thought the crow could handle it. And it was true Micky was stronger than the average Yellow, but he could still get seriously injured if he let his guard down, apparently.


    he thought sombrely, thinking back to his own fight.


    In any case, today¡¯s battle would serve as a good wake-up call for both of them. While they had grown a lot stronger during their stay in the Guild, they had a long way to go still. Right now, however, their priority was to get the hell out of here.


    ¡°Micky, do you think you¡¯ll be able to fly like this?¡±


    The bird continued to peck away at his meal for a few seconds. Eventually, he replied, but only through their connection, as he was too tired to speak.


    Percy frowned. He did have a few more healing potions, though he was saving them for a rainy day. It wasn¡¯t like he was too stingy to use them on Micky if the bird really needed them, but he¡¯d rather hold on to them for a time they might need them more ¨C assuming his familiar could recover on his own, of course.


    ¡°Ok then. Eat the cores first before they dissipate. Then, get rid of the bodies too. We¡¯ll see how you¡¯re feeling afterwards.¡±


    Percy and Nesha scanned both battlefields, erasing any bloodstains or traces of magic they could spot, while Micky disposed of the corpses. At least, he could eat a lot more since advancing. It wasn¡¯t until a few hours later that the trio was done with their respective tasks.


    ¡°Feeling any better?¡±


    ¡°A bit.¡± Micky said.


    He did look a little livelier. Of course, it wasn¡¯t that surprising, as beasts tended to recover faster than humans, especially after eating. Still, Percy couldn¡¯t help but exhale in relief after confirming his familiar was ok.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hold on to the potions for now then.¡± he said.


    His own injury would make the rest of the journey a pain, but he¡¯d live.


    Next, Percy stuffed his enemies¡¯ clothes into the spatial amulet. There was barely any space left, and he didn¡¯t much enjoy getting blood all over his stuff, but it wasn¡¯t like he had much of an option. They couldn¡¯t exactly leave the evidence in the scene of the crime.


    He did briefly consider replacing his own stinky clothes with a fine set of silken robes, but he quickly shot the idea down, berating himself for even considering it. Dressing in House Tantalus¡¯s colours while travelling in their territory was about the dumbest move possible.


    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    he chuckled bitterly.


    After confirming they had cleaned up to the best of their ability, the group left, continuing towards Bogside town. They moved much faster than before, both Percy and Micky ignoring their injuries, their sense of urgency tuned up to eleven.


    ¡°Thanks for saving him.¡± he told Nesha.


    ¡°I¡¯d have intervened sooner if I wasn¡¯t afraid of hitting Micky by mistake. Or setting that guy after me.¡± she shrugged.


    Percy didn¡¯t disagree, knowing she was telling the truth. Having been brought up to speed on the fight, he was sure even that final blast she¡¯d killed the lightning mage with had been a gamble. Her poor eyesight certainly hadn¡¯t done her any favours either. Had she hit Micky instead, they¡¯d be having a very different conversation right now. Assuming they were even alive. ??


    ¡°You should really spend some time learning how to use your mana.¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s really a waste of a very powerful affinity¡­¡± he trailed off, realizing it wasn¡¯t any of his business.


    Percy fully expected Nesha to ignore his unsolicited advice, but she surprised him by nodding.


    ¡°I know. I¡¯ll spend some time on it once we settle down.¡±


    Leaving it at that, he turned to Micky, looking at him fly in the distance. From Percy¡¯s location, the crow appeared as little more than a black dot in the sky, though he could tell flying was especially painful. Still feeling guilty over letting him get hurt, he was about to send some consoling thoughts over. However, the bird beat him to it, reaching out first.


    Contrary to his tired exterior, Micky¡¯s thoughts seemed strangely enthusiastic.


    Percy asked, getting a mental affirmation back.


    Micky remained silent for a few seconds, as Percy could tell how badly his familiar wanted to demonstrate his new trick. Still¡­


    he ultimately replied.


    Percy smiled, as he felt the crow¡¯s disappointment oozing through the cord. Micky¡¯s state must have been quite poor if he could resist the temptation to show off. That said, he did send the next best thing ¨C memories of the new spell.


    Watching his familiar shift the air mana along his feathers, fine-tuning its effect on his flight and manifesting the green vortices behind his wings¡¯ tips, Percy couldn¡¯t help but raise an eyebrow. This was definitely some high-quality stuff ¨C .


    Opening Micky¡¯s tab, he soon confirmed that was the case.


    ___


    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s familiar)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Yellow ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Air]


    Spells:


    [Wild Art: Acceleration ¨C Crude][Circulation ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    ___


    Percy had never heard of such a thing before. His best guess was that it was something along the same vein as his own Secret Art. The latter was simply a spell that involved one¡¯s bloodline ¨C according to baldy. Was a Wild Art a spell involving a beast¡¯s mutation? He sure couldn¡¯t think of a better explanation, though that was still a little odd.


    As far as he could tell, Micky was a completely unprecedented existence. Back when she created her Decree, countless millennia ago, Phoebe couldn¡¯t have possibly predicted a beast with multiple cores ¨C or even a beast with a Status for that matter.


    Maybe the Status was simply flexible enough to adapt to new circumstances. That wasn¡¯t impossible, as it had already done that a few times in Percy¡¯s experience. For instance, he was pretty sure it wasn¡¯t meant to list one¡¯s Decrees, though that had changed when Percy obtained a new one.


    Though it wasn¡¯t perfect. While Phoebe had indeed done an admirable job accommodating for the unexpected, she had clearly not ironed out all the kinks in her Decree. An inconvenience Percy had spotted was that neither he nor Micky got notified when the latter registered a new spell. The only way to know was to manually check the Status later.


    Gabe had already explained this was a relatively common Decree, so Percy itched to look at a better version. If he got lucky, he might even be able to upgrade his own in the process, unlocking an extra feature or two.


    Percy suppressed his excitement, reminding himself he hadn¡¯t even fully digested the gains from his previous trips. He still had to incorporate Sengo¡¯s teachings into his magic, and there was also the project of returning to the Vault.


    Impatient to resume his training, Percy picked up the pace some more, while planning out his next steps. Frankly, he couldn¡¯t wait to finally reach their destination.


    Luckily, they were on course to do so by nightfall.

 Chapter 128: Grisly Bog

    ¡°Are you sure this is a good idea?¡± Nesha asked as Percy wrapped the bloody garments around a large stone, tossing it in the murky swamp. A few bubbles rose to the surface, releasing a putrid stench of rot upon popping.The group had already reached Bogside town, though they hadn¡¯t entered it yet. Entering while wearing his bloodstained bandit clothes and coming from the direction where they had killed the guards would only spell trouble down the line. Instead, they had circled around the town, stopping by the Grisly Bog to get Micky settled first.


    ¡°It would be riskier to leave them in our possession. If somebody saw them, they¡¯d know it was us. Plus, I don¡¯t have enough space to keep them in the amulet forever.¡± Percy said, pinching his nose.


    ¡°I get that, but wouldn¡¯t it be better to leave them where they died than bring them here, in the vicinity of the town where we¡¯ll be staying?¡± Nesha didn¡¯t let go.


    ¡°Nesha¡­ If it gets to the point that House Tantalus is combing the swamp waters with a spoon, we¡¯ll be fucked either way.¡± he said, putting the debate to rest.


    Suddenly, a large shape rushed out of the swamp, drenching Percy in a splash of brown water. It was a crocodile, though it was twice as long as a normal one, coated in a layer of spiky scales. It pounced on the duo, opening its oversized maw wide, preparing to chomp the unsuspecting humans down. S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Sadly for it, however, the humans weren¡¯t quite as unsuspecting as it had thought.


    Right before the beast reached them, a second shape rushed their way, this one smaller but much, faster. Its plumage was covered in dense amber lines that branched out of its heart and sternum both, reaching every corner of its body. As for its feathers, they were softly glowing in a green colour, with two vortices swirling behind the tips of its wings. Naturally, it was Micky, who had already warned Percy of the crocodile, having spotted it via Soul Vision long before it revealed itself.


    Flying over the monster¡¯s neck, the crow slammed it to the ground, as his talons carved a path through the tough scales, releasing sparks in the process. Blood gushed out wherever they passed, as the Yellow beast¡¯s soul was cleanly split in two. Carried by inertia, the lifeless carcass then slid in the mud for a couple more feet, before Percy stopped it with his boot.


    ¡°Great. Because I didn¡¯t stink enough before.¡± he groaned, trying to swipe some of the blood and the swamp water off his clothes.


    ¡°At least Micky seems to be doing better.¡± Nesha shrugged.


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but click his tongue in annoyance seeing that she was dry as a leaf in the desert, having used him as a shield. But he shook his head, not in the mood to get into an argument. Anyway, he was going to throw the bandit clothes away as soon as he procured some clean ones.


    ¡°Yeah. If only I could heal by stuffing my face full of mana cores¡­¡± he replied, shifting the weight off his injured leg as he tossed his familiar an envious glance.


    ¡°Are you going to be alright here?¡± he asked the crow.


    Micky was busy digging through the crocodile¡¯s sternum for his snack, so he only replied through their bond.


    ¡°Just remember this isn¡¯t the ground level of the Spire. There are Yellow beasts everywhere.¡± Percy warned again.


    The young man knew none of these animals should pose much of a threat to his familiar ¨C but only as long as he remained careful. Of course, that was assuming he didn¡¯t run into a Green one. Luckily, those were quite rare on Remior. The Fungal Spire was an exception, as its extremely mana-rich environment allowed higher grades to thrive.


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    ¡°So, what¡¯s the plan?¡± Nesha asked, bringing him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°I can¡¯t go into the town looking like this. Can you buy me some clothes?¡± Percy asked.


    She nodded, prompting him to look inside the amulet for some change. However, he frowned a second later, realizing they had a problem.


    ¡°Shit. The only money we have is from the Guild¡­¡± he said, his face twisting into a grimace.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t travelled much, have you?¡± Nesha asked, clearly not as concerned as him.


    Percy raised an eyebrow, though he didn¡¯t say anything, waiting for her to elaborate.


    ¡°The Guild¡¯s currency is just as widespread as gold and silver across Remior. At least, I¡¯ve never heard of a place that didn¡¯t accept it.¡±


    Next, she proceeded to give him a quick rundown of the exchange rates. Apparently, one silver coin was valued at about 1.4 contribution points, with gold coins a hundred times more expensive, and copper coins a hundred times cheaper. ????


    ¡°Won¡¯t it give away the fact that we came from the Guild though?¡± Percy asked.


    ¡°Nine out of ten people who carry contribution points have never stepped foot there.¡± she shook her head.


    Percy exhaled in relief. That was one less thing they¡¯d have to worry about, at least. Of course, they still couldn¡¯t reveal too much money, or they might blow their cover as commoners.


    ¡°Make sure to enter the town from the other side. And try to be seen by as few people as possible. It¡¯s better if nobody is sure when exactly we arrived.¡± he advised.


    ¡°Do I look like I can go on a stealth mission?¡± Nesha asked in an irritated tone, pointing at her eyes. ¡°We¡¯ll be lucky if I manage to spot the shops.¡±


    Percy scratched his head in embarrassment, realizing it might not be that wise to send the girl with the poor eyesight stumbling through the town in the middle of the night.


    ¡°On second thought, maybe it¡¯s better to wait until sunrise then. We don¡¯t even know if there¡¯s anything open this late.¡±


    Nesha groaned, clearly as impatient to wash up and sleep on a proper bed as he was. But she didn¡¯t argue back, knowing his words made sense.


    ¡°Do we have any rations left?¡± she suddenly asked.


    Percy sifted through the amulet, also feeling quite hungry. Even the disgusting smell of rotten eggs failed to quell his appetite, as they hadn¡¯t eaten anything since before the fight against the members of House Tantalus. Though he came up empty-handed a few seconds later.


    ¡°None. But we do have some crocodile meat, if Micky leaves us any.¡±


    After managing to steal a hindleg each from the carcass ¨C much to the crow¡¯s dismay ¨C the two walked some distance away from the water, setting up camp at a spot that stank a little less. Lighting up a fire, Nesha began roasting their dinner, as Percy looked for a dry place for her to sleep. It would be best if she didn¡¯t walk into the town covered in mud tomorrow.


    ¡°Say, can you give me a second core?¡± Nesha asked out of the blue.


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened, caught off-guard by the request. Naturally, he¡¯d long considered the possibility of intentionally disseminating the Moirais¡¯ Decree, even before he learned what it was called. In fact, they¡¯d discussed it with baldy at length back when he was still at home.


    Of course, that hadn¡¯t been an option at the time. Back then, Percy had spent over a year trying to patch his own soul up, and he hadn¡¯t even been close to dying. The prospect of injuring somebody to the verge of death and then hoping to save them in time was, frankly¡­


    ¡°Too dangerous.¡±


    His only success had been Gabe, and even then, they had used a god¡¯s mana to fix his damaged soul. Percy had no idea if he could replicate the feat. The only other situation that came close was back when he saved Nesha inside the hive. It was true her injuries at the time had been quite severe, and he manage to heal her, by relying on the mana Micky got from the Starry Knight¡¯s soul.


    Still, there was no guarantee it would work a second time, nor could they kill a Green on demand. Plus, the actual process of possessing somebody always damaged their soul some more, so that could easily leave his host past the point of no return. Overall, this just wasn¡¯t something Percy wanted to test on a friend.


    ¡°I¡¯m willing to take the risk.¡± Nesha said, her eyes glinting with resolve.


    ¡°But I¡¯m not.¡± Percy said. ¡°Nesha¡­ I suggest you stop trying to look for an easy way to get stronger. You think I haven¡¯t noticed how you¡¯re putting off training with your affinity?¡±


    Nesha bit her lip upon being called out.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never really trained with it. I don¡¯t even know how to go about it.¡± she muttered weakly, before raising her voice. ¡°Why do you care anyway?! Worst case scenario, you¡¯ll have one less person to brew elixirs for!¡±


    Percy sighed.


    ¡°How about you walk me through your grand plan. Let¡¯s say I help you out and we succeed. What then? Do you think you¡¯ll instantly become an expert on using the new core? You¡¯ll have to train with it too, you know.¡±


    Nesha clenched her fists, but didn¡¯t say anything. Eventually, Percy spoke again.


    ¡°Listen. I¡¯ll give you some tips to get you started, but you¡¯ll have to put in the work.¡±

 Chapter 129: Bogside Town

    ¡°What did you tell them?¡± Percy asked, watching Nesha return with some folded clothes held in one hand, a bucket of water in the other.The sun was already at its apex, the girl having taken all morning for the round trip. In fact, Percy had started getting worried at some point, thinking it might have not been too wise to send her alone in that state. He also felt a little guilty over the harsh things he¡¯d said the night before, though he knew she had to hear them.


    ¡°The truth. . I just said my travelling companion wasn¡¯t presentable, and he was too embarrassed to walk in public looking like that. I obviously didn¡¯t go into details, but they¡¯re going to see you later, so I couldn¡¯t just hide your existence entirely.¡±


    Percy nodded, as he finally took the dreaded tunic off, using it to wipe some grime off him. Next, he took the bucket from Nesha, washing up as well as he could. . At least, his skin was by the time he was done. Sadly, he didn¡¯t have anything clean to dry himself with, so he just used his pure mana to get most of the water off him, before donning his new clothes. The linen fabric was cheap and unassuming, but it was really soft, and a hundred times more comfortable than the mismatched leather pieces.


    Finally, the two headed to the town together, still having lots of items on their agenda for today. As soon as they entered, Percy looked around curiously, this being his first time in a commoner town on Remior. It definitely wasn¡¯t as bad as the primitive village he had encountered on the world with the brown fog, but it wasn¡¯t nearly as majestic as the Alchemists¡¯ Guild either.


    There weren¡¯t any mushrooms looming over their heads, nor any colourful motes bathing the place in their lustre ¨C just the warm rays of the midday sun. Nobody had bothered to dress the streets in cobblestone either, the locals happy to walk on simple roads of paved dirt. As for the houses, most of them were wooden huts, lining up either side of the streets.


    The petite buildings looked nothing like his family¡¯s grandiose mansion, their exteriors full of patches and holes, their walls marred with mould and rot. The acrid scent of old wood permeated the place, mixed with the even worse odours of piss and excrement. As for the people, they were all dressed in cheap, ragged clothes ¨C not unlike his own. What surprised him the most was that he couldn¡¯t see anybody at Green!


    While Yellow-born commoners emerged at the same rate as nobles, they rarely remained commoners for long. Most Houses were eager to recruit them, marrying them into their families. It was actually the opposite situation from how Red-borns were treated ¨C often getting kicked out of their families and left to leave as commoners.


    Of course, Orange-borns could still reach Green as they aged, but peasants rarely got to live that long, often getting killed in wars or games between noble Houses. Still, there should have been of them around. Mentally noting to look into this later, Percy then turned to Nesha.


    ¡°I imagine you¡¯ve asked around about the shops?¡±


    ¡°Yes. There should be a glassmaker a couple blocks away.¡±


    It didn¡¯t take them long to find the place, the soft jingle of a bell ringing as they opened the door of the humble shop.


    ¡°Good morning!¡± a female voice said absentmindedly, as the two spotted a middle-aged lady with her back facing them, looking for something on a shelf. Only after she turned around did her brow crease. ¡°Oh? Newcomers to the town?¡±


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    ¡°Do you not get them often?¡± Percy asked, noticing her reaction was a little strange.


    The lady seemed somewhat taken aback by his question, shifting nervously on her feet.


    ¡°O-Oh, no. No. It¡¯s just, I was a little surprised is all. We get newcomers all the time.¡± she said, clearly trying to sound calm.


    Percy didn¡¯t miss the traces of unease in her tone though. Nesha also flashed him a quick glance.


    Outwardly, he simply smiled.


    ¡°Do you make eyewear by any chance? My friend here lost her own, and she was hoping to buy a new pair.¡±


    Happy to change the topic, the shop owner gestured at a different shelf, were multiple pairs of glasses were lined up. Their designs were somewhat crude, but that made sense. It would be strange to expect the same quality of glasses they could buy in the Guild, or get commissioned by their Houses. Nesha tried a few pairs, not looking particularly happy with any of them. Seemingly lowering her expectations, she eventually settled on one, before turning to the lady. ?


    ¡°I¡¯ll take these for now, but would it be possible to order a customized pair halfway between and ?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Sure, they¡¯ll take about two weeks to make though. I¡¯ll also need you to pay half their cost in advance. Together, it¡¯ll be a silver and sixty coppers.¡±


    Percy handed her two red coins and three brown chips, getting a few coppers back. Then, he and Nesha bid her farewell, leaving the shop.


    ¡°What do you think the deal is with this place?¡± Nesha whispered after adjusting her new glasses.


    ¡°My guess? .¡± Percy replied, keeping his voice down too.


    Due to his enemies¡¯¡­ , it was entirely possible they treated the commoners under their jurisdiction like livestock, using them to feed their bloodline¡¯s insatiable appetite. It was just speculation but, given what he knew about the noble House and their blatant disregard for human life, Percy was confident it was spot on.


    It would also explain the mysterious absence of Greens in the town. After all, what better people to kill first than the strongest of the locals? That way, the towns under House Tantalus¡¯s control would never amass enough strength to revolt.


    ¡°Disgusting.¡± Nesha spat.


    With their mood completely ruined, and their stomachs churned, the two continued their shopping in silence, buying some supplies for their new life. They kept their expenses to a minimum, while also asking around for a cheap place to stay. They had plenty of money to splurge if they wanted, but they had to stick to their roles.


    In the end, they were told about an abandoned house in a corner of the town. Apparently, they could stay there for free. It was tiny and its condition left much to be desired, but its owner had died years ago, so nobody would care much if they took it. S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Are you actually planning to work as a blacksmith?¡± Nesha asked, probably recalling what he¡¯d told the guards the day before.


    Percy nodded. He did need to put up the appearance of working during his stay here, and any opportunity to put Sengo¡¯s teachings to practice would help him incorporate them in his magic. Plus, he could help people out in the process, which was what he¡¯d promised to do. Of course, he didn¡¯t think he¡¯d be particularly good at it ¨C it wasn¡¯t an art one could master after a single demonstration. That said, the locals¡¯ standards were lower too, and being an amateur would only make his act more believable.


    ¡°Though, I guess these people might need their houses repaired more than they need steel tools¡­¡± he smiled bitterly, looking at the shoddy huts. Most of them probably leaked water whenever it rained.


    Still, they were unlikely to trust a complete stranger with their houses. Furthermore, he didn¡¯t even know if he could find all the materials he needed to make concrete here. Finally, concrete would be harder to explain than a slightly more sophisticated approach to metallurgy.


    Arriving at their new abode, they quickly noticed it was in an even worse state than they had been led to believe. . The hut was tiny, half of it collapsed. It would take them a few days to patch it up into something liveable. At least, their higher grades would help with the physical labour involved.


    Percy shrugged.


    He had no idea how to recreate Sengo¡¯s contraptions, but a simple stone forge and an anvil shouldn¡¯t be too difficult to put together. As for the tools and materials, they could try selling some monster parts from the bog, though he¡¯d rather not make it too obvious that they could hunt Yellow beasts. The weaker he and Nesha appeared, the less likely to connect them to the murders, or the Guild.

 Chapter 130: Karma

    A blond young man stood outside a stone house, pinching a gemstone vial between his thumb and index finger. A turquoise liquid swirled inside, giving the onlookers pause. They all stood some distance from Jason, torn between their fear of the Divine Root and their curiosity over these new elixirs.As for Jason himself, he wasn¡¯t paying them any attention, focusing on the Aurora Dew itself. Gathering some mana in his eyes, he activated Karmic Vision, watching countless thin threads of all colours appear in the world. They branched out from every object and every person, stretching into the distance.


    he squinted as the dizzying tapestry manifested all around him.


    Unable to discern anything noteworthy through the tangled web, Jason lowered the intensity of mana in his eyes, dialling his magical sense down a notch. That filtered many of the threads out, leaving only the most prominent ones. Sadly, they were still way too many to make out anything important.


    People who didn¡¯t have a karma affinity would probably be surprised at just how many of these invisible connections existed in the world. Every time two objects interacted, a new thread formed. They did fade away slowly, and they could even disappear entirely given enough time, but they could also grow brighter if the objects in question continued to interact.


    he smiled bitterly. S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Jason had already tried to locate the alchemist many times, but there were dozens if not hundreds of threads attached to the substance. Technically, he filter out the ones connected to the vial if he moved the liquid to a different container. However, there were plenty fixed to the elixir itself. After all, it had been brewed from multiple materials, each of which had been harvested by somebody else, from various places across Remior. And each of them had probably been handled by many hands too, before eventually ending in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild.


    he grinned.


    Taking some clothes from that Nesha girl¡¯s house, he cross-referenced their threads with the ones attached to the Aurora Dew. There were too many to sift through, but he didn¡¯t care about all of them. The only ones that mattered were the shared ones, as one of those would take him to the girl. This allowed him to cut the number down massively.


    Suffice to say, investigating all the trails one by one was a time-consuming process. However, Jason wasn¡¯t too bothered, having been trained for this job his whole life. It was his specialty ¨C the role he had been assigned since a young age. Using his rare affinity to accomplish something only a handful of people on Remior were capable of filled him with pride and purpose. So, he hadn¡¯t let his failures over the past few weeks get to him.


    Eventually, the trail led him to another stone house in the settlement. Knocking on the door, he waited for a few seconds, until a young man in a yellow robed opened. Initially, the guy sported an annoyed expression. He looked like he was about to swear, though he quickly swallowed his words the very next moment, the colour draining from his face upon seeing Jason standing there.


    ¡°Do you know a Nesha Veritas?¡± Jason asked, cutting to the chase.


    The man stared at him in confusion for a moment, before shaking his head.


    ¡°Are you an alchemist, or are you friends with one?¡± Jason asked again, getting the same answer back.


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    He frowned, unsure why the guy seemed so clueless. He didn¡¯t look like he had the balls to lie to him, and the karmic threads never lied either. Nesha and the Aurora Dew both shared a connection to this place for some reason.


    he reasoned, guessing this was another dead-end.


    Though he didn¡¯t give up just yet.


    ¡°How long have you been living in this house?¡±


    ¡°I only moved in two weeks ago.¡± the man finally found the courage to speak, his answer causing Jason to raise an eyebrow.


    If the previous owner left right around when they arrived at the Guild, he could very easily be Nesha¡¯s collaborator ¨C the very person they were after! £Ò


    ¡°Oh? Do you have any idea who lived here before you?¡±


    Unfortunately, the young man hadn¡¯t a clue. He merely directed Jason to the official building in charge of housing.


    ***


    ¡°Well?¡± Deimos asked, waiting for his daily report.


    Jason grimaced, the prospect of returning to his superior for the billionth time without any tangible results made his blood boil. Sadly, today¡¯s investigation had failed again.


    ¡°I followed a new trail today. It took me to the house of some boy who was last spotted about a month ago, so I really thought he was the one.¡±


    Deimos perked up at the sound of that, which only pissed Jason off more.


    ¡°And?¡±


    ¡°Nothing. He was just some Red-born runt from House Avalon. He was young and he¡¯d only been in the Guild for a few years. I don¡¯t know if he was one of Nesha¡¯s regulars at the gambling den who happened to get close to the vial by accident, or if Nesha hired him at some point to deliver the elixirs somewhere. Either way, he couldn¡¯t be our target.¡±


    Deimos nodded, though Jason didn¡¯t miss his boss¡¯s clenched fists and gritted teeth.


    ¡°It would still be a good idea to interrogate him. He might know where the girl is, or he¡¯ll at least help you locate her more easily. Where did he go?¡±


    ¡°Who knows?¡± Jason shrugged. ¡°He couldn¡¯t have escaped the Guild by himself, and I doubt Nesha was sentimental enough to bring him along. Since he isn¡¯t in the settlement, they must¡¯ve killed him and fed him to the wasps to cover their tracks.¡±


    Deimos rubbed the bridge of his nose.


    ¡°Jason. I¡¯ve always considered you my most capable subordinate, but you¡¯ve really let me down over the past few weeks.¡±


    Hearing his boss chastise him, it was Jason¡¯s turn to clench his fists.


    ¡°What do you want me to do?! I¡¯ve busted my ass looking fo¨C¡±


    Deimos raised a hand to stop him.


    ¡°Just shut up and listen. If we go back to my father empty-handed, . So, whatever it is you¡¯re doing, Use the boy¡¯s possessions too. He¡¯s clearly just a side-character, but he was still involved with them. If you can find his corpse, it¡¯s going to accelerate your search.¡±


    ***


    Jason grimaced, standing in that Red-born¡¯s house, having already kicked its new tenant out.


    Unfortunately, that Percy hadn¡¯t left any traces here before leaving. All his possessions were gone, even the last stain having been scrubbed from the floor by the time he had left. There was nothing to track him down with!


    Maybe the boy had done it himself, paranoid about Nesha tracking him down. Not that it did him much good in the end¡­


    Of course, there was the house itself and the furniture inside, but those weren¡¯t Percy¡¯s personal possessions. They had changed many owners before him, and even the new guy had filled them up with new threads by now. Trying to cross-reference them with the other clues was only going to complicate things more.


    Their only option at this point was to fall back to the Aurora Dew and Nesha¡¯s clothes, exhausting the remaining trails. Sadly, they¡¯d already investigated most of the threads leading somewhere inside the settlement, so they¡¯d have to start looking at the ones extending outside.


    The worst part was that they stretched all over Remior, so investigating each one could take several months. If they got lucky, they might find Nesha after the first one, but if not, their search could easily last


    Realizing how precarious his situation was, Jason kicked the bed away in rage, splitting its frame in half. The pieces exploded to splinters and shreds of cloth as they slammed against the wall.


    Rubbing his temples, Jason tried to calm himself down. It was ultimately a gamble ¨C whether or not they could locate the culprits before the Order¡¯s patience ran out. Still, one thing was for certain. At least one of those shared threads lead to Nesha.

 Chapter 131: Settling in

    ¡°Like¡­ It¡¯s not ¡­ but could you try again¡­ maybe making the edges a little straighter this time?¡± Percy asked after Nesha handed him the misshapen slab of stone.Over the past week, they¡¯d split up their tasks, with him focusing on repairing the decrepit hut into something liveable. He wasn¡¯t a carpenter, but he could lift a lot of weight, so patching the ceiling with a few planks hadn¡¯t taken him too long. Whether the roof was properly sealed remained to be seen ¨C they¡¯d only know once it rained.


    As for Nesha, he had asked her to build him his stone forge. The idea was that she could get some practice using her space mana, learning how to shape it and cut things with it, while also getting him the equipment he needed for his new venture. Though the results weren¡¯t exactly ideal¡­


    ¡°Why? Isn¡¯t this good enough?¡± she frowned. ¡°It¡¯s the best I¡¯ve managed all week.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯d rather the charcoal stays the forge.¡± Percy replied, pointing at the gap between the poorly-attached stones. ¡°I haven¡¯t even finished fixing the house. I don¡¯t want to see it burn down just yet¡­¡±


    Nesha exhaled in defeat before manifesting some more of her mana, trying again on another piece. It was the last one she hadn¡¯t ruined, so they¡¯d have to go fetch some more if she messed up again.


    Of course, both of them knew a space affinity could be used for a lot more than merely slicing things apart. Heck, Metatron¡¯s Decree was the perfect case study of the heights one could reach with it. While Nesha was as far from a titaness as one could be, learning to form some smaller portals or crafting spatial amulets wasn¡¯t out of the question.


    he decided.


    Percy had grown to love his magical trinket. The sheer convenience of carrying a crate¡¯s worth of items on him at all times was something he wouldn¡¯t give up for the world. Though he did lament its relatively limited capacity. According to Nesha, it was already close to the maximum any enchanters on Remior could craft. Perhaps, the very best ones might be able to make slightly larger amulets, but only the Great Houses had access to those people.


    Once he was satisfied with his work, he took a break for a few hours, letting Nesha continue with her own end of the project. There was something else he wanted to do today.


    he grinned.


    It was true he was a little tired from working on the roof all morning, but he¡¯d grown much more proficient at using his bloodline by now. The last one he¡¯d sent to Torui village had only taken him a few hours to prepare.


    More importantly, Percy intended to send his clones out more frequently now. After all, Micky was hunting Orange and Yellow beasts in the swamp all day long, providing him with a ton of soul mana, letting him mend his soul faster than ever before. He also had to spend much less time brewing elixirs than during his gig with Nesha, so he could more easily tolerate the disturbance.


    Percy expected it would take him multiple attempts until he found a good candidate to send to the Vault, but there was always the chance he might find something else of value in the process. Sear?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ***


    It was dark outside by the time he was done. As always, his soul hurt a lot right after severing the clone, but at least he didn¡¯t pass out anymore. Tossing Nesha a glance, he saw her still working on the forge, a few more discarded chunks of stone lying next to her than the last time he checked. Evidently, she¡¯d gone out to bring more at some point.


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    Nesha had stopped procrastinating as much, spending a lot more time honing her magic. Percy was planning to teach her Circulation too at some point, though she¡¯d need several years of physical exercise to strengthen her body enough for it.


    Leaving the hut to get some fresh air, Percy walked over to one of the shops, hoping it was still open. not exactly ¨C but he did catch the owner taking some trash out of the door.


    ¡°Hi there!¡± he greeted the shopkeeper, a Yellow core seemingly in his early thirties.


    ¡°Oh, hi!¡± the man said. ¡°You must be the new guy I¡¯ve heard about. I was told you¡¯re trying to build a forge in your new house?¡±


    Percy nodded.


    ¡°Yes. That¡¯s actually what I wanted to talk to you about. You¡¯re Mr. Dylan, right? I was hoping to buy some pig iron from you to get myself started.¡±


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t have much to sell. There isn¡¯t a mine nearby, nor do we have a local blacksmith. We import all our tools from Greyquarry town to the north.¡±


    Percy frowned. That was the second town under House Tantalus¡¯s jurisdiction. He and Nesha had ignored it on the way here, as they needed the Grisly Bog for Micky to stay in. Apparently, this was going to make his life a little more complicated.


    ¡°Is it impossible to get some imported?¡±


    ¡°Look, I¡¯ve only got seven ingots in stock ¨C you can have those for two silver.¡± the man took pity on him after seeing his disappointed expression. ¡°I do have some friends over there, so I might be able to work out a long-term solution for you, but we¡¯ll have to see the quality of your work first.¡±


    Percy nodded. It was only fair. He doubted he could compete with Sengo anytime soon, but he was confident he could cook something of acceptable quality for the locals after a few attempts.


    After completing the exchange, he bid the man farewell, carrying the stack of ingots back home. Each of the bars was a little larger than his foot, the entire set weighing hundreds of kilos. Even with his two Orange cores, the metal was heavy.


    he sighed.


    Suddenly, he stopped, seeing a young girl approaching him. She couldn¡¯t have been older than ten. She was wearing simple linen clothes, her dark hair tied up in two short pigtails. Percy had no idea why her parents allowed her to roam the town so late ¨C Then again, it was probably safe. Outsiders like him and Nesha rarely visited, House Tantalus¡¯s territory not being the most welcoming place. Carefully placing the ingots on the ground, he turned to her, to see what she wanted.


    ¡°Mister! Do you want to buy this for a silver?¡± she spoke in a chirpy voice.


    Percy looked down at the object she was holding. It was a small, hollowed piece of wood, with multiple holes lining its side. The main body of the object was oblong, though there was a narrower tube branching out on one side. . It was crudely made, the holes not perfectly circular, with a few misplaced scratches or other dents throughout the instrument.


    ¡°Did you make this yourself?¡± Percy asked, getting a nod back.


    If anybody else had tried to sell him this, he would have probably laughed them off. The misshapen instrument couldn¡¯t be worth more than three coppers, let alone a silver. Still, seeing the child looking at him expectantly, his eyes couldn¡¯t help but soften.


    ¡°Oh well¡­ Freddy always told me to get myself a hobby¡­ This is as good a time as any, I suppose.¡± he chuckled.


    Handing the girl the requested amount, he received his new ocarina in return. While he¡¯d already filled his schedule with all sorts of things such as forging tools for the locals, practicing his own magic, mentoring Nesha, sending clones and brewing elixirs, he¡¯d promised himself to not overdo it as much as he had back in the Guild. Leaving some leisure time aside was good for his mental health.


    Tossing the ocarina in his pocket, he picked the ingots again before finally returning home. Originally, he had wanted to visit Micky in the swamp too, but it was already getting late. He¡¯d have to leave it for tomorrow.


    Entering his new abode, he found Nesha sleeping on the floor. They didn¡¯t have beds yet, but they¡¯d spent weeks camping out anyway, so they weren¡¯t too bothered. Still, his attention was drawn to the forge in a corner of the room. It was made of several pieces of stone, cut in a way such that they slotted into one another without needing any adhesive.


    Percy was proud of the design, having come up with it himself. However, it wasn¡¯t his design he was currently admiring. The pieces had slid into each other better this time, not leaving much of a gap between them. There was still some, but it was too narrow to let anything pass through. Nesha had clearly busted her ass until she got it right.


    Grinning, the young man placed the ingots on the floor before going to sleep himself.

 Chapter 132: Monkey

    Percy swam to the surface, desperate to take a breath. The moment he broke through, he coughed as much of the murky water out as he could, greedily inhaling air into his lungs.he asked his host in annoyance, seeing nothing but an endless expanse of greenish blue stretching as far as the horizon.


    It looked like some kind of ocean, but this wasn¡¯t saltwater. It was closer to the swampwater they had in the Grisly Bog. . The substance had an oily texture, with chunks of plant matter floating to the surface.


    Receiving no reply, Percy swam over to a large piece of debris drifting a few dozen metres away. It was a cylindrical-ish block of wood ¨C probably a broken tree trunk. Though it had clearly been out here for a while, as it was half-rotten. It was covered in an exotic variety of algae and barnacles, but he ignored them as he climbed onto it. Only once his back was resting on the slimy surface did he finally get the chance to examine himself.


    His body was vaguely humanoid. For the most part, it had the number of limbs and eyes, . Lacking a mirror, Percy traced the contours of his face with his fingers, deducing that his host was either akin to a goblin or some kind of monkey.


    ___


    Percival''s clone


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]Spells:[Parting Gift ¨C Crude][Quarterstaff ¨C Crude][Glove ¨C Crude][Crystallization ¨C Crude][Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[Moirais¡¯ Decree (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.


    ___


    he concluded after seeing his affinity.


    Sensing for his core, he eventually managed to take control of his mana after a couple of minutes. Pushing it to flow faster, he felt his heartbeat quicken, his veins bulging as a series of amber lines lit up all over his body. His host protested by instinct as the feeling of their strength getting rapidly consumed wasn¡¯t particularly pleasant.


    In the end, he acquiesced, deactivating the spell to conserve their stamina. At least, it was nice knowing he could tap into the technique in a pinch. His Status still hadn¡¯t listed it though, as his main body had already upgraded it to Synchronization.


    In any case, this wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯d used the boosting art with one of his beast clones. He¡¯d been able to do so ever since he and Micky figured out how it worked. Sadly, he¡¯d never had much of an opportunity to get anything valuable out of it. The only time he had come close was back when the Starry Knight attacked them, though the Green bug had decommissioned his wasp clone before he had the chance to activate it.


    ¡°Tettig¡­ tettig¡­¡± (Testing¡­ Testing¡­) he tried to speak, the words coming out weird.


    ¡°Haow? Ih aewan eer?!¡± (Hello? Is anyone here?) he asked, switching things up, though it didn¡¯t sound much better.


    It wasn¡¯t perfect, but anything was better than staying in the middle of the sea. Percy hurriedly collected some seaweed from the water next to his make-shift boat, before tying it together into something akin to a skirt. Sadly, his host didn¡¯t have a single patch of fur on his pink skin, so the idea of meeting people while naked was a little embarrassing.


    Only after his privates were covered did he focus on his memories of the Vault, trying to tap into a part of himself that he¡¯d never dared to touch before. Ever since Metatron gifted him with his Decree, Percy had felt something lingering at the edge of his thoughts ¨C an invitation he could always choose to accept.


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    he shrugged, as a faint distortion appeared in front of him.


    At first, it was mostly transparent, letting him see the vast expanse of the grimy sea through it. It soon began to expand, however, quickly turning into a circular portal wide enough to fit his whole body, its colour darkening into the familiar grey of the Vault¡¯s walls.


    This was already Percy¡¯s third clone since settling in Bogside town. In theory, he could have waited for a sentient host, but he was already running out of patience. Who knew when he¡¯d next possess a humanoid, or if the stars would align at the time?


    Having made up his mind, he leapt through the portal, eager to visit his old friend.


    ***


    Travelling through the portal was a weird experience. Percy thought he could just take a step forward and find himself in the Vault, but it appeared crossing vast cosmic distances was a touch more complicated than that. ?


    The moment he crossed the threshold, it was as if he had frozen in place, the next second stretching into days. Eventually, he plopped down on the cold metal floor, feeling his entire world spin around him, as a wave of nausea assaulted him. He wanted to puke but, luckily, his host hadn¡¯t eaten anything in a while. In the end, Percy just stayed there for a few minutes, waiting for his surroundings to stop spinning.


    As soon as he could stand again, he found himself surrounded by all sorts of creatures. Some of them he¡¯d seen before ¨C the jellyfish like humanoids with the transparent skin that Gabe was a part of, the hulking people with two horns sticking out of their temples, the shorter green-skinned folks with pointy ears¡­


    But there were a couple species he didn¡¯t recognize. Two people looked a bit like humanoid bats, though they didn¡¯t have any eyes, instead having an oversized pair of ears, each as large as their face. There was also what Percy could only describe as an octopus ¨C or perhaps a , as it only had five tentacles.


    That said, all these people had one thing in common. They were staring at him intently, shock and curiosity evident in their expressions.


    All of them towered over him, even the relatively shorter green people being about half a head taller than he was. As for the horned ones, they were as tall as buildings. Apparently, his host was on the shorter side this time.


    Shrugging, he stood up before speaking.


    ¡°Hai. Am Pessy. Naou beik it ap. Natig to si hia.¡± (Hi. I¡¯m Percy. Now break it up. Nothing to see here.)


    The giants didn¡¯t seem to understand a word he¡¯d spoken, however. They turned to each other, talking in a language he didn¡¯t understand either, occasionally pointing at him as if he was some exhibit.


    Just when he was considering his best course of action, he noticed the pentapus say something, before a hole opened on the ground, spitting out a strange device. Picking it up with its tentacle, the pentapus then reached for Percy¡¯s ear, hooking it around it, one side sticking to his head. Percy didn¡¯t stop him, not sensing any malicious intent.


    ¡°Try that again.¡± the pentapus spoke in the same language as before, though Percy somehow understood it this time.


    ¡°Neat, how does this work?¡± Percy asked. His words came out broken again, but the locals looked like they had understood them.


    ¡°It just uses some runes and some mind mana to translate your thoughts.¡± the creature explained.


    ¡°Geez, really generous of you, wasting 5000 credits on this¡­ .¡± one of the hulking humanoids said, his voice booming.


    The pentapus didn¡¯t say anything, only shrugging or something. sea??h th§× n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    the amount shocked Percy.


    He wasn¡¯t exactly an expert on the Vault¡¯s economy, but from the time he¡¯d spent with Gabe he could tell this wasn¡¯t a trivial sum.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s up with this thing?¡± one of the jellyfish people asked. ¡°Did the gods bring a new race into the Vault?¡±


    ¡°No way. Why would they bring beasts to live with us?¡± one of the bat-people chipped in.


    ¡°Well, how else do you explain this?¡± the jellyfish person didn¡¯t let up.


    ¡°Probably some weird experiment or something. Just look at it! It¡¯s smart enough to !¡±


    The arguments continued for some time, these people talking about Percy as if he wasn¡¯t even there. Eventually, the pentapus approached Percy again, placing a tentacle on his shoulder before speaking.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you guys just ask him what he¡¯s here for?¡± he said, putting the debate to rest. ¡°You¡¯re a ¡®he¡¯, aren¡¯t you?¡± he asked Percy, glancing down at his skirt that had ended up uplifted at some point.


    Percy hurriedly covered up again, some heat gathering in his cheeks before nodding.


    ¡°I¡¯ve no idea how I ended up here.¡± he lied through his teeth. While he appreciated the pentapus¡¯s help, he didn¡¯t need to explain himself to them.


    ¡°I¡¯m looking for a friend. He¡¯s one of guys.¡± he added, pointing to one of the jellyfish people.


    ¡°Well, whoever it is, there¡¯s a good chance you¡¯ll find him in the living quarters.¡± the pentapus said, seemingly buying his story.


    Next, he slithered towards a certain direction, gesturing at Percy to follow.


    ¡°Hey, thanks for the translation device.¡± the latter said once they were alone.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± the pentapus waved it off. ¡°I¡¯ve got more credits than I know what to do with.¡±


    Percy speculated.


    ¡°Thanks anyway.¡± was what he said out loud. ¡°Trying to communicate via gestures would have been a pain in the ass. Name¡¯s Percy, by the way.¡±


    The pentapus didn¡¯t say anything, silently guiding Percy through the Vault. Eventually, they came across a massive cube that looked familiar. It was just like the building Gabe lived in, though he wasn¡¯t sure if this was the one.


    ¡°There are sixteen living cubes in the area. The rest are lined up behind this one. I¡¯m not sure which one your friend lives in, but just tap their walls and say you¡¯re here as a guest. The system will take care of the rest.¡±


    Percy nodded, though the pentapus was already slithering away.


    ¡°I¡¯m Ronnie.¡± he said before he was gone entirely.

 Chapter 133: Reunion

    Reaching the first cube, Percy placed his palm on its surface, much like he¡¯d seen Gabe do before. A blue circle of runes lit up around it, though it turned red the very next instant.¡°Error. Failed to identify. State your user ID.¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t panic, having expected this.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have a user ID. I¡¯m here as a . I¡¯m looking for Gabriel.¡± he said, hoping the translation device worked on the system.


    Honestly, he didn¡¯t even know why there was an option to identify as a guest. Weren¡¯t all the denizens of the Vault automatically registered users? But he wasn¡¯t one to look a gift cube in the mouth.


    ¡°Authorization granted. Logging user in as ¡®guest¡¯. Contacting ¡®Gabriel¡¯. WARNING: Your identity as a ¡®guest¡¯ heavily restricts your access to most system features. You are not allowed to purchase items, start challenges or enter buildings without permission.¡±


    Percy nodded, thinking this was only fair, . Next, he watched the red circle around his palm turn blue, two arrows appearing in its circumference as it began to revolve slowly. Nothing changed for a couple of minutes, making Percy wonder if his friend was even at home.


    Logically, the Vault¡¯s gods wouldn¡¯t have allowed their only specimen with two cores to die, but Percy couldn¡¯t stop himself from worrying. Luckily, the circle flashed green at some point.


    ¡°Hello? What the hell is this? Since when does the Vault have guests?¡± a hoarse voice asked, apparently wondering the same thing as Percy.


    The voice sounded different than Percy remembered, and not only because he was hearing it from the outside. The owner seemed to have some difficulty speaking, the words coming out strained. Still, he recognized him.


    ¡°Gabe? How are you doing man?¡± Percy asked.


    ¡°I have no idea who you are, but that isn¡¯t any of your business. Just go away. I¡¯m busy.¡±


    ¡°Gabe, it¡¯s me! Percy!¡± he hurriedly said before his friend hang up on him.


    ¡°W-What? What did you just say?!¡±


    ¡°Percy! You know? The guy who gave you your second core!¡±


    ¡°Shhhhhhh!!! What the fuck are you doing?! You can¡¯t speak about that out loud!! Is this really you?!¡±


    Percy rolled his eyes.


    ¡°Are you going to let me in, or should I jog your memory some more?¡±


    Gabe remained silent for a couple seconds, seemingly taking it all in.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know where you currently are, but I live in cube #3. Just head over there. I¡¯ll let the system know to guide you to my room.¡± he eventually said.


    Percy nodded, though his friend couldn¡¯t see him. He circled around the cube, guessing this one couldn¡¯t have been the third. He skipped the next one too, before approaching the one after. It had to be either #3 or #14, depending on which end they started counting from. If it was the latter he¡¯d have to walk some more, though that wasn¡¯t what was going through his mind.


    It was strange. Had the gods not reached out to him? What were they waiting for? Percy would have expected them to do all sorts of experiments on Gabe by now. Why would they have left him in the dark?


    Placing his hand on the cube, he quickly confirmed this one was indeed #3. The system allowed him to enter, a series of arrows flashing along the corridor¡¯s surfaces to guide him. Percy met plenty of natives on the way, scurrying around their legs. At least his petite body made it easier to trudge through the narrow pathways.


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    Either way, it wasn¡¯t long before he arrived at his destination. However the system worked, it was really convenient. Percy was certain he wouldn¡¯t have remembered the way on his own. He was about to knock, but it appeared there was no need, as the indented metal parted by itself as soon as he touched it, releasing a burst of steam in the process.


    Standing before him, was a tall man with transparent skin, his organs visible as they throbbed inside his torso. He was wearing simple brown shorts, an unassuming grey bandage wrapped a couple times around his abdomen, concealing the enchanted one Percy knew was there.


    However, what stood out the most was Gabe¡¯s condition. The entire front side of his body was covered in nasty burns, his skin misshapen and ¨C in many places ¨C blackened. His left hand was missing entirely up to his wrist, and even his right one seemed to have lost some freedom of movement. This was Percy¡¯s first time seeing his friend¡¯s face, but his features were charred too, as a third bandage covered his eyes. Even Gabe¡¯s throat appeared severely injured ¨C no wonder he couldn¡¯t speak properly.


    he thought, his expression grim.


    Percy was at a loss, not knowing what to say to his friend. Luckily, the latter spoke first.


    ¡°Huh, is this how you normally look?¡± Gabe snickered, though it trailed off into a wheeze. ¡°I guess that explains why you go around possessing people.¡±


    Glancing down at his half-naked body and his shoddy seaweed skirt, Percy remembered he was currently inhabiting the hairless monkey. Some heat gathered in his cheeks again, as he felt even more embarrassed meeting somebody he knew while in this state. And the worst part was, Gabe was only talking about his After all, he couldn¡¯t see much else through Mana Sense alone.


    ¡°I hope you don¡¯t actually think this is my real body!¡± Percy said a little more animatedly than he perhaps should have. ¡°See? No second core!¡± he pointed at his abdomen.


    ¡°Shhhh!!!¡± Gabe got all jumpy again. ¡°Will you stop saying ¨C ¨C all the time?! Why did you even make me spend my credits on the bandage if you¡¯re just going to keep shouting it out to the world?!¡±


    Percy frowned.


    ¡°You really don¡¯t know?¡±


    ¡°Know what?¡± Gabe asked. ¡°And how did you even return here? I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯ve never seen any beasts like this in the Vault.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll explain everything in a second, but first tell me how you¡¯ve been over the past few months. Honestly, you look like you¡¯ve had a tough time.¡± Percy said, sitting on the bed.


    He knew the room was rather small, but it sure looked a lot larger than he remembered, thanks to his current perspective. Gabe grimaced upon seeing a grimy monkey on his bed, prompting Percy to smell his armpit. Honestly, he stank quite badly, but only part of it was due to his host¡¯s non-existent hygiene. The majority had to do with the fact he had just swam out of a swampy ocean.


    ¡°Well, there isn¡¯t much to tell. My situation is about as shitty as you can see. I¡¯ve made a lot of progress with my¡­ .¡± Gabe eventually said, pointing at his eyes.


    Percy knew his friend probably meant his affinity , but the latter was still conscious about speaking of his secret openly.


    ¡°Sadly, I can¡¯t complete another combat challenge in this state, so I had to delve into magiscript.¡± he added. ¡°But hey, it¡¯s probably for the best! Fighting would just raise the odds of people finding out about¡­ .¡±


    ¡°Gabe¡­ I hate to break it to you, but it¡¯s a little late for that.¡± Percy finally said.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°How do you think I got here? Metatron gave me his Decree on the way out. I would have visited sooner, but I had to wait for the right opportunity.¡±


    Gabe¡¯s jaw slackened at the revelation. A moment later, he shuddered as the words sank in. sea??h th§× Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°You¡¯re joking, right? I would have known¡­ The gods would have chopped me up to pieces by now if that had been the case.¡±


    ¡°Evidently not.¡± Percy shrugged. ¡°And honestly, why should they? You¡¯re clearly motivated enough to keep improving to heal yourself. They can just sit on the sidelines and watch you practice with your air and light affinities. Why intervene with an experiment that¡¯s already giving them everything they want?¡±


    ¡°No way¡­¡± it was Gabe¡¯s turn to plop down on his bed, wiping the cold sweat off his forehead. ¡°What happens when they have all the data they want?¡±


    Percy shook his head, not having an answer. It was true the gods hadn¡¯t bothered Gabe over the last year, but that wasn¡¯t guaranteed to remain the case. Maybe they¡¯d move on to more aggressive experiments at some point.


    Gabe pointed to himself and then traced a circle in the air with his finger. Percy assumed his friend was asking him to use the Decree to take him out of the Vault, but he was afraid to say the words out loud, in case they were being monitored.


    ¡°I doubt it¡¯ll work.¡± he sighed.


    The Status specifically said . Percy didn¡¯t think it would allow people to exit the Vault. Even if it did, there were many other problems they¡¯d have to solve. First of all, Percy didn¡¯t know where exactly the portal opened. Was it a specific place inside the Vault ¨C the very one where he had landed? Or was it randomly picked each time? How would Gabe know to use it before anybody else did?


    One thing was for certain. Percy didn¡¯t dare to open a portal on Remior. He couldn¡¯t risk Metatron or the other gods forcing their way to his homeland. Even if he and Gabe decided to try this, they¡¯d have to bring the latter to a different world ¨C assuming his clones found a suitable one.


    ¡°Gabe¡­ I really don¡¯t know how to help you man¡­ But I promise I¡¯ll do my best to find a way.¡± Percy said, getting a reluctant nod back.


    This was the same thing he had promised the last time too, and he had kept that promise. Though their problem was admittedly a little harder to solve now.


    ¡°Oh, and one more thing¡­¡± Percy added, his friend perking up.


    ¡°Can I crash here for a few days? I¡¯m kinda homeless¡­¡±

 Chapter 134: Runecrafting

    ¡°Percy¡­ are you sure you don¡¯t want to go out for a walk or something?¡± Gabe suggested, pinching his nose. ¡°You haven¡¯t left my place even once since you got here¡­¡±It had already been a couple of weeks since Percy arrived at the Vault. By now, his host¡¯s peculiar odour permeated the humble room, the thick stench of sweat and spoilt eggs causing its owner to gag every few minutes.


    ¡°So much for hospitality¡­¡± Percy rolled his eyes. ¡°You know my time here is limited, right? I need to make the most of it.¡±


    The monkey hadn¡¯t been too injured when he found it, his fused mana being more than potent enough to patch the Orange beast¡¯s soul for a while. If he really wanted, he could probably remain here for several months. That said, he couldn¡¯t accomplish too much in this body so, in the end, Percy had decided to not stretch his stay for too long.


    Unable to start a challenge or do much else by himself, he relied on Gabe¡¯s generosity to dip his toes into magiscript. The stingy jellyfish had initially been hesitant to buy him food or reading material, though he had come around after some pleading.


    Fortunately, Percy had no interest in cleansing the monkey¡¯s core. That meant he didn¡¯t need much sizian meat to get by, thanks to his smaller frame. Gabe also saved some money on the magiscript books by lending him the ones he had already purchased for himself. Of course, he¡¯d still needed to pay a few credits for a written version, as he personally had the material narrated to him due to his blindness.


    Percy noted, diving back into his book.


    At least, the translation device conveniently worked on the text too, making his life easier. Still, he put some effort into learning the Vault¡¯s language, as he knew it would help him moving forward.


    Strictly speaking, Percy hadn¡¯t delved into magiscript proper just yet, as the field was too advanced for a beginner. involved the combination of multiple runes into complex enchantments that could achieve a lot more than their individual components. What Percy was currently learning about was merely ¨C the formation of single runes, each of which could achieve a very specific, simple, effect. However, even this lesser branch was plenty useful for him. Plus, it was the foundation for everything else.


    Evidently, the enchantments could be written in any language suitable for runecrafting. Though there were a few rules as to what constituted one. Certain enchantments worked better with specific symbols. For example, geometrical shapes with lots of angles could more easily convey the meaning of ¡°sharpness¡±, while looping shapes correlated with ¡°completeness¡± and ¡°repetition¡±. A good runecrafting language was designed to capitalize on all these nuances. Furthermore, a user could more easily resonate with a language they were intimately familiar with, which made it a little harder for Percy to learn the Vault¡¯s runes.


    Finally, some languages were just better for magiscript, having been specifically designed for this purpose. For example, the Vault¡¯s written word involved circular symbols with multiple segments, which could easily be overlapped atop one another, or chained in a sequence. This gave enchanters a lot more freedom when combining them. Apparently, Metatron had personally devised this language to facilitate the development of magiscript. By contrast, Remior¡¯s runes were much cruder and nearly impossible to link together, as they hadn¡¯t been designed with nearly as much foresight.


    Percy admitted.


    Next, he drew some of his teal mana from his stash, focusing it on his index finger. He tried drawing a symbol on a piece of parchment, careful to make the lines as neat as he could, constantly visualizing the rune¡¯s intended effect in his mind. Slowly but steadily, he seemed to be going well, as he made fewer mistakes than his previous attempts. The rune might even work this time!


    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    Sadly, it wasn¡¯t meant to be. At some point, he noticed his reserves were about to run dry, forcing him to stop about halfway through. Staring at the incomplete rune, he couldn¡¯t help but click his tongue in annoyance.


    Unfortunately, the monkey¡¯s beast mana couldn¡¯t leave its body, and Percy had a limited supply of his own teal mana. He hadn¡¯t been able to practice nearly as much as he would have liked. For now, his main goal was to simply memorize a few symbols and their meaning, so that he could try them out with his main body once he returned home.


    Many enchantments could be crafted with any affinity, as was the case for the one Percy was currently working on. Knowing his and Micky¡¯s bandages weren¡¯t going to survive for much longer, he figured it would be a good idea to master the ¡®concealment¡¯ rune, so that he could more easily protect his secrets in the future. Luckily, Gabe had shared that view ¨C at least before Percy told him Metatron already knew about him ¨C so information on this rune was something he had already purchased.


    Still, there were plenty of enchantments that could only be crafted with specific mana types. The ones typically drawn on spatial amulets fell in that category. Suffice to say, Percy had spent quite some time convincing his friend to buy him a book on that one, to teach Nesha about.


    ¡°What about the materials?¡± Percy suddenly asked. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you can¡¯t just draw the runes anywhere you want¡­¡±


    Gabe shook his head.


    ¡°Technically, you can. But there are materials that are far better for most runes in general ¨C and specific runes in particular. They resonate with some or all mana types, amplifying the effect of the enchantments.¡±


    Percy thought back to the strange dark cube with the glittering stars his spatial amulet was made of. Clearly, that material was suitable to be paired with space mana, though he had no idea where to get more of it.


    ¡°So, in theory, I could draw the runes ¡± he asked again, catching the caveat in Gabe¡¯s words.


    ¡°Yes.¡± the latter nodded. ¡°They won¡¯t be as effective if you draw them on plain dirt, but it can work depending on what you¡¯re trying to do.¡±


    Percy nodded. In any case, this was the best he could accomplish right now. Without any more mana to practice, and having pretty much memorized the runes, the only thing left was to wait until he returned home to test them out some more.


    ¡°Ok then. I suppose I¡¯ll listen to you and go for a walk.¡± he chuckled. ¡°To give you a chance to deodorize the place.¡±


    ¡°And how exactly am I meant to do that?¡± Gabe frowned.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you get the cube to ventilate the room?¡± Percy shrugged.


    ¡°Yes. For a ¡­¡± Gabe didn¡¯t sound very happy.


    ¡°Well, just use your mana or something. Between fire and air, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll work something out.¡± Percy said, heading towards the door.


    ¡°Do you want me to come with you? To give you a tour of the Vault?¡± Gabe asked.


    But Percy shook his head.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I¡¯ll explore a little on my own. And¡­ Gabe¡­¡±


    ¡°Hmmm?¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t forgotten about my promise. I know it sounds impossible, but we¡¯ll figure it out.¡±


    Percy walked through the narrow corridors, vaguely remembering the way to the exit. Still, a few seconds later, multiple arrows lit up on the walls and ceiling, helping him along. As soon as he was outside, he took a deep breath, having also grown a little sick of the stale air in the room.


    he smiled wryly.


    Strolling around the futuristic city, he spotted many other buildings of various sizes ¨C , all of them being cubes for some weird architectural reason. He had no idea what their purpose was, but they were all decorated with countless interlocked runes of various colours, shimmering or pulsating in set rhythms. While Percy was still a novice in runecrafting, his recent studies only made him appreciate the sublime art even more.


    Many people walked past him, flashing him curious glances. Though nobody stopped him or talked to him, despite his minute stature and lower grade making him an easy target. Evidently, the gods in charge of the Vault had taught their children better than to stick their noses in matters that didn¡¯t concern them.


    Eventually, he managed to reach the area with the challenge cubes ¨C after asking a few passerbys for directions. Placing his hand on one of them, he tried to enter it as a guest, only to get rejected.


    The system had already warned him he wouldn¡¯t be allowed to do this without permission, but Percy couldn¡¯t help himself. He really hated imposing on Gabe, so he hoped to earn his own credits during his future visits. Sadly, it wasn¡¯t meant to be.


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s you.¡± a familiar voice said. ¡°Did you find your friend in the end?¡±


    Percy turned to his right, only to see the pentapus creature ¡°standing¡± some distance away, its purple tentacles and yellow eyes giving it a slightly intimidating appearance. Using Mana Sense, he spotted a Blue core thrumming in its¡­ . Sear?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°I did! Thank you again for your help, Ronnie!¡± Percy smiled.


    ¡°Or would you prefer me to call you ?¡±

 Chapter 135: Metatron

    ¡°Oh? What gave me away?¡± the pentapus replied, its entire demeanour shifting.Not a trace of mana leaked out, but Percy couldn¡¯t help but feel a chill roll down his spine. It was as if a giant beast was staring at him, contemplating whether to squish him like an ant with a brush of its finger. While he¡¯d long had a hunch about Ronnie¡¯s identity, getting it confirmed by the titan himself shook him to his core.


    Still, he tried his best to maintain his outward calm, not willing to show the ancient god any weakness he could pounce on. After all, he wasn¡¯t here with his main body. Metatron clearly didn¡¯t have all the power here, and they both knew it. Percy guessed the god could probably destroy his clone¡¯s soul if he wanted, but he seriously doubted he could do anything to his real body back on Remior. If he could, he would have done it already.


    ¡°Besides the name, you mean?¡± Percy asked. ¡°There were a bunch of clues. For one, I was surprised you invited me to the Vault but didn¡¯t bother keeping an eye on me once I arrived. I admit you did a great job blending in with those mortals, but it wasn¡¯t perfect. I¡¯ve recently met a pretty powerful Blue core who failed to contain his aura half as well as you.¡±


    ¡°Huh, I suppose it¡¯s been a while since I last spent some time among mortals.¡± Metatron chuckled, narrowing his eyes playfully. ¡°It appears their control is even shoddier than I remembered.¡±


    Following that, Percy watched the fake Blue star dissipate into nothing inside the titan¡¯s body. There wasn¡¯t anything else visible in his frame either, making Percy wonder if gods even had cores like mortals and he just couldn¡¯t perceive them, or whether they no longer needed them. But Percy pressed down his curiosity, continuing.


    ¡°The mortals were my next clue. I¡¯ve seen plenty of different races walk around the Vault, and they all had one thing in common¡­ There were of each species.¡±


    Unlike all the other mortals, Metatron was unique in that he was the only pentapus Percy had encountered since coming here. That had struck him as quite odd.


    ¡°Clever. Indeed, by the time the Vault expanded enough to sustain the lives of mortals, my home world had already been destroyed, my species having gone extinct eons ago. I¡¯m the last one.¡± Metatron spoke in a sombre tone.


    Though Percy was convinced the titan cared more about his inability to sire children for his sick experiments than the actual demise of his people.


    ¡°What do you want from me?¡± Percy decided to ask bluntly.


    ¡°What else?¡± Metatron shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know which remote corner of the universe you come from, but I¡¯m sure you understand just how special your bloodline is by now.¡±


    ¡°So what? Do you want to steal it from me or something? I¡¯m sure I can¡¯t with any of the people here.¡±


    Metatron chuckled.


    ¡°You¡¯re a smart kid, Percy. Both for figuring my identity out, and for coming here with a clone. Had you brought your real body, I¡¯d have been disappointed. You see, I prefer working with smart people. But no, I don¡¯t have the ability to your bloodline. Nobody does, as far as I know.¡±


    Percy nodded, all of this being in-line with what he knew. Of course, it was possible the titan was lying, but he doubted this was the case. After all, if it was that easy to steal somebody¡¯s bloodline, the gods wouldn¡¯t be relying on random mutations and countless generations of mortals to cultivate bloodlines to their liking. Not here, and not on Remior.


    ¡°Then what else is there?¡±


    ¡°While I admit I¡¯m not above taking something by force when possible, there are many other ways to get what I want ¨C and not all of them are bad for you. You see, I want to with you.¡±


    This time it was Percy¡¯s turn to laugh.


    ¡°Collaborate with me? I wasn¡¯t even born the last time you blinked, and I¡¯ll be gone by the next one. How would this even go?¡±


    Metatron shrugged.


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    ¡°What does mortality or divinity have to do with this? You can do something I can¡¯t. Something valuable ¨C and I want that. Hell, you¡¯d be more useful to me than half the gods in my service.¡± ????


    Percy fell in thought, contemplating the titan¡¯s words. If Metatron was being honest, it could indeed be extremely beneficial for him. He could end up treated as a god, receiving all the benefits the rulers of the Vault had access to. And why not? Would it really cost Metatron too much to give him some knowledge and resources, in exchange for using his bloodline? There was definitely a way for both of them to profit.


    ¡°Can you help me ascend to godhood?¡± Percy asked, focusing on his most important goal.


    Anybody else would have laughed at this question. Despite all his achievements, whether it was his growing strength, his second core or the Aurora Dew, he had barely taken a step towards this ultimate goal ¨C the pinnacle of magic. Percy might be able to grow further than he would have as a normal Red-born, but he was still behind those like Archibald or Elaine, let alone the chosen ones recruited by the Divine Order.


    ¡°Impossible.¡± the titan said, dashing his hopes. ¡°Together, we can achieve many things. . The Decree you¡¯ve snatched from the Moirais is but one of them. With my guidance, we can get treasures you can barely even dream of¡­¡±


    ¡°But it won¡¯t be enough.¡± Percy completed his sentence for him.


    ¡°No. It won¡¯t be.¡± Metatron nodded. ¡°If you were a Yellow-born, or hell, even an Orange-born, there might have been a chance. We could have used all sorts of tricks to stretch your lifespan and accelerate your advancement for you to barely reach the thresholds. But frankly, I doubt all the resources in the universe are enough to turn a Red-born into a god.¡±


    Silence persisted for several minutes. Percy didn¡¯t speak, and Metatron didn¡¯t rush him either. For a second there, the young man even forgot he was standing face-to-face against a possibly hostile titan, seeking to exploit him. Only the god¡¯s words rang in his head, as well as the grim realization they had delivered.


    Ever since he discovered his bloodline, Percy had harboured hope of breaking through the suffocating shackles of his fate. And everything he had experienced since had watered and germinated that hope, helping it flourish. But something about Metatron¡¯s verdict sounded final. This was a man who stood at the pinnacle of all existence! A researcher famous across the cosmos for his power and wisdom! And he believed that Percy didn¡¯t stand a chance of achieving his dream!


    ¡°Why the long face, kid? Do you know how few people ever ascend to godhood? I didn¡¯t say you cannot reach Violet, or even White. Those goals are far more realistic ¨C with my help. You¡¯ll be showered with resources for millennia, and you¡¯ll live a long life of luxury and wealth. Is that not enough?¡±


    ¡°No. It¡¯s not. I plan to find a way to reach godhood, with or without your help.¡± Percy said, lifting his head to look the titan in the eyes defiantly. ¡°But that¡¯s beside the point. I don¡¯t blame that I was born at Red. Still, how can I trust you?¡±


    ¡°Obviously, you can¡¯t.¡± Metatron casually said. ¡°Trust is something to be earned. I don¡¯t expect you to decide right now. You aren¡¯t close to the end of your lifespan, are you?¡± he asked, Percy shaking his head in return.


    ¡°Good. Then, from now on, I¡¯ll demonstrate my good will towards you. You are allowed to visit the Vault with your clones whenever you want. I¡¯ve registered you as a user, so you can even undertake the challenges and purchase resources. However, until you accept my offer and join the Vault with your main body, you will be treated as a mortal, and you¡¯ll have to earn every single credit on your own.¡±


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened at the titan¡¯s generosity. He could keep coming here without risking his life or his freedom, learning the Vault¡¯s secrets a little at a time!


    ¡°How will the system even recognize me every time I come here with a new body?¡±


    Metatron shrugged.


    ¡°Normally, it relies on various vital signs such as retina scans and fingerprint scans to identify you. Obviously, none of that is applicable in your case, so I have worked tirelessly over the past year to incorporate a new set of identification features into it. These ones rely on your soul. You¡¯ll be able to sign into the cube with any body. Your user ID is ¡®WANDERER¡¯.¡±


    Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat, but he quickly quashed his rising enthusiasm, remembering who he was talking to.


    ¡°Why are you doing this? What¡¯s in it for you?¡±


    ¡°I already told you. It¡¯s a sign of good will. Besides, the rewards you can earn from the Vault as a mortal are peanuts compared to what the two of us can get by working together. The sooner you realize that, the sooner we can move on to the really interesting things.¡±


    ¡°That can¡¯t be all.¡± Percy insisted. Perhaps pushing the titan was ill-advised, but he couldn¡¯t shake the thought that Metatron was leaving something out. S~ea??h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Hahaha! Smart indeed. That¡¯s right ¨C even with this lesser arrangement, I have plenty to gain.¡± the pentapus admitted. ¡°You see. Before today, I didn¡¯t even know beasts could receive the Moirais¡¯ Decree. I wonder what affinity this creature will unlock?¡±


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened as he realized what had happened. In his rush to return to the Vault, he had delivered Metatron yet another valuable specimen! And he would continue to do so, every single time he visited.


    Metatron didn¡¯t really need him to agree to his terms to milk his ability for everything it was worth. He merely had to wait for Percy to hand him all his trump cards of his own volition, one spell at a time.


    If he wasn¡¯t careful, he might inadvertently give Metatron the power to take over the entire universe¡­

 Chapter 136: The Tale of Svarog

    The tension in the air was palpable as Percy stared at the grinning pentapus, contemplating how he¡¯d been played. He didn¡¯t doubt Metatron truly intended to win him over eventually. Still, the ancient titan had plenty to gain even in the meantime.Percy was certain Metatron could repair his host¡¯s body and soul if he just abandoned the creature at the verge of death like he usually did. Though he could probably prevent that, by actively using what little fused mana he had left, intentionally tearing the soul to shreds.


    But he shook his head.


    Metatron wasn¡¯t dumb. If Percy did this right now, the titan might take it personally. At best, he could ensure his future hosts died ¡®accidentally¡¯ inside the challenges, and that he didn¡¯t use anything too sensitive while inside the Vault.


    The realization sent a chill down Percy¡¯s spine. It appeared that no matter what Metatron did, there was always a deeper meaning behind it. Regardless of what Percy chose, the titan would come out ahead.


    ¡°Don¡¯t beat yourself up too much, kid.¡± Metatron spoke, breaking him out of his thoughts. ¡°I¡¯ve been around for a while longer than you have. Just say the word, and all my knowledge and experience will be at your disposal.¡±


    ¡°Thanks for your offer¡­¡± Percy spat begrudgingly, his face looking like he¡¯d just swallowed a fly. ¡°I¡¯ll consider it.¡±


    Metatron shrugged, before turning around, slithering away. However, he spoke again before fading into the distance.


    ¡°Oh, and there¡¯s one more thing. Ask the cube for information on ¡®acquired blessings¡¯ before you leave the Vault. I won¡¯t charge you any credits for this one. Consider it a welcome gift ¨C a tiny sample of the things we could achieve together¡­¡± the titan¡¯s voice trailed off.


    Only a few minutes after the pentapus disappeared from his sight did Percy plop down weakly on the floor, his body coated in a layer of cold sweat. He¡¯d tried his best to stand his ground against the ancient being, but he understood he¡¯d done a poor job at it.


    His access to the Vault was an unprecedented opportunity, but also the deadliest of traps. Should he fumble, he¡¯d lose everything. . Percy wouldn¡¯t forget that Metatron was essentially holding his friend hostage, though neither had seen fit to bring it up during their little chat.


    he ultimately decided, placing his palm against the nearest wall.


    ¡°Cube. Give me all your information on ¡®acquired blessings¡¯. User ID: WANDERER.¡± he spoke, recalling how Gabe had done this in the past.


    A circle of runes lit up around his palm, though it flashed silver this time, probably scanning his soul as Metatron had mentioned.


    ¡°Authorization granted. Evaluating request¡­¡±


    Truth be told, this was the first time Percy even heard of acquired blessings. According to his understanding, the only way to obtain one was to inherit it directly from a god. Clearly, what Metatron was giving him was quite an esoteric piece of knowledge.


    ¡°Evaluation complete. There is 1 book, 57 research logs, 1 encyclopaedia and 9457349 news reports that mention ¡°acquired blessings¡±. Part of the selection is restricted for your grade. Only 0 books, 0 research logs, 0 encyclopaedias and 0 news reports are available for purchase. Total cost: 0 credits. Current balance: 0.¡± ?


    Percy¡¯s jaw slackened at the result. Was this some kind of joke? He was about to curse, but the system spoke again.


    ¡°NOTIFICATION: User has been granted special authorization to view 1 book on subject ¡®acquired blessings¡¯ free of charge. View now?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± he nodded. ¡°Please deliver it in hard-copy format.¡±


    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    He knew he was probably just playing into the titan¡¯s hands again, but he couldn¡¯t contain his curiosity.


    ¡°Choice confirmed. Printing book: ¡°The Tale of Svarog¡±. Delivery in 24 rits.¡±


    Soon, Percy held a thick tome in his hands, still giving off some warmth. Wanting nothing more than to finish his business in the Vault and get the hell out of here, he quickly dove right in, ignoring the occasional passerby giving him a curious look. If there was one silver lining to this whole mess, it was the fact that he didn¡¯t have to worry about the mortals giving him any trouble. He doubted Metatron would allow anybody to interfere in his project.


    he thought, focusing on the text.


    At least Percy was a fast reader, and the translation device made him feel as if he was reading in his native language. A few hours into the book, his stomach began to protest, though he just ignored it. As far as he was concerned, whatever happened to the body from here on was Metatron¡¯s problem. That said, only part of his persistence was brought about by his desire to get this over with. Another part was due to finding the tale genuinely interesting.


    Apparently, there once was a god called Svarog, who made waves in the cosmos due to his immense power. While he hadn¡¯t been a titan originally, many titans fell by his hand as he roamed the universe seeking thrills and adventures.


    But Svarog was an oddity among gods in more ways than one. S§×ar?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Most deities tended to mate unscrupulously, often siring hundreds ¨C of children. However, that wasn¡¯t what Svarog had done. He only ever loved a single, mortal woman, fathering one son. . And he cherished this only child of his most dearly, to the point he would gladly lay his very life down for him if need be.


    Consequently, Svarog only had two regrets in his entire existence. The first was having to watch his beloved wife and son age and wither before his eyes, unable to prevent it. And not for a lack of trying. No matter what he did, he couldn¡¯t fight against time itself.


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but clench his teeth after reading that part. Was this why Metatron had given him the book? But he shook his head, diving back into the tale.


    Svarog¡¯s second regret was that his son hadn¡¯t inherited a blessing from him. He had to spend his whole life as little more than a common mortal, not a trace of divinity apparent in his magic. Unwilling to see his progeny cursed with such a cruel fate, destined to live such a mundane life, Svarog worked tirelessly to change that. He desperately sought a way to grant his son a blessing! Other gods called him a fool for even trying. This was a feat they all deemed impossible. Still, Svarog persisted, inching closer to his goal with every passing decade.


    Unfortunately, before Svarog had the chance to succeed, one of his old enemies slaughtered his family in revenge, robbing them of the few years they had left. But that didn¡¯t stop Svarog. It only motivated him to press on. Driven mad by rage, he finally completed his project, forging a Decree that shook the whole universe, bringing about one of the most terrifying wars in the history of all creation.


    Svarog¡¯s Decree was as much as a means of granting a blessing to a mortal, as it was a lethal weapon forged out of hatred and spite. Unlike other Decrees like Phoebe¡¯s or Metatron¡¯s, this one took the form of a physical object ¨C an unassuming ring mould. Yet, its bone-chilling effect prompted outrage from every deity across the cosmos.


    The mould could be used to slay a god, subjecting them to a fate most cruel. It refined their flesh and soul, distilling their very of magic into substance, condensing it into a ring. And once worn, this ring could let a mortal wield the slain deity¡¯s most prized concept ¨C effectively giving them a blessing. Even worse, the mortal could slowly acclimate to the new concept over time. Eventually, they could fully absorb the power into their being, so that they could wield it even without the ring.


    Blinded by wrath, Svarog then hunted down the one who slighted him, torturing him to death. But he didn¡¯t stop there, targeting the man¡¯s associates next. Soon, he slaughtered them too, but he still wasn¡¯t satisfied. Too great was his pain. . He kept going after more gods, butchering them one after the other, drowning his grief with blood¡­


    99 gods the newly emerged titan hunted to quell his fury.


    And 99 rings he crafted in total, one from each of his unfortunate victims.


    The very notion of killing a to give a mortal ¨C let alone a blessing ¨C was viewed as the ultimate blasphemy. After all, mortals were supposed to gods, not the other way around.


    Thus, the gained their name.


    Raising arms in outrage, countless gods from countless words banded together to punish Svarog for his grave sin. Using the 99 slain deities as the excuse, they laid waste to anything the titan held dear. However, their righteous campaign was nothing but a front for their true purpose¡­


    After all, mortals weren¡¯t the only ones who could wield the Rings of Sacrilege. Gods could wear them as well, mastering concepts they hadn¡¯t touched before. Ironically, the number of casualties in the resulting war over the rings utterly dwarfed Svarog¡¯s victims. The scars left behind by the War of Hypocrites never truly healed. Entire worlds were destroyed, thousands of races having gone extinct.


    As for the ring mould ¨C Svarog¡¯s Decree?


    It shattered at some point, ensuring that no more rings could ever be crafted. Nobody knew how or why that happened, but one thing was for certain. No one ever managed to replicate Svarog¡¯s feat. Not before, nor since. As for the instigator of the war himself, he seemingly vanished from the cosmos, never again to be seen. Some theorized he was dead, others that he was still hiding somewhere to this day.


    And the rings¡­ ¡­ The war scattered them throughout the cosmos, most of them lost for countless ages. By now, many of them had been found, a new war occurring every time that happened. Most of those ended up in the coffers of the largest factions in the universe.


    But not all of them.


    Plenty were still missing, their fate unknown¡­

 Chapter 137: A dangerous game

    Percy struggled to keep himself from drooling.Reading some more into the book, he quickly learned a few more important details about the priceless artifacts. Apparently, the usual rules still applied to mortals, restricting them to a single blessing per person.


    he speculated with some hope in his eyes. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    That said, this only happened once they fully absorbed the ring¡¯s concept. Until then, they were free to take the ring off and switch to a different one.


    he chuckled bitterly.


    Beyond that, he still needed to have the correct affinity for each ring, which complicated matters once again. He was sure at least one of them should have a pure concept ¨C given how common the affinity was ¨C but that might not be relevant to him once the lotus bloomed.


    Preferably, Percy wanted one related to the soul affinity, as that might have some positive effect on his bloodline. Still, he understood that beggars couldn¡¯t be choosers. Who knew whether Svarog had even found a god with such a rare affinity to kill? Not to mention the difficulty in beating countless gods to such a treasure.


    What surprised him the most, however, was a footnote at the very end of the book. Reading the message, Percy was quite certain Metatron had personally added it for .


    ¡°Note: The Vault of Magic possesses four rings in total, with blessings related to the fire, earth, water and time affinities.¡±


    At first, Percy wondered why the titan had revealed such a sensitive piece of information to somebody who might leak it outside. On further thought, he realized he was just being na?ve. Ignoring the fact that he couldn¡¯t even speak about his connection to the Vault freely in the first place, Metatron shouldn¡¯t care too much if any outsider learnt of the rings. For all Percy knew, this might even be public knowledge already.


    After all, everyone already wanted a piece of the artificial world, yet nobody seemed capable of pinning it down. Metatron had clearly done a great job evading the other factions, roaming the universe completely unobstructed.


    Part of it was probably to entice him into accepting his deal. The titan didn¡¯t know what Percy¡¯s second affinity was, but with three elemental rings at his disposal, his chances of hitting the nail on its head weren¡¯t bad. And technically, he had succeeded too. While none of the four rings were suitable for Percy , he was still working towards a lotus petal, so that might change a couple years down the line.


    Countless gods might have failed to locate the missing rings, but Percy had already proven his clones could end up in places where others might deem impossible. He still had no idea why a space titan like Metatron seemed to have so much trouble invading other worlds ¨C his portals appeared to suffer from some strange restriction ¨C but Percy wasn¡¯t affected by whatever the problem was.


    Either way, this was more of a long-term project. Whether it was the prospect of locating a lost ring, or negotiating with Metatron for the water one, Percy couldn¡¯t do much about it at the moment. Shrugging, he returned to Gabe¡¯s place to bid his friend farewell, deciding it was time to wrap his current trip to the Vault up. After all, he still had a couple new runes to process back home, as well as bring his main body up to speed on his interactions with Metatron.


    ¡°Would you rather meet me outside the building?¡± Percy asked via the system, willing to spare his friend¡¯s room from another stinky visit.


    ¡°Yes! Please stay right there! I¡¯ll be downstairs in 50 rits!¡± Gabe replied a little too eagerly.


    Soon, the two met up just outside the entrance, as Percy updated his former host on his meeting with the titan. Suffice to say, Gabe¡¯s jaw hit the floor upon hearing about it.


    ¡°Seriously? Nobody I know has ever met Metatron in person. In fact, I only even met my own father a couple of times.¡± he said.


    ¡°Given your second core, I imagine that will change sooner than you¡¯d like.¡± Percy shrugged.


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    ¡°So, what¡¯s the plan?¡± Gabe asked again, his voice a little shakier.


    ¡°Well, since he¡¯s trying to win me over, I imagine the situation will be stable for a while. Killing my friend wouldn¡¯t be the most effective way to convince me that it¡¯s safe to come here¡­¡± Percy explained.


    ¡°Still, how long will that last?¡±


    ¡°Who knows? The good news is that we¡¯re dealing with a titan.¡±


    ¡°How is that ¡®the good news¡¯?!¡± Gabe asked in incredulity.


    ¡°He¡¯s lived for eons. If there¡¯s one thing we don¡¯t have to worry about, it¡¯s his patience. As long as I keep giving him what he wants, he won¡¯t do anything drastic.¡±


    ¡°And will you?¡±


    ¡°What choice do I have? Your situation aside, I want to tap into the Vault¡¯s knowledge as much as he wants my bloodline. It¡¯s just a question of who gains the most from this arrangement.¡±


    ¡°Percy¡­ You¡¯re playing a very dangerous game here¡­¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t say anything, though he nodded, his expression grim. Of course, he understood what a mess he¡¯d gotten into. At the very least, he had no intention of ever showing Metatron anything related to Circulation. Even if he struggled to complete the challenges without it, he couldn¡¯t risk giving the callous titan such a huge gift.


    The Divine Order was already after him back home, so it was a little too late to avoid interacting with gods altogether. Hell, if his situation on Remior went to shit, joining the Vault might be his only way out.


    After leaving Gabe¡¯s place, Percy then returned to the challenge cubes, hoping to earn himself his first couple of credits. Not that he expected to get very far with his current host, but the first wave might not be too difficult.


    ¡°Cube. Can you keep my translation device safe for me until the next time I visit the Vault? User ID: WANDERER.¡±


    ¡°Authorization granted. Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. Request approved. Place the device on the ground. It will be returned to you the next time you sign into the system.¡±


    Percy exhaled in relief. At least, he wouldn¡¯t have to burden Gabe with this too.


    ¡°After I hand it in, I won¡¯t be able to speak, so I want you to let me into the cube and start the ¡®gauntlet¡¯ challenge, Orange level.¡±


    While he knew he¡¯d probably get his ass handed to him, he¡¯d at least learn what the challenge involved so that he could better prepare for his next trip.


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. User incapable of speaking detected. WARNING: Without the translation device, it will not be possible to terminate the challenge until its completion. Higher risk of death is imminent. Proceed anyway?¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡± he nodded.


    He wasn¡¯t planning to leave this place alive anyway.


    ¡°Choice confirmed. Please leave the device on the ground. Wave begins in 18 rits.¡± the system said, a square entrance opening on the cube¡¯s wall.


    Following the instructions, Percy walked to the centre of the room, the door closing behind him. Preparing himself, he counted about twenty or so seconds, his heart thrumming in anticipation as the system continued its now-illegible announcements in fixed intervals. The stakes aside, he couldn¡¯t help but feel excited over the upcoming fight. The idea of testing himself against the golems sounded fun.


    Soon, the familiar black tar began to roll down the cube¡¯s walls, accumulating on the floor as the level of the viscous liquid rose. Luckily, the challenge didn¡¯t throw as much of the substance this time as it had during Gabe¡¯s attempt, stopping when it reached the base of the monkey¡¯s neck.


    Percy wasn¡¯t paying that any attention, however, his eyes glued to the only other thing in the room besides himself. It was a construct slightly larger than he was, resembling a six-legged spider. It clung to one of the walls, its sharp legs digging into the grey metal.


    He didn¡¯t get to stare at the construct for too long. Suddenly, the spider moved, swiftly crawling along the walls, unhindered by gravity or by the room¡¯s corner. Its limbs made crisp sounds as they pierced tiny holes through the walls in its passing.


    The golem continued its dash for a few seconds, only stopping once it was closer to Percy. Unwilling to give it an opening so early, the latter tried to put some distance between them, though the sludge made it difficult to do that.


    Sadly for him, the spider showed no interest in waiting, lifting two of its limbs, pulling them back slightly as if to build some tension up.


    And just when Percy was debating what his enemy was up to, the sharp legs sprung forth, detaching themselves from the construct¡¯s body, spinning through the room like two boomerangs aimed at him.


    Percy dove into the sludge clumsily, barely ducking before the blades cleaved his head right off. By the time he could toss the spider another glance, its limbs were back on its body, a second pair already preparing the next attack.


    he wondered, evading the new attack a little better than before.


    Still, he had no means of attacking from a distance, nor could he walk up the smooth wall like the golem.


    In the end, Percy was forced on the defensive, dodging attack after attack, only occasionally getting hit. This went on for about an hour, until he finally made a fatal mistake, getting his body sliced into three pieces.


    Strictly speaking, he could have probably minimized the damage at the last second, but he¡¯d decided against doing that. The attack would have immobilized him anyway, so he might as well make Metatron¡¯s subsequent work a touch harder. Still, he resisted the urge of destroying the monkey¡¯s soul too, having already decided to not provoke the titan too overtly.


    He grimaced. Without any ranged spells, he wouldn¡¯t even manage to hit the golem, unless he came here as some kind of bird. And he doubted the combat challenges would be any easier for the other grades.


    he realised as the ethereal cord pulled him out of the Vault.


    Playing Metatron¡¯s mind games promised to be a hell of a task, but Percy fully intended to rise to the challenge.

 Chapter 138: Rodrick

    Rodrick clicked his tongue, annoyed he¡¯d been assigned the tedious task.¡°Why couldn¡¯t they send somebody else?!¡± he asked, getting a nod back from Sarin.


    Did he feel a little bad his relatives were missing? Sure, he wasn¡¯t that heartless. Still, this was Remior ¨C people died all the time. Especially during these tumultuous years. Their family was in the midst of a damn war for fuck¡¯s sake! Even if the bastards of House Avalon weren¡¯t the ones behind the attack, there were plenty of other suspects. After all, the filthy commoners in their towns hated their guts!


    ¡°It¡¯s not that bad Roddy. I¡¯ve been itching for some peasant meat lately.¡± Bessinda said, licking her lips.


    Well, she did have a point. While the owners of the Drain bloodline could sustain themselves with beasts and demi-humans, there was just something special about hunting down their kin. Nothing beat tasting a human¡¯s hopelessness as the life left their eyes, their body shrivelling like a dried waterskin.


    Of course, they all knew these¡­ stirrings were but another side-effect of their blighted bloodline. But fuck if it didn¡¯t feel good giving into the temptation! Besides, who cared about a couple peasants anyway? They already had to regularly cull the stronger ones, so that shit like this didn¡¯t happen as often.


    ¡°There it is¡­ finally.¡± he said once Bogside town came into view.


    Entering the decrepit town, the trio pinched their noses, not appreciating the stench of piss and excrement all that much. These damn commoners were hell-bent on turning the place into another swamp!


    A few of them scurried to their homes upon seeing their lords strolling along the streets. The sight caused Rodrick to smirk. They could hide all they wanted ¨C


    Reaching a small tavern in the middle of the town, he gestured at Sarin to do his part. The boy was a couple years younger than him and Bessinda, but he knew the drill by now. Kicking the door open, Sarin soon dragged an elderly man out. Fegan was among the oldest in the town ¨C a Red-born that House Tantalus had allowed to live this long on purpose, so they¡¯d have somebody leading the rest. Placing a person in charge only made their jobs easier.


    ¡°M-Master Rodrick! To what do I owe this pleasure?¡± the old bootlicker stammered, faking the most pleasant smile he could muster.


    Still, the third-rate act sounded like nails scraping against a wall to Rodrick¡¯s ears, making him grimace.


    ¡°Two things.¡± he said, wanting nothing more than to get this over with. ¡°First, three members of our House went missing from their station at the north border. Do you know anything about that?¡±


    ¡°My lord! We don¡¯t even have that many Yellows since you¨C¡± Fegan swallowed hard as he caught himself. ¡°¡­we don¡¯t have that many Yellows . Everyone at that grade is a young boy or girl who¡¯s never trained a day in their life. Nobody here would be dumb enough to attack three elites from your family.¡±


    Bessinda slapped the old man, sending him tumbling on the dirt.


    ¡°You think we don¡¯t know that?!¡± she yelled, her voice oozing with contempt.


    ¡°We¡¯re obviously asking if anybody suspicious has entered the town recently.¡± Sarin added, rolling his eyes.


    ¡°Ah! Ah, yes!¡± Fegan hurriedly nodded. ¡°Two travellers arrived about a month ago! They¡¯re currently staying by the eastern edge, close to the bog.¡±


    Rodrick frowned. He hadn¡¯t really expected to find any clues in this god-forsaken dumpster of a town. A month was plenty of time for the culprits to have travelled hundreds of miles from the province ¨C the only reason it had even taken the family so long to realize the guards were missing was because their attention had been focused on the war against the Avalons.


    ¡°Just two of them? Is either at Green?¡± he asked, having difficulty believing two Yellows would have been strong enough to take down the whole group. But if they had a Green, things could get troublesome. ????


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    ¡°No, my lord! In fact, only the girl is at Yellow. The boy is at Orange!¡±


    Hearing that, Sarin kicked the man¡¯s chest, the old codger coughing out a splash of blood.


    ¡°An Orange?! Has old age finally rotten your brain, you piece of shit?!¡± Bessinda asked. ¡°How could they possibly take down three Yellows?!¡±


    It was her turn to kick him a couple of times. Had his grade been any lower, he would have died by now.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough, Bessy.¡± Rodrick said, grabbing her shoulder. ¡°He¡¯s still useful. Finding somebody to replace him would be a pain in the ass.¡±


    Glancing around, he didn¡¯t miss the relieved sighs of the townsfolk. Most of them were still hiding in their homes, peeking through the windows, only a few daring to step outside. Even those who did made sure to keep their distance from them. S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Just to be thorough, where did those two come from?¡± he asked, turning to Fegan again.


    The old man was holding his knees in pain, trying to make himself smaller. It took him a second to realize Rodrick had asked him a question.


    ¡°F-From the south, Master Rodrick. They said they fled from their town because things got too dangerous there.¡±


    Rodrick nodded, growing more and more certain they couldn¡¯t be their targets. They¡¯d just have to report to the family that they¡¯d found nothing, and hope the group sent to the other town got luckier.


    ¡°Get up.¡± he ordered, not leaving much room for debate. ¡°Fetch us three commoners close to our age. Two girls, one boy. At Yellow.¡±


    The old man gritted his teeth at the sound of that, a hint of defiance appearing in his eyes for the first time today.


    ¡°My lord, it hasn¡¯t even been three months since the last time. Please give us a few more weeks, I beg you!¡± he said, climbing to his feet with difficulty.


    Bessinda looked like she was about to kick him again, but Rodrick held her back.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. We¡¯ve grown sick of feeding on critters. Since we¡¯re here, we might as well indulge. Or would you prefer we pick two people each?¡±


    Fegan balled his fists, the colour draining from his hands as he remained silent for a few seconds. Eventually, he spoke again.


    ¡°As you wish¡­¡± he spat in resignation. ¡°At least, can the new girl be one of them this time? She¡¯s the right age.¡±


    ¡°Is she pretty?¡± Sarin asked.


    ¡°She¡¯s ok.¡± the old man said, his features twisting into a grimace.


    The boy looked like he was going to ask for more details, but Rodrick cut him off.


    ¡°Bring her.¡± he shrugged. ¡°Just hurry up. The sooner we get this over with the better.¡±


    Fegan limped away, though Rodrick knew he was exaggerating his injuries to buy his fellow peasants a few more breaths. What a pointless endeavour¡­


    It wasn¡¯t until half an hour later that he returned, with three people in tow. Two of them ¨C a boy and a girl ¨C Rodrick recognized. Not by name of course ¨C that would be ridiculous. But he did remember their faces, having seen them on some past visit. The last girl, however, he didn¡¯t recognize. Her frame was petite, her tousled black hair only reaching her shoulders. Her black eyes were half-hidden behind a pair of glasses. As for her demeanour, it was different than the other two.


    Rodrick grinned, deciding he was going to .


    Contrary to the downtrodden expressions of the others, who had already given in to their fate, the newcomer clearly had no idea what was about to happen to her. She asked Fegan all sorts of questions, trying to figure out what was going on.


    Wearing the fakest smile the old man could muster, he lied to her through his teeth, convincing her that the generous nobles of House Tantalus were about to grant her some grand opportunity. . Buying Fegan¡¯s bullshit, she looked at the trio in excitement, eager to follow them out of the town.


    ¡°Have five more ready by the time we return.¡± Rodrick told the old man as they turned to leave. ¡°Our aunts and uncles at the estate could use a few themselves.¡±


    Soon, the group was inside the Grisly Bog. The place stank even worse than the town, but Rodrick liked bringing his victims here for the privacy. If they got lucky, they might even stumble upon a Yellow beast for dessert later.


    Delving a little deeper into the swamp, the group stopped once the stench had grown too foul to stomach. The locals were already sobbing by now. At this point, even the new girl seemed to have noticed something was wrong, as she kept asking all sorts of questions.


    ¡°My lords, what is this opportunity exactly? Why did you bring us in this dreaded swamp of all places?¡±


    ¡°Just shut up already!¡± Bessinda snapped, actively holding herself back from slapping the girl. She knew better than to mess with Rodrick¡¯s meal.


    ¡°Take your clothes off.¡± Sarin commanded, sounding a little too eager.


    Rodrick didn¡¯t exactly blame the boy. If they were going to kill these peasants, what was the harm in having a little fun with them first? They¡¯d even get to live a few minutes longer. .


    All three of the commoners flinched back at Sarin¡¯s command, hesitation flashing in their eyes. The two locals looked at each other, probably considering whether to try fighting for their lives. Though their faces sank a second later, as they knew they were no match for the nobles. Letting themselves die quietly was the best they could do for their loved ones back home.


    As for the new girl, she appeared even more scared than the others. Her hands trembled as she finally realised what a great ¡°opportunity¡± this was. Still, none of them stripped. Just when Sarin was about to force them, a shrill cry pierced the gloomy ambiance of the bog.


    ¡°KRAAA!!¡±

 Chapter 139: Quarterstaff

    A terrifying sound echoed through the swamp, soon followed by a powerful flap of wings. A shadow rapidly dove upon Sarin, tearing two wide gashes through his shoulders before the boy even had the chance to react.¡°What the fuck?!¡± Bessinda yelled, staring at the silhouette of the monstrous bird as it flew away, disappearing into the dark canopies of the trees ahead.


    There was something strange about the creature, its plumage glowing brightly for some reason, the wind swirling behind its wings leaving a green trail in its passing. Yet even these afterimages faded a second later, the boy¡¯s bleeding body the only evidence of the encounter.


    ¡°Sarin, are you ok?!¡± Rodrick reached for his cousin.


    His wounds looked nasty, but he should be conscious. Tipping the boy over, the blood froze in Rodrick¡¯s veins as he noticed Sarin¡¯s lifeless eyes staring at nothing.


    ¡°H-How?!¡± he struggled to believe it. The injuries were serious, but not lethal.


    ¡°Run! ¡± the spectacled girl suddenly shouted, her frightened demeanour dropped like a bad act. She grabbed the other two by the wrists, dragging them along as she ran towards the town.


    Rodrick tossed them a glance, debating for a second whether to stop them, before shaking his head. Their priority right now was to defend themselves against the mysterious creature. The peasants, they could handle later.


    Standing back-to-back with Bessinda, they scanned their surroundings, on the lookout for the strange bird. It didn¡¯t take them long to find it, as it didn¡¯t even bother hiding. It was perched atop a thick branch a few dozen metres away, looking at them playfully.


    ¡°Yellow?¡± Bessinda asked in confusion.


    It was true. A cursory glance via Mana Sense revealed a bright Yellow star thrumming in the crow¡¯s sternum. Its size fit too. However, there were plenty of things out of place, making it different to any beast they¡¯d seen before. A series of Yellow lines branched out of the bird¡¯s core, filling its entire frame like veins. They reached everywhere, except for a band looping around its abdomen which appeared empty for some reason. The same markings appeared on its plumage in Rodrick¡¯s regular sight, though they were a deeper, amber colour.


    Beyond that, a second set of lines covered the monster¡¯s body. These were a humble Red colour through Mana Sense, a faint green otherwise. They didn¡¯t look like veins, instead swirling throughout the creature¡¯s visage like gales of wind. Just what was this monster?! Was it using , somehow?!


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about Micky. He¡¯s going to sit this one out.¡± a male voice came from Rodrick¡¯s right.


    Still weary of the monstrous crow, he only dared to take a glimpse at the newcomer by the corner of his eyes. He was a young man of average height, two sets of lines glowing on his own body, just like the beast. Though his were both Orange through Mana Sense, silver and cyan in his normal vision.


    The newcomer wielded a cyan rod ¨C some kind of quarterstaff, perhaps? Normally, Rodrick would have laughed at a pure construct of such a low grade, but he wasn¡¯t in the mood to take anything lightly right now.


    ¡°Who the fuck are you?!¡± Bessinda hissed. ¡°Are you the one who killed the others at the border?¡±


    The man didn¡¯t bother responding. The lines on his skin grew even brighter, his muscles bulging as motes of mana leaked out of his pores. At first, they shrouded him in a dual halo, but they soon blended together into wisps of teal. The young man¡¯s flesh turned crimson all over, as beads of sweat formed one after the other.


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    ¡°Shoot him down!¡± Rodrick yelled, not daring to wait any longer.


    At the same time, he launched two pressurized orbs of water at him, trying to blast his head off. Bessinda followed up with a couple fireballs of her own a moment later.


    The intruder didn¡¯t seem to mind the attacks, however. Having seemingly expected them, he spun the rod in his hands, smashing the spells apart one after the other, slowly advancing towards them.


    Each of his steps was measured and heavy, raising a screen of mud. As for his blows, they shattered the projectiles into fiery flares or splashes of water. Together, the colourful splotches of brown, orange and blue painted quite the contrast against the dull tapestry of the Grisly Bog, but Rodrick didn¡¯t care to appreciate it.


    He didn¡¯t pause for a second, and neither did Bessinda. His weapon might be harder than it should¡¯ve been, but its durability wasn¡¯t without limits. It already bent and cracked with each blow, forcing that asshole to keep flooding it with mana.


    Drawing more power from their cores, the cousins continued their relentless barrage, occasionally throwing the crow a fleeting glance ¨C just to make sure it wouldn¡¯t interfere.


    And just when their opponent crossed about half the distance to them, the cyan construct finally snapped in half. The young man had to bob his head, barely dodging a fireball aimed at his face.


    Rodrick grinned.


    He still had no idea how an Orange spell had survived this long against their own, but it didn¡¯t really matter. Their opponent was screwed without it.


    The young man clicked his tongue in annoyance, but he didn¡¯t seem to panic. Contrary to Rodrick¡¯s expectations, the broken Quarterstaff didn¡¯t dissipate either! Its owner kept holding the two pieces, now wielding them separately as he resumed his steady march towards them.


    ¡°What the fuck are you?!¡± Bessinda snapped, gathering a much greater volume of mana in her hands.


    ¡°Don¡¯t! He¡¯s just baiting you!¡± Rodrick tried to stop her, but she didn¡¯t listen.


    She unleashed four larger fireballs at the man. This time, he didn¡¯t even try parrying them, choosing to leap out of the way instead. Clearly, he was smart enough to not try pitting his broken weapon against a Yellow¡¯s all-out-attack.


    Even worse, his reserves never seemed to run out. The man kept replenishing them with each breath. That idiot, Bessinda, hadn¡¯t realized they¡¯d already lost! S§×ar?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Dodge!¡± Rodrick warned her, as he saw the two rods spinning towards her.


    At least she listened this time, barely avoiding them.


    Still, she fell limp into the mud a second later, having been hit by something.


    ¡°How?¡± he wondered, noticing there was less of the teal smoke shrouding his opponent¡¯s body than before. Had he used it to fuel some kind of sneak attack?


    Shaking the pointless questions out of his head, he turned around to leave. He wasn¡¯t out of mana yet, but he could tell he was outmatched. Even if he could somehow catch the bastard unprepared, the crow was still looking at him with hunger in its piercing silver eyes.


    He didn¡¯t even bother trying, as the spectacled girl emerged from the trees ahead, cutting his path forward.


    ¡°You guys were a disappointment.¡± the young man spoke. ¡°The other group were much tougher than you.¡±


    Rodrick clenched his fist in anger, though he didn¡¯t retort. He knew it was true. Their lower combat ability was why their family only sent them on low-risk missions like this. Who could have expected it would turn out this way?!


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Rodrick spat, evaluating his situation.


    ¡°Many things¡­¡± the young man said. ¡°But from you? Only a few answers.¡± he added, inching closer.


    Rodrick didn¡¯t miss how the bastard exchanged a glance with the girl.


    The odds of this working were laughable, but he didn¡¯t see a better option. Yet, just when he was about to go through with his makeshift plan, the young man spoke again.


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother.¡± he said, manifesting a teal sickle in each hand. ¡°Just spare us both the pointless effort and empty your core.¡± he added, his tone not leaving much room for debate.


    Rodrick wondered, taking another look at his opponent¡¯s face.


    The silver lines reached into the bastard¡¯s eyes, his pupils glowing. Was this how he kept reading their intentions?


    Gritting his teeth, he slowly extended his arms to his sides, pouring what little mana he had left harmlessly by his feet. He did briefly consider using the puddle for a sneak attack, but the young man narrowed his eyes, clearly having sensed it too.


    ¡°I know about your bloodline, so don¡¯t try anything funny with it either.¡±


    Rodrick sighed, knowing he was fucked.


    ¡°What do you want to know?¡±


    The young man smiled coldly.


    ¡°Everything.¡±

 Chapter 140: Reinforcement

    Percy sighed as he watched Micky devour the corpses, each of them barely a couple years younger than him. The first one to die might have not even reached adulthood yet. Still, he knew they¡¯d all killed dozens of townsfolk with their bloodline, and they would have certainly continued to do so had he spared them. Had he let them go, he would have only doomed several others in their stead.¡°What now? You realize this is going to bring us more trouble, right?¡± Nesha asked.


    She had stuck with him through Rodrick¡¯s interrogation, scrutinizing the information with her bloodline. At first, the guy tried to mix some lies with the truth. Percy wasn¡¯t sure if he¡¯d done this merely to spite him, or out of love for his family. That said, the man soon gave up after coming to understand how pointless it was.


    By now, Percy had a pretty complete picture of House Tantalus in his head. He knew their numbers and their grades ¨C he even had a rough idea of their combat strength and their current posts. It would certainly make his infiltration easier, assuming they survived the coming months.


    ¡°What choice did we have?¡± he asked.


    While he¡¯d always planned to take action against the rival House, he¡¯d originally intended to do so much later. Ideally, he would have allowed the situation with the dead guards to calm down, giving himself another year to grow stronger. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t have predicted the old man handing Nesha to those assholes the first chance he got. Was Percy supposed to just let her get killed?


    Given the circumstances, his best option had been to let the nobles drag the commoners to the swamp, having his familiar attack them. It wasn¡¯t an accident he¡¯d allowed the two peasants to see the culprit. Now, they¡¯d disseminate the news back to the others, diverting House Tantalus¡¯s eyes away from him and Nesha. For all anyone knew, the perpetrator of both attacks was just a wild beast that had now settled inside the Grisly Bog.


    ¡°Next time, they¡¯ll send stronger people.¡± Nesha said grimly.


    ¡°Yes, they will.¡± Percy nodded. ¡°And we¡¯ll be ready for them.¡±


    It would be dangerous but, at least, they had some time to prepare. Suffice to say, he had no intention of letting the crow bear the consequences alone. Luring the nobles to the bog ¨C away from prying eyes ¨C would only make it easier to ambush them.


    Heading back, he quickly noticed some commotion at the centre of the town, a crowd of hundreds standing there. It was rather quiet, considering how many people had gathered. The only thing breaking the sombre silence was a girl¡¯s shaky voice, as she recounted the events in the bog. Her words were interspaced with sobs, a male voice interjecting to add a couple details here and there.


    Percy flashed Nesha a glance, prompting her to act a little more distraught too. Her excuse for not entering the town with the others was that she was afraid to do so, given what old Fegan had done. Percy also had his own role to play, having supposedly found his companion hiding by the outskirts of the swamp.


    ¡°What the hell, old man?!¡± Percy yelled as he approached the crowd.


    The townsfolk drew sharp breaths upon noticing them. Most of them parted, opening a path to Fegan. One person rushed to stop him, however. It was Mr. Dylan, the shopkeeper.


    ¡°Calm down, kid. I know you have every right to be angry, but just hear old Fegan out first. He had his reasons for doing what he did.¡± he said, placing his hand on Percy¡¯s shoulder.


    The latter shook it off, giving him a sharp glare. Truth be told, his opinion of the shopkeeper was good. They¡¯d already worked together over the past few weeks, with Percy having crafted a few knives of decent quality, selling them through the guy¡¯s shop. Plus, they were currently discussing the possibility of importing iron from the neighbouring town.


    Suffice to say, he wasn¡¯t thrilled at the prospect of taking his anger out on Dylan, but he had to play his part. Besides, his rage wasn¡¯t entirely faked. Had he and Nesha failed to piece together the town¡¯s situation, she might have really died today.


    ¡°Calm down?! What reason did he have?! Somebody had to die, so might as well pick the new girl, right?! Who cares about her?!¡± he yelled again, looking at the old man.


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    Fegan glanced at his feet in shame, as did many of the others. Honestly, Percy understood where they were coming from, but it was still a fucked-up thing to do.


    ¡°Everything you say is correct, young man.¡± Fegan found the courage to speak after a while. ¡°I was forced to choose between kids I¡¯ve known my whole life, and somebody that only got here last month. I¡¯m deeply ashamed of my choice, but I¡¯d do it again.¡±


    Percy snapped at that, approaching him with clenched fists, as more of the townsfolk moved to intercept him. In the end, he didn¡¯t get very close before speaking.


    ¡°Listen. I get why you did what you did. But I¡¯m warning you now ¨C If you try anything like that again, we¡¯re going to have a problem.¡± he spat, before grabbing Nesha by the wrist and walking away.


    Only once they were back in the privacy of their humble hut did his expression ease.


    ¡°How was it? Do you think they bought it?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not the best person to ask.¡± Nesha rolled her eyes. ¡°My bloodline kept tingling with every drop of bullshit spewing out of your mouth. Though, I suppose it would have sounded somewhat believable without it.¡±


    Nodding, he let her return to her work ¨C she¡¯d been practicing how to draw the space rune over the past few days. That said, a spatial amulet involved multiple enchantments, and she was still some distance away from getting the first one to work. However, she didn¡¯t slack, focusing on her task intently, knowing they were swiftly running out of time. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    As for Percy, he had his own concealment rune to worry about, though he ignored it for now, choosing to perfect his newest spell instead.


    he noted, recalling his earlier fight.


    It was impressive how he¡¯d managed to deflect multiple spells from the Yellow cores with it, but he understood he owed much of that to Synchronization too. His new trick, on the other hand, could still use some work.


    Percy had developed this latest technique partly from Sengo¡¯s teachings, and partly from the Moirais¡¯. Unstrapping a linen pouch from his waist, he opened it, pinching a handful of cyan powder. Naturally, the new spell involved the exotic substance, using it to reinforce his pure constructs!


    The idea was that crystallized mana was harder but too brittle to be useable by itself, while uncrystallized mana was too soft. However, what would happen if he combined the two?


    In a process reminiscent of the creation of concrete, he used his willpower to blend the two variants of mana together, forcefully combining them. Unlike mundane materials, he couldn¡¯t join them through heat or pressure, but that didn¡¯t mean he was without options.


    Percy was essentially performing affinity fusion!


    Yet, instead of merging two separate affinities, he was now mixing two variants of the same one. Soon, he ended up with a new material. It was a handful of small rice-shaped grains. They were even tougher than the crystals, making them much more difficult to break.


    But Percy wasn¡¯t done yet. The new substance was merely an intermediate step. While it was stronger than its two components, he couldn¡¯t form constructs out of this alone. Next, he grabbed some more powder from the pouch, drawing mana from his core. He mixed all three variants once again, letting the dust settle between the grains, filling the gaps with regular mana to hold everything together.


    Via Mana Sense, he carefully scanned the mixture, smoothing out any imperfections, forcing the grains to align, reshaping the ¡°alloy¡± into a more coherent form. It took him another ten minutes before he held another Quarterstaff in his hand, much like the one he¡¯d used in the bog.


    he smiled bitterly.


    His opponents wouldn¡¯t always give him so much time before a fight. And this was just to fuse the existing powder with his pure mana. He still needed to spend several hours producing enough dust in the first place. At least, the powder could be recycled afterwards, to be used in a different weapon or in alchemy. Percy had already retrieved the broken pieces from earlier ¨C they were part of his current stash.


    Opening his Status, he checked the spell section once more.


    Spells:


    [Parting Gift ¨C Crude][Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude][Quarterstaff ¨C Crude][Glove ¨C Crude][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Synchronization ¨C Refined][Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    While his new trick could still use a lot of work, the Status had been kind enough to register it. Reinforcement had taken Crystallization¡¯s spot, apparently being considered a direct upgrade of that. For some reason, it hadn¡¯t been linked to the Quarterstaff itself ¨C perhaps because the new substance could be used more broadly than just that.


    He couldn¡¯t help but grin at the realization. His arsenal was getting more and more ridiculous! Sometimes, it was easy to forget how much stronger he¡¯d grown, as he was always pitting himself against tougher opponents.


    Even now, he was planning to ambush a bunch of hostile nobles, while at the same time preparing to infiltrate their House¡¯s warehouse, to steal tens of thousands of elixirs. And all of that, while continuing to hide from the Divine Root. Every bit of it sounded insane ¨C at least, he would have never believed he¡¯d be in this position had somebody told him a couple years ago!


    But at the end of the day, it was merely evidence of how far he¡¯d come. And he wasn¡¯t going to stop anytime soon.

 Chapter 141: Demi-humans

    A terrible tune pierced through the eerie silence of the bog. It had been going for a while, the amateurish melody driving even the owls and bats away from the area. Had somebody been unfortunate enough to walk nearby, they would have certainly torn their ears out by now.Suddenly, a mound of mud rose behind Percy, a scaly reptilian head emerging from within, its slit eyes glaring at him in fury. It coiled once, accumulating strength like a spring as its mouth opened wide, droplets of venom coalescing by the tips of its sharp fangs. Then, it snapped right at him, intent on putting the entire swamp out of its misery.


    But it never got the chance.


    Before its attack even landed, two talons clasped its head, punching a handful of deep holes in its skull. A couple seconds later, Micky was already digging through the snake¡¯s body, searching for his snack. As for Percy, he didn¡¯t even bother turning around, knowing his familiar had everything under control all along. He continued playing the ocarina, his fingers clumsily tapping the misshapen holes, proliferating the atrocious sound.


    ¡°Percy¡­ just stop!¡± Micky said, taking a break from his dinner at some point.


    ¡°Geez, I¡¯m starting to regret teaching you how to speak.¡± Percy replied, though he acquiesced.


    Perhaps, they had all suffered enough of his ¡°art¡± for one night. Well, Nesha certainly had, as she had already kicked him out of the hut a couple hours ago. Though he blamed the crude design of the instrument as much as his own lack of skill.


    he shrugged.


    The only thing he lamented was how little time he got to spend with Micky ever since the incident. He and Nesha had subtly verified ¨C¨C that the townsfolk had truly bought the rumour about the monstrous crow. Everyone seemed to believe that Micky was the sole culprit behind the attacks, which suited them just fine. After all, this was the exact story they wanted to reach House Tantalus¡¯s ears.


    However, it also meant Percy couldn¡¯t enter the Grisly Bog openly. Everyone believed there was a dangerous Green beast currently roaming the area, so it would have been strange of him if he showed no fear in getting near. Consequently, he could only ever do this at night, sneaking out of the town secretly. At least, their hut was conveniently located by the edge, which made things a little easier.


    ¡°Micky, I suggest you pace yourself if you don¡¯t want to run out of food.¡± Percy suddenly warned.


    Ever since the bird mastered Circulation with its second core, it had grown even more formidable. Its effect would have normally been somewhat lacklustre by itself, but it seemed to synergize extremely well with Acceleration, making Micky an absolute menace. While the townsfolk had misunderstood the crow¡¯s grade, their assumption about its strength wasn¡¯t that far from the truth. Percy estimated Micky could hold his own against a real Green beast!


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    After all, they no longer lived beneath the Fungal Spire, where an endless supply of wasps emerged from the hive¡¯s depths every day to replenish their ranks. Wild beasts couldn¡¯t reproduce nearly as fast as the magical insects. If Micky continued to stuff his face with dozens of Yellow cores per day, he¡¯d probably drive them to extinction by the time they left.


    Micky wasn¡¯t happy hearing he had to go on a diet, but he was smart enough to understand what Percy was saying. He¡¯d already noticed it was getting harder to find food with each passing day.


    In any case, this was more of a long-term problem. They¡¯d be lucky if they survived long enough to worry about that. Placing the ocarina in his pocket, Percy leapt up from the half-rotten log. He¡¯d already had enough of a break.


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    Pulling some pure mana from his core, he focused it on his index finger, as he began to carve intricate circles on the aged wood. His first few attempts were clumsy ¨C until he got into it ¨C though he got better each time. Every now and then, he wiped away his previous scribbles, not wanting to leave evidence of his presence here, in case he forgot to get rid of them later.


    he repeated like a mantra, visualizing the effect of his bandage in the process.


    That was what he wanted from the enchantments ¨C to hide mana from Mana Sense. A simple thing, yet of immense importance to him.


    Line after line, rune after rune, refill after refill, Percy kept drawing the symbols until there was no more space on the severed trunk. Even Micky had grown bored of watching him at some point, now leisurely cleaning his feathers with his beak.


    ¡°How long has it been?¡±


    ¡°Couple hours?¡± the bird shrugged.


    Percy nodded. He didn¡¯t even know if any of the enchantments were functional. Some of them should have been ¨C after all, most of them about right by now. Though he¡¯d long decided to stop checking after each attempt, to save himself some time and frustration. His plan was to keep at it for a few more days before examining the results.


    ¡°Ok, I¡¯ll head back then.¡± he said.


    He could¡¯ve spent some more time in the swamp if he wanted, but he still had to work in the forge during the days ¨C not to mention brewing more Aurora Dew for the three of them. It would probably serve him better to get himself some sleep.


    Percy took a few breaths, gathering mana for Synchronization, when Micky stopped him.


    ¡°Leave it¡­¡± he said, activating his own boosting art.


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Percy said, waving him farewell as he turned away.


    He heard the sound of wood breaking, as Micky disposed of the evidence of his runecrafting training. On the way to the town, Percy couldn¡¯t help but throw a glance at the eastern side of the swamp, contemplating a certain rumour he¡¯d heard from the townsfolk. Apparently, a tribe of trolls lived inside the furthest reaches of the Grisly Bog.


    Trolls were semi-sentient creatures, much like the wood goblins he had encountered before. Though they were much larger and fiercer. They tended to be born at Orange more often too. Naturally, they still weren¡¯t a match for Percy, nor would they make particularly good meals for his familiar, but that wasn¡¯t what interested him.


    Semi-sentients ¨C ¨C had drawn the short end of the cosmic stick. Smack in the middle between beasts and sentients, they were cursed with the worst aspects of both worlds. They lacked the miraculous affinity that gave beasts their strength, and also the intelligence to make proper use of the other mana types.


    However, they were in many ways perfect for Percy¡¯s current needs. Sporting humanoid bodies, developed vocal cords, opposable thumbs, Orange cores, and elemental affinities, he would have an endless array of decent hosts to take to the Vault. Even better, he could pick and choose the best ones, selecting affinities that suited him ¨C a luxury he wasn¡¯t used to. That ought to give him a leg up in the combat challenges.


    If he did this, he would be missing out on the chance of stumbling upon something valuable out there. Everything his clones had ever brought back had been a pure coincidence, so he didn¡¯t want to stop rolling the dice on that. After all, he hadn¡¯t forgotten about the Rings of Sacrilege, nor the powerful Decrees waiting for him all over the universe.


    And then, there was the issue with opening a portal on Remior. While he was 90% certain that Metatron had no intention, nor the ability to do anything untoward, he wasn¡¯t comfortable taking that risk. Perhaps, he might have ¨C had it just been his own life on the line ¨C but he¡¯d never forgive himself if he ended up dooming his friends and family out of greed.


    If he got lucky, one of them might have an interesting affinity for him to play around with. So far, all his clones had ended up with common ones, which he felt was a waste of his bloodline¡¯s potential. At the very least, it would serve him well to understand how some of the more exotic mana types worked, in case he ran into another enemy like that time mage.


    Reaching the town, he made sure nobody was up as he snuck into the house, trying not to wake Nesha. She was sleeping on her bed ¨C they¡¯d managed to buy a couple old ones ¨C though the single room in their house was starting to look a little cramped. At least, they didn¡¯t have many possessions, and the hut¡¯s convenient location meant they could relieve themselves outside.


    Still, being a hybrid between a bedroom and a blacksmithing workshop, it was impossible for Nesha to sleep while Percy worked. The heat from the furnace took hours to disperse afterwards too.


    Picking a bucket of water, he stepped outside before dousing himself, trying to get rid of some of the swamp¡¯s stench. Then he took his boots off, jumping into his own bed. Next, he groaned, calculating he only had a couple hours left until daybreak.

 Chapter 142: War

    Elaine was trekking through the Whistling Woods with a few others. The soft tunes of the oblong cones were more than a little nostalgic. They made her think back fondly to that time with Percy all those years ago. She hadn¡¯t been here all that much since then¡­she sighed.


    Sadly, she wasn¡¯t in the mood to appreciate the forest¡¯s serene beauty today. Unlike that day¡¯s pilgrimage, their current mission was far more dangerous, a palpable tension settling between the members of their small group. There were only four of them, each being an elite of the family.


    ¡°Uncle, do you think they will really attack?¡± she asked.


    Elaine was certain Galahad had heard her, but the man didn¡¯t bother replying, focused on scanning the area ahead with his Mana Sense. Instead, it was his son who answered.


    ¡°You worry too much cousin.¡± Mordred¡¯s lips parted in his usual grin. ¡°There¡¯s no way those Tantalus bastards will pass this opportunity to strike.¡±


    While Elaine had never liked the boy much ¨C ¨C she nodded, concentrating on the substance of his words. They were currently tasked with meeting a group of relatives at the other end of the forest, to escort them back to the mansion.


    One of House Avalon¡¯s most lucrative businesses was lending some of their life users to other affiliated families, to serve as healers for some time. After all, their near monopoly on the affinity was much sought after, letting them earn most of their revenue this way.


    As for the hunting missions the rest of them ¨C like Elaine ¨C undertook, they only made peanuts by comparison. Those were mostly meant for their members to gain combat experience, not to make money. And, given House Tantalus¡¯s aggression over the past couple of years, there was no doubt in Archibald¡¯s mind the rival family would try targeting those very healers, to deal a major blow to their coffers.


    ¡°What if they¡¯re expecting us?¡± she asked again.


    Besides protecting the healers, their secondary objective was to intercept the attackers, dealing a blow of their own to House Tantalus. This was how the war manifested these days, with the two families seeking opportunities to gnaw at each other¡¯s forces.


    It was Galahad who replied this time.


    ¡°Of course they are. . It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±


    While her uncle and cousin¡¯s optimism was somewhat contagious, Elaine wasn¡¯t entirely convinced their confidence was warranted. It was true the two of them were some of the most talented Yellow-borns in the family, despite their common affinity and lack of a bloodline. Still, they had no idea how many people their enemies had sent.


    Overall, House Avalon had a slight advantage in the total number of Blues and Greens, but their members were spread thinner, as their side of the province was about 40% larger, and they had a third town to look after. Consequently, Archibald was more conservative when assigning people to missions, unwilling to leave any important locations vulnerable.


    she thought grimly. But she kept that to herself, not wanting to impact everyone¡¯s morale.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be so tense.¡± her dad spoke, echoing the others¡¯ words.


    Gawain was the fourth and final member of their team ¨C the only Orange-born. While he was the same grade as her and Mordred, he had a few more decades of experience under his belt. Next, he patted her on the shoulder before continuing.


    ¡°Your grandpa knows what he¡¯s doing. If he¡¯s only sent the four of us, it means we can handle whoever comes. .¡±


    Hearing her father¡¯s reassurance, she nodded. , she trusted. Her grandpa too. If they believed they were enough, they .


    Soon, they reached the designated spot. The healers wouldn¡¯t arrive for a few more hours, so their job was to secure the area by then. They all double-checked their concealment bandages were in place, as they covertly scoured the perimeter, ensuring that their enemies had yet to get there.


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    Elaine was torn, unsure whether it was best to get attacked before or after the healers arrived. On one hand, the healers could give them the edge, supporting them as they fought against House Tantalus¡¯s mages. However, it could also be inconvenient to protect their weaker relatives in the midst of combat.


    Either way, they didn¡¯t get a choice in the matter. Just half an hour later, a snarky voice echoed through the woods, piercing through the cacophony of the whistling cones.


    ¡°Well, well¡­ It seems Archibald has finally made a mistake.¡± a man said gleefully, his words sounding like nails against a chalkboard. ¡°Only a Blue and three Greens? House Avalon is in for a rough week.¡±


    The bastards didn¡¯t even bother hiding, facing their group head on. They had two Blues and five Greens in their ranks, outnumbering them nearly 2:1. Both of their Blues had the bloodline too, their sickly faces making them look even more frightening than they normally would have.


    ¡°Me and Mordred will fight two people each. As for you and your daughter, you¡¯re going to keep the other three occupied until we¡¯re done.¡± Galahad told Gawain, his tone not leaving much room for debate.


    Elaine¡¯s heart sank, fearing for her dad¡¯s life above all else. The image of her newborn brother quickly flashed by her eyes.


    she decided resolutely.


    Suddenly, two waves slammed onto them, making it hard to breathe. These weren¡¯t spells, however ¨C there was no mana fuelling them. Just somebody¡¯s presence. The Blues¡¯. While each promotion typically strengthened a mage¡¯s body and magic by three times, some additional changes came into play once somebody reached the higher grades. That made the gap between Blues and Greens even wider than expected. Elaine didn¡¯t fully understand how this ability worked, but it was unique to Blues and above.


    Just when she felt like she was about to pass out, a third presence emerged, pushing back against the others, forcing their suffocating auras to recede. Elaine gasped heavily the first chance she got, noting that Galahad¡¯s presence was even sharper than his opponents¡¯. He¡¯d certainly beat either of them, if they were to fight separately.


    It was hard to say. If he lost, the other fights wouldn¡¯t even matter. Conversely, if the Greens finished first, they could intervene to tip the scales.


    Either way, the time for thoughts was over.


    The two Blues launched an apocalyptic spell each, aiming at her uncle. The first one exhaled a blazing cloud, wide enough to burn a house to cinders. As for the second, he shot a rain of stone arrows through the cloud, their tips hot-red by the time the emerged from the other side.


    Yet Galahad was unfazed. Not missing a beat, he sent forth an indigo flash with a wave of his hand, a bright bolt slamming into the first of the enemies¡¯ projectiles. It moved too fast for her to fully grasp, but it seemed to zig and zag between the rest of the arrows, shattering them into sand one after the other.


    she thought, gaining some new respect for the man.


    A fraction of a second later, the light sank into the expanding flame, causing it to explode, a violent shockwave knocking all eight Greens off their feet. Only the Blues remained upright, the two sides staring at each other as the smell of charcoal and ozone permeated the area.


    The first of the Blues clicked his tongue, realizing this wouldn¡¯t be as easy of a fight as he¡¯d thought. At the same time, Galahad tossed his son a quick glance, pointing at two of the enemy Greens, getting a nod back. Mordred summoned two indigo javelins in his hands. They paled in comparison to his father¡¯s, but the young man stared at his opponents with the same nonchalance.


    Next, he aimed at them, before launching his spells by their feet, forcing them back. They responded with a few attacks of their own, as the three of them inched away from the apocalyptic battlefield of their superiors.


    Following their lead, Elaine exchanged a glance with Gawain, as the two put some distance from the Blues too. As for the remaining three Greens, they chased them into the woods like a pack of ravenous wolves. Clearly, everyone was on the same page, nobody willing to stay anywhere close to the ancient monsters longer than they had to. sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    It wasn¡¯t until they were about a mile away that all five of them stopped. Elaine briefly considered continuing to run, to keep their pursuers busy without a fight, but she quickly shook her head. If they refused to engage them, their opponents would just return to aid their leaders.


    ¡°Elaine.¡± Gawain spoke softly. ¡°If something happens to me, I want you to run straight to the mansion, and not even look back.¡±


    She opened her mouth to protest. Her unwillingness to abandon her father aside, she couldn¡¯t betray the others. While she¡¯d never much liked Galahad or Mordred, they were counting on her!


    Seeing her struggle, Gawain chuckled, probably guessing what she was thinking. He patted her shoulder again, before speaking one more time.


    ¡°In the worst-case scenario, Galahad will be able to escape. He¡¯s faster than them, and he¡¯s more valuable to the family than any of us. He won¡¯t let himself die. Though I doubt the boy will survive if it comes to that. Promise me you won¡¯t throw your life away over nothing.¡±


    Elaine gritted her teeth, but she nodded in the end. Turning to face their opponents, she saw two of them lick their lips, a lecherous expression plastered all over their ugly mugs as they ogled her. They were already drawing mana from their cores, as was she and her father, all five combatants beginning to manifest their spells.

 Chapter 143: Waves

    Only one of the Greens had the bloodline. Not that it mattered much as neither Elaine nor Gawain had an easy time approaching their enemies. A long trail of flames swam through the air, resembling an earthworm, burning holes through the trees¡¯ trunks wherever it passed. It chased the two of them without pause, forcing them to keep evading. Whenever it got too close, Elaine chopped it to pieces with her whips, but the fire mage kept pouring mana into the spell. It also didn¡¯t help they had the stalagmites to worry about.¡°Careful!¡± Gawain warned, Elaine sidestepping the emerging construct at the last second.


    Earth magic was generally slower than other types, but it had its own perks. Beside the fact that the spells were heavier and thus harder to block, it allowed its users to perform deadly sneak attacks by sending their mana through the ground. It travelled a little faster like that too. Elaine¡¯s elders had long drilled into her that she was supposed to keep a safe distance from an earth mage, constantly having her Mana Sense glued to the ground while fighting one.


    she smiled bitterly.


    Both her and Gawain¡¯s spells worked better at medium range, their whips currently unable to reach their opponents. Between the stalagmites and the fire worms, they struggled to catch their breath too. As for the last guy, he hadn¡¯t broken a sweat. He was also an earth mage, but he had only created a single stone golem so far. It was twice as tall as a person, towering over them as it stood guard by their side, ready to block the occasional splash of water that made it there.


    she realized.


    Their opponents were probably Orange-borns over sixty years old ¨C ¨C as evident by their slightly older appearance and the finesse of their Refined spells. At least, that was the case for the fire worm dude and the golem guy. The last one was probably a Yellow-born about her age, his stalagmites hardly beyond the threshold of a Crude spell.


    Strictly speaking, this was acceptable. Galahad had merely tasked them with keeping the three Greens busy. They didn¡¯t have to win. However, Elaine just couldn¡¯t shake her worry. S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Will he and Mordred really manage to win their own fights?¡±


    If they failed, none of them would survive today. Not to mention, her current situation wasn¡¯t exactly sustainable. Her mana was running out faster than their opponents¡¯. Realizing what she was thinking, her dad spoke.


    ¡°Chop a tree down for me, will you?¡± he whispered as soon as they were out of sight. ¡°I¡¯m going to try something.¡±


    Nodding, she sent a crescent slash of azure at the nearest trunk, slicing through the wood like a hot knife through butter. The two leapt back as the tree landed with a heavy thud, sending some dirt in every direction. Ignoring the mud on his clothes, Galahad then summoned a whip of his own, causing it to wrap around the trunk many times, covering it from tip to tip like a yarn stick, shaving it clean of branches and twigs in the process.


    ¡°Protect me for a couple seconds.¡± he instructed.


    More hostile spells rained at them, forcing Elaine to spend even more mana to block them. She dismantled the incoming worms, while also digging through the ground to get to the nascent stalagmites before they formed. Of course, this move cost her a lot more than merely dodging. Her reserves had already dropped below the halfway mark by now¡­


    At least, her father didn¡¯t delay, launching his own attack a moment later.


    Pulling the tree up, he threw it the opposite way from his enemies, as the aquamarine band stretched and tensed, looking like it was about to snap. . Next, he tugged it with all his might, his brow creasing as the trunk began to spin, gaining momentum. The coil of water unravelled rapidly, chunks of bark flying in all directions as the colossal spear of wood drilled through the air.


    Gawain was the one who¡¯d taught Elaine the Whip spell in the first place, though his own version had developed in a slightly different route. Unlike the sharp, slicing constructs his daughter used, Gawain¡¯s version focused on precise control and leveraging mechanical strength. Usually, he used it to entangle and trap his opponents, but that wasn¡¯t all it could do¡­.


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    Soon, the attack reached their opponents, the golem guy moving his construct in its path. The stone giant clasped the incoming tree with both hands, as a second golem began to take shape right behind it. Splinters of wood and chips of rock flew in every direction, as the spinning trunk dug into the golem¡¯s chest, pushing it back. Its feet carved two muddy trails on the ground, before the second golem finally formed, supporting its broken brother, bringing him to a halt.


    Elaine grimaced as Gawain clicked his tongue. This manoeuvre had cost them both way too much, for way too little. But they didn¡¯t get the chance to worry about that for long, as the others continued pelting their location with spells.


    Elaine made her mind up as she took a deep breath, and then another.


    Ever since she mastered Circulation, she had actually never used it in a fight. . Her fear of bringing trouble to her family aside, this was Percy¡¯s secret. She¡¯d been conscious not to resort to it unless she was backed to a corner. Sadly, the day for that seemed to have finally arrived¡­


    Oblivious to her thoughts, both their opponents and Gawain continued to duke it out, as a river of mana flooded her channels. It was an odd sensation, the intensity of the flow causing her pathways to swell and burn, while the refreshing coolness of the water mana soothed them at the same time. Honestly, she was a little rusty, as it had been months since the last time she¡¯d practiced it. Still, she vividly remembered the pattern she had so painstakingly devised. Aquamarine lines soon lit up all over her skin, drawing shapes akin to waves in their passing. Her muscles tensed too, her spells growing a touch more potent.


    ¡°Elaine? What is this?!¡± Gawain asked, taken aback by the sight.


    Naturally, she hadn¡¯t even told her parents about the technique. While she loved them and trusted them more than anyone else in the world, this wasn¡¯t her secret to spill.


    a pang of guilt gripped her chest, but she quickly shook those thoughts away.


    In any case, she knew he wouldn¡¯t blame her. After all, this was a matter of life and death. Besides, Gawain wouldn¡¯t leak the news. The only thing she had to worry about was making sure .


    The enemy spells intensified as they also realized something was wrong, but it was too late. Having left any lingering concerns over her dwindling reserves long behind her, she summoned five whips in each hand, ripping the blazing worm to shreds. At the same time, she carved deep grooves through the dirt, uprooting the earth mana before it had the chance to do much.


    Step by step, she accelerated as she dashed toward her opponents, unwilling to let any of them escape. Her father advanced right alongside her, struggling a little to keep up with her speed. Their enemies seemed to hesitate at last, finally realizing just how fucked they were.


    Suddenly, the stalagmite boy bolted off, abandoning his elders!


    ¡°Dad, stop him! We can¡¯t let him live!¡± she yelled in panic.


    Though she didn¡¯t have to. Gawain was already one step ahead, having rushed after the kid before she¡¯d even uttered a word.


    The remaining two mages glanced at each other, probably contemplating their options. Though they stayed in the end. They must¡¯ve determined their best chance was to work together to take her down. The first one repaired both golems, using what little mana he had left to summon a third. At the same time, the fire mage formed about a dozen worms, all of them diving towards Elaine from various directions, closing in like a devil¡¯s claws.


    But she didn¡¯t care.


    Pivoting on her feet, she spun as she neared her enemies. Her whips grew longer and sharper, making shrill sounds as they sliced and diced everything in their path. Whether it was trees, rocks or spells, it didn¡¯t matter, as the Kraken¡¯s Gambit shredded everything indiscriminately. Mundane specks of brown and grey fell on the ground, as glowing motes of orange faded into nothing.


    she closed her eyes upon reaching her targets, two bitter streams rolling down her cheeks.


    She knew it was ill-advised to look away during a fight, but she just couldn¡¯t help it. This wasn¡¯t the first time she¡¯d killed somebody ¨C this disgusting war had already forced her to take many lives over the past couple of years ¨C but it never got any easier for her.


    Leaving only her Mana Sense active, she first watched the remaining constructs get chopped to pieces, before seeing the two Green cores fall on the ground. A moment later, they had already begun to dim. Only then did she deactivate her boosting art, turning away, unable to look at the mangled corpses.


    Her father returned a minute later. His core was nearly empty, but she could tell through the calmness in his expression that he¡¯d managed to eliminate the last guy. The frightened kid had probably been a poor match for the more experienced mage.


    Of course, she didn¡¯t miss the questions lingering in Gawain¡¯s eyes, but he didn¡¯t say anything. They both knew this wasn¡¯t the time for that. The two of them embraced each other in silence, as they caught their breath, preparing to aid their relatives.

 Chapter 144: Two things

    Archibald contemplated the latest reports as he radiated dense life mana from his palm, focusing it on his son¡¯s stump. Even for a powerful Violet core, regrowing a Blue¡¯s arm would take several hours. And that was taking into account his more sophisticated approach, chiselled to perfection after centuries of healing people. Blindly pouring mana into a wound like a brute would still work, but it would take so much longer.¡°How did the other fronts go?¡± Galahad asked, not even flinching at the excruciating pain as his flesh and bones squirmed.


    ¡°About as well as you¡¯d expect.¡±


    When forming the group of four for the escort mission, Archibald had naturally given himself some leeway, in case House Tantalus sent more people than expected. Originally, he¡¯d thought Galahad and Mordred would be plenty to deal with any complications. Still, he¡¯d underestimated how keen their enemies had been to get to the healers.


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    Life users were their family¡¯s greatest strength, as well as a huge thorn in their rivals¡¯ sides. Not to mention the two women in the group of healers those degenerates wanted to place their filthy hands on.


    Luckily, House Tantalus had failed in the end. Their Blues did manage to escape with their lives, but their injuries were no better than Galahad¡¯s. Even with Drain, they¡¯d need longer to fix them ¨C not to mention how many lives they¡¯d have to take. As for their Greens, .


    While he¡¯d hoped it wouldn¡¯t come to that, Archibald had sent his granddaughter to serve as a final trump card, just in case things went south. He knew the girl could turn the tides in a pinch, though that had come with its own cost. Now Gawain had learned of Circulation too.


    It wasn¡¯t the end of the world ¨C Archibald trusted this son of his ¨C but this was how it started. What if two years from now Gawain was forced to reveal it to save somebody else? They could try all they wanted to keep a lid on the secret, but their family had already existed for centuries, and they very much hoped it would continue to do so for many more.


    But what choice did they have? Should Elaine have allowed everyone to die? What if Galahad had died too? That would have been a catastrophic blow to their House.


    Very few Houses had two Violet cores, so this should place them in the top twenty about a century from now. Adding Circulation to the mix, and only the Great Houses or the Divine Order would be able to pressure them into handing the technique over. There wasn¡¯t much they could do about that, but they¡¯d be in a better position to negotiate an acceptable deal, to fend the weaker families off until Archibald reached White.


    he decided.


    His successor¡¯s life was almost as valuable as the secret itself. After all, should he die, or should the secret leak before his promotion, their entire House would face annihilation¡­


    ¡°How many casualties on their side?¡± Galahad asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°A dozen Greens and twenty Yellows.¡±


    House Tantalus had chosen to weaken their position in many other contested locations, to gather enough people to send on the ambitious mission. Other than the five Greens who had died in the Whistling Woods, the rival family had ended up suffering many more losses for their greed. ????


    ¡°That ought to douse their aggression for a few months.¡± Galahad nodded.


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    But Archibald clenched his fist, not feeling happy about it at all. Indeed, they¡¯d come out on top this time, but this constant tit-for-tat had taken many lives on their side too. If this continued, they¡¯d lose half their people by the time the lotus bloomed.


    Archibald was much stronger than the enemy leader, Broteas. He was confident in killing him in a frontal confrontation, along with many of his men. But could he take the whole family out without leaving a single witness behind? Probably not.


    Moreover, Violet cores couldn¡¯t easily leave their homes. After all, they were the last line of defence protecting the children and the non-combatants of the family. The massacre twenty or so years ago had happened precisely when House Tantalus had lured Archibald away from the mansion. Not that he¡¯d had much of a choice at the time, as they could have easily lost two Blues had he not done that.


    ¡°It won¡¯t.¡± Archibald said. ¡°They¡¯ll keep throwing everything they have at us. They know how much stronger you¡¯ll become once you get a petal.¡±


    Galahad was arguably the strongest Blue core in the entire Camelot province. Suffice to say, House Avalon would benefit more from the lotus than their rivals. This was something they were all keenly aware of.


    ¡°Speaking of which, we have yet to discuss what to do with the remaining two petals.¡± Galahad said, changing the topic.


    Archibald could already guess what his son wanted. Naturally, he intended for all three petals to end in the hands of Yellow-borns, as they had the highest long-term potential. House Avalon currently possessed seven Blues, but one of them was an Orange-born ¨C Archibald¡¯s younger cousin, Accolon. Of the remaining six, four had the life affinity and one already had water. This only left Galahad as a candidate for a petal. Consequently, the other two would have to go to Greens.


    ¡°Your son will naturally get a petal.¡±


    Mordred was just as talented as his father ¨C perhaps even more so. At least, the boy had handled his own opponents even better than his father had dealt with his. He was arguably the strongest Green in the family ¨C on par with Elaine when she used her boosting art. Not that anyone knew about that, but she couldn¡¯t use a petal anyway.


    ¡°Of course.¡± Galahad chuckled. ¡°I was talking about the last one. Maybe Emrys or Morgana? I could make a strong case for either of them.¡±


    But Archibald shook his head, eliciting a frown from his son. He¡¯d allowed this injustice to persist for long enough. Circulation was the pillar their family would be relying on for a long time to come, and the boy who¡¯d brought them this gift had yet to be properly compensated for his contribution.


    In fact, Archibald was currently worried about his grandson, as they hadn¡¯t heard from him in months. The more time that passed, the more scared he grew that Percy was indeed involved with the Aurora Dew. Of course, it was possible the chaos in the Guild had simply prevented him from writing back.


    Either way, he wasn¡¯t going to let the boy miss out on this opportunity.


    ¡°I actually had somebody else in mind¡­¡± he grinned.


    ¡°Oh?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you after I¡¯m done fixing your arm. You might have put on a brave face against the pain, but this¡­ it just might make you pass out.¡±


    ***


    ¡°Father, you can¡¯t be serious! What madness compels you to continuously give that runt so much?!¡± Galahad asked in outrage as they walked down the corridor.


    Archibald opened the door to the same training room he and his grandkids had used a few years back, leading his son inside. Next, he tossed him some enchanted bands to place on his wrists and ankles, before replying.


    ¡°That¡¯s why I brought you here, son. To show you.¡± he said, taking a deep breath, and then another.


    Galahad¡¯s expression was initially one of anger and confusion, though his features soon began to shift into shock as he watched the verdant lines swirl like vines on his father¡¯s skin. Archibald¡¯s sternum thrummed with an intensity no Violet core had any right to.


    ¡°I can see you have many questions.¡± Archibald said with a smile, getting a nod back.


    ¡°Naturally, I¡¯ll answer them all, but I¡¯ll need you to do two things for me. First, you¡¯ll bow your head and apologize to your nephew the next time you see him, for the way you¡¯ve treated him.¡±


    Galahad opened his mouth, seemingly about to protest, but Archibald raised a hand to stop him.


    ¡°And I¡¯ll apologize alongside you. After all, it¡¯s technique I¡¯m about to teach you without his permission.¡±


    This time, Galahad¡¯s eyes widened in realization.


    ¡°Does this have something to do with his bloodline? Is this why you¡¯ve been treating him so generously?¡±


    ¡°Generously?¡± Archibald chuckled bitterly. ¡°We¡¯ve driven him out of the mansion, sending him to fend for himself in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild. Not a day goes by that I don¡¯t regret it. Because we were too stingy to give him a few elixirs?¡±


    ¡°Father¡­ Just what does his bloodline do exactly?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll have to ask him yourself. He¡¯ll tell you if he wants to.¡±


    Galahad remained silent for a while. While he was generally a proud man, and not very kind towards those he viewed as his lessers, he was neither ungrateful, nor stupid. He certainly understood Percy¡¯s importance now.


    ¡°What¡¯s the second thing?¡± Galahad asked after a while.


    ¡°Hm?¡±


    ¡°You said you wanted me to do two things. The first was to apologize to the kid.¡±


    ¡°Ah right!¡± Archibald said, only now remembering why he¡¯d brought him here.


    ¡°Get down and start doing push-ups.¡±

 Chapter 145: Caught

    Percy scanned the sea of souls, looking for his next host. Having grown more proficient at drawing the concealment runes, he was ready to return to the Vault for his next lesson.Initially, he¡¯d thought to look for an Orange or Green body this time. According to Gabe, higher grade challenges yielded exponentially more credits, and those were the two grades he had personally experienced ¨C so he¡¯d have some idea of what to expect. Sear?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    But he¡¯d changed his mind.


    Realistically, he doubted he¡¯d even get through the first wave of the combat challenges with a beast clone. They were tough, even for mages with bloodlines and blessings. Let alone for somebody who couldn¡¯t cast a single spell.


    The rewards would be minuscule at the start, but if his budding understanding of runecrafting could get him through the first couple of waves, he should manage to purchase some more reading material. Enough for him to keep going.


    He did consider asking his friend for a loan, but he quickly shot the idea down. He¡¯d already imposed on Gabe way too much. The guy had his own problems to deal with ¨C whether it was his gruesome injuries, the two cores he had to support, his own training, or his worry over his future in the artificial world. It might take Percy a little longer, but he wanted to stand on his own two feet.


    In any case, Percy was trying to pick between two Red beasts, when something else caught his attention.


    he wondered, glancing at a strange Yellow soul different from any he had seen before.


    Percy was pretty confident it wasn¡¯t on its deathbed. He had sent enough clones by now to tell that this person was essentially . Yet, somehow, they were not rejecting him, radiating a powerful attractive force instead! In fact, it was almost like they were inviting him to possess them!


    Curious, he approached. This was obviously suspicious, but he¡¯d never seen anything like this and, in his experience, . Soon, several more souls popped up in his surroundings. Most of them appeared normal, but a significant fraction behaved exactly like the first one. They ¡®looked¡¯ wounded, though it was as if their injuries were artificially exaggerated. It reminded Percy of chumming the waters to lure a fish in.


    Part of him wanted to bolt. He had no idea what was up with this place, but he had a gut feeling that remaining here could spell trouble. Still, he hesitated to peer away. This was unlike anything he¡¯d encountered before. He¡¯d never even heard of anybody who could interact with the plane of souls like him, yet this seemed like an entire culture of people who regularly did just that ¨C to some extent.


    It was a bizarre thought. From what he¡¯d seen, his affinity was one of the rarest. At least, he¡¯d never met anyone else with it. But the idea that some race of people could be born with a disproportional proclivity towards a specific affinity wasn¡¯t new to him. Everyone on Huehue was stuck with the pure affinity. Even his family¡¯s bloodline affected his relatives in a similar manner, giving many of them the life affinity.


    This could easily be some kind of trap, but it was also a unique opportunity. Whatever these people were after was probably unrelated to him. After all, he doubted another wanderer existed, otherwise Metatron wouldn¡¯t have been so keen to recruit him.


    The good news was that he had a lot of options. He spotted people all the way from Red to Yellow in this state. A Red host might be too weak to get much done with. They might not even know anything useful for him to learn. Conversely, a powerful one could be difficult to deal with if they ended up being hostile.


    Fuelled to the brim with teal mana, he estimated an Orange core was about the most he could safely handle. If they proved to have malicious intentions towards him, he should be able to fight his way out of the body. Happy with his analysis, he was about to go for it, when he felt a piercing pain in his ¡°side¡± as something slammed into him like a cannonball.


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    he cursed in shock, trying to extricate himself from his aggressor.


    Whatever it was, it had chomped down on his soul, showing no intention of letting go. The creature thrashed about, trying to tear a chunk off. The pain was excruciating, though he could handle that, having experienced many gruesome injuries with his soul over the years. Percy was more unsettled by the principle behind this situation ¨C if not downright frightened. He¡¯d never met another soul in the space between worlds, much less one capable of attacking him!


    Forcing himself to calm down, he drew some of the fused mana, stabbing right into the creature¡¯s maw with a hastily made knife. It seemed to do something as the monster shuddered, its jaw opening slightly, easing the pain on his soul a little. Though it refused to let go entirely.


    Stubborn as he was, Percy didn¡¯t give up either, pushing the construct even deeper in, trying to locate its brain ¨C assuming it even had one. At first, it didn¡¯t do anything, but he continued to stab around blindly, trying to fend the monster off.


    Sadly, this wasn¡¯t an option. Strictly speaking, he wasn¡¯t even sure it was a living creature. It definitely seemed to like one, but it might just be a spell, cast by the residents of the mysterious world.


    One clone and one disembodied monster fought for what felt like hours, with their survival on the line, as Percy expended more and more of his stashed mana, inflicting all sorts of nasty wounds on his attacker. To his relief, the abomination eventually let go. Perhaps, he¡¯d weakened it, or maybe it had decided its meal wasn¡¯t worth the hassle. ????


    Either way, Percy wasn¡¯t exactly in the mood to celebrate. By now, he was down to a third of his reserves, his soul wisp severely injured. The ethereal cord linking him to his main body was already pulling at him intensely. Perhaps, he¡¯d spent way too long in this place, or maybe it was his poor condition cutting his trip short. Whatever the case, he had to make a decision, and he had to do it .


    Worst-case scenario, he¡¯d get himself destroyed. It would certainly be unpleasant for , but it honestly wouldn¡¯t be the end of the world for his main body. While he¡¯d lose the clone¡¯s memories, the original Percy would be fine. He was confident he would recover completely given some time.


    Technically, there was a chance he¡¯d permanently lose another chunk, but he seriously doubted that was the case. The scar in his sternum had probably remained because of the ethereal cord linking him to his familiar. If the clone got destroyed entirely, the wound would likely close.


    Just as he was contemplating his choices, two more creatures bit at him, shaking him out of his thoughts. At first, he panicked, thinking he couldn¡¯t possibly deal with them in his current state. However, he soon realized they were much smaller than the last one.


    Expelling another costly burst of mana, he cleaved the creatures right off him, leaving his stash down to a fifth of his original reserves. It wouldn¡¯t be enough to fix a regular host, but these people didn¡¯t seem like they¡¯d need too many patches.


    Having decided to take a gamble, he rushed towards the nearest soul he could find. The first two were completely healthy, only the third one being in this peculiar condition. It was at Yellow ¨C stronger than he had initially planned for ¨C but he no longer had the luxury to delay. More monsters could attack any moment now. And he sorely lacked the means to defend himself for a third time.


    The strange soul enlarged in his vision, as he finally escaped to ¡°safety¡±, finding himself in the somewhat familiar position inside somebody¡¯s body. Though he felt extremely crammed this time, his soul wisp having to squeeze to a fraction of its size to fit. The cracks in this person¡¯s soul were tiny, not leaving him any space to move.


    Suddenly, he felt something pushing him in a certain direction. It was as if he was clogging a narrow pipe, and somebody was filling one end with water. Though it wasn¡¯t water ¨C it was something else he recognized.


    But he couldn¡¯t control it, as it clearly belonged to somebody else, filled to the brim with their willpower. Without his core, he couldn¡¯t replace it with his own.


    The mana continued to push, as the friction against the pipe¡¯s walls hurt him, scraping chunks of his soul away from him. He was about to beg his host to stop whatever it was they were doing, when he finally popped out one end, finding himself inside a slightly larger space. It was still small, but at least it didn¡¯t hurt as much to be there. It contained even more soul mana than the pipe, his host finally allowing it to flood Percy, soothing his injuries slightly.


    His connection to his new host was significantly weaker than any of his previous ones, as he hadn¡¯t interfaced with their soul as much, and thus couldn¡¯t tap into their body, nor their senses. A few seconds later, his host spoke to somebody, their words inadvertently seeping into Percy¡¯s mind. At least, the connection seemed to bundle the words with their corresponding meaning, allowing him to understand them ¨C a minor convenience in an otherwise shitty situation.


    The voice sounded female, but he wasn¡¯t sure how well his preconceived notions translated to the natives.


    ¡°Dad! It worked! I¡¯ve caught one!¡±

 Chapter 146: Spectral fiend

    Percy listened to the girl talk to her father for a while, trying to piece together the situation from her words alone. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t tap into her ears due to their weaker connection, so he couldn¡¯t access the man¡¯s side of the conversation.Apparently, she was under the impression she had captured a kind of creature she referred to as a ¡°spectral fiend¡±. Percy couldn¡¯t be certain, but he strongly suspected the monsters that had attacked him in the vicinity of this world fell in that category. It was quite eye-opening, as he hadn¡¯t even known soul-based entities existed out there, roaming the universe. He guessed they were relatively scarce, as that would explain why he¡¯d never encountered any, but he did make a mental note to be more careful from now on.


    That still didn¡¯t explain what they planned to do with the fiend once they caught one, nor why they had failed to identify him as something else. Perking up, he continued following the conversation, hoping for some answers.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think it has four heads...¡± she said with some disappointment evident in her voice. ¡°Let me check again real quick.¡±


    A wave of mana brushed over Percy, though it felt different than before. The mana had purpose behind it, seemingly scanning his soul for something rather than blindly accumulating in his wounds to mend them. This only confirmed his guess that the natives knew a lot of valuable soul spells he could learn. Granted, he had to get out of this mess first.


    ¡°Er¡­ I¡¯m not sure what it is. It doesn¡¯t have a defined appearance. It¡¯s more of a blob. Maybe it¡¯s damaged?¡± she wondered.


    Percy would have rolled his eyes if he had any. He was just a soul clone ¨C a severed piece of his main body¡¯s soul! Not to mention all the other crap he¡¯d endured over the last few hours.


    Though he focused on the other thing the girl had said. Apparently, there was more than one type of spectral fiend. She and her father were currently trying to identify which one she¡¯d captured.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. Whatever it is, it¡¯s not like I have a choice anyway. I¡¯ll try absorbing it.¡± she said, shocking Percy.


    Panicking, he reached out to the walls of her core, trying to strengthen his connection to her, as more mana began accumulating around him, preparing for some intricate spell.


    he yelled, hoping she could hear him.


    Luckily, he seemed to have gotten through to her, as she hesitated, the spell fizzling out before it even formed.


    ¡°You can speak?!¡± she asked in disbelief. ¡°No, not you dad! The fiend ¨C I know it¡¯s crazy, but I think it just talked to me!¡±


    Capitalizing on this, Percy hurriedly reached out again.


    he replied, choosing his words carefully.


    ¡°Nice try buddy, but I¡¯m not buying it.¡± the girl said, dashing his hopes. ¡°It¡¯s saying it¡¯s not a fiend, though it to be lying, right? How else would I have captured it?¡±


    It was annoying, but Percy had no idea how to explain himself. He hadn¡¯t spotted any souls above Yellow back when he was observing this world. Clearly, they didn¡¯t have any means of advancement, which meant they didn¡¯t have any gods either. Suffice to say, they couldn¡¯t produce any Decrees, so they wouldn¡¯t know what a bloodline was.


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    Still, he tried.


    ¡®Look, I have no idea what your goal is, but it won¡¯t work. You¡¯ll just hurt both of us, as I¡¯m NOT a fiend! Why don¡¯t you play it safe and just let me go? You can always capture another one later! You might even end up with that four-headed one you wanted!¡¯


    ¡°That¡¯s not how it works...¡± she sighed. ¡°We don¡¯t get to choose what fiend we attract. The type is fixed for each person, as it has to do with the very of their soul. It doesn¡¯t matter how many times I do this, I¡¯ll only end up with more of .¡±


    Percy wanted to bang his head against the wall. His host was stubborn as a mule. Grasping at straws, he tried offering an alternative.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you get somebody else to capture the type you want then? Isn¡¯t it possible to pass the fiend over to you?¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t work.¡± she shot the idea down. ¡°People have tried it, but it always ends badly. You¡¯re only supposed to absorb the type that naturally comes to you. Anything else is incompatible. Suffice to say, the I¡¯ll get after absorbing you is also fixed.¡±


    The implications were interesting. It appeared the people of this world all shared the soul affinity, but that didn¡¯t mean they had the same starting point. Other than the usual diversity of grade at birth, they apparently differed based on the type of fiend they could absorb. Percy still didn¡¯t know what these did, but he could already imagine some were better than others, giving their owners an advantage over their peers.


    Oblivious to his thoughts, however, the girl stirred her mana up once more, clearly done talking. Percy wanted to swear. Technically, he had enough mana left to free himself if he really wanted. He was weaker than her ¨C especially given the circumstances ¨C but he was also right inside her most vulnerable spot.


    Her core.


    Spectral fiends were probably unable to fight back while trapped, as the natives¡¯ technique seemed to compress and distort one¡¯s body, robbing the creatures of their claws and fangs. That didn¡¯t apply to him, however. He was pretty sure he could still form a teal dagger to rip the girl¡¯s soul apart from within.


    But he couldn¡¯t bring himself to do that. His host might be annoying, but she was just a dumb kid trying to get stronger. Murdering his way out was a bit much.


    It would suck big time, but his main body would recover after a couple of months. Though he¡¯d lose all his memories of this place.


    Sadly, the girl didn¡¯t wait for him to decide. Suddenly, a powerful pressure descended on him from all directions, as the mana began to spin around him, grating his soul. With each revolution, he felt more pieces chip away, as his wisp continued to shrink, a wave of untold agony overcoming him.


    he screamed, as he forced himself to the core¡¯s walls. he warned, pulling all of his mana out, forging the thinnest needle he could manage.


    But the girl ignored him, showing no intention of pausing. Left with no choice, Percy stabbed at her core, nicking it. This elicited a strong reaction from his host.


    ¡°Aaaahhh!! What are you doing?!¡± she shrieked.


    Yet, she didn¡¯t stop, so neither did Percy. The relentless tornado of soul mana continued to peel layer after layer of his wisp off, as he left one scratch after another in her core. For now, the wounds wouldn¡¯t be lethal,  S§×arch* The ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Both parties stubbornly continued for several minutes, as Percy¡¯s soul shrunk to about a third of its original size.


    he smiled bitterly.


    If he kept hurting the girl, he might actually cause some permanent damage. There was also the question of what would happen to him if he allowed her to fully absorb him. He could already sense a faint ethereal cord beginning to coalesce. It was still just a pale imitation of the real connection he shared with his clones and Micky, but if this continued, his main body might end up with a slot permanently occupied by this random stranger.


    Yet, just when he was about to turn his mana against himself to self-destruct, the spell finally halted.


    ¡°Ok¡­! I give up¡­! Just¡­ stop this!¡± the girl cried amidst sobs.


    Percy would have sighed in relief, though his situation was far from enviable. At this point, his thoughts were groggy, and his soul hurt all over. Hell, he didn¡¯t even know if he¡¯d survive the return trip like this.


    he decided, pulling his Status up while still in contact with his host¡¯s core. Though he ignored the usual suspects, focusing only on the important things.


    Sol (Percival''s clone)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Yellow ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spectral trait:


    [Beacon]

 Chapter 147: Beacon

    Percy struggled to believe it, but the evidence was right there, in his Status. His host had obtained a trait from Did that mean his clone qualified as a It was bizarre, yet he wasn¡¯t in the mood to think about it too deeply. The whole experience had left him tired and weak. He felt like he was about to pass out any moment now.


    Suddenly, the soul mana in his surroundings stirred, carrying him in a certain direction. Squeezing through Sol¡¯s channels was still rather painful, but it wasn¡¯t as bad as before. He had already shrunk a great deal, so he didn¡¯t get compressed nearly as much. It didn¡¯t take much prodding for her to push him along the narrow tube, before expelling him from her body, stuffing him into another container. At least, this one was more spacious than her core¡­


    he wondered, but didn¡¯t have the strength to do much else.


    He was no longer in contact with anybody¡¯s soul, so he couldn¡¯t even communicate with these people. His main body¡¯s pull was at an all-time high, but whatever they had placed him in prevented him from leaving. Out of options, he lashed out against the walls of his new abode, before his exhaustion won out, his consciousness fading to black.


    ***


    The next time he came to, he noted his condition was slightly better. He felt a steady supply of soul mana warming him up, gently licking his wounds, healing him slowly. That said, it would take years to restore him to his original state at this rate. At least, this arrangement kept him from degrading further.


    he asked, touching the walls of the container.


    No reply. It didn¡¯t seem like he was inside a person this time.


    he sighed internally, checking his reserves.


    Suffice to say, he barely had any mana left. He¡¯d used most of it while fighting the spectral fiends before entering this world. Afterwards, he¡¯d used whatever dregs had remained to forge that needle he¡¯d stabbed Sol with. Though he did manage to recover some of .


    In theory, he could make something sharp with it to self-destruct. This promised to be a and task, but he should be able to do it with some effort, dismantling his clone one tiny piece at a time. That ought to free up the connection to his main body.


    he groaned in annoyance.


    However, something happened when he thought back to the stubborn girl. It was strange, as he had none of his usual senses in this state, and the container even blocked his ability to feel injured souls in his vicinity. Yet, he could tell which way Sol was!


    It wasn¡¯t quite at the level of his connection to his main body or Micky though. If he had to describe it, this was more like a ¡®nascent cord¡¯, a step weaker than the real thing. He doubted they¡¯d be able to communicate or transfer any mana through it.


    Was this half-baked connection Sol¡¯s new trait?


    Not the most optimal outcome for either of them. Once he destroyed his clone, the connection would probably be lost. He didn¡¯t think it would get transferred to his main body. Even if it somehow did, would he be able to sense her location all the way from Remior? Without the clone¡¯s memories, he wouldn¡¯t even know about this place.


    The girl had made it clear she could only ever absorb a single fiend. He still wasn¡¯t sure if this qualified, but it was entirely possible she had just wasted her only slot, filling it up with something useless.


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    Whatever the case was, she¡¯d brought it upon herself. Percy was about to draw his fused mana out again, when the container shook.


    ¡°Ber kan il theig?¡±a female voice asked.


    He recognized her, though she sounded a little muted compared to when he was inside her core. More importantly, he couldn¡¯t understand the words like this.


    he yelled back.


    ¡°Tam keliz!¡± she exclaimed.


    She must¡¯ve heard him, though she was talking to somebody else now. Her dad, probably.


    ¡°Ber kan il gimaz?¡± the vessel shook again as another voice spoke, this one male.


    A few minutes and some more gibberish later, the three of them established they wouldn¡¯t get anything done like this. Just when Percy thought they would release him, destroy him, or place him in some dusty cabinet and forget about him, he felt a powerful suction force pulling him out of the container. Soon, he was back in somebody¡¯s mana channels, following the path to their core.


    ¡°I¡¯m warning you! If you try anything funny again, I¡¯m going to destroy you this time!¡± Sol spoke. sea??h th§× N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy sneered.he fired back.


    At least, it was nice they could understand each other again.


    ¡°Look. We clearly got off on the wrong foot.¡± she sighed, taking a step back. ¡°I¡¯ll admit I shouldn¡¯t have done that, as soon as you apologize for everything else.¡±


    Her audacity left him speechless.


    Still, rather than continuing the pointless argument, he figured it was more productive to move past it. Focusing on her words, he realized her tone was a lot different than before. During their previous interaction, she had acted all smug and entirely uninterested in hearing him out. Right now, things were different. While her half-assed apology left much to be desired, she appeared genuinely interested in mending the broken bridges.


    he cut to the chase, too tired to beat around the bush.


    The girl exhaled in exasperation.


    ¡°I suppose you wouldn¡¯t know¡­¡± she said, before elaborating. ¡°Naturally, every kid has some idea of what fiend they¡¯d to absorb, but like I¡¯ve previously explained, that¡¯s not up to them. We¡¯re all stuck with whatever we happen to get.¡±


    ¡°So, our ancestors have long drilled into us the importance of accepting our trait regardless. Whether we like it or not, our most important job is to figure out how to make the most of it, to serve our society to the best of our ability. Refusing to do so is a big taboo.¡±


    Percy nodded, thinking they probably had some means of identifying their trait even without a Status.


    ¡°And what does that mean for you?¡± he asked again.


    ¡°What else?!¡± she snapped. ¡°I¡¯m stuck with the most trait As far as I can tell, the only thing it does is letting you sense my location.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s your problem, because it¡¯s now my civic duty to make useful, ¡±


    Next, Percy explained how his clones worked. He talked about the many adventures he¡¯d had, though he obviously left a few of the more sensitive things out. That said, he did make it clear just how many things he could teach her.


    Of course, he had no intention of teaching her Circulation, nor did he know if they had any ingredients suitable for alchemy. Still, he didn¡¯t mind passing along Sengo¡¯s craft or showing her how to draw runes.


    ¡°So, you can hide your mana with this enchantment?! Our hunters will be able to sneak up to their prey more easily!¡± she whistled in appreciation. ¡°Teach me!¡±


    Percy had already tried to strengthen his connection to her, but it wasn¡¯t working.


    ¡°What if I let you return to your main body? Do you promise to come back after you recover?¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t know whether to cry or laugh at her naivete. She¡¯d trapped him, injured him, trapped him some more, and now she even wanted him to bend over backwards to serve her. But he swallowed the harsh words he was about to speak.


    Percy was confident he¡¯d get eaten by a fiend long before he escaped this place. He was positively tiny, and without any means of defending himself. Hell, his soul might even crumble on its own on the way to Remior.


    ¡°Crap! Why does everything have to be so complicated?!¡± Sol groaned.


    Percy wanted to roll his eyes.


    But he spoke again a few seconds later, offering a solution.


    ¡°How so?¡± she asked with some hope in her voice.


    Percy hadn¡¯t missed how her soul injuries had improved. Clearly, these people knew what they were doing.


    ¡°And how do I know you¡¯ll really come back afterwards?¡±


    he said.


    He could practically feel her bubbling protest, but he stopped her in her tracks.

 Chapter 148: Good will

    Delivering his ultimatum, Percy doubted Sol would accept his terms. He¡¯d made a whole lot of demands, promising very little in return. It wasn¡¯t like he could help it though. After all, he couldn¡¯t give her much in his current state. Any favours from his end would have to wait until he recovered.Surprisingly, the girl agreed ¨C against all odds.


    Either way, this appeared to be quite a novel experience for them both. Percy could tell his host wasn¡¯t used to swallowing her pride and working with others. Meanwhile, this was a first for him too, as he was stuck in one place, unable to interact with the world around him. Without access to the girl¡¯s senses, he couldn¡¯t see what her house was like, or how big her town or city was. Hell, Percy still had no idea what the locals even looked like, or how they used their soul mana.


    While their initial interaction had been a little rocky, he didn¡¯t hold it against the girl. Percy could tell she was rather young too ¨C In any case, he very much intended to uphold his end of the deal, returning to this place the first chance he got. After all, there was plenty of value to be gained here. Of course, that was assuming he managed to return to Remior first¡­


    Sadly, their results in that area were rather mixed. At Yellow, Sol was among the most magically gifted class of natives, so there was hardly a better place to find soul mana than right inside her core. Despite that, it was already a struggle for her to prevent Percy¡¯s condition from deteriorating further, let alone helping him recover.


    he thought bitterly.


    The severed chunks of his soul he crafted his clones out of weren¡¯t exactly dead, but they couldn¡¯t be considered alive either. His bloodline allowed them to survive for an extended period of time on their own, yet repairing the isolated wisps outside his body was a tall order. Both Sol and her father ¨C Mi, as he¡¯d come to learn ¨C were currently working together to that end. They were focusing their efforts, fighting an uphill battle to fix Percy¡¯s soul faster than it broke. S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Watching the father and daughter operate on him over the last couple of days, Percy had learned a lot about healing soul injuries. While he was no stranger to mending his soul ¨C having done this countless times since discovering his affinity ¨C he now understood just how crude his methods were by comparison.


    Blindly flooding a wound with mana and hoping it closed was the healing equivalent of tossing orbs of soul mana at the wood goblins to kill them. Suffice to say, there was plenty more to the art once he dug a little deeper.


    For example, Sol had shown him that applying soul mana uniformly along a wound¡¯s surface was inefficient. It was better to focus it in several interspaced locations, growing lots of thin tendrils. Afterwards, the gaps between the tendrils could be filled a lot more easily.


    This wasn¡¯t something he would have ever discovered on his own. At least, not without decades upon decades of tests. Percy couldn¡¯t wait to learn more from these people. This was a veritable treasure trove for a soul affinity user like him!


    And that was just the beginning.


    Another thing he¡¯d learned was that healing a wound directly was ill-advised. It was better to use the mana to activate and enhance the soul¡¯s natural regeneration. The results appeared slower at the beginning, but the gains accumulated over time, resulting in a much faster and more complete recovery with a mere fraction of the cost.


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    Finally, there was one last nifty trick they¡¯d shown him.


    ¡°Hey, stop dozing off!¡± Sol said in an irritated tone. ¡°If you want this to work, we need your cooperation!¡±


    Percy protested.


    Apparently, the healing was more effective if the patient actively participated in the process. This was a unique aspect of soul-based injuries, as people had a much stronger connection to their soul than they did to their flesh. With some prodding, Percy could help the mana along, guiding his soul to grow.


    Of course, this wasn¡¯t always applicable, as the patient needed to have some rudimentary understanding of souls and soul mana at the very least. Suffice to say, Percy wouldn¡¯t be able to use it when healing others, but it was definitely helpful when dealing with his own injuries.


    Yet, even with all this, the three had barely made any progress. Percy¡¯s clone had grown slightly larger, though the improvements had started to slow down by the third day. Despite all the measures they¡¯d taken, and all the sophisticated healing techniques, his deterioration was beginning to gain ground over his recovery.


    he thought grimly.


    ¡°Father says you¡¯ll have to make the trip soon.¡± Sol suddenly said, confirming his suspicions.


    It wasn¡¯t ideal, because he estimated he¡¯d only reach about two thirds of his original size before he began to shrink again. Even worse, his own mana stash was all but exhausted, so they¡¯d have to work on supplying him with some of Sol¡¯s.


    he asked.


    Mana cores were the very organs responsible for seizing control over ambient mana, allowing their owner to convert it to their affinity, while attaching their willpower to it. Percy had been able to use his hosts¡¯ cores in the past, adding his willpower to the mana thanks to their bond. However, he didn¡¯t know if that was possible right now, given his half-baked connection to Sol. If he couldn¡¯t do this, he¡¯d have to fight his way through the horde of spectral fiends essentially unarmed¡­


    Listening to him, the girl paused the recovery process, allowing Percy to give this a try. The latter reached out at the core¡¯s walls, trying to enhance their connection as well as the circumstances would allow. It wasn¡¯t much but, at least, he was in direct contact with Sol¡¯s core, so he was able to tap into it a little better than the rest of her body.


    From his current perspective, the girl¡¯s grasp on her mana was firm and borderline unshakeable. He was too weak to pry it from her control. If he wanted to snatch some for his own use, he needed her to actively relinquish her hold on the substance.


    Heeding his request, the girl did that to the best of her ability, as Percy tried again. It was still difficult, but he did manage to seize a sliver of mana eventually. Granted, it was way too little to make a difference.


    They couldn¡¯t afford to pause the healing until then. The only solution would be to do both at the same time, with Percy trying to restock his reserves as Sol and Mi continued to mend his soul.


    ¡°Well, this sucks. If you¡¯re focused on that, you won¡¯t be able to help with the healing either.¡± Sol pitched in.


    Percy nodded. It was even worse. It would be harder for her to ease her control on the mana while using it to heal him too. Like this, they¡¯d run out of time even faster.


    he sent her the mental equivalent of a shrug.


    ¡°Make those three things.¡± she said after a moment¡¯s hesitation.


    Percy frowned.


    ¡°You have a soul affinity with your main body, don¡¯t you? Since you didn¡¯t seem to know anything about the spectral fiends, I suppose it¡¯s safe to assume you don¡¯t have a trait either, right?¡±


    Percy¡¯s heart would have skipped a beat if he had one. But he didn¡¯t say anything, letting her continue.


    ¡°I¡¯ll use what little time we have left to explain how to attract, capture and absorb a fiend into your soul.¡±


    And there it was. Percy naturally wanted to learn this above all else, though he¡¯d decided to not push his luck too far. He was already glad Sol had agreed to demonstrate her healing art and help him escape this place with no guarantee he¡¯d come back.


    ¡°That was my intention at first.¡± she admitted. ¡°But I considered your earlier words. Percy¡­ I wasn¡¯t lying when I said I intend to make the most of my trait. In this case, it means establishing a good relationship with you.¡±


    ¡°Meaning, that I¡¯m going to start demonstrating some good will.¡±

 Chapter 149: Blockade

    ¡°¡­multiple shallow incisions in your soul, before intentionally leaking soul mana through them to lure the fiends¡­¡±Percy struggled to keep himself awake as he listened to Sol¡¯s explanation for the dozenth time.


    ¡°¡­push it through your channels until it reaches your core and then clamp down on it as hard as you can with your mana. You need to do that before it has the chance to go on a rampage¡­¡±


    It was hard, because he also had to focus on helping her and her father with the healing process, while snatching as much of her mana as he could, one drop at a time.


    ¡°¡­slowly grind it to nothing, while disseminating the mana throughout your soul to absorb its tra¨C¡±


    he suddenly said, cutting her short.


    He didn¡¯t know if he would retain any of this information later ¨C despite the several times she¡¯d repeated it ¨C but the size of his clone¡¯s wisp had already plateaued. Everyone involved knew it would only be downhill from here.


    ¡°So, is this it? Are you ready to go for it?¡± she asked.


    he smiled bitterly.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what Percy just told me. Delaying at this point will only make things worse.¡± she said, probably speaking to her dad.


    Percy felt his consciousness slipping, but he stubbornly held on. It would be quite a pity to pass out now and waste all their efforts. After all, whether they succeeded or not, it wouldn¡¯t be much longer until his suffering was over.


    Soon, some more foreign mana enveloped him. It didn¡¯t belong to Sol, though he recognized its owner, as Mi had spent the last couple of days assisting with his recovery. Though he was pouring a lot more mana into his daughter¡¯s core right now.


    Allowing foreign mana into one¡¯s core ¨C and especially such a massive amount all at once ¨C was tantamount to giving a stranger the power to determine one¡¯s life or death. Suffice to say, mages generally avoided it, unless they trusted the other party.


    But Percy shook the pointless thoughts out of his mind, as the mana shrouded him, forming a thick layer around him.


    He was definitely interested in hearing more about it, though he ultimately refrained from asking. Unfortunately, he had neither the time, nor the mental capacity to learn another trick right now. Whatever this was, it would have to wait until he returned.


    ¡°All done¡­¡± Sol said, though her voice trailed off, as if she was hesitating about something.


    ¡°Percy¡­ I¡¯m sorry about earlier. You were right. All this would have been avoided had we talked things out, but I was too eager to get myself a trait to wait and listen.¡± she added a moment later.


    Suffice to say, Percy was taken aback by her apology, not having expected this from the girl. Evidently, he¡¯d misjudged her. As it turned out, she wasn¡¯t that bad a person once he got to know her. She was just an impulsive teenager.


    In fact, Percy felt a little guilty, as he knew he was partly at fault for this mess too. After all, he was the one who¡¯d put himself in this precarious position in the first place. Not to mention how self-centred he¡¯d been during their subsequent cooperation.


    Feeling a little bad that he¡¯d ended up taking more than he¡¯d given, he decided to throw a little bonus at them. Something he wasn¡¯t originally planning on sharing.


    ¡°What for?¡±


    Leaving it at that, the two bid each other farewell, before the girl finally expelled Percy from her pores, allowing him to drift away into the distance. Naturally, he was still blind and deaf, completely incapable of telling where he was going or what lied before him.


    But that was ok. He didn¡¯t need to do that, as the cord pulling him to his main body would take care of navigation. And boy did it do just that, as it forcefully yanked him right off, dragging him away from this world the name of which he had yet to hear, pulling his disembodied wisp through the cosmos.


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    he wondered, his very soul trembling under the pressure.


    His only hope was that his speed would allow him to pass through the blockade of fiends undetected. ¡­


    Suddenly, he felt a powerful force clamp down on his side. If this was a fiend¡¯s jaw, it certainly appeared many times larger than any he¡¯d encountered before. Though perhaps that was due to his own smaller size.


    Luckily, the oversized teeth slid right off him, tearing a mouthful of Mi¡¯s mana along the way. Evidently, Mi¡¯s spell had applied some kind of oily coat around him, making it much harder for the creatures to grab a hold of him.


    Percy didn¡¯t know if he was still in the vicinity of Sol¡¯s world. He shouldn¡¯t be, right? Given his current speed, and what he knew about the plane of souls, he should have already travelled halfway across the cosmos by now. Then again, he might not be travelling as quickly as he¡¯d thought. Perhaps, his perception of time was skewed, as it often was in this place.


    In any case, it didn¡¯t seem like getting away was going to be easy¡­


    A second fiend bit down at him, followed by a third and a fourth. Mi¡¯s shield held, but it was thinning fast. Percy would be lucky if it managed to fend another blow.


    Out of options, he began to draw upon the mana he had snatched from Sol. In the end, he¡¯d barely replenished a fraction of his stash, but it would have to do. Gathering it at a point within his wisp, he willed it to coalesce into a thin needle. He didn¡¯t know where the next attack would come from, so he¡¯d have to wait until after he took some damage to try and fend off his pursuer.


    Some unknown period of time later, another fiend swiped at him with its claw, peeling the final layer of Mi¡¯s mana off, as well as a chunk of Percy¡¯s clone with it. Just like that, he was already back to the terrible state he¡¯d spent the last few days recovering from!


    But he didn¡¯t panic, only clenching the needle more tightly.


    It wasn¡¯t long until the next fiend reached him, though this attack went down a little differently to what he was expecting. Rather than getting bitten or mangled directly, Percy merely felt something close around him, as a powerful force fought against his main body¡¯s pull, dragging him away from Remior.


    This was probably the largest fiend he¡¯d encountered so far. Unlike the others, this one didn¡¯t threaten the integrity of his soul directly, happy to swallow him whole. Of course, that was plenty problematic in and of itself.


    Given the creature¡¯s size, it would be even harder to fight his way out with the tiny needle. And he did have to fight his way out, as the fiend was already pulling him further and further from his destination, undoing all his hard work!


    Lashing out with as much strength as he could muster, he fought to dig a path out of the creature¡¯s stomach ¨C that was where he assumed he was, though he hadn¡¯t felt himself splash into acid. Still, he did feel an intense burning sensation envelop him, trying to dissolve his soul into nothing.


    Swiftly running out of time, Percy pushed more and more of his stashed mana into the construct, stabbing at the fiend repeatedly, causing it to spasm.


    He was taking more damage than the creature, shrinking rapidly. Even his mental faculties were starting to get affected, causing him to grow groggy. His exhaustion was piling up, and his memories faded one after the other, as his past became harder and harder to recall. At some point, he even caught himself sitting motionless inside the monster¡¯s belly, having momentarily forgotten his purpose!


    he thought, harnessing the agonizing pain to jolt himself awake.


    Unleashing a barrage of lunges with renewed vigour, Percy desperately fought to extricate himself from the trap. At the same time, he focused on what mattered the most, keeping it at the very forefront of his collapsing mind.


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    His promise to Sol, the healing art they had taught him and the method to absorb a fiend.


    That was it ¨C . Nothing else mattered. His main body already possessed all his other memories, and the universe didn¡¯t really need a second Percy. His one and only job was to bring these latest acquisitions back to Remior. Everything else was disposable.


    Percy stabbed and kept stabbing, as more and more of his soul melted down, his size shrinking. And with it, more memories faded, one after the other.


    His life in the Avalon mansion?


    Gone.


    Elaine? The pilgrimage to Phoebe¡¯s temple? His time with Baldy? Huehue? Micky? The Guild? The Vault? Gabe? Nesha? Sengo? Metatron?


    All gone.


    It wasn¡¯t important.


    His mind was on a loop, repeating the girl¡¯s teachings, while never pausing his assault on the creature for even a second.


    In the end, Percy failed to dig a hole through its stomach, however. It simply wasn¡¯t meant to be. He was way too weak, and the fiend way too large.


    But his efforts hadn¡¯t been for naught either. He manage to irritate the monster enough to spit him right out, into the endless void.


    Not that he was in the mood to celebrate, of course¡­


    At this point, almost nothing remained of Percy. His mind was nearly gone, and he lacked the mental capacity to even comprehend his situation. His thoughts had been reduced to vague words and blurry images.


    Had something attacked him again, he wouldn¡¯t have stood a chance. As fate would have it, however, that didn¡¯t happen. Maybe he was too tiny for the fiends to bother with. Or maybe the large one had carried him away from the rest of its kin before throwing him up.


    Either way, the cord continued to pull him towards Remior, as he picked up more speed with each passing second.


    At this point, Percy couldn¡¯t even be considered a person. He had been reduced to nothing more than a damaged message!


    But the message did reach his main body, eventually. What the original Percy would manage to make out from the scattered memories remained to be seen, though one thing was certain¡­


    Percy had died today.

 Chapter 150: Harvester

    EarlierThe four remaining nobles of House Tantalus stared at their companion¡¯s lifeless body as it sank into the bog¡¯s stale waters. They struggled to comprehend how their comrade had dropped dead out of the blue.


    But the culprit, Percy, didn¡¯t much care about their thoughts, watching Micky dive towards them at a dizzying speed, his plumage lit up in amber and green.


    ¡°Watch out! It¡¯s the bird!¡± the only woman in the group yelled.


    But she was a little too late. By the time the rest had managed to draw some mana out, the crow had already reached his first target, carving six nasty gashes through the man¡¯s back, ripping his very soul to shreds.


    The rest hastily threw their half-baked spells at Micky, trying to knock him out of the sky. Sadly for them, they hit nothing but empty air, the crow already fading in the distance.


    ¡°After it!¡± another man shouted ¨C their leader most likely.


    Micky was their target after all ¨C the very reason their family had sent them to this place. Of course, Percy could already tell from their rattled expressions that they had expected a regular Green beast. Not¡­ . And, unfortunately for them, this wasn¡¯t their only mistake today.


    Percy followed the group in silence, crouching through the dense undergrowth. The fools had yet to notice him, busy chasing his familiar as they were. What they had failed to realize, however, was that the crow wasn¡¯t the one being hunted.


    They were.


    The crow intentionally slowed down to keep them on its trail. Like that, one bird and four mages slowly trekked through the swamp, as Micky guided them right where he and Percy wanted them.


    ¡°Uggghhhh!¡± ¡°Eeekk!¡±


    Two of them shouted as the muddy ground gave way beneath their feet. It collapsed, causing them to drop into a pair of pitfalls reaching up to their waist, a flood of grimy water rushing at them from all directions, trying to drown them.


    Naturally, the traps weren¡¯t mundane ¨C they had been crafted by Nesha, using her budding understanding of the ¡°pocket¡± rune. This rune was far from the only one necessary to craft a spatial amulet, as the magical trinkets were complex devices involving multiple enchantments.


    However, it was arguably the most important one. As the name implied, it was responsible for the pocket dimension that was the bread and butter of the artifacts. All the other enchantments were auxiliary, meant for holding everything together and giving the amulets other features of convenience, such as letting them open or close at will.


    Sadly, Nesha hadn¡¯t had access to the other runes, nor the time to master them. Suffice to say, she wouldn¡¯t be making Percy a new amulet anytime soon. That said, carving a few crude versions of the ¡°pocket¡± rune on some flat slabs of stone hadn¡¯t been too difficult.


    Percy smiled bitterly.


    Currently, Nesha could only remotely trigger the traps, to impair their opponents. In the future, she might be able to do even more useful things with them, such as directly splitting her enemies¡¯ bodies in half.  Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Glancing around, Percy soon found his companion hidden behind a nearby tree. He nodded at her, signalling her to disengage. She¡¯d already done more than enough. Staying here any longer could be dangerous, as her personal magic could still use some work.


    ¡°Help us!¡± one of the trapped nobles yelled at their last member.


    He was clawing against the mud, trying to swim out of the trap. Unfortunately for him, the vacuum around him was still drawing a powerful current, making it much harder to extricate himself.


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    As for the last noble, he rushed back to his companions, looking like he was about to drag them out of the traps, when Micky dove at him to stop him. The mage was forced to unleash a hastily prepared flamethrower spell he¡¯d kept at the ready, doing his best to fend the bird off.


    The crow would clearly need some time to get through the man¡¯s defences, but neither he nor Percy worried too much. They could already see the guy¡¯s reserves dwindling far more quickly than the bird¡¯s, without getting him much in return.


    Percy grinned, clenching his construct tightly.


    The downside of his latest spell was that it took a lot of time to prepare, which meant he wouldn¡¯t be able to repair it in the middle of the fight, if it broke. On the flip side, it was far more durable than anything else he¡¯d crafted out of mana over the years, which meant it hadn¡¯t been too difficult to retrieve it earlier and to continue using it.


    Percy watched his familiar methodically force his opponent away from the others, waiting for them to free themselves. Naturally, he could have taken advantage of their impairment to finish them off, but he¡¯d chosen not to do that.


    He wanted to use this opportunity to test his magic, to continue improving. House Tantalus would keep sending stronger and stronger people at them, as would the rest of Remior. Neither he nor Micky had the luxury of halting their growth and stagnating.


    Only once the nobles were out did Percy rush at them, Synchronization at full power. They seemed intent on chasing after Micky and their comrade, but Percy wouldn¡¯t give them the chance.


    Closing the gap to the woman, he swung the invisible weapon at her, forcing her to unleash a burst of air mana to dodge it.


    Percy didn¡¯t wait for either of them to respond, before pivoting on his feet, already delivering a second strike at the other mage.


    The latter barely had the chance to manifest a stone sabre in his hand, clumsily parrying the blow. Percy felt his weapon bend from the impact, as the powerful shockwave rippled through his body.


    But it held!


    For the first time, his construct had endured a full on collision against a Yellow spell its owner¡¯s physical strength at once, without a single crack forming!


    Not giving Percy a chance to celebrate, the guy was already swinging at him with a second sabre, as a rocky spike emerged from behind him. As for the air mage, she hadn¡¯t remained idle either, already charging a miniature tornado between her palms, clearly planning on unleashing it upon him.


    Having glimpsed his opponent¡¯s intention via Soul Vision, Percy circled around him with some well-placed footwork, dodging the stone spike and the man¡¯s slash both, as he tried to deliver another attack of his own at the man¡¯s temple. At the same time, he made his way behind him, to use him as a cover from his companion¡¯s magic.


    And it worked like a charm, the air mage pausing her spell in hesitation. As ruthless as House Tantalus¡¯s nobles were, they still clearly had some compassion towards one another.


    The man raised his first sabre to block once more, but Percy didn¡¯t stop there, as the two continued to exchange blow after blow.


    His opponent tried to throw many external attacks into the mix, but Percy applied more pressure at him to keep them at a minimum, while using his Soul Vision to dodge whatever slipped through the cracks. Meanwhile, he maintained his position behind the guy, making the air mage¡¯s life impossible.


    ¡°How annoying!¡± the earth mage spat at some point, as he delivered a powerful slash against Percy, forcing him back.


    He looked like he was about to pounce on him, but Percy smirked. Shifting the force to one leg, he changed to Takeo¡¯s stance while robbing his weapon of its substance.


    Next, he lunged upon the earth mage even faster than before, reaching him first, his construct no longer inhibited by inertia or air resistance.


    The guy couldn¡¯t actually see the invisible weapon, but he could still vaguely predict its trajectory by watching Percy¡¯s movements. His eyes widened in shock as he observed the change in Percy¡¯s style, hurriedly raising his sabre to block the weapon closing into his temple.


    But he was in for a nasty surprise this time. Naturally, the incorporeal construct phased right through the stone spells, delivering a powerful impact on the man¡¯s soul, causing it to shake violently. Stumbling backward, he looked like he was about to collapse, but Percy didn¡¯t let him.


    ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going? You¡¯re my meat shield, remember?¡± Percy grinned, grabbing him by the collar.


    The woman clicked her tongue in annoyance, apparently contemplating whether to ignore her companion¡¯s well-being, unleashing her spell indiscriminately at them both.


    That said, Percy had no intention of waiting for her to make her mind up. Tossing the ¡°hostage¡± at her, he ran right behind him, leaping above the body at the last second.


    Descending upon the air mage, he swung his weapon at her.


    Backed to a corner, she unleashed a burst of mana like before, trying to dodge to the side.


    However, she¡¯d gravely miscalculated this time. While she indeed managed to evade the shaft of Percy¡¯s weapon, having roughly estimated its location, his latest construct was  a quarterstaff¡­


    Having deliberately used the blunt ends against the earth mage, Percy had intentionally misled them both into reaching this false conclusion.


    What his opponent couldn¡¯t have expected, was the weapon¡¯s long, crescent blade, cleaving her soul right in half!


    [Congratulations! Your spells have merged: Quarterstaff ¨C Crude + Parting Gift ¨C Crude -> Soul Harvester ¨C Refined!]

 Chapter 151: Teal powder

    Only once he finished the earth mage too did Percy finally allow his weapon to regain its colour, a scythe of glowing teal appearing in his hand.Ever since he first mastered Crystallization, he¡¯d naturally tried applying it to other affinities. Sadly, whether it was his own soul mana, or Gabe¡¯s fire and air mana, the spell had never worked with anything else.


    With one exception.


    Like most of Percy¡¯s spells, it worked seamlessly with his fused mana, as it was indistinguishable from pure mana in its corporeal state. That said, the teal powder hadn¡¯t been particularly useful before now. The first thing he had tried was to brew elixirs with it, only to end up giving the Aurora Dew a slightly different colour. It hadn¡¯t altered its effect, however, rendering the extra effort pointless.


    Luckily, this all changed a few months ago, upon his spell¡¯s evolution to Reinforcement. Following Sengo¡¯s teachings, Percy could strengthen his cyan constructs with the corresponding powder, so there was no reason why he couldn¡¯t do the same with the teal constructs. That way, he¡¯d have tougher weapons without losing the fused mana¡¯s versatility.


    But he didn¡¯t stop there.


    he grinned, tracing his fingers along the scythe¡¯s surface.


    The edge was as sharp as a katana¡¯s, but that wasn¡¯t what he was focusing on. Instead, he felt the grooves and curves of the embroidered symbols along its length. They covered the weapon from tip to tip, from the crescent blade all the way to the bottom of its shaft.


    Naturally, these were all concealment runes!


    One of his soul affinity¡¯s greatest advantages was its invisibility. Sadly, the fact that it could be bypassed through Mana Sense so easily had always rubbed him the wrong way. Initially, he¡¯d only bothered learning the concealment runes as a means to guard his secrets but, at some point, he¡¯d come up with an even better use for them.


    he sighed.


    Examining the weapon with his sixth sense, he couldn¡¯t help but spot multiple areas where the enchantment failed, making the construct detectible. It was faint, but his opponents might have noticed the scythe¡¯s edge in time, had they been a little more observant.


    Whether it was his smithing technique or his runecrafting, both had plenty of room for improvement. Of course, he couldn¡¯t help it much. The crude runes were the most he could currently achieve without compromising the scythe¡¯s structural integrity. As for the enchantments, he¡¯d only be able to link them more seamlessly after he delved into magiscript proper.


    he shrugged.


    In any case, it would be a while until he earned enough credits in the Vault¡¯s challenges to afford the books on the more advanced topics. That said, this only made him more eager to return there.


    ¡°Are they all dead?¡± Nesha asked, approaching him.


    Percy responded by pointing at his familiar. Micky was flying towards them, carrying the final body in his talons. Suffice to say, they¡¯d dealt another major blow to House Tantalus today.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised they haven¡¯t sent any Greens yet.¡± Nesha mused.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that strange.¡± Percy said, eliciting a frown from her.


    It had already been about half a year since they arrived in Bogside town. And this was already the third group the enemy House had sent to investigate the disappearances. Originally, Percy had expected them to send more people, and a lot sooner at that. According to his original estimates, they should have responded with a Green mere weeks after the first attack. Over time, however, he had come to realize the reason they seemed to be holding back.


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    ¡°I¡¯m guessing they can¡¯t afford to part with their Greens right now.¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°Well, I imagine my grandpa is applying a lot of pressure on them, in the western side of the province. Dealing with some random wild beast near one of their towns isn¡¯t that urgent, by comparison.¡± ????????§¦?


    ¡°Haven¡¯t they sustained more losses by taking it easy though?¡± she asked again, clearly unconvinced.


    It was true. By now, Percy and Micky had killed 15 Yellows in total. A substantial force even by a noble House¡¯s standards. Had they sent a single Green from the start, House Tantalus would have suffered less.


    ¡°I think a big part of it is that they didn¡¯t expect any of their groups to fail. After all, they¡¯re operating under the assumption their target is a mindless beast. They probably hastily delegated whatever Yellows they could spare, whenever they could.¡±


    ¡°I still don¡¯t get it. Isn¡¯t a group of 5 Yellows a greater force than a single Green?¡±


    But Percy shook his head.


    ¡°On paper, 5 Yellows should indeed be able to take a Green out. But their value in the war is a little more complicated to estimate.¡± he said, giving Nesha a quick rundown of his understanding.


    At the end of the day, the war would be decided by the highest powers either House could freely deploy. In other words, . As for those weaker, their contribution was mostly determined by how much they could impact the war between Blues.


    While a Green was nominally as strong as a handful of Yellows, they were many times more valuable than that . After all, Greens could actually survive and meaningfully participate in a fight between Blues, possibly even tipping the scales. As for Yellows, they wouldn¡¯t last a moment in such a high-level battle.


    Of course, that didn¡¯t mean Yellows were worthless. Far from it. They could be deployed in areas where there weren¡¯t any Blues, with the purpose of taking out the enemy Greens, thus affecting the high-level battles indirectly. Still, they were two layers removed from the battles that mattered the most, making them more disposable.


    And that was without considering their value the war. After all, Greens were more often Yellow-borns, which meant they had to be protected at all costs. As for Yellows, they were typically Orange-borns or even Red-borns ¨C nobody in their right mind would send a child under 10 on a mission.


    ¡°That makes sense, but I doubt they¡¯ll continue sending Yellows to their doom.¡± Nesha said.


    ¡°Right.¡± Percy nodded. ¡°I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll wise up after this latest failure. .¡± he said, his expression grim.


    Nesha and Micky both nodded, their faces equally sombre.


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s not that bad!¡± Percy suddenly said, easing up the mood. ¡°We¡¯re not completely helpless against a Green. Not anymore.¡±


    Had one arrived months ago, they would have probably had to hide or even run away, but things were different now. Between Percy¡¯s new spells, their new mastery of runes, and Micky growing more experienced, they were more than capable of giving the next unfortunate noble to come after them a warm welcome.


    ¡°In any case, we should head back. There are only a couple hours left until sunrise.¡± Nesha suggested. Sear?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Because you need rest...¡± Micky said, his voice oozing with sarcasm.


    Out of the three of them, he¡¯d had the toughest time today. After all, the sun had still been out back when the latest batch of nobles arrived in the Grisly Bog. That meant that neither Percy nor Nesha had been able to join him immediately at the time. At least, not without arousing suspicion.


    Consequently, the crow had been given the annoying task of keeping their enemies busy for a few hours, so that they wouldn¡¯t leave before the others arrived. To do that, he¡¯d been forced to fly wide circles around them, letting them spot him frequently to entice them into staying, yet without ever giving them the chance to harm him.


    ¡°It¡¯s been tough on all of us.¡± Nesha shrugged unapologetically. ¡°I¡¯ll have to replace the pitfall traps tomorrow, you know¡­¡±


    ¡°Alright. That¡¯s enough in-fighting. We should take some time to relax.¡± Percy said.


    Next, the trio broke up, with Micky flying deeper into the swamp, heading towards his nest, while the others made their way to their humble hut. Yet, the three of them weren¡¯t the only ones returning home¡­


    The ethereal cord attached to his stomach had been acting strange over the last couple of days. It had kept tensing and shaking in irregular intervals. From experience, Percy could tell this was a signal the clone was on its way to Remior.


    However, it should have long arrived by now. Moreover, the cord vibrated way more than it usually did, as if the clone was on some tumultuous journey, having encountered some unprecedented obstacle this time. Something preventing it from returning.


    It wasn¡¯t until late in the following morning that Percy¡¯s wisp finally reached him, its condition shocking him¡­

 Chapter 152: Who am I?

    Percy hammered the flat slab of steel absentmindedly, thinning it further with each strike. It wasn¡¯t until it looked about to break that he remembered he was supposed to fold it again. Only after doing so did he dip it into a trough filled with water to quench it, before applying another layer of clay mud and moving it into the furnace. That said, the fate of the knife wasn¡¯t exactly at the forefront of his mind right now.Percy didn¡¯t fully understand what his latest clone had experienced, as he¡¯d only brought back a few scattered memories. The knowledge of how to heal his soul more efficiently was by far the clearest, followed by his promise to some girl to look for her in the future.


    As for the details of what had gone down between the two, he didn¡¯t really remember them. He had a faint idea that their friendship had started off on the wrong foot, before evolving to something more by the time they parted ways. But he didn¡¯t really know how or why that happened, nor how he was meant to find her again.


    He did recall he was supposed to injure his soul in a specific manner to lure some soul-based entity into his body. Next, he had to break it down and absorb it into his soul to obtain some kind of benefit. Percy didn¡¯t remember what exactly that benefit was, but the details of how to go about it were clear enough. Of course, the whole process seemed dangerous, but his clone had clearly deemed this to be a memory worth preserving.


    In any case, Percy would give it a shot, but only after he practiced with the healing art a little. It was best to know how to fix himself in case something went wrong. And he¡¯d also try looking for his new acquaintance during his future trips. Though, none of that was particularly urgent right now.


    What bothered him a whole lot more, were the implications of this recent adventure on And he wasn¡¯t thinking about the injury per se. He was confident it would heal in a couple of weeks at the latest. But that wouldn¡¯t bring the dead version of him back to life ¨C it would merely replace him.


    he sighed bitterly.


    Just because his bloodline allowed his clones to survive and operate on their own for some time, it didn¡¯t mean they were immortal or invulnerable. They were ultimately nothing more than fragile chunks of his soul. The only reason none of them had been lost or destroyed before now was due to how rare soul affinities were. He¡¯d never met any mage or creature capable of interacting with his souls before now. . But this was bound to happen eventually.


    The result would have obviously been the same. After all, Percy and his clones were the same person, with the same personality. Naturally, he would have made the exact same choices, ultimately sacrificing himself to benefit his main body. .


    Was it worth it?


    The only real difference between him and the clones was the size of their soul. They were the same person until the very moment the bloodline activated, at which point the biggest portion remained in his body, while the smaller one ended up flying out. Percy had never really had to deal with this issue before, because all his clones had made it back ¨C other than the one he¡¯d shoved into his familiar. And that one, he¡¯d sacrificed to save his friend, not for his own sake.


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    Evidently, this wasn¡¯t always going to be the case, however. Moving forward, he¡¯d probably be forced to make the same choice again. A choice between self-preservation or sacrificing himself for the original¡¯s benefit.


    At the end of the day, Percy had to decide what was most important for him. His goal had always been to reach the pinnacle of magic ¨C to grow as strong as he could. To aim for divinity, and beyond. But would it even matter if some other Percy achieved that goal, should he himself perish?


    It all boiled down to one simple question.


    Was there only one Percy ¨C the original? Or did all his clones have the right to live too? Should they all strive towards a common goal ¨C to elevate their joint existence to the highest level? Or should they put themselves¡¯ first?


    It didn¡¯t matter much when they could safely return to Remior. Whenever that happened, they would simply fuse back into the original, sharing the same fate. But the choice wouldn¡¯t always be this easy.


    ¡°I think the steel is ready for the next round of tempering.¡± Nesha said, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    Only now did Percy realize the bar was already red-hot. Placing it back on the anvil, he continued the forging process. Having removed most of the impurities, he began to consciously flatten it into the shape of a kitchen knife this time. Obviously, the townsfolk didn¡¯t need any fancy katanas. Percy had been forced to adapt Sengo¡¯s teachings to some more useful everyday tools to make a living here.


    A couple hours later, Percy sharpened the knife¡¯s edge with a whetstone. His lack of experience in tandem with the subpar tools at his disposal did knock the quality of his crafts down a notch. Adding the fact that he hadn¡¯t given it his all today, and the knife he currently held wasn¡¯t exactly his finest work. An untrained eye might have missed it, but it was a little rough around the edges. It was slightly wider in the middle than it was supposed to be, the wavy patterns on the blade not quite as clear as usual. Percy couldn¡¯t help but click his tongue in annoyance.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s still better than what people here are used to.¡± Nesha consoled him.


    She was playing with some space mana in her hands, trying to get a bit better at shaping it how she wanted. Naturally, she hadn¡¯t missed Percy¡¯s irritation.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± he said. ¡°Do you think my clone was a fool to do this?¡±


    While he couldn¡¯t be certain, Percy guessed his clone had brought this grim fate upon himself, because of multiple risky choices. And he¡¯d already brought Nesha up to speed on the topic.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m probably not the best person to ask, as I¡¯ve never put any external goal above my well-being. Even working towards my revenge is something I only do when I can. I guess it all boils down to what you value the most.¡±


    Nodding, Percy placed the knife on the floor, before washing himself outside with some water. Next, he went to bed early, Nesha¡¯s words still echoing in his mind. While his companion was more than a little eccentric ¨C and oftentimes lazy ¨C she was by no means stupid.


    It was true that he¡¯d never really had to choose between his life or his goal. After all, the two were normally inextricably linked. He couldn¡¯t become a god if he was dead, could he?


    Then, he shook his head.


    The odds were already stacked heavily against him. Even with the Aurora Dew and his two cores, he¡¯d only live long enough to reach Blue. He still wasn¡¯t even close to Violet or White, let alone godhood. Metatron had made it clear he doubted it was even possible. Could Percy afford to play it safe, and still hope to succeed?


    Doing his best to ensure each of his clones made it back was a given. They weren¡¯t disposable tools to discard at will. Each of them was . At the same time, he didn¡¯t have the luxury of preserving all of them. Many would die again, if any part of him was to ever become a god. Remembering back to the time he¡¯d first practiced his soul affinity on that goblin, all those years ago, his thoughts now rang in his mind once more, truer than ever.


    At the time, his thoughts had been shallower. He¡¯d only considered the pain he had to endure when using his bloodline. As it turned out, that was the easy bit. Whether it was the tragic fates of the dying people he met during his travels, or the difficult choices he¡¯d have to make, his affinity continued to prove itself brutal at every turn.


    In the end, it didn¡¯t matter who he currently was, nor who his clones were. Whichever side he found himself on, Percy had to give it his all, in service of the person he wished to one day become¡­


    S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

 Chapter 153: Housewife

    Nesha picked up the knives from the table, before leaving the hut. Percy was still busy using his new trick to repair his injured soul, so she¡¯d deliver the finished tools to Mr. Dylan for him.On the way to the shop, she didn¡¯t stop playing around with her mana, however, trying to keep it in the shape of an orb. It was annoying, training like this, day in and day out. Not something she was very accustomed to. Still¡­


    she bit her lip.


    Percy was already stronger than her, despite being a grade lower. This was a strange thing for Nesha but, seeing him constantly doing his best motivated her to try harder too. While she¡¯d never admit it, she felt like shit guzzling down three doses of Aurora Dew per day while contributing so little to the group.


    Of course, Nesha had long known that Percy was hard-working. In fact, she¡¯d learned this as early as during their first month in the Guild, years before their collaboration. But it was one thing seeing the results of his efforts from the outside, and a different thing entirely to live in the same house, watching him train relentlessly from sunrise until sunset.


    The guy never stopped ¨C except for when he worked on the anvil. But even that, was in part to maintain their cover as commoners and pay the bills, while also helping him get better at reinforcing his pure constructs.


    she reminded herself, cringing as the memory of the nail-scraping sound made her want to tear her hair out. She had no idea why he¡¯d kept the darn thing, but at least he only played for Micky nowadays.


    In any case, it wasn¡¯t a mystery to her how Percy had grown so strong. Given his abundance of secrets combined with his peculiar work ethic, and anything else would have been stranger. She very much doubted she¡¯d be able to keep up with him, but she wouldn¡¯t forgive herself if she continued to waste her own gifts.


    ¡°Good morning! Miss Nesha, was it?¡± Mr. Dylan asked, breaking her out of her thoughts. ¡°How is Percy doing? I haven¡¯t seen him much lately.¡±


    ¡°Good morning! Indeed, he spends all day working at home.¡± she said, speaking a half-truth. ¡°I figured helping him out with the chores was the least I could do.¡±


    She handed him the knives, getting some silver coins in return, as well as a couple bars of pig iron that Percy would be using for the next batch. They were heavy, but not to a Yellow. Especially not since she started exercising.


    Bidding the man farewell, she brought the metal home, before going out for another round, to restock their supplies. Initially, she¡¯d discussed with Percy the possibility of getting herself a job in the town, but other than her marketing skills, there wasn¡¯t anything else she¡¯d be much good at. Besides, they didn¡¯t really need a lot of money. Percy¡¯s job was more than enough to cover for the necessities and get himself some blacksmithing practice.


    In the end, they¡¯d decided it was best for her to pose as a housewife. After all, her current priorities were things she could work on while staying at home. She had to get better with her magic so that she wouldn¡¯t be a liability in a fight, as well as working towards the enchantments for the spatial amulets.


    she sighed.


    Nesha had already grown decent at drawing the pocket runes. Sadly, Percy hadn¡¯t had the chance to bring anything else from the Vault. According to him, it was only recently that he felt confident taking the Red magiscript challenge for some credits, so he only began looking for a suitable host to take there in the past few weeks. And he had yet to find one.


    After buying the groceries, Nesha returned home again, taking her second dose of Aurora Dew for the day. Like Percy, her next promotion was a little over a decade away. Reaching Green in her thirties would be a dream come true. People who didn¡¯t know her might even mistake her for a Yellow-born. At least until her peers started hitting Blue a century earlier than her.


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    she smiled bitterly.


    For the time being, they had to hide from the world. And she didn¡¯t know if there was a way out of their mess either. Their current plan was to lay low for as long as possible and hope for the best. Admittedly, not the most thought out one.


    Even beyond their conflict against House Tantalus and their rapidly dwindling supply of elixir, finding a way to placate the Divine Root was arguably their most pressing issue. Percy didn¡¯t mention it much, but Nesha could tell it was weighing on him hard, as nothing else would matter should they get caught.


    Ignoring Percy who was still working on his recovery, she lied with her back on the floor, before beginning a set of sit ups. According to him, it would take her years before she was ready to learn Circulation. Physical exercises weren¡¯t what she had imagined spending the first half of her 20s on. Still, the boosting art was arguably the most useful spell she¡¯d ever seen. She¡¯d be ungrateful to not bother learning it after Percy generously offered to coach her.


    She only took a break a couple hours later, once she had grown too tired to keep going. Sadly, they didn¡¯t have a life user nearby for her to cheat her way through this phase of the training as Percy had.


    Glancing around the room, Nesha saw Percy still sitting cross-legged in the same spot, Synchronization active. She couldn¡¯t observe his soul directly, but Mana Sense revealed a ridiculous amount of mana pouring into his stomach. It was partially obscured by his bandage, but she did see a huge portion sticking to the ceiling of what she guessed was his wound.


    The hole had already shrunk noticeably in the last few hours! Not that strange, in hindsight. Between Percy¡¯s insane mana regeneration and Micky eating Yellow souls to supplement him, he¡¯d only need a week or two to fully patch it up, before sending clones again. And that was only because he had to recreate the entire chunk his clone had lost. Normally, they estimated he should be able to recover within a day once a clone returned, letting him essentially send them out back-to-back!


    Drawing some mana from her core, Nesha formed a miniature butterfly, making it fly around the room. Its design was crude, some of its mana leaking with every flap of its misshapen wings, leaving a trail of black motes in its passing. Her mana control was still atrocious, but it was already better than Percy¡¯s. And this wasn¡¯t due to her being more talented or more hard-working than him.


    It was a feature of her grade.


    A mage¡¯s control over their mana greatly increased with each promotion. This was why Yellows and Greens could form more intricate spells and control them remotely. For example, the time spells of that noble they had faced before fell in that category. This was in stark contrast to Percy¡¯s spells, that he had to essentially prepare before firing. It was why he couldn¡¯t change the trajectory of his throwing knives or his sickles once he launched them.


    Of course, that had begun to change a little once he started fuelling his spells out of that strange, fused mana of his. Powered by two Orange cores, his teal constructs were easier for him to control, which was how he was able to more easily change the Mantle to a bunch of projectiles or change his mana¡¯s properties mid-flight. At least, that was their current hypothesis. S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    she thought, letting the butterfly disperse once she ran out of mana to fuel it.


    Looking out of the window, she noticed it was already dark. She grabbed another vial of Aurora Dew from the amulet, before heading towards the door. One of her current projects was to spread more of her pitfall traps in the Grisly Bog each night, to prepare for when their next enemy arrived. And to keep Micky some company, when Percy was too busy to do so himself.


    Yet, right when she was about to leave, Percy spoke, stopping her in her tracks.


    ¡°Nesha.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm?¡±


    ¡°Remember when you asked me to give you a second core?¡±


    ¡°Of course. You said it was too dangerous to try that on a friend. Also, that it wouldn¡¯t be of any use to me if I didn¡¯t train with it.¡±


    ¡°Right. Both of those are still true, but a couple things have changed since then.¡±


    Nesha nodded. She still wasn¡¯t quite ready to fight a fellow Yellow by herself, but she was confident she could support Percy and Micky in a fight without hitting them by accident.


    ¡°I¡¯m not just talking about your own growth.¡± Percy added, probably guessing what she was thinking. ¡°This mending art is a game-changer. Obviously, I¡¯d like to spend some more time getting better with it, and it¡¯s never going to be completely risk-free, but it would be hypocritical of me to lecture others about risks when I¡¯m gambling with my own life all the time.¡±


    Nesha¡¯s eyes widened, but Percy raised a hand to stop her.


    ¡°Not right now. Keep practicing and think hard about it. If you still want to go through with it, I¡¯ll give it a shot as soon as we get ourselves more elixir.¡±

 Chapter 154: Mend

    The soul mana gushed through Percy¡¯s channels like a torrential river, lighting up a silver maelstrom around his sternum. Tears formed and closed throughout his soul, but he didn¡¯t pay them any attention, having long grown used to this version of his boosting art.Instead, his attention was glued to the hole around his stomach, as it had been over the last couple of weeks. The rush of mana tried to fill the crater like a lake, a lot of it leaking out of the wound, though Percy held it back as best as he could. Instead, he guided it to stick to the surface of the hole as much as possible, cutting down the losses.


    In addition, he willed it to act with purpose, boosting his soul¡¯s natural regeneration rather than blindly attempting to patch the wound up. Not only that, but he focused it in interspaced locations, prioritizing the growth of thin tendrils all over the wound, rather than letting the mana act uniformly.


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new spell: Mend ¨C Crude!]


    He had spent several days making up for his nearly destroyed clone, the crater having already shrunk from the size of a grapefruit to that of a cherry. The latest healing art he had brought back from the mysterious girl ¨C whose name he didn¡¯t quite remember ¨C had clearly done wonders, even in its incomplete state. Yet, it wasn¡¯t until now that the Status deemed his mastery sufficient to list it along with the other spells.


    Naturally, Percy was elated his efforts were recognized, but he didn¡¯t let his concentration waver, continuing the arduous process of mending his soul. Doing so was especially critical right now, as Micky had informed him he was about to munch on a Yellow beast, providing him with another potent source of mana.


    the crow spoke through their bond, sending him the image of a snake lying motionless under his talons.


    Sure enough, more mana flooded Percy¡¯s saturated soul a second later, forcing him to let some inside the crater. Like this, a portion would inevitably end up wasted, but he¡¯d still lose less than if he allowed it to spill out randomly from his pores.


    It wasn¡¯t until four hours later that he finally stopped, satisfied with today¡¯s improvements. The wound wasn¡¯t entirely gone just yet, a small hole still present in his stomach, but it was already smaller than the scar in his sternum. Plus, this one didn¡¯t have a cord extending outwards, so he was confident it would close completely tomorrow.


    His latest misadventure had cost him some valuable time, though he didn¡¯t regret it. How could he, having gained so much from it? Grinning, he pulled his Status up, taking some time to appreciate the fruit of his labour.


    ___


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Orange ¨C Pure]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    Spells:


    [Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude][Glove ¨C Crude][Mend ¨C Crude][Soul Harvester ¨C Refined][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Synchronization ¨C Refined][Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.


    ___


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    Percy was back to seven spells, having previously ¡®lost¡¯ one when his Quarterstaff and his Parting Gift merged into the Soul Harvester. That said, the overall quality of his arsenal had never been higher, with over half his spells now being Refined! Even Elaine only had two of those, despite having two grades on him!


    He still wasn¡¯t completely clear on how this absorption process was supposed to work, his memories of the trip a little foggy. But he did remember enough to give it a shot ¨C as soon as his soul was back to normal. Whatever the result would be, it was definitely worth delaying his return to the Vault by a few more days¡­


    ***


    Percy asked through the cord.


    Another two days had passed, and he was finally ready to begin. Luckily, his wound had fully closed yesterday, though he¡¯d chosen to play it safe and get a good night¡¯s sleep before experimenting with the strange technique.


    the familiar replied, sending the image of another freshly slain carcass.


    Percy nodded. It never hurt to have some extra mana stashed on the side, just in case. Sending a trickle to his eyes, he examined his soul once more, making sure everything was in order. He might use his boosting art later, but he¡¯d decided to hold on for now, unsure whether it would help more than it hurt.


    Gathering some mana on his index finger, he delivered a few precise incisions in various sections of his soul, inflicting several narrow cuts along his limbs and torso. He winced in pain, of course ¨C soul injuries weren¡¯t something he¡¯d ever get completely used to ¨C but he kept going, having experienced far worse over the years.


    Naturally, he would have never dared to try anything similar on his flesh. While the pain would have been much easier to stomach, he would have risked dying of blood loss. Luckily, his soul didn¡¯t work that way. Besides, this latest series of injuries vastly paled in comparison to the crater he¡¯d just finished healing.


    This next part was a bit foggier in Percy¡¯s mind, but he figured it couldn¡¯t be far off. After taking a few seconds to replenish what little mana he had spent, he pulled a sliver of it from his core, splitting it in multiple parts, before pushing it out of the cuts all at once. At the same time, he focused on the pain, trying to exaggerate the idea of his injuries in his mind.


    Unsurprisingly, having possessed dozens of dying bodies made this rather simple. He guessed he had a huge edge in this regard, compared to the natives of the mysterious world. Motes of silver soon leaked out of his wounds one after another, fading into nothing within mere metres of his body.


    He didn¡¯t know if he had done a good job giving his mana the ¡®scent¡¯ of a dying soul, but it wouldn¡¯t matter if the motes didn¡¯t even leave Remior. His only hope was that the creatures could sense it from much further away, through the plane of souls that they presumably dwelled.


    Pushing the rest of his mana out of his core, Percy repeated the process one more time, yet without seeing any tangible results several minutes later. His failure was definitely a little disappointing, but he wasn¡¯t one to give up easily.


    Heeding his request, Micky soon sent him a ton of soul mana, as Percy activated Synchronization, now pushing the silver motes out several times more forcefully than before. Naturally, the substance tried to latch onto his injuries, to heal them as it usually did.


    But he didn¡¯t allow it.


    In fact, he did the exact opposite. Not only did he actively prevent the cuts he had manually inflicted from closing, he even did his best to keep some of the tears caused by his boosting art open.


    Visualizing the horrendous state of his past hosts and capitalizing on the intense pain, Percy kept at it for a couple more hours ¨C until long after Micky had run out of mana to send.


    Sighing in defeat, he finally allowed the mana to close the minuscule cuts, restoring his soul to pristine condition. Percy wasn¡¯t sure what had gone wrong. Yes, his memories of the technique weren¡¯t too clear, but he was confident they were at least . There didn¡¯t seem to be any key component missing. He¡¯d even released a lot more mana than any Orange mage had any business wielding.


    This was the only logical explanation he could come up with. After all, he was competing by his lonesome against an entire culture of people who did this regularly. Their collective efforts had probably drawn plenty of the creatures to linger in the outskirts of their world, massively lowering the barrier of entry for any individual person trying to lure one of them over. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    His expression drooped, as he grew more and more certain of his guess. If he was right, then he could only think of two possible solutions. The first was to leave Remior with his main body, repeating the experiment at a more suitable location.


    he smiled bitterly.


    Currently, his only means of travelling across worlds were his clones and Metatron¡¯s Decree ¨C neither of which would help in this situation. Which left him only one option. He had to massively expand the scope of his efforts, to lure the creatures from much further away.

 Chapter 155: Spirit

    Percy allowed his boosting art to fizzle out, as he placed both palms on his knees, breathing heavily.While the creation of his clones had grown into quite a routine operation by now ¨C a far cry from the dangerous and laborious venture it was during his early days ¨C the act still left him a little tired afterwards.


    It wasn¡¯t until a few minutes later that he found the strength to stand up. He¡¯d have to heal his injuries again at some point, but not right now. Unable to absorb one of the mysterious creatures, and with a clone currently roaming the cosmos, Percy had decided to take the rest of the day off, feeling himself deserving of a break.


    The sun was still at its apex, Nesha currently in the middle of a workout just outside the house ¨C they¡¯d made a pact to leave any sweaty business out of the hut.


    Walking to a wall, he reached out towards nothing in particular, seemingly grabbing a fistful of empty air. It wasn¡¯t until a second later that a glowing teal scythe manifested in his hand. Naturally, this was his latest Refined spell ¨C the Soul Harvester!


    Only, Percy hadn¡¯t created this one today, but nearly a week ago! This was a convenient feature of his twice-fused mana. The cyan crystals were already semi-permanent constructs which could survive for an extended period of time without breaking down. His mixed mana constructs created through Reinforcement inherited some of that durability ¨C though not all of it, due to the presence of regular mana causing them to decay over time. That said, using his teal mana pushed the durability even further, as the substance had always been a little harder to break down.


    What all this meant, was that his scythe could survive for several days before its structural integrity was compromised! A very fortunate development indeed, as creating each one was a time-consuming process ¨C especially with all the concealment runes Percy had to embed into each one.


    Tracing his finger along the weapon¡¯s length, Percy nodded in satisfaction as he examined the scythe¡¯s condition.


    Propping the construct against the wall, he robbed it of its colour again, before leaving the house for some fresh air.


    The dirt roads of the small town were¡­ not quite but, perhaps was an apt term. A few of the townsfolk walked about, greeting each other with a smile, chatting for a few minutes at a time, or entering a shop. The mood was strangely uplifting, which made Percy crease his brow.


    The residents of Bogside town had a lot more problems to deal with, even compared to the average commoner on Remior. For one, they lived under the jurisdiction of a particularly ruthless noble House, slaughtering them on a regular basis, treating them as little more than livestock to feed their horrific bloodline.


    And that was without even considering the economic difficulties these people had to endure. Most towns across Remior were good at producing at least of value. They to, in order to survive. A few of them, like the nearby Greyquarry town, had mines in their vicinity and could export ores and minerals. Others were suitable for growing magical reagents ¨C things that places like the Alchemists¡¯ Guild needed.


    Sadly for the people of Bogside town, they¡¯d drawn the short end of the stick in that regard as well. From what Percy understood, there some fertile land to the northwest of the town, allowing the peasants to supply their cruel overlords with crops and animal products. However, that wasn¡¯t exactly the most profitable business, so they normally had to supplement it by gambling their lives to venture into the nearby swamp, harvesting some additional materials from the magical beasts living there.


    This was something that gnawed at Percy¡¯s conscience lately. An unfortunate side-effect of his actions was that he¡¯d rendered the entire bog off-limits for the residents, inadvertently cutting off part of their lifeblood. He and Nesha could see that these people were struggling more to get by than when they had first arrived in the town.


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    That said, they didn¡¯t seem too distraught over it ¨C for some reason.


    With the pretence of browsing for some bread from the local bakery, Percy paid attention to a couple of ladies gossiping loudly by the entrance. , eavesdropping was admittedly his classiest moment, but he was dying to know why these people seemed so chirpy, despite the harsh times they were living in.


    ¡°Hey, Margaret! How¡¯s Randal doing today? Is his knee still bothering him?¡±


    ¡°Good morning, Brenda! You know how these things are¡­ The pain is getting worse. Last night, he woke up all sweaty. He couldn¡¯t go back to sleep again.¡±


    ¡°Oh my god! That sounds You really need to take him to a life mage.¡±


    Margaret sighed.


    ¡°I know. The problem is, he¡¯s not in any condition to travel. The nearest life mage lives in Greyquarry town. It¡¯ll cost three times as much to get him to come to us¡­ And with Randal unable to work in the fields, our finances are a bit tight too¡­¡±


    ¡°Do you want us to lend you some money?¡± Brenda offered. ¡°Waiting is only going to make the situation worse.¡±


    ¡°Oh, no. ¡± Margaret hurriedly waved at her friend. ¡°You¡¯re raising two young kids, Brenda. I appreciate your kindness, but we can¡¯t impose on you.¡±


    Brenda insisted some more, though Margaret just shot her down. Still listening in, Percy couldn¡¯t help but feel his chest tighten, as their words only exacerbated his guilt. Though the next thing Margaret said made him furrow his brow.


    ¡°Besides¡­ I¡¯d take this situation any day over what we had in the past.¡± she said, her features easing.


    ¡°I know what you mean¡­ Having a little less food on the table is a small price to pay. How long has it been, even? About a year?¡±


    ¡°Almost. Gods, we¡¯d have lost a dozen people by now.¡± Margaret nodded.


    ¡°Probably more. Those bastards used to take a handful each time. I hope House Avalon wipes them all out!¡±


    ¡°Shhh! We aren¡¯t alone.¡± Margaret whispered, discreetly pointing at Percy who hurriedly looked away, his cheeks heating up.


    ¡°Geez, I wouldn¡¯t worry about the new kid ratting us out to those assholes Margaret. Remember what they tried to do to his wife a few months back? Anyway, I hope that monster bird stays in the Grisly Bog forever, . I¡¯d rather go hungry with my kids and husband than wake up every morning afraid I¡¯ll lose them.¡±


    ¡°Do you think we¡¯ll be safe here though? What if the beast flies over here one day, looking for food?¡±


    ¡°Well, I suppose it¡¯s possible, but I doubt it can take the whole town on. Besides, it hasn¡¯t harmed a hair from any of our heads so far. It¡¯s only ever touched the pompous assholes who went looking for it.¡±


    Margaret remained silent for a few seconds, seemingly pondering something.


    ¡°Say¡­ do you think the rumour about it is true?¡±


    Brenda chortled.


    ¡°C¡¯mon Margaret! Don¡¯t tell me you believe that crap? That¡¯s the kind of shit Fegan tells the kids!¡±


    ¡°I know, I know¡­ It sounds ridiculous¡­¡± Margaret chuckled too. ¡°Still, how else do you explain the strange glow on its body? Beasts can¡¯t use magic like that. Both Reni and Samia saw it. They said it looked almost¡­¡± she paused, contemplating her next words carefully. ¡°. And then it let them go, only attacking those people¡­¡±


    ¡°No way¡­ It¡¯s got to be some kind of coincidence. Maybe it went after the nobles first because they were stronger, and thus tastier. As for the glow, I think that¡¯s probably an exaggeration. I bet its feathers just reflect the sunlight in a weird way. The girls must¡¯ve mistaken it in their panic.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like a stretch.¡± Margaret insisted.


    ¡°And believing that a guardian spirit descended from the heavens to protect our town doesn¡¯t?¡± Brenda asked in incredulity.


    ¡°Look, I¡¯m not saying . Just, maybe the bird has some level of intelligence and wanted to help us out. Anyone would, after seeing how those people treat us.¡±


    Brenda shook her head.


    ¡°Nah¡­ Margaret, this is a good thing for us, but don¡¯t go ascribing some noble purpose to a wild beast. It¡¯ll only get you killed if you ever come face to face with it. Most likely, it just got hungry, plunging its talons into the first people it saw. And House Tantalus won¡¯t stop poking at it, sending more and more of their men to their doom.¡±


    ¡°What about then? How do you explain Two nights ago, he went into the bog, scavenging for food. A foolish gamble, but he did come back a few hours later, carrying an Orange rat carcass. ¡±


    ¡°Huh, I did hear about that, actually! That moron was asking for it.¡± Brenda huffed.


    ¡°They¡¯re , Brenda¡­ The man was trying to feed his kids.¡±


    ¡°I know But who¡¯s going to feed his kids if he gets himself killed? He just got lucky, is all.¡± S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy who was still following the conversation subtly exhaled in relief. Hearing about the positive impact he¡¯d had on the town lifted a heavy weight off his chest. That said, listening in to the rest of it caused his jaw to slacken.


    ¡°You don¡¯t think the spir¨C the I mean, spared him?¡±


    ¡°I think it¡¯s much more likely it missed him. Though, I must admit, the next part of his story sounds a little spooky¡­ even for me¡­¡±


    ¡°I know, right?!¡± Margaret mused. ¡°He claims he heard an eerie tune emanating from the depths of the Grisly Bog. An otherworldly screech akin to a ghost clawing against the gates of hell, begging to be let out.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t know if there¡¯s any truth to that, but I sure wouldn¡¯t want to hear something that dreadful¡­¡±

 Chapter 156: Parrot

    While Percy had kept an eye out for any sign that could lead him back to the mysterious girl, he had failed to find any clues as he roamed the space between worlds. He wasn¡¯t sure what the problem was, but he figured there wasn¡¯t much he could do about it at the moment.In the end, he jumped into the first Red beast he saw, hoping it would be a suitable host for the magiscript challenge. The possession went relatively smoothly too. The creature allowed him to join without any hiccups, though it didn¡¯t relinquish control over its body completely. This one wasn¡¯t passive or timid like the gecko, nor chill and nonchalant like the floating cat. Just¡­ really, friendly?


    Having to share wasn¡¯t the most convenient turn of events, but Percy reminded himself that he was taking over the bodies of others. Naturally, going solo wouldn¡¯t always be an option. In any case, it should be fine as long as the beast allowed him to do what he wanted.


    Settling into the new vessel, Percy soon examined their soul¡¯s condition. It was alright ¨C he¡¯d seen worse. Sadly, Mend wouldn¡¯t help him much here. Even with his improved efficiency and his potent Orange mana, his pitiful stash wouldn¡¯t be anywhere near enough to bring his host back from the verge of death. As always, the best he could hope for was to temporarily patch the cracks up.


    A few minutes later, he managed to tap into the body¡¯s senses. The first thing he felt was the gentle warmth of the sun, licking at the front side of their body. At the same time, a blanket of soft sand simmered beneath him, hugging his back. Next, he tried to take a breath, only to realize he couldn¡¯t.


    It was ridiculous ¨C but perhaps not so surprising ¨C how often his hosts had died of some form of suffocation. Though, unlike Takeo or the monkey, this guy hadn¡¯t been strangled by a vine, nor drowned. It had


    Percy felt an object in their throat, blocking their air canal. Upon regaining consciousness, his host desperately tried to cough it out, to no avail. . If it was that easy, he wouldn¡¯t have died in the first place. Luckily for him, he had Percy to help him this time.


    Pulling a sliver of teal mana from his stash, Percy moved it to their throat, pushing against the obstruction. A few seconds later, their joint efforts were enough to dislodge the object, letting the creature spit it out.


    The beast greedily gasped for air the first chance it got, though Percy ignored it as he examined the instrument of his demise. It was a large, spherical object. Pink and¡­ Almost like a miscoloured coconut. In fact, his guess was probably not that far off, as he could tell via his connection to the creature that this thing was .


    Friendly or not, his latest host clearly wasn¡¯t the sharpest tool in the shed.


    Not being in a rush to move on, Percy allowed the beast to go about its day, while examining their surroundings. As he had come to realize early on, they were currently standing on some kind of beach.Though it looked very different from what one might expect.


    Gazing around some more, he quickly noticed it was more like a desert than a beach, as the sand extended in every direction, all the way to the horizon. Rather than a sea, it was dotted with lots and lots of small oases. Their sizes ranged from tiny puddles to lakes wider than Bogside town. And they seemed to be filled up with regular water, the crystalline liquid shimmering as it reflected the bright sunlight and the clear blue sky both. .


    What caught his eye were the tall palm trees lining up the oases¡¯ coasts, boxing them in, like natural fences. Percy had never seen a palm tree back on Remior ¨C at least not outside illustrations ¨C but these definitely looked a little weird. They always came in pairs, their trunks intertwined with one another, as if the trees were engaged in some stationary dance, embracing their mates passionately. Their crowns lightly touched, looking like they were kissing, with lots of pink coconuts adorning their shared canopies.


    More importantly, Percy spotted plenty more creatures like his host, allowing him to get a better look at them from the outside. His host was clearly an adult ¨C not losing to the tallest of them. They were birds, their beaks short and hooked. As for their plumage, it varied from one individual to another, ranging from the brightest yellows to the gloomiest blues, to exotic pinks and warm reds. A quick glance revealed his own feathers were a relatively unassuming brown ¨C that very thought dampening his host¡¯s mood.


    Percy tried cheering the bird up.


    Overall, the creatures faintly resembled parrots ¨C as much as any alien ever could. That said, they had six limbs. Other than their wings, each of them sported two pairs of talons. Most of them walked on all four, but they seemed capable of standing on their hindlegs too ¨C if they wanted. At least, that appeared to be his host¡¯s preference.


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    Clenching one of his ¡°hands¡±, Percy noted it had a decent range of motion. He only had three digits on each limb, but one was opposite the other two, so he wouldn¡¯t have much trouble holding an object, or drawing runes with it.


    He frowned. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it would do. Next, he pulled up their Status, just in case there was any big surprise there. .


    Percival''s clone


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Red ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spells:


    [Glove ¨C Crude][Mend ¨C Crude][Soul Harvester ¨C Refined][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[Moirais¡¯ Decree (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.


    As always, the Status listed only the spells that he could cast in this body. Synchronization and his Secret Art weren¡¯t among them, as he lacked his bloodline or a second core, but that didn¡¯t mean that everything else listed there was useable.


    Either way, he didn¡¯t want to bring any cyan or teal powder to the Vault, unwilling to hand Metatron such a useful gift. That said, he¡¯d use his fused mana if he had to. That one wasn¡¯t a secret from the titan ¨C after all, it was from there that he even learnt about it in the first place.


    While Percy was busy assessing his situation, his host went about his day unfazed. He strolled casually along the soft sands, acting as if he hadn¡¯t just evaded death. Every now and then, he waved at his peers or greeted them with a throaty squeak. Eventually, he stopped underneath the shade of a particularly large pair of palm trees, where many of his friends had gathered.


    Lifting his eyes from the Status page, Percy examined the other creatures from up close. He guessed these ones were all males, betrayed by their more vibrant coats and slightly larger builds. They were pointing at a group of females bathing in the clear waters of the nearest lake, snickering at one another. His host looked like he was having fun.


    Percy sighed.


    This place was essentially a paradise. No predators in sight, abundant food, a nice environment, and lots of friends or potential mates. It was pretty much a dream come true, whether one was at Red or White, a beast or a sapient.


    But he¡¯d do it. Percy had never thought twice before eating a slice of ham, or a chicken¡¯s drumstick. It would only be hypocritical of him ¨C ¨C if he sacrificed an opportunity to spare a bird¡¯s feelings. Still¡­


    Percy planned to gather a lot of supplies before going to the Vault this time. Sizian meat was the only food they had there, and each piece would cost him an arm and a leg. Not caring about his host¡¯s advancement in the slightest, Percy couldn¡¯t possibly justify spending a credit on every meal ¨C he had yet to even earn any! Plus, he didn¡¯t want to burden Gabe with that again.


    Of course, starving wasn¡¯t an option either. He fully intended to spend at least a couple of weeks there this time. Possibly longer. The obvious solution was to simply bring some food with him through the portal.


    Over the next few hours, he coaxed his host into helping him gather a pile of coconuts. At first, the creature resisted. He was having way too much fun just chilling with his buddies to waste it collecting food when he wasn¡¯t even hungry. But Percy managed to get through to him, mainly by making it appear like a game. They took turns controlling the body, competing to see who¡¯d pick the most coconuts.


    Naturally, the creature wiped the floor with him ¨C being much more used to his own body. Not that Percy cared about his loss too much, his eyes dripping with enthusiasm as he stared at the pile of coconuts sitting before him. It was about as tall as he was.


    Looking up at the trees, his gaze locked onto their leaves, each longer than he was tall, and wider than his arm. A single leaf would probably tear in an instant under all this weight, but what about a hundred of them?


    Fortunately, the parrot proved to be a decent climber. A good thing too, as his wings didn¡¯t seem large enough to support his weight in flight. Some more placating and a few games later, Percy grinned in appreciation as he scanned their handiwork.


    Hundreds of coconuts were resting inside a green sack. Without anything to tie the leaves together, a few coconuts slipped through the gaps whenever he tried dragging the sack. But it was fine. Most of them had remained inside, so the majority would probably make it through the portal.


    Activating the Decree, both of them marvelled at the sight, as the circular gate manifested before them. It wasn¡¯t Percy¡¯s first time seeing this, but that wasn¡¯t nearly enough for him to tire of watching a titan¡¯s magic at work.


    He got a wave of confusion back. Naturally, the creature hesitated, unsure why it had to leave its home and its nestmates behind. With a heavy heart, Percy used the promise of a second core, and unimaginable magical secrets to coax his new buddy into stepping through the portal. Sadly, none of those things appealed to the parrot. It seemed satisfied with everything it already had.


    It took Percy a couple more hours to convince the bird the trip was worth it. And, he only succeeded by omitting a very important detail ¨C the fact that there was no coming back. Tricking the parrot like this leave a bad taste in his mouth, but he knew this was the only way.


    Dragging the leafy sack through the sand, Percy tossed it through the portal first. A few coconuts spilled out in the process, but he just kicked them all right behind it. Then he stepped through the magical gate too.


    It was finally time to learn some new runes. S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

 Chapter 157: Large animals

    After overcoming the dizziness of the trip ¨C at least it helped he was expecting it this time ¨C Percy stood up, examining his surroundings. Lots of people were looking at him curiously again. Though he seemed to have been transported to a different location.That flew in the face of their idea to sneak Gabe out through a portal. Not that they¡¯d placed much hope in that plan to begin with.


    More importantly, Percy noticed something else that gave him pause. These people were all shorter than him ¨C other than the horned ones. . Coming here in the body of a Red beast, he would have expected to barely reach their knees.


    His heart skipped a beat at the implications. Red beasts were essentially regular animals, mostly untouched by magic. They could still use Mana Sense, and possibly Circulation too, but their affinity had yet to start influencing their bodies at a deeper level.


    That was why Red beasts had the greatest size disparity of all grades. One could be as small as a mouse, or as large as an elephant. It wasn¡¯t until core advancements came into play that this began to change. The smallest creatures grew the most from each evolution, first to the size of a fox at Orange, then to about the size of a human at Yellow, and so on.


    As for animals that were already bigger than that to begin with, they still grew larger and stronger with each promotion, but not by nearly as much. Supposedly, the two ends of the spectrum met up at some point between Green and Blue, when the smaller creatures managed to catch up, closing the gap.


    However, Percy wasn¡¯t thinking about the higher grades right now. The fact that his host was already about as large as a Yellow beast while only at Red was an amazing stroke of luck. Of course, it didn¡¯t mean he was anywhere near as as a Yellow. Even an Orange opponent would probably be difficult to contend with. Still, Percy was willing to bet they¡¯d have a massive advantage in the Red challenges.


    he shook his head, suppressing his bubbling enthusiasm.


    He picked up the loose coconuts that had fallen out of the sack, glaring at one of the green folks who tried to snatch one. The guy was actually at Orange, but he barely reached the parrot¡¯s waist. That seemed to deal quite a blow to his self-esteem, as he begrudgingly let go of the exotic fruit a moment later.


    Placing his palm on the ground, Percy then tried to log himself into the cube. Naturally, the unintelligible squeaks of his host struggled to convey the message, but a blue circle still lit up around the talon a couple seconds later, turning silver right afterwards.


    The cube seemed to understand what he wanted too, as a small hole opened up, the translation device popping out. It looked quite small to his current perspective, not to mention how the parrot didn¡¯t have any ears to hook it around, though it still stuck to the side of Percy¡¯s face without any issues.


    ¡°Authorization pending. Please input user ID.¡±


    Percy wanted to roll his eyes, but the bird¡¯s eyeballs appeared fixed in place. Clearly, the cube had already recognized him, otherwise it wouldn¡¯t have given him the device. Asking for his ID at this point was just needless bureaucracy¡­


    ¡°User ID: WANDERER.¡±


    ¡°Authorization granted. Welcome back to the Vault, Percy.¡± the cube replied, though the second sentence was spoken in Metatron¡¯s voice, sending a chill down his spine.


    Picking the sack again, Percy carried it to a less crowded spot, seeking some privacy. He didn¡¯t really care what the Vault¡¯s mortals saw ¨C he doubted any of them had the balls to cause him any trouble. That said, he didn¡¯t exactly want to garner any unnecessary attention either.


    ¡°Cube. Can I speak to Metatron?¡± he asked once he was alone.


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    While he¡¯d rather not make a habit of interacting with the titan frequently, he had been playing with an idea in his mind since his last visit. It was risky, though it would get him more value from these trips if it worked.


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    ¡°Evaluation complete. Request denied. User does not meet the minimum requirements. ¡®Contacting a god of the Vault¡¯ is listed on the restricted section for White grade or above. ¡®Contacting a titan of the Vault¡¯ is listed in the restricted section for Concept realm or above. ¡®Contacting the founder¡¯ is not listed on any reward list.¡±


    Percy was unfazed by the flurry of messages, having expected them. But he also expected the amendment that should come any second now. After all, there was no way Metatron would leave him without the means of accepting his deal.


    ¡°NOTIFICATION: User has been granted special authorization to contact Metatron. Proceed?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t until about five minutes later that another portal opened up right next to him, a familiar pentapus slithering right out.


    ¡°Nice to see you again, Percy. Though I must admit, it feels like yesterday when we last spoke. Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯ve come around so quickly?¡± the titan greeted.


    ¡°No. I¡¯m not ready to accept your terms just yet. I was hoping to propose a deal of my own instead.¡± Percy replied, trying to maintain his composure.


    Though he couldn¡¯t help but swallow a lump as the titan scanned him from head to toe.


    ¡°Only a Red beast this time?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t help it. Those are some tough challenges you¡¯ve implemented. I¡¯ll need to ease my way through them.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s hear it then.¡± Metatron nodded. ¡°Though I would caution you to not summon me again for anything not directly related to my offer. ¡± he added in a more severe tone, making him shudder.


    ¡°I want you to give me enough life mana for the Morais¡¯ Decree every time I visit the Vault with a new body.¡±


    Metatron blinked a few times, staring at Percy in incredulity. S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°I¡¯m still waiting to hear the other half of this so called ¡®deal¡¯.¡±


    ¡°In return¡­ I¡¯ll do my best to leave my hosts intact before I leave.¡± Percy shrugged.


    Yet, the words barely had the chance to leave his mouth, when a suffocating pressure descended on him, forcing him down on his knees. His bones creaked and his joints ached in protest, as the parrot hid in the very recesses of his mind, cowering in terror.


    ¡°Have you lost your mind?!¡± Metatron asked, his tone cold as ice. ¡°Did my easy-going demeanour give you the impression that I¡¯ll stand to be blackmailed by a mortal?!¡±


    The titan spoke slowly, each word slamming at Percy with the weight of a battering ram, pressing him against the ground. He knew the god was holding back too, otherwise he would have long reduced him to a sticky puddle.


    ¡°I¡¯m¡­ not¡­ blackmailing¡­ anyone¡­¡± he spat, each word a struggle.


    Creasing his brow, the titan eased the pressure on him somewhat, letting him breathe. It wasn¡¯t until a few seconds later that Percy managed to speak again.


    ¡°I¡¯m only asking for proper compensation for the things I¡¯m already giving you.¡±


    ¡°Last time I checked, letting you come and go as you please, and to participate in the challenges plenty of compensation.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s how you get me to keep coming back.¡± Percy flashed the titan a defiant look. ¡°However, I¡¯m under no obligation to leave my hosts intact when I leave. This is just a courtesy you expect of me. All I¡¯m asking is that I get a little something back in return.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not a ¡®little something¡¯. Do you have any idea how much life mana it costs to repair the Moirais¡¯ Decree? . You¡¯ve seen it before.¡±


    But Percy wasn¡¯t quite ready to give up just yet.


    ¡°Please. We both know you fix the bodies and give them their new cores the moment I leave. After all, they¡¯re your precious test subjects. I¡¯m just asking you to do it earlier, so that I can use them too. In return, I¡¯ll go out of my way to keep the bodies in a good condition.¡±


    Metatron finally withdrew the rest of his pressure, his eyes narrowing.


    ¡°This still sounds like blackmail to me. Why should I agree to this? If you want to earn more things from the Vault, you just have to accept my terms.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll cost you nothing. And it¡¯s only fair. I¡¯m giving you an endless supply of bodies with one of the most powerful Decrees in the universe. All I ask is a chance to play around with them for a few days beforehand. If you really want to convince me to collaborate with you, this will go a long way.¡±


    Metatron appeared to think for a couple minutes. Percy didn¡¯t rush him, knowing he¡¯d already pushed the titan way more than any mortal should ever dare to.


    ¡°Very well. . If you try to pull another stunt like this in the future, I¡¯ll revoke your access to the Vault entirely. Your bloodline is valuable alright, but I¡¯m not going to humiliate myself grovelling at a mortal¡¯s feet.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing you won¡¯t be lending me a Ring of Sacrilege then? What if I ask nicely?¡± Percy chuckled, half-joking.


    ¡°You wish. But I might consider trading you a ring for another, should you get lucky enough to find one. Or something else of equal value.¡± Metatron laughed too, his voice trailing off as he vanished through another portal.


    Once the god was gone, Percy allowed himself to grin. Voicing his farfetched demands to the titan had been a bold move, but the payoff was immense. That said, he didn¡¯t plan on pushing his luck again anytime soon. As for what Metatron had said on the way out, he didn¡¯t pay it much heed.


    Shaking his head, he spoke to the system.


    ¡°Cube. I want my body healed up completely.¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. Request denied. User does not meet the minimum requirements. ¡®Healing via divine mana¡¯ is listed in the restricted section for Yellow grade or above.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t until a minute later the cube corrected itself.


    ¡°NOTIFICATION: User has been granted special authorization to receive a god¡¯s life mana. Proceed?¡±


    ¡°Do it.¡± he said, not even caring if anybody saw this. The big dog was already in the know.


    ¡°Accumulating life mana. Healing begins in 6 rits.¡±

 Chapter 158: Plan

    Strictly speaking, the parrot didn¡¯t need that much healing.Unlike Gabe, who had been stabbed full of holes before Percy first found him, the bird had merely choked to death. They only needed to make up for the minor deterioration the body had undergone between death and reanimation.


    Suffice to say, Percy was forced to keep scratching himself during the process, to ensure the cube didn¡¯t stop pouring life mana into them before the second core was ready. Naturally, the poor bird was taken aback both by the suffocating amount of liquid mana enveloping them, and by Percy¡¯s insistence on self-harm. However, he was still too frightened by their meeting with the titan to dare interfere with his guest.


    A few minutes later, Percy nodded in appreciation, searching inwards for the new organ.


    Next, he instructed the parrot to grab their supplies and head towards the challenge cubes. The sooner they started collecting credits, the more time he¡¯d have to study the new runes.


    Percy did consider dropping by the residential cubes to greet his friend, but ultimately decided against it. It hadn¡¯t been that long since he met Gabe, and it wasn¡¯t like he had any good news for him. The best he could do right now was to keep getting stronger.


    Of course, he¡¯d also thought about renting a room himself, so that he wouldn¡¯t have to stay outside during the whole visit. Unfortunately, even the smallest lodging cost way too much, priced at around a credit for every 18 or so Remior days ¨C . In fact, he was a little surprised his stingy friend had deigned to splurge on that himself. Then again, the only alternative was spending his entire life homeless.


    Sadly, credits were far scarcer for a Red than they were for a Green, so Percy would have to soldier through the next few weeks. Besides, his host was a beast, so it wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d grown up indoors either.


    As they walked towards the challenge cubes, Percy ignored the bird¡¯s fumbling attempts to keep the coconuts from spilling out of the rapidly degrading sack. His attention was focused on their abdomen, as he tried to locate and awaken the second core.


    The impact of their new organ could hardly be overstated. While it would certainly help them do far better inside the combat challenges, that wasn¡¯t what excited Percy the most. The best part was that it would let him spend a lot more time in the magiscript challenge. After all, their beast mana couldn¡¯t leave their body, and their teal mana couldn¡¯t be replenished. Had they not netted themselves a new core, they¡¯d be lucky to last through the first wave.


    Percy was quite literally viewing the new organ as a source of ink!


    Of course, the ancient titan wasn¡¯t dumb. Both he and Percy were fully aware of this unspoken subtext behind their negotiations. Had he refused Percy¡¯s request, the latter would feel more pressure to accept the titan¡¯s terms or, at the very least, reveal a few more of his secrets.


    In any case, locating the new organ didn¡¯t take him too long, though he¡¯d have to clear the first few channels before he could fill it up. Naturally, he started doing just that immediately, but his rumbling stomach interrupted him a couple hours later, breaking his concentration.


    Grabbing a couple coconuts from the pile, he slammed them against one another to crack their shells. It only took a few attempts, which meant that either their shells were weaker than regular coconuts, or that his host was stronger than a Red human.


    Shrugging, he bit at the fruit¡¯s interior, tearing a chunk out. It was the same pink colour as the outside, but it was soft and spongy, dripping with a refreshing juice. That said, it tasted nothing like he had expected.


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    And not just salty. It had a bit of an oily texture too, its flavour vaguely reminding him of raw salmon. Not quite the sweet snack he¡¯d been looking forward to. Still, he guessed it should be rather nutritious.


    A few bites later, Percy took a step back, allowing his host to take over. The exotic snack didn¡¯t exactly taste per se, but he knew the bird would enjoy it a lot more than he did. In the end, they ate of the damn things! Who¡¯d have thought that raising the dead, travelling across the universe and negotiating with a titan could work such an appetite?


    As a fortunate side effect, the familiar taste seemed to placate the parrot¡¯s growing unease too. The poor creature had started sending him images of the sandy beach a few hours ago, clearly longing to return to its home and friends.


    Percy sighed.


    He wasn¡¯t sure if the bird understood him, but it remained silent, letting him resume his work on the channels.


    he thought at some point.


    Honestly, Percy had never expected the day would come when he¡¯d wish for that. Without Crystallization, this would pretty much be the worst possible outcome with regards to the combat challenges. However, it was the affinity he was most used to drawing the runes with, which was his primary goal for the trip.


    He wasn¡¯t only thinking about the credits and the rewards either. The magiscript challenge would be a good way to assess his current skill in the sublime art, and to figure out what the next steps would be.


    ***


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    This was a new record for him. Percy was confident he was the universe¡¯s leading expert in awakening mana cores by now. He was also experienced enough to tell the new affinity wasn¡¯t one he¡¯d used before.


    While he couldn¡¯t manipulate the mana directly just yet ¨C not until he managed to fill up the new organ and add his willpower to it ¨C he could see that the nascent channels took a different route through their body than any he¡¯d come across in the past.


    he shrugged.


    It wasn¡¯t until an hour later that the core was full, sending a wave of vitality rippling through the parrot¡¯s body. Getting a second core at the same grade was quite the boon ¨C it should double their strength, That said, the fact the bird was already much larger than the typical Red beast did somewhat diminish the impact.


    Next, Percy pulled a sliver of mana to their right fore-talon, manifesting a blob of brown which quickly coalesced into a fistful of sand. It was rather obvious what affinity this was, but Percy still pulled the Status up for the final confirmation.


    [Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Earth]


    Not the most ideal outcome, but certainly within expectations. Sadly, Percy had never actually possessed an earth user before, which meant there would be a bit of a learning curve ahead.


    Takeo, Gabe and Micky weren¡¯t the only sentients his clones had possessed over the years. The rest hadn¡¯t held any particularly interesting secrets for him to bring back to Remior, though he¡¯d experienced a few other common affinities through them, including fire, air, water and pure. Though earth just happened to be one of the two elements he was completely inexperienced in, along with lightning.


    Unwilling to waste time, he continued opening more channels. It would take him weeks to clear as many as the average mage used, but he didn¡¯t need all of those. As long as he could send the mana to his talons to draw with, and maybe use it in a fight, it should be plenty. Percy didn¡¯t expect to be casting any profound Refined spells in this body, but giving himself a small edge against Red golems shouldn¡¯t be that tall an order.


    he thought suddenly.


    In theory, it should work. Structurally, the sand wasn¡¯t that different from the cyan powder, and he already knew that all affinities be fused. Often, in multiple ways too. Hell, he¡¯d already discovered a couple different approaches to fusing pure mana with . If he did this, he¡¯d have another edge during the combat challenges without having to compromise his secret.


    But he quickly shook his head. Even if it was possible, it would take him weeks of experimentation to get there. His limited supply of fused mana would run out way before he saw any tangible results.


    Percy then looked back at the pile of coconuts. It had shrunk slightly, but they still had plenty to last them for over a month. The parrot would too, his physical injuries already healed.


    Though that didn¡¯t mean it was wise to stay here as long as possible. Percy actually had a few specific goals for this trip. Other than getting Nesha another rune for the spatial amulets, he wanted something for himself too. He didn¡¯t know exactly what, but he was hoping for an enchantment that would let him amass more soul mana for his experiment.


    Taking everything into account, Percy made a rough plan for the rest of his trip. He¡¯d spend the rest of the week clearing out as many earth channels as he could, before diving into the magiscript challenge. He¡¯d progress as far as possible as his current skill with the concealment runes would allow. Hopefully, that would mean at least a couple of waves. Then, he¡¯d do the same with the combat challenges¡­

 Chapter 159: Magiscript challenge

    ¡°Wave begins. May your challenge be successful!¡±Percy stared at the cylindrical piece of metal erected in the middle of the room. It was too short to be considered a pillar.


    Shrugging, he approached. In any case, the magiscript challenge wasn¡¯t dangerous like the others. . Hopefully, the first wave of the Red level would be manageable though.


    Reaching the strange structure, he saw it descend slightly lower, seemingly adjusting itself to his own height. A second cylinder rose up from the ground behind him, reaching only about halfway to the first one. It was just tall enough to serve as a seat.


    Next, he looked at the first podium. A few symbols had lit up. Percy only recognized two of them, still not as proficient in the Vault¡¯s language as he would like. Luckily, the translation device took care of it.


    Evidently, a single rune was enough to carry him through the first wave. It still meant the locals couldn¡¯t make any progress in the magiscript challenge unless they earned some credits from the others first. Percy would have to explore the system some more later. Perhaps there was some kind of starter pack he was missing out on.


    In any case, the first wave seemed manageable. Gathering some earth mana on one of his claws, he began to carve one rune after another on the podium¡¯s smooth surface. He¡¯d already practiced with this enchantment for months until he could reliably draw it on his scythe. It shouldn¡¯t take him many attempts to get through it¡­


    ***


    he frowned, staring at the results.


    Percy was sure he was normally better than this. Evidently, the parrot¡¯s lacking dexterity coupled with the unfamiliar affinity impacted him negatively, pulling his score down. The low difficulty of his chosen enchantment also meant he wasn¡¯t eligible for any bonus points either.


    Even worse, this was his fourth attempt already, each one having taken a little over an hour. It couldn¡¯t be helped, as his mana tended to run out about 20 runes in, forcing him to take several breaks to refill his core during each attempt.


    ¡°No.¡±


    Naturally, Percy wasn¡¯t going to quit so easily, but his host had been bugging him to take a lunch break for a while now. Walking to a side of the challenge cube, Percy sat next to the coconut sack, picking a couple of them from the pile.


    He¡¯d been forced to bring his supplies inside, as somebody might try snatching some if he left them unattended. This wasn¡¯t a big problem during the relatively peaceful magiscript challenge, though he wasn¡¯t sure what to do when he started working on the combat ones.


    he chuckled.


    Either way, that was a problem for later.


    After finishing his meal, Percy returned to the centre of the room, restarting the wave. His host had no interest in the boring task, falling back to the recesses of his mind, waiting for all this nonsense to be over.


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    In the end, it took Percy three more attempts to barely eek out the required 90% success rate. Spending about half a day on the first wave was definitely worse than he¡¯d hoped. Still acceptable though, considering he¡¯d given himself two weeks to get through all the challenges.


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 1 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡± the soulless voice declared.


    It wasn¡¯t Percy¡¯s first time hearing this, but clearing a wave all by himself hit a lot differently than when he was merely tagging alongside Gabe.


    ¡°Awarded credits: 30. Current balance: 30.¡±


    he frowned.


    Obviously, he¡¯d known lower grade challenges gave out fewer credits, but this was still less than expected.


    Extrapolating, he figured each grade roughly tripled the rewards ¨C rounded for convenience. The first wave of the Orange grade would probably grant 100, while the one for Yellow should be at 300¡­


    Honestly, it wasn¡¯t so bad. A portion of sizian meat was valued at 1 credit, and its effect was pretty much on par with an elixir on Remior. Converted to contribution points, that meant Percy had just earned about 12000 of them!


    ¡¯ he thought, feeling a little better.


    Though the Red-borns of the Vault were still screwed if this was all they had to go by. Assuming they could clear the first three waves of each challenge ¨C a rather generous assumption too, as not all of them had a bloodline or a blessing ¨C they¡¯d only get 540 portions of sizian meat in total. And that was without taking into account the cost of actually delving into runecrafting in the first place. This wouldn¡¯t even last them two years ¨C meaning they¡¯d never make it to Orange.


    Presumably, the system took care of the kids at least until they first awakened their core, so somewhere between the ages of 5 and 8. After all, they didn¡¯t even know their grade before then, nor did they have the mental maturity to undertake any challenges.


    After that, the Red-born children only survived a couple years at best ¨C which was ample time for them to demonstrate any unique bloodline or talent they might have. Motivated by their empty bellies, they¡¯d give it their all until their last breath, at which point the gods could pick out any occasional outlier with a promising bloodline, leaving the rest to die in their early teens.


    Percy felt the urge to laugh.  S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Orange-borns had it slightly better. The relatively talented ones could potentially earn around 1800 or so credits at Orange, barely giving them enough time to hit Yellow. At that point, they could earn another 5400 credits if they could maintain their momentum, living for another decade or two.


    But that was it.


    Only the most talented Yellow-borns who had both a higher starting point and the potential to go past the third wave actually stood a chance of making it to the higher grades. And even those people ¨C ¨C wouldn¡¯t easily hit Violet or White.


    Had Gabe been born on Remior, he¡¯d probably be on par with the most gifted members of the Divine Root ¨C even before he obtained his second core. Here, his future wasn¡¯t quite as secure. The realization exacerbated Percy¡¯s guilt over all the things he¡¯d made his friend buy him.


    In any case, he couldn¡¯t do much as he was. There was only one path forward and he intended to see it through to the end.


    The good news was that he had several advantages the locals didn¡¯t. First, he didn¡¯t need any sizian meat, which meant he could funnel all his credits into his studies. Second, he could earn credits from every grade, by coming here with various bodies. Obviously, the lower levels wouldn¡¯t reward him as much, but every little bit helped. . Finally, his arrangement with Metatron would give him an edge, his second core making up for his lack of a blessing or a bloodline. Assuming the titan kept true to his word, of course.


    ¡°Cube. Start the second wave of the magiscript challenge, Red level. User ID: WANDERER.¡±


    ¡°Authorization granted. Restarting ¡®magiscript¡¯ challenge, Red level, wave 2. Wave begins in 18 rits.¡±


    Percy patiently waited for the podium to light up again, before checking the requirements.


    Naturally, the requirements had increased quite steeply, not only leaving him with much less room for errors, but also imposing a somewhat strict time limit. He¡¯d have to pick up the pace improve the quality of his runes to get through it. Still, this was good.


    In typical Percy fashion, however, he just had to go jinx himself. Getting through the second wave took him three more days. In theory, he still had plenty of time to attempt the third one.


    That said, the requirements finally stumped him¡­

 Chapter 160: Shopping

    Percy only knew the concealment and pocket runes, but the latter didn¡¯t even work without space mana, nor had he practiced them much.The book on the concealment runes that Gabe had lent him contained other variants besides the ¡°general¡± one he was using. Though most of those involved specific mana types that he didn¡¯t have access to. For example, there was a variant that needed fire and air mana ¨C emulating the light affinity ¨C which turned an object dim. Supposedly, that was the cornerstone of more complex enchantments to even turn something translucent. There were even some variants using fire or water that could be used to hide an object¡¯s heat signature ¨C achieving the same result via different principles.


    In any case, most of that had been useless for him, either because he lacked the corresponding affinities, or because the effects didn¡¯t particularly interest him. If he wanted to get through this wave, he¡¯d have to learn some new enchantments.


    ¡°Cube. Abort the challenge. Also, tell me if you have any runes for preserving souls. User ID: WANDERER.¡±


    ¡°Challenge aborted. Wave failed.¡± sea??h th§× n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Authorization granted. Evaluating request¡­¡±


    Ever since Percy realized he didn¡¯t have enough soul mana to draw the mysterious creatures to his body, he¡¯d decided to sift through the Vault¡¯s database for any runes that might help.


    Of course, he already knew he¡¯d be hard pressed to find any enchantments for storing mana directly. As he¡¯d learned a long time ago, a mortal¡¯s mana was much more difficult to preserve for an extended period of time. Maybe there was a way to compress a lot of mortal mana into divine mana, but even if there was, he very much doubted he¡¯d be able to draw a rune capable of withstanding such a process.


    In other words, his only option was to take a step back and look for a way to delay a soul from deteriorating. That way, they could gather a lot more food for Micky to eat at once, giving him a ton of mana in one go.


    ¡°Evaluation complete. There are 4568 books, 14531 research logs, 72 encyclopaedias and 485736 news reports that mention ¡°rune¡±, ¡°preserve¡± and ¡°soul¡±. Part of the selection is restricted for your grade. Only 4287 books, 3765 research logs, 20 encyclopaedias and 267890 news reports are available for purchase. Total cost: 475399 credits. Current balance: 90.¡±


    ¡°Geez. It¡¯s even worse than the last time. Ok¡­ Leave only mentions of standalone runes that can be drawn by beginners below Yellow. Filter out any runes not in the Vault¡¯s language. No point in learning those if I plan on learning magiscript in the future. Leave only runes that need the soul affinity ¨C I imagine those will be more effective for the job.¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. There are 8 books, 4 research logs, 1 encyclopaedias and 367 news reports available for purchase. Total cost: 1007 credits. Current balance: 90.¡±


    At the end of the day, Percy had no clue how he was meant to navigate the database. The gods certainly haven¡¯t made it particularly intuitive.


    ¡°What¡¯s the title of the encyclopaedia?¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. The encyclopaedia is titled ¡®10000 magiscript runes for beginners¡¯. The encyclopaedia is valued at 200 credits. Current balance: 90.¡±


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    Percy¡¯s avian heart skipped a beat, though there were still a few issues to solve. And not just the fact he couldn¡¯t afford the book quite yet.


    ¡°How deeply does the encyclopaedia delve into each rune? Is there enough material there to learn them?¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. The encyclopaedia lists the runes, their requirements, a few of the most common variants, and their function. The preamble notes ¡®¡­this encyclopaedia is mostly meant to be used as an index of common runes, not a teaching aide¡­¡¯¡±


    Creasing his brow, Percy doused his bubbling enthusiasm. As he had expected, this was too good to be true. Gabe had lent him an entire on just the topic of concealment runes alone. Buying detailed information on 10000 runes with a measly 200 credits was, frankly, .


    ¡°Cube, are the remaining 8 books all focused on specific runes?¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. The 8 books are titled ¡®Preservation rune, Vol. 1, 2, 5, 9, 13, 16, 19, 20¡¯ respectively. Each delves into different variants of the ¡®preservation¡¯ rune. These include the variants that meet the previous search criteria. Total cost: 80 credits. Current balance: 90.¡±


    ¡°Ok. Does any one of the tomes include variants suitable for preserving living souls, dead souls, mana constructs and perishable objects?¡±


    Percy¡¯s query wasn¡¯t random. One part of his goal was to preserve a few corpses for Micky to eat, but he also hoped to learn a rune he could use to patch his clones¡¯ souls more effectively. That might allow him to extend his trips even further. As for the last part ¨C well, preservation runes were widely used. It would be nice to learn a variant suitable for his Soul Harvester, or something to keep food fresh for longer.


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. Volumes 5, 9 and 20 meet all the search criteria. Total cost: 30 credits. Current balance: 90.¡±


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but grin. He was certain he¡¯d find what he was looking for somewhere in these three books, and the price was already affordable. Of course, he could try narrowing it down some more to save a few more credits, but he¡¯d rather browse through the options and pick the most effective variant to learn.


    ¡°Is there any discount for somebody¡¯s first purchase? Or a free tutorial for beginners? How are kids with no credits meant to delve into the challenges in the first place?¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. User is eligible for ¡®beginner¡¯s bundle¡¯. ¡®Beginner¡¯s bundle¡¯ contains: 30 portions of sizian meat, allowance of 50 credits to be spent on reading material.¡±


    ¡°Seriously? How come I wasn¡¯t informed of this? Was I supposed to just guess it exists?¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°Evaluation complete. All users are automatically notified about the ¡®beginner¡¯s bundle¡¯ upon awakening their core. User¡¯s core has already awakened. User should have been informed already.¡±


    Percy tried to roll his eyes again, only to be reminded his host couldn¡¯t do that. He wasn¡¯t sure if Metatron was deliberately being a prick, or if he had genuinely forgotten to mention this, but he was inching towards the former. Either way, this was good news.


    ¡°Leave the sizian meat for now.¡±


    He didn¡¯t know if he could sell it back to the cube for credits, but he might need it in the future if one of his clones ended up in need of a quick snack.


    ¡°Use my allowance to purchase those three books. I¡¯m also looking for a ¡®control¡¯ rune that is compatible with ¡®pocket¡¯ runes and spatial amulets. It must be usable with space mana, but I¡¯d like a variant that can also be drawn with other types for broader applications.¡±


    Naturally, this rune was mostly for Nesha, though Percy wouldn¡¯t mind something he could use himself. It would enrich his arsenal, not only to get him through this challenge, but to hopefully allow him to craft more intricate enchantments in the future.


    ¡°Confirmed. Deducting credits. New balance: 90. Additional allowance: 20. Delivery in 6 rits.¡±


    ¡°Evaluating request¡­¡±


    Percy picked up the books from the hole, before the cube assessed his second request.


    ¡°Evaluation complete. There are 4 books that meet the previous search criteria. They are titled ¡®Control rune, Vol. 7, 8, 18, 21¡¯ respectively. Each book contains at least one variant that is compatible with space mana, pocket runes, spatial amulets, and general applications. Total cost: 40 credits. Current balance: 90. Additional allowance: 20.¡±


    Percy sighed. This was going to be a lot of reading, and he only had two weeks to get through it before it was time to resume the challenges. Still, it couldn¡¯t be helped. The concealment rune had already made him stronger, and the new ones promised to do the same.


    ¡°Do it. Use the allowance first.¡±


    If he finished all his tasks in time, there was one more thing he hoped to get by the end of his trip. He had no idea if they even had anything like that, or if he¡¯d have enough credits for it, but it would qualitatively improve his kit if he managed to get his hands on it.


    Suddenly, he had a strange thought.

 Chapter 161: New runes

    While Percy prided himself as a relatively fast reader, he was operating under a strict self-imposed time limit during this visit. Naturally, he couldn¡¯t afford to carefully read all seven of the volumes he¡¯d just bought.Luckily, he didn¡¯t need to either. Obviously, he had no intention of learning hundreds of variants of the new runes ¨C he just had to pick the ones most suitable for his current needs. Consequently, he¡¯d devoted the first few days of his reading time to skimming over the books, identifying the best candidates.


    The preservation rune had a circular shape in general ¨C like most of the Vault¡¯s enchantments ¨C though it differed slightly from the concealment rune he¡¯d previously mastered. It was made of two concentric circles, down from three, though it contained many more curved lines linking the two shapes.


    Each sub-variant differed some more from the general case, altering the properties of the enchantment subtly, to make it more suitable for specific applications or mana types. In the end, Percy found 13 variants in total that could be used with soul mana to do what he wanted.


    Percy was confident it should work, though it wouldn¡¯t be without cost. According to the book, the less specialized the rune was, the lower its efficiency would be in each area, which frankly made sense. Picking a variant suitable for multiple tasks would make its effect about 10~15% less potent.


    Beyond that, there were a few more factors to take into consideration. For example, he had to pick a variant that could be overlapped with other runes in general, and his own concealment runes in particular. This would make his life easier later, once he graduated from basic runecrafting and started working on composing the runes together into more complex enchantments.


    Suffice to say, it took a fair amount of head scratching, but Percy eventually settled on a variant he deemed to be the best match for his needs.


    he nodded in satisfaction.


    Percy wasn¡¯t a magiscript expert, nor was he that well versed in the Vault¡¯s runes. He understood his decision-making process was probably full of blind spots, but he figured he¡¯d done a decent job given the circumstances. Perhaps, he could revisit this in the future once he was more experienced and had the credits to splurge.


    Next, he spent the rest of the week practicing with the new rune. Memorizing the shape and getting used to drawing it accurately was a laborious process. That said, it was notably easier the second time around. The more runes he learned, the more he would familiarize himself with the Vault¡¯s language, and the more skilled he¡¯d grow in drawing them precisely.


    Sadly, he couldn¡¯t test the enchantment¡¯s effect on souls just yet, as his limited stash of fused mana wasn¡¯t enough for that. However, he could at least tap into the more general effects of the rune by drawing it with earth mana. That should be enough to get him through the challenge.


    ***


    he grimaced.


    Getting to an acceptable level with the preservation rune took him a bit longer than he would have liked. It was still within the allotted two weeks, but it didn¡¯t leave him much time to learn the other one. At least, not without extending his trip by a little.


    Fortunately, the control rune was easier to learn than the others. In fact, it was by far the simplest rune he¡¯d ever seen. It was only made of a single circle with a cross inside it. There wasn¡¯t much to memorize, and even drawing it was trivial.


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    it, on the other hand, was where the problem lay. After all, the control rune wasn¡¯t supposed to be used on its own. Its enchantment allowed it to be turned on and off at will. The person who inscribed it could do that remotely, though anybody could use it by pouring their mana into it. That said, the effect was only valuable once it was combined with a different rune.


    Normally, combining runes fell under the field of magiscript, not runecrafting. However, the control rune was much easier to overlap with other runes due to its simplicity, allowing even a novice like Percy to accomplish this. Still, it wasn¡¯t exactly trivial either, as the scribe had to visualize two distinct effects while drawing the composite rune, while also keeping their joint function at the forefront of their mind.


    he sighed.


    The good news was that he didn¡¯t need to do that right now. A quick test confirmed the challenge accepted the control rune when drawn separately. This meant he could learn to combine it with the other runes later, after he returned to Remior.


    Even better, both his drawing speed and his success rate would skyrocket if he used the control rune to fill the bulk of his quota. He still had to draw 50 concealment runes and 50 preservation runes, but the remaining 200 would be a piece of cake.


    ***


    Meeting all the cube¡¯s requirements did take a while, but he managed to do it by the end of his fourth week in the Vault.


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 3 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 90. Current balance: 160.¡±


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but grin as he saw his balance hit the triple digits for the first time. This was already enough to buy several more books, though he didn¡¯t know how expensive the spell he was interested in would be.


    This meant that at least some spells were either prohibitively expensive, or only obtainable from the restricted lists. Then again, Gabe had probably been looking for a Refined spell. Or maybe even higher. Percy would be happy with a Crude one, as long as it did what he wanted. He could improve it later.


    Next, Percy started the fourth wave. He seriously doubted he¡¯d be able to clear it anytime soon, though he figured it was worth checking the requirements anyway, for future reference.


    Becoming sufficiently proficient with ten different runes was a project that could easily take half a year. It was a little disappointing, though it made sense. If Gabe¡¯s combat challenges were anything to go by, getting past the fourth wave required both a blessing and a bloodline. Of course, this wasn¡¯t the case for the magiscript challenge, but its difficulty should scale in an equivalent manner.


    And this was still somewhat achievable, relatively speaking. Going by what Gabe had told him, the Green level of the challenge involved proper applications of magiscript, requiring decades of preparation.


    Percy smiled bitterly.


    In the end, reaching this point had taken him a little longer than his original estimates. Though he didn¡¯t regret it. At least, he¡¯d already met the primary objectives of his trip. He and Nesha would have the means to continue progressing once he returned. As for any more runes, they¡¯d have to wait for his next visit.


    ¡®For now, let¡¯s try to speedrun the combat challenges.¡¯


    He didn¡¯t know how far he¡¯d get, but it would be a waste of his host¡¯s oversized body to not even try. He couldn¡¯t take his sweet time planning his approach like he¡¯d originally intended, but he could still try earning all the ¡°easy¡± credits. After that, he¡¯d buy his prize and be on his merry way.


    ¡°Let¡¯s do it then¡­ Cube. Start the ¡®gauntlet¡¯ challenge, Red level. User ID: WANDERER.¡±


    ¡°Authorization granted. Choice confirmed. Wave begins in 18 rits.¡± the soulless voice said.


    Percy stretched his limbs, as the parrot awakened from his slumber. He brought the creature up to speed, hastily explaining what this challenge involved.


    ¡°Wave begins in 12 rits.¡±


    Strictly speaking, the bird wasn¡¯t particularly accustomed to fighting. His life back in his home world had been relatively peaceful. Still, a wave of excitement seeped through their bond. Evidently, the parrot was so fed up with runecrafting by now that he was willing to do pretty much anything else.


    ¡°Wave begins in 6 rits.¡±


    Soon, the familiar black sludge began pouring down the sleek walls. Percy grinned, finding it a little nostalgic.


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    ¡°Wave begins. May your challenge be successful!¡±

 Chapter 162: Farming credits

    Unlike the previous times, much less of the black liquid seeped out of the walls. A portion rolled down to the floor, the rest sticking to the cube¡¯s surfaces. Next, the material solidified, coating the room with a thin film of black.Percy frowned.


    The sludge had merely flowed underneath his supplies, leaving them propped up against the wall. It was quite a relief. Percy would have been forced to rush through the challenges had the cube chosen to rob him of his only source of food.


    Scanning his surroundings, he searched for his opponent. Soon, his gaze landed on the only other object ¨C a small orb the size of a tangerine, resting motionless in the middle of the room.


    As if to answer his question, a series of red lines lit up all over the black sphere. Then, an indentation formed on the floor around it, a square tile sinking about an inch into the ground.


    With a snapping sound, the tile sprung back at an angle, shooting the sphere at him at a dizzying speed.


    Percy barely raised his arms in time, shielding his face as the impact sent a jolt of pain through his bones, causing him to stumble backwards.


    But the assault didn¡¯t stop there, a second blow landing in his stomach the very next second, this time bringing him to his knees.


    Crouching, he tightened the guard around his face some more, bracing against the follow-up attacks. Sadly for him, the golem didn¡¯t even bother aiming for his head anymore, instead randomly slamming into his body from various angles.


    The realization comforted him a little, though he still winced every time the orb crashed into him. He¡¯d have died already had his host been a smaller beast ¨C or even a Red humanoid for that matter. It was only due to the combination of his bulk, his beast affinity and the second core that he could bear the attacks relatively unfazed. Still, he knew he had to fight back at some point if he wanted to get through the challenge.


    Unwilling to lift his eyes from the safety of his guard, Percy scanned the room with his Mana Sense, trying to locate the orb. The darn thing kept bouncing from one surface to another, making crisp sounds with each collision.


    It took Percy a couple minutes to adjust to the golem¡¯s speed. In the meantime, he had to endure several more blows, waiting patiently for his chance to catch the sphere. Fast as it was, he knew the flimsy construct wouldn¡¯t survive a second in his grasp.


    Once the golem was on-course to collide against him head on, he tried to grab it. Sadly, his host¡¯s poor reflexes let him down, the orb slipping right through his arms. It delivered yet another painful blow on his chest, knocking the breath out of his lungs.


    Percy stubbornly kept at it for another hour, before accepting that he¡¯d never catch the speedy golem with his bare hands. In fact, he even had the parrot try at some point, hoping the bird would do better than him. the beast giving up too after a few failures.


    If he hardened the mana into stone, he could soften the blows some more. But he shook his head. Doing that would spare him some pain, but it wouldn¡¯t get him through the wave.


    Instead, he tried something different. Pulling a sliver of mana from his abdomen, he formed a cushion of sand on his back, hoping to dampen the golem¡¯s momentum. After all, the cube had gone out of its way to prepare the room so that the orb could bounce around more easily. Clearly, it would have trouble doing so otherwise.


    Percy nodded, feeling happy about his plan. He thought it had a decent chance of working too. The execution left much to be desired, however. He messed the timing up, receiving another painful hit. The next few attempts didn¡¯t go much better either.


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    ***


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 1 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 30. Current balance: 190.¡±


    Percy breathed heavily, not particularly happy about the outcome. In the end, his idea to stop the golem using sand worked, but not before several hours of poorly timed blocks and nasty blows. He was certain his body was bruised from head to toe, though that was partially hidden beneath whatever remained of his plumage.


    Either way, he wasn¡¯t particularly eager to start the next wave. His advantages might have protected him from any serious injuries this time around, but the challenge would only grow more brutal from here on out.


    That said, he knew he had to keep going. The sooner he started the next wave, the sooner his suffering would end.


    ***


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 1 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 30. Current balance: 220.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t.


    The golems in the swarm challenge fought in a similar manner, though each of them was much weaker and smaller. Each was only about as large as a pebble, but there were of them this time.


    Luckily, Percy¡¯s makeshift spell worked even better against the smaller golems. They sank into the cushion, making it easy for him to grab them and crush them between his claws, one at a time.


    Unfortunately, the wave refused to end until he destroyed every last one of them ¨C a project that took him several hours and even more refills. Suffice to say, his second core¡¯s downtime wasn¡¯t pleasant for either him or the parrot. Whenever they were out of mana, they had to endure the painful pelting of the remaining orbs.


    ***


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 2 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 60. Current balance: 280.¡±


    ***


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 2 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 60. Current balance: 340.¡±


    Percy groaned, the parrot echoing the sentiment.


    He was lying face down in the middle of the room, his limbs sprawled out like a starfish. He did his best to not move a muscle, as even the slightest twitch was pure agony.


    There hadn¡¯t been any great surprises during the second waves of the combat challenges. The gauntlet had thrown a bigger, heavier golem at him, while the swarm had mostly increased the number of enemies rather than their individual strength.


    Still, Percy would have probably died if he hadn¡¯t grown more proficient in shielding himself with the earth mana over the last couple of days.


    he smiled bitterly.


    Not that he could help it. If the titan didn¡¯t like this, he shouldn¡¯t have made the challenges so damn hard. In any case, Percy had done a decent job getting this far, and he¡¯d even collected a hefty number of credits, though one question remained.


    He did kinda want to get all the challenges to the third wave. It wasn¡¯t just about the rewards either. Clearing the waves was oddly satisfying. Not to mention that he liked round numbers. Something about stopping here felt wrong.


    On another note, Percy had discovered that the translation device was a lot tougher than it looked. Admittedly, he discovered this by accident, after forgetting to take it off. It wasn¡¯t until a few days in he even remembered he was wearing it, after it had presumably eaten hundreds of blows.


    Naturally, his heart had skipped a bit upon realizing how close he¡¯d come to ruining the expensive tool. Luckily, there wasn¡¯t a dent on it, prompting him to ask the cube about it. Apparently, it would take a Blue-level attack to actually damage the device.


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    In any case, Percy caught himself, realizing he was just procrastinating at this point. With a heavy heart, he started the third wave of the swarm challenge, hoping it would be more forgiving than the gauntlet.


    ***


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 3 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 90. Current balance: 430.¡±


    Percy tried to console his host.


    The two were staring at their broken beak, lying on the ground by their feet.


    What he wasn¡¯t quite as certain about, was whether the titan would be willing to honour their deal the next time he visited. But that was future Percy¡¯s problem.


    ***


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 3 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 90. Current balance: 520.¡±


    Percy could hardly believe it.


    He dragged himself against the metallic floor using his one surviving talon, leaving a bloody trail behind him. His other three limbs weren¡¯t much help, their joints bent in all the wrong directions.


    Eventually, he made it to the remains of the coconuts. By now, all that was left of them was a pink pool of pulp. The sack had mostly survived the gauntlet challenge intact, as the larger golem rarely hit his supplies. Unfortunately, the same couldn¡¯t be said about the swarm challenge.


    Sighing, Percy picked the largest solid piece he could find, squeezing it between his claws, letting a few lukewarm droplets of juice fall into his broken beak. The liquid rolled down his throat, soon causing him to break into a cough.


    Not only was the exotic fruit terrible for quenching one¡¯s thirst, the salt only exacerbated Percy¡¯s injuries further, making him wince in pain.


    Denied of even this small relief, Percy turned over, resting with his back on the floor. At this point, he just wanted this trip to end. The past few days had been hellish, though the results spoke for themselves.


    There was one last thing he needed to do with all the credits he¡¯d earned, before he could put himself and the parrot out of their shared misery.


    ¡°Cube¡­ Give me a list of Crude mana conversion spells.¡±

 Chapter 163: Mana conversion

    percy had decided to look for a mana conversion spell as an alternative solution to his problem.he needed a lot of soul mana to lure the mysterious entities from much further away, and he only had two possible sources to tap into ¨C his own recovery, and micky¡¯s ability to devour souls. he was already planning to bolster the latter using the preservation rune he¡¯d recently bought, but he was hoping to improve upon the former too.


    while he could regenerate soul mana very rapidly using synchronization, it also led to a lot of wasted pure mana that he didn¡¯t know what to do with. if he could find a way to convert some of that into soul mana, it would give him yet another potent source he could rely on.


    he grinned.


    strictly speaking, mana conversion wasn¡¯t some esoteric art ¨C it was something all living beings passively did with every breath.


    after all, ambient mana was a mixture of many different affinities. this meant that only a fraction could be taken in directly. of course, this fraction was the most significant by far, as it could be absorbed without losses. this was why a mage¡¯s recovery greatly depended on their environment. for example, a water user would struggle to refill their core in a desert, but they¡¯d have a much easier time doing so in the middle of the ocean.


    however, that didn¡¯t mean the rest of the ambient mana was useless. among their many functions, mana cores could also convert other mana types into their own ¨C albeit at an abysmal rate. that said, some conversions were easier than others, and there were also two very special cases:


    the beast affinity, and the pure affinity.


    beasts could be considered ¡°universal recipients¡± to an extent, because they could convert other affinities to their own more efficiently. this was, in fact, what they owed their ridiculous advancement speed to. of course, it wasn¡¯t smooth sailing for them either. ambient mana didn¡¯t contain the beast affinity, so they only had their higher conversion rate to rely on. this was why they still struggled to regenerate mana the conventional way, having to keep devouring cores instead. it was also why micky¡¯s version of circulation gnawed at his body, draining his stamina.


    on the other end of the spectrum, pure users were considered ¡°universal donors¡±. pure mana could be more easily converted to other types, which was the main principle behind the magic potions percy had encountered in the alchemists¡¯ guild. it still wasn¡¯t particularly effective ¨C a pure mage might have to empty their core to replenish about 20% of somebody else¡¯s reserves, though most of them learned how to do this at some point. it rarely mattered, but it wasn¡¯t like pure mana had that many uses to begin with.


    in the end, percy spent some more time browsing through the database for anything suitable. he wasn¡¯t that surprised to learn that the system had even more on this topic than the runes he had searched for the other day. after all, the pure affinity was the most common in the universe, and this was a somewhat well-known application of it.


    the only reason he hadn¡¯t asked baldy for something of the sort back when he was still at home, was because it wouldn¡¯t have helped him much at the time. his second core had been a grade lower, which meant it would have given him almost nothing. even now, he didn¡¯t think this would be a particularly useful ability to have in the midst of combat ¨C he was better off just fusing his two affinities into the teal mana.


    however, it would certainly help a lot in some niche applications such as the very problem he was currently facing.


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    ¡°evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°evaluation complete. user has bookmarked a total of 6 items: ¡®universal donor ¨C the advantage of pure mana¡¯, ¡®the 10 most efficient mana bestowal spells for beginners¡¯, ¡®affinity-specific mana bestowal¡¯, ¡®absorbing pure mana for non-pure users¡¯, ¡®tips and tricks for soul users¡¯, ¡®fundamentals for new mages¡¯. total cost: 340 credits. current balance: 520.¡±


    percy wasn¡¯t particularly happy with this. apparently, books on spells ¨C even crude ones ¨C were several times more expensive than those on runes. he guessed that this disparity was artificially imposed by the gods in charge of the vault to make magiscript a little more accessible, or to push people working on the combat challenges to try harder.


    worse still, he¡¯d found multiple books that interested him, as there seemed to be a little more to the spell he wanted to create than he¡¯d initially expected. as it turned out, mana conversion could typically be broken into two parts: and . as the names implied, they differed depending on whether one was the bestower or the recipient of the pure mana. the former was arguably the most important, but learning how to absorb the mana more effectively would make one a , or so to speak. furthermore, each conversion worked a little differently, so it was possible for a pure user to get better at supporting, say, fire mages, if they practiced a lot with them.


    percy could just get the first spell he found, and it would still do alright. his conversion rate might not be great at the start, but he should be able to hit the target 20% after some practice. however, he felt it would be a waste of his talents if he didn¡¯t strive to do a little better. after all, he was in a unique position in that he was both the bestower and the recipient of the mana. he even knew what affinity he wanted to convert the mana to. that meant he could probably work out a very specialized spell that performed a lot better for him than anybody else.


    percy wanted to cry. he¡¯d suffered through so much crap to amass this much, and he¡¯d have to spend nearly two thirds of it on this. not to mention how unpleasant the next few days promised to be, assuming his broken body even lasted that long.


    he sighed.


    the parrot groaned in protest. percy could tell how much his host missed his carefree days in the beach. but it couldn¡¯t be helped. if the preservation rune didn¡¯t get him enough soul mana to attract the creature, it would mean he¡¯d wasted this entire trip.


    ¡°cube¡­ buy all six books. and please narrate them for me too¡­ i¡¯m not in any condition to read.¡± he smiled bitterly. ¡°also, do you have anything to dull my pain for a few days? user id: wanderer.¡±


    ¡°authorization granted. evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°evaluation complete. warning: books may be purchased in audiobook format free of charge, but an additional charge will be added in the future if you wish to re-purchase them in a different format. proceed anyway?¡±


    ¡°ugh¡­ what a stingy piece of shit you are¡­ just do it.¡±


    percy generally preferred holding a physical copy of his books, but he¡¯d just have to forget about these ones later. no way he was spending more of his hard-earned credits than he had to.


    ¡°confirmed. deducting credits. new balance: 180.¡±


    ¡°evaluating request¡­¡±


    ¡°evaluation complete. ¡®simple painkillers¡¯ are valued at 1 credit per 30 pills. each dose is effective for 18000 rits. proceed with purchase?¡±


    hearing the cost, percy wanted to swear. he was starting to see how gabe had turned so stingy. this wasn¡¯t a problem with his friend ¨C it was just what this place did to people. after all, each credit cost so much blood and sweat to earn¡­ sea??h th§× ¦Çovelfire.¦Çet website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ultimately, he decided to pay the price, however. he try gritting through the pain to save himself the credit, but it would just affect his ability to understand the books. honestly, spending a credit to spare himself a week of agony wasn¡¯t that bad a deal.


    ¡°fine.¡± he spat with a heavy heart.


    ¡°confirmed. deducting credits. new balance: 179. delivery in 6 rits.¡±


    it only took a few second for the pills to be delivered, percy eagerly tossing the first one down his throat as soon as he could. then, he asked the cube to begin narrating the books for him, hoping he¡¯d get to the end before his body gave out.

 Chapter 164: Self-bestowal

    ¡°another one.¡± micky said, carrying an oversized rat carcass in his talons.the distraction caused percy to mess up the rune he was trying to carve on the snake¡¯s body, prompting him to click his tongue in annoyance. sighing, he shifted his attention to the new corpse, scanning it via mana sense. there was an orange star rapidly dimming in its sternum.


    ¡°micky¡­ i said beasts only¡­ i wish i could preserve all of them, but i don¡¯t have the time. at least, not while keeping up with my other tasks.¡±


    percy had way too much on his plate lately. besides piling up the dead animals for their operation, he also had to brew elixirs for the group, to keep up the appearance of a professional blacksmith for the townsfolk, and to work on his new spell. orange beasts just weren¡¯t worth the effort. they¡¯d only give micky a fraction of the mana when the time came.


    ¡°i¡¯m trying.¡± the bird cawed in annoyance. ¡°yellows are getting harder to find.¡±


    ¡°alright. just drop it in that circle for now. i¡¯ll mark it later if i have the time.¡± percy said, pointing at yet another preservation rune carved on the ground nearby.


    shimmering in a faint teal colour, it was much larger than those he drew on the creatures¡¯ flesh. and it wasn¡¯t the only one. it was surrounded by dozens of similar circles. most of them had yellow carcasses lying on them, only a handful having orange ones instead. s§×arch* the ¦Çov§×lfire .net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    had somebody paid close attention to the bodies, they¡¯d notice all of them were covered from head to toe with even more preservation runes. that said, percy had run into diminishing returns after trying to double down on the enchantment. the runes he carved on the bodies already accounted for over 80% of the effect, so the additional circles underneath them were just icing on the cake. still, he wanted to preserve every last drop of soul mana they could extract from the animals, to maximize the odds of his experiment working.


    three weeks had already passed since his return from the vault. he and micky had amassed over thirty corpses in that time. sadly, a quick scan via soul vision revealed that the first souls were crumbling already, the silver flames over halfway gone.


    evidently, even the specialized variant of the preservation rune he¡¯d mastered had its limits. while it greatly delayed a soul¡¯s decay, it couldn¡¯t stop it entirely. it merely slowed down the process, stretching it to a little over a month. still, their stash was already diminishing as fast as they were replenishing it, which meant they wouldn¡¯t gain anything by waiting any longer. percy would have gone for it already, if there weren¡¯t a couple of things he was holding out on.


    ¡°are you sure house tantalus hasn¡¯t simply given up on this place?¡± nesha asked.


    it had already been over two months since they killed the most recent group of yellows. the enemy house had remained silent in that time. he and nesha were growing less and less certain those bastards would send a green after them. he guessed baldy must¡¯ve done an even better job pressuring them than he¡¯d expected, as they didn¡¯t seem to have the luxury of delegating one of their elites to hunt micky down just yet.


    ¡°i think it¡¯s worth waiting a few more weeks. if they do send us a green, it¡¯ll help me massively.¡±


    not that he was looking forward to fighting the powerful mage ¨C it was certainly going to be dangerous ¨C but having another high-grade soul to toss into the mix might just make the difference between success and failure.


    half an hour later, percy finished carving the runes on the last two carcasses, deciding to finally call it a night. there was still some time before he had to go to bed, but he wanted to work on something else too. and he wasn¡¯t the only one rushing his preparations.


    ¡°how are the new traps coming along?¡± he asked.


    nesha had already incorporated the control rune within the traps, and she was currently busy scattering them all over the grisly bog, preparing for the ambush.


    ¡°well, i¡¯ve verified i control them remotely, though they still break after closing and opening a few times. but that¡¯s not a problem, is it? we only need them to close .¡±


    percy nodded, though he didn¡¯t say anything. if they could catch the green off-guard, they might be able to sever a leg or two. but that was a big if. each advancement greatly improved a mage¡¯s reflexes, sharpening their senses. even if their opponent failed to notice the traps, they might still be able to escape before nesha had the chance to close them.


    in fact, percy had given her multiple slabs of stone engraved with concealment runes to place above her traps, to hide them from mana sense. it wasn¡¯t as good as incorporating the runes directly into the enchantment, but neither percy nor nesha were skilled enough to do that just yet.


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    bidding micky farewell, the two headed home. suffice to say, the grisly bog was already full of traps and preserved bodies by now. they no longer even bothered to hide them ¨C they couldn¡¯t. if one of the townsfolk decided to veer into the swamp one day, they¡¯d instantly realize something was off. luckily, nobody besides percy or nesha dared set foot there anymore.


    reaching their house, they took turns washing up outside, before entering their new bedroom. percy and nesha had taken a break from their other projects back when his clone was still studying in the vault, expanding their humble hut a little. it was still rather small, but at least they no longer had to sleep in percy¡¯s workshop, sparing them from breathing in the forge¡¯s fumes all night long.


    that said, percy wasn¡¯t planning to go to bed just yet.


    pulling all the soul mana from his sternum, he released it out of his pores, emptying his first core. then, he switched his focus to his abdomen, drawing some pure mana from it, directing it to his sternum.


    naturally, he was going to work on his new spell again.


    the vault¡¯s books were extremely helpful, but it still took a lot of effort to master a new spell ¨C even a crude one. percy¡¯s status had yet to register it, despite the significant amount of progress he¡¯d made on it over the past few weeks.


    converting mana from other affinities to one¡¯s own could be likened to digesting a meal. in this analogy, pure mana was the ¡°easiest on the stomach¡±, but that didn¡¯t mean percy could dump everything in his first core all at once and expect that to work. if he pushed it too far, he could damage his core instead, giving himself should that happen, both his capacity and regeneration would drop massively for a few days ¨C a situation best avoided.


    on the other hand, if he played it safe and moved too little pure mana into the core, he¡¯d just needlessly slow the conversion down. much like with a core¡¯s purification, this was all about finding the right balance ¨C something that typically required a lot of trial and error.


    luckily for percy, he could skip a lot of that due to being the owner of both cores, making it several times easier for him to determine when his first core was saturated. in fact, he¡¯d already realized a rudimentary version of the spell weeks ago ¨C he was currently just working on improving it.


    ignoring the beads of sweat accumulating on his forehead, he concentrated on the delicate process, carefully fine-tuning the mana flowing from one core to the other. when the time of the experiment came, he¡¯d have to do this with synchronization active. for now, he was happy taking it easy though, wanting to perfect the spell first, before adding to the difficulty.


    activating mana sense, he watched the droplets of heavy, corporeal mana transform into the softer, ethereal variant, subtly taking advantage of his understanding of both affinities to guide them along ¨C another area where he had an advantage over other pure users.


    at some point, percy realized his pure mana was about to run out, the flow between the two cores slowing down to a trickle. but he didn¡¯t let that distract him, as he redoubled his efforts to improve his efficiency, hoping to finally reach the first milestone.


    his second core finally dried out, the flow halting completely. though there was still a sliver of pure mana left in percy¡¯s body, swirling inside his first core. the organ gnawed at it greedily, causing this last strand to shrink at an alarming rate.


    yet, just as the final dregs of cyan evaporated, one final droplet of silver fell, splashing down with the rest, the status finally pitching in to announce percy¡¯s accomplishment.


    [congratulations! you have mastered a new spell: self-bestowal ¨C crude!]


    percy couldn¡¯t help but grin as he stared at the notification. this wasn¡¯t his first spell, nor the most impressive, but registering it filled him with relief. he knew he was on a timer to get everything ready before the enemy scion finally arrived in the town.


    he reminded himself, as he gauged the soul mana in his sternum.


    in the end, he¡¯d managed to replenish about 20% of it. this could be considered good by remior¡¯s standards. . he¡¯d already cheated extensively to get here this quickly, by being both the bestower and recipient of the mana. based on everything he¡¯d learned at the vault, he was confident he should be able to reach 30% in due time. the only question was whether he¡¯d get there soon enough.


    ¡°did it finally register?¡± nesha asked, startling percy.


    it was only now he realized she was still awake. she was playing with that black butterfly of hers again, making it fly above her palm. it had improved greatly over the past few months too, both its shape and its flight looking a lot more elegant than before. it didn¡¯t even leak that many motes in its passing anymore.


    ¡°yes.¡± he nodded. ¡°how about yours? is it refined yet?¡±


    from what she¡¯d told him, her status had already registered the spell some time ago, though she hadn¡¯t stopped working on it. percy was actually a little impressed by nesha¡¯s growth ¨C both as a mage and as a person. he¡¯d certainly never expected the day would come when the lazy girl would stay up this late, practicing her magic alongside him.


    ¡°why are you looking at me like that? i just don¡¯t want to get killed by a green mage because some red-born idiot decided to go on a war against an entire house by himself.¡± she rolled her eyes, probably realizing what he was thinking. ¡°and no. it¡¯s still crude. though i can make a few of them at once.¡±


    percy chuckled at her quip, but he knew she wasn¡¯t wrong. an orange trying to stage an ambush against a green was probably unprecedented in the entire history of remior. he was definitely playing with fire. one wrong move, and he¡¯d lose everything.

 Chapter 165: Ambush

    in the end, three more months passed in relative quiet.naturally, percy hadn¡¯t stopped sending out clones in that time, hoping one of them would stumble upon something interesting. sadly, that hadn¡¯t happened. he hadn¡¯t bothered to return to the vault either, as none of his recent hosts seemed suited for the combat challenges. of course, he have tried learning some more runes ¨C he definitely had enough credits. that said, he didn¡¯t have time to practice them, busy as he was.


    things on remior hadn¡¯t changed much either. everyone had continued working on their projects, percy and nesha both making great strides with their new spells. percy¡¯s self-bestowal had improved noticeably by now, though his status had yet to acknowledge that.


    as for micky, he had continued his relentless hunt for yellow beasts, eating their cores before delivering their bodies to percy, dumping them in the preservation runes. by now, they¡¯d wasted dozens upon dozens of souls, fighting to maintain their stash. in fact, percy was afraid they were close to driving the yellow beasts to extinction. at least, micky no longer managed to find one every day.


    watching the souls crumble, percy was beginning to reconsider his plan. they¡¯d have to go through with the experiment in the next couple of weeks, regardless of whether an enemy arrived in that time. delaying any longer would hurt more than it helped.


    luckily for him, the noble finally reached bogside town just days later.


    ¡°what do you think?¡± nesha bit her lip.


    percy could tell she was nervous, and he didn¡¯t blame her for it either. talking and planning about ambushing a green and actually going through with it were two entirely different things.


    the two observed the man from a distance. he was standing just outside the tavern, chatting with fegan ¨C presumably discussing the bog¡¯s situation with the old man. he wore the same standard attire as all the other nobles of house tantalus, his elegant silken robes adorned with his family¡¯s insignia ¨C a man¡¯s face sporting a set of strangely elongated canines. though his was green.


    under different circumstances, percy and nesha might have looked suspicious spying on him. but they weren¡¯t alone. half the town was doing the same, ogling the powerful noble in curiosity. after all, it wasn¡¯t every day a green visited them.


    ¡°not the strongest they¡¯ve got. not the weakest either.¡± percy whispered back.


    the man didn¡¯t have the bloodline ¨C his skin was a healthy shade of pink. he didn¡¯t look that young either, meaning he was probably an older orange-born. this wasn¡¯t a good thing, as it meant he was more experienced. other distinguishing features included a bald head and a scruffy ginger beard.


    ¡°according to our information, he¡¯s either grian, or his cousin, broose.¡± percy elaborated.


    he sure hoped it was the former, as grian had a pure affinity. if it was broose, they¡¯d have a tougher time. but it was a coin toss at this point. s~ea??h the novel(f~)ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°are you sure you still want to go through with this?¡± nesha asked, clenching her fists. ¡°it¡¯s not too late to call it off. just tell micky to hide until he¡¯s gone.¡±


    but percy shook his head.


    ¡°forget it. i haven¡¯t spent the last four months carving preservation runes day in and day out only to give up when the guy finally shows up. besides, there¡¯s no escaping this now.¡±


    ¡°how so?¡± nesha furrowed her brow.


    ¡°need i remind you that the swamp is full of traps and other traces of activity? no way he misses all that.¡± percy explained, before continuing. ¡°if he goes in, he¡¯ll know there are humans working with micky. after that, he¡¯ll interrogate the townsfolk until they all figure out it¡¯s us.¡±


    ¡°what if we run away now? we can circle around the province and escape towards your family¡¯s mansion.¡±


    ¡°there¡¯s no guarantee he won¡¯t catch up. i don¡¯t know about you, but if i¡¯m going to face him, i¡¯d much rather do so in the swamp, taking advantage of all our arrangements.¡±


    nesha swallowed hard, the finality of their situation hitting her. there was only one way out of this, and it was over that man¡¯s corpse.


    ¡°so, how do we handle it then? have micky keep him busy until nightfall?¡±


    ¡°no way. i¡¯m not leaving micky alone with him. let¡¯s head to the swamp now, before he¡¯s done talking to fegan.¡±


    ¡°what if somebody comes looking for us later? it¡¯ll look suspicious if we disappear right before this guy goes missing.¡± nesha said.


    but percy only smiled bitterly in return.


    ¡°that¡¯s tomorrow¡¯s problem. for now, let¡¯s focus on surviving.¡±


    ***


    the sunlight barely pierced through the dense canopies, softly illuminating the muddy waters of the grisly bog.


    percy and nesha had split up, each hiding behind a different tree. a green¡¯s spells were more than powerful enough to kill them both in one fell swoop, so they figured it was best to not stay clustered together.


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    they¡¯d also wrapped more home-made bandages around their torsos, to hide their grades and, in percy¡¯s case, his mana channels once he used synchronization. not that it would make much of a difference, but he¡¯d gladly take any edge he could get.


    as for where they got them from? naturally, he¡¯d crafted them himself, engraving the preservation runes on a few long strips of linen. they weren¡¯t as good as the one baldy had given him, nor the ones nesha had purchased for micky back in the alchemists¡¯ guild.


    but it couldn¡¯t be helped. percy didn¡¯t have access to the enchanted silk those were made of. instead, he¡¯d embroidered their interior with reinforced cyan constructs, meaning they wouldn¡¯t last very long, nor would the cover they provided be as ironclad.


    the rhythmic squelch of boots trudging through the muddy waters broke him out of his thoughts. the sounds were interspaced with the occasional crunch of a twig breaking ¨C betraying their opponent¡¯s arrival.


    percy¡¯s heart pounded heavily in his chest, thrumming with both excitement and fear in equal measure. and he knew this feeling, having experienced it a few times before. it was the same he¡¯d felt back when he ambushed rick and his goons, or when he fought against the starry knight. .


    biting his tongue, he forced himself to calm down, breathing as deeply and as quietly as he could manage, directing the ambient mana to his two cores. at the same time, he nodded at nesha who was hiding some distance away. next, he coordinated with micky too.


    percy knew micky was strong, but he couldn¡¯t risk his friend getting close to the powerful mage.


    the trio patiently waited for their opponent to draw nearer, mentally preparing for the difficult fight ahead. and soon, it was upon them.


    percy grinned.


    this wasn¡¯t some big coincidence either. he and nesha had practically filled the place up with them. it was never a question of it would happen. only .


    that said, their window to act would be brief, and he refused to waste it. taking another deep breath, he forced his boosting art to take effect, clenching the invisible scythe tightly in his grasp. the cyan and silver motes leaked out of his pores, soon blending into a teal halo, enveloping his reddening skin as he accumulated fused mana.


    he thought, rushing to complete his preparations in time.


    percy had carved one on the tree¡¯s trunk too, to hide the sudden spike of mana until the last second. shifting his weight on his backfoot, he extended his right hand ¨C the one holding the weapon ¨C backwards, tensing his muscles.


    then, he sprung forth using all the strength he could muster, throwing the soul harvester through the trunk, its sinister edge spinning soundlessly towards the enemy mage.


    the scythe covered half the distance in an instant. percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat, thinking it was going to land.


    but it wasn¡¯t meant to be.


    the experienced noble noticed something was off at the last second, instinctively stepping out of the crescent blade¡¯s path. unfortunately for him, however, his foot landed right on top of a pitfall!


    not wasting a moment, the girl triggered the pocket rune, causing him to fall through the collapsing ground. sadly, he barely sank a few inches before hardening a sheet of dirt underneath his feet, arresting his momentum.


    realizing this was the best they were going to get, nesha toggled the enchantment again, managing to slice the man¡¯s left foot off as he leapt out of the trap. the earth mage let out a pained groan as a fountain of blood poured out of the stump.


    but he didn¡¯t let the injury distract him, immediately rolling on the muddy ground, narrowly evading the barrage of teal projectiles raining down at him. percy clicked his tongue in annoyance, lamenting the fact that the throwing stars weren¡¯t engraved with concealment runes like his scythe.


    that wasn¡¯t the end of their offensive, however, as a handful of black butterflies rapidly zigged and zagged around the trees, homing onto the noble from several directions. at the same time, nesha activated all the other pitfalls around him, trying to destabilize the ground.


    yet, the man wasn¡¯t having it.


    pulling a ridiculous amount of earth mana from his sternum, he sent a violent shockwave underneath him, crushing all the traps into dust. at the same time, five stone pillars rose from the ground, accurately slamming into the butterflies, one after the other. the earth constructs shattered upon impact, but so did nesha¡¯s spells. while space mana was powerful and destructive, it could still be overpowered with enough brute force.


    luckily, percy had one last trick up his sleeve.


    reaching out to his scythe ¨C which was currently lodged in the ground a few metres behind the earth mage ¨C he pulled it towards him, while robbing it of its substance.


    spinning through the air at a frightening speed, the now-incorporeal construct was on course to chop the oblivious noble right in half!


    the man was still trying to get back to his foot when the weapon reached him. he notice it again but, between the scythe¡¯s close proximity, and the agonizing pain of his injury, he reacted a second too late this time. granted, he barely managed to avoid a lethal wound, but he failed to dodge the construct entirely.


    willing the scythe to materialize, percy watched a flash of teal illuminate the gloomy bog, slicing through the man¡¯s arm. the severed limb splashed into the mud a moment later, as another fountain of blood gushed out of the wound.


    falling to his knees, the colour drained from the green¡¯s face, the man looking like he was about to pass out. though he didn¡¯t let that happen. experienced as he was, he gritted his teeth, forcing himself to keep looking at his opponents, keenly aware that his life would be forfeit should he feint here.


    percy smirked, thinking they had this in the bag, when he noticed something strange through mana sense.


    ¡°shit! ¡± he warned his companion as he caught the man¡¯s sinister intention at the last second.


    leaping to one side, he barely avoided getting impaled by a stalagmite, before shifting his attention to nesha. the girl hadn¡¯t reacted as quickly as him, the construct rending a chunk of flesh off her thigh. it wasn¡¯t lethal, but she wouldn¡¯t be able to stay in the fight.


    turning back to the earth mage, he saw the pain in his expression was strangely muted, a subtle grin now replacing it.


    but that was only the beginning, as the guy manifested two massive javelins, each thicker than percy¡¯s arm. next, he launched one towards him and one towards nesha, evidently intent on finishing her with this move.


    ¡°micky!¡±


    a comet of green and amber dove towards the javelin at a ridiculous speed, crushing it in his talons. following percy¡¯s earlier instructions, he snatched nesha up, flying away before the earth mage had the chance to follow up. though a few words seeped through their bond a moment later, tinged with worry.


    percy shrugged.

 Chapter 166: Slugfest

    fighting against a green by himself was arguably reckless, but the man was already two limbs down. if percy couldn¡¯t even beat him in this state, then it would just mean their plan had been doomed from the start.¡°just who are you people?! are you members of house avalon?!¡±


    percy wasn¡¯t that surprised by the accurate guess, but he wasn¡¯t that interested in chatting either.


    dashing forward, he launched another round of throwing stars, not even bothering to turn them invisible this time ¨C the guy would just spot them through mana sense.


    the earth mage hopped out of the way using his one good leg. his movements looked a little silly, but he didn¡¯t get hit even once, evading all the constructs without fail. not just that, but percy didn¡¯t miss the ripples of earth mana spreading through the ground every time the man¡¯s foot landed in the mud.


    percy leapt out of the way whenever his opponent¡¯s soul flared, dodging the rising stalagmites.


    still, this wasn¡¯t going to work. even with synchronization active and two cores at his disposal, percy couldn¡¯t possibly match a green¡¯s regeneration. at this rate, he would run out of mana first.


    calling the scythe back, he threw it at his opponent, following it by another barrage of teal daggers. the man dodged everything again, but he was forced to use some mana at the end, propelling himself out of a dagger¡¯s path.


    percy grinned, pulling the soul harvester towards him once more, pressing on his advantage.


    the scythe¡¯s attacks didn¡¯t cost him any mana, so he could keep spamming them to drain his opponent. of course, he was certain the man could easily shatter the weapon to pieces if he managed to grab a hold of it. sadly for him, however, this wasn¡¯t an option ¨C not as long as percy kept it in its incorporeal state.


    that said, the earth mage didn¡¯t allow himself to remain passive either. intensifying his own efforts to pin percy down, he unleashed a relentless onslaught of powerful spells. he shot lots of compact stone arrows at ridiculous speeds, pairing them with insidious stalagmites that stabbed from various angles.


    percy had to keep his soul vision glued to his opponent¡¯s soul, and his mana sense fixed on the ground beneath his feet, barely giving himself the briefest of margins to dodge the deadly attacks. like that, the two men danced on the battlefield, the splashing waters of the swamp breaking the sombre silence of the grisly bog.


    on one side, broose had the overwhelming advantage afforded to him by his higher grade and his many decades of experience, as well as the confidence that came with it. unfortunately for him, he was also missing two limbs, leaking a scary amount of blood with every passing second.


    on the other side, percy had his own tools to rely on, desperately trying to bridge the monumental gap to his monstrous opponent. his boosting art and twin cores worked together to elevate his physique beyond a yellow¡¯s, but even that wasn¡¯t enough by itself. he had to supplement his lacking reflexes with the foresight afforded to him by soul vision, and to bolster his subpar agility with the grace and precision of his two fighting styles. as for the difference in mana regeneration? his only choice was to whittle broose¡¯s mana pool down, one spell at a time, by exploiting the scythe he had painstakingly created.


    in other words, percy had to use at his disposal ¨C and then some ¨C hoping it would be enough.


    but it was! . at some point, percy noticed his opponent¡¯s attack had come a second too late. he didn¡¯t think much of it at first, but it happened again a minute later. and then a third time, even sooner than that. once or twice could be written off as a mistake, but this was starting to look like a pattern.


    both were possible ¨C the guy had already proven he was as cunning as a fox. but he was human too, and he¡¯d already lost a ton of blood by now.


    not willing to miss what might be a huge opportunity, percy prepared his mantle again, launching another barrage of throwing stars, while simultaneously pulling the scythe towards him.


    unable to dodge both attacks, broose chose to evade the far deadlier harvester, allowing some of the throwing stars to hit him. he winced as three of them sank a couple inches into his soul, his knee visibly shaking from the pain. but he didn¡¯t let himself collapse just yet. still, percy knew it was only a matter of time.


    capitalizing on this, percy repeated the same tactic, forcing his opponent to eat another handful of small attacks, gnawing away at his endurance one shallow wound at a time.


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    but the experienced green wasn¡¯t going to give up this easily, it seemed.


    the third time percy tried this, broose dodged the scythe again, though he didn¡¯t even bother to avoid the throwing stars, letting them hit him all at once. the damage caused his soul to shudder, but he ignored it. he glared hatefully at percy, his eyes bloodshot, a savage grin plastered all over his face.


    at the same time, a large amount of mana gushed out of his sternum ¨C ¨C before unleashing several spells at percy, all at once.


    three stalagmites shot at him from various angles, forcing him to tiptoe around two of them, twisting his torso at an unnatural angle to narrowly escape the third one. but that was just the beginning, as four stone arrows arrived next, right when percy was in no position to dodge them properly.


    he did manage to avoid two of them, but the third one pierced a hole in his shoulder, all but disabling his left arm entirely. as for the last one, it was heading straight towards percy¡¯s heart ¨C


    gritting his teeth, percy turned the soul harvester corporeal, rotating its shaft to block the arrow.


    it worked ¨C sort of ¨C as the two constructs collided against one another, shattering in a rain of shrapnel. percy had escaped certain death, but he didn¡¯t come out of this unscathed either.


    coughing a mouthful of blood, he fell to his knees, half a dozen shards of his own spell lodged into his torso. one had even grazed his cheek, leaving a shallow cut right below his eye. had it flown a couple inches to the left, percy might have died already.


    he realized grimly, looking up at the earth mage.


    he was grinning at him! sear?h the n?vel_fire.¦Çet website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    the man had probably realized he couldn¡¯t win unless he robbed percy of his weapon first. after all, the scythe was quite the cheat! it packed more of a punch than a yellow¡¯s spell, and percy could keep spamming it at no cost. and¡­ the only way to rob percy of his weapon had been to force him to block with it!


    broose was breathing heavily, his core empty. apparently, this last move had cost him the last of his reserves.


    knowing this was his chance, percy smashed the three stalagmites trapping him, freeing his body before rising to his feet. even the slightest movement hurt, but he had to kill his opponent before he began casting spells again!


    ignoring his injuries, he dashed towards him as quickly as he could manage, while drawing the soul harvester towards him. more than half of the shaft was broken, but the piece holding the blade could still be used in a fight.


    as soon as he reached broose, he swung the broken weapon down at him, trying to chop the man¡¯s soul to pieces.


    but the latter hopped out of the way without much difficulty. he didn¡¯t seem to struggle detecting the weapon either, as its enchantment had come undone in many places, a series of cracks ruining the few remaining concealment runes.


    percy wasn¡¯t one to be deterred so easily, however. pivoting around the earth mage, he slashed at him horizontally, aiming right below his ribs.


    broose leapt backwards to avoid the attack, before diving forward again, trying to land a hook with his remaining fist. percy hurriedly ducked, feeling a rush of air brush over his hair. he was keenly aware he¡¯d lose his head should the green¡¯s punch connect.


    spitting a mouthful of blood at his enemy¡¯s face, percy rushed him again, stabbing at his torso.


    the man twisted his body to avoid it, having probably seen through the clumsy sneak attack via mana sense. next, he punched at percy¡¯s stomach.


    percy had to move the scythe¡¯s blade in the way, to absorb some of the impact. the teal construct shattered into more shards as percy was sent back, his feet carving two wide trails through the mud.


    not giving up, he summoned the shards to his hand, one of them stabbing his palm by accident. but he ignored the pain, tossing them at broose, hoping he¡¯d have a tougher time avoiding them like this.


    the latter hopped away from the first one, ducked beneath the second, only allowing the third to graze his arm, before sending two more stalagmites stabbing at percy, exhausting his reserves again.


    percy pushed against the first stalagmite, using it as a crutch to dodge the second, before drawing the shards to him once more, trying to hit his opponent from behind. at the same time, he also emptied his own cores, throwing a few teal daggers too.


    , the earth mage failed miserably, getting hit by most of the projectiles. two of the shards stabbed into his back, a handful of the knives digging into his soul. but none of the constructs had enough force behind them to rip a green¡¯s soul apart.


    left with no other choice, percy dashed forward, slamming into his opponent with as much strength as he could muster, knocking him into the mud.


    broose tried to fight back, but percy didn¡¯t let him, punching with his one good hand again and again, trying to pummel the enemy¡¯s skull into a pulp.


    eventually, the man managed to land a hit of his own on percy¡¯s stomach, causing him to cough another mouthful of blood.


    uncaring about the sweet taste of iron in his mouth, and unbothered by the sticky liquid dirtying his chin, percy resumed his assault, hoping his opponent would give out before he did.


    the two continued their brutal slugfest, percy¡¯s flesh bruising and his bones cracking every time his opponent connected. luckily for him, broose had already lost most of his strength, his attacks barely a shadow of what they should¡¯ve been. this was the only reason percy had even lasted this long.


    neither of them bothered to replenish their mana anymore ¨C it was impossible as both combatants were constantly out of breath. at this point, percy was just happy synchronization was still active ¨C the few dregs of mana swirling around his channels were the only things keeping him alive.


    whoever ended up winning, this fight was destined to end by one¡¯s fist.


    everything blurred in percy¡¯s vision, as he continued to unleash everything he had at his opponent. in the end, he didn¡¯t even register when the man breathed his last. the only thing that gave percy pause was when he saw broose¡¯s soul beginning to crumble.


    exhaling in relief, he wanted nothing more than to plop back and rest. but he couldn¡¯t do that just yet. he didn¡¯t worry about nesha as much ¨C micky should have taken her to where they¡¯d stashed some of their spare healing potions.


    but there was one thing he still had to do.

 Chapter 167: Operation

    Percy fought against the pain and exhaustion to keep his eyes open, waiting for the others to return. Doing so proved almost as difficult as the battle itself.Eventually, he heard the rhythmic flap of Micky¡¯s wings. Tilting his head up, he saw the crow approach rapidly, dropping Nesha in a murky pond a few metres away, before landing next to him.


    ¡°Are you ok?! What happened here?!¡± the girl asked, scanning the ravaged battlefield.


    It was full of craters and broken pieces of stone jutting out of the swamp waters, along with the occasional shard of teal faintly shimmering beneath the surface. Percy remained silent, merely pointing at Broose¡¯s body, lying motionless by his side. .


    Nodding in understanding, Nesha then limped over. The bleeding in her leg had stopped, but her injury wasn¡¯t fully healed. Percy didn¡¯t miss the two vials clenched tightly in her hand, a verdant liquid swirling inside. They should¡¯ve been more than enough to complete her recovery. Evidently, she¡¯d chosen to hold on to them instead.


    Percy almost teared up.


    Sure, he was the one who¡¯d bought the potions in the first place, but it was the thought that counted. That said, he shoved the pointless thoughts to the back of his mind for now. They had more urgent things to worry about.


    ¡°Grab the corpse and take it to the others. Then, eat them all, starting from the strongest one.¡± he told Micky. ¡°And hurry up. We¡¯ll only get one shot at this.¡±


    The crow didn¡¯t hesitate. Scooping Broose¡¯s body, he took off promptly. But Nesha didn¡¯t seem as convinced this was a good idea.


    ¡°Are you sure this is the time to be experimenting with your soul? How about resting first?¡± she asked, though she still handed him the potions.


    ¡°The longer we delay, the less soul mana we¡¯ll be able to extract from the carcasses.¡± Percy shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know about you, but I¡¯ve gone through too much shit to mess it up now.¡±


    Then, he pulled the last shard out of his chest, wincing in the process. Finally, he accepted the vials, uncorking them both before gulping them down, one after the other.


    At first, blood gushed out of his wounds, but it slowed down to a trickle as soon as the potions took effect. About a minute later, the soreness in his muscles faded a little too, his exhaustion partially muted. He still wasn¡¯t in the best condition, but he should at least be .


    He tossed the empty vials one last glance before placing them in his pocket. Sadly, these had been the last of their potions. They¡¯d have to be a lot more careful moving forward, as they no longer had the means to heal if they got injured. S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    he smiled bitterly.


    Of course, it wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d had much spare time back then. His schedule had been packed with more important things. Besides, the potions would only grow less effective with each promotion.


    Sighing, he walked over to a boulder sticking out of the water¡¯s surface, sitting on it cross-legged. Taking a deep breath, he directed the ambient mana to his cores, activating his boosting art.


    ¡°Nesha¡­ can you please watch over me for a couple of hours?¡± he asked his companion.


    The last thing he needed was to be interrupted by a wild beast during the delicate procedure. Nesha didn¡¯t say anything, but he saw her nod by the corner of his eye. She might not be the most skilled combatant, but she shouldn¡¯t have much trouble keeping a Yellow beast at bay.


    Next, Percy thought back to the scattered memories of his unfortunate clone, recalling how he was meant to proceed. Gathering some soul mana to his index finger, he inflicted a series of shallow incisions along his limbs and torso. It might have not been necessary, as his soul was plenty banged up already, but he didn¡¯t want to stray from his ¡°instructions¡±.


    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    Percy finished his preparations just in time, as a river of soul mana gushed through the cord, filling his frame up in an instant. Obviously, this mana was from Broose, its quantity and quality reminding him of the Starry Knight¡¯s. Unwilling to waste a single drop, Percy directed it to his wounds, supplementing it with mana from his channels. Nesha let out a surprised yelp, probably not having expected him to release such a colossal amount of soul mana from his body.


    But he wasn¡¯t done just yet.


    As soon as his first core reached an equilibrium, absorbing ambient mana from his lungs as quickly as it came, Percy moved some pure mana from his abdomen to his sternum. Next, he carefully poured as much into his first core as it could safely handle. The action made him feel bloated, the organ struggling to process the two streams of mana at once.


    Yet, Percy wasn¡¯t deterred. Capitalizing on the technique he¡¯d spent the last couple of months mastering, he began the arduous process of converting one affinity to the other, adding a third source of soul mana to the mix.


    Percy groaned, his head throbbing in pain.


    There were way too many disparate tasks straining his already tired mind, and he had to juggle them all perfectly, as even the tiniest mistake could throw the whole operation in disarray. He had to keep enough mana in his channels to prevent Synchronization from fizzling out prematurely, and he also had to maintain Self-bestowal at a precise margin.


    And finally, there was one last thing he needed to worry about.


    As the three rivers of soul mana rushed out of his wounds, he brought all his memories of death and suffering to the forefront of his mind, trying to lace the mana with the right scent, to make it more enticing for his target.


    Seconds became minutes, as Percy fought against his own body to keep everything in an equilibrium, the promise of power pushing him forward. Strictly speaking, he still didn¡¯t know what exact benefit the mysterious creature might give him once he absorbed it, but his clone had made one thing clear:


    It was worth it.


    However, the first complication emerged sooner than Percy would have liked. No, his target had yet to approach. And no, he hadn¡¯t made a mistake either. Instead, it was Micky who suddenly stopped feeding him mana.


    Not that he was keeping track of time, but he felt it hadn¡¯t been nearly long enough. Had he simply been too absorbed in the operation to register the passage of time, or had the man¡¯s soul deteriorated too much?


    Either way, Micky didn¡¯t say anything. Instead, he responded by moving on to the Yellow corpses, a new trickle of mana soon flowing through the cord. Of course, it paled in comparison with the last one, but it couldn¡¯t be helped.


    Percy sighed, returning to the task at hand.


    This would certainly make things more difficult, but it didn¡¯t necessarily mean they¡¯d failed. That was something they¡¯d only determine at the end, after they¡¯d fully exhausted every last drop of mana. Right now, his best bet was to keep going for as long as he could.


    Gritting his teeth, he pushed Synchronization even further, delving into a dangerous territory. His channels burned, as his cores felt like they were about to burst, but the flow of soul mana strengthened ever so slightly. That said, this wasn¡¯t enough to make up for the loss.


    Next, he switched his attention to the Self-bestowal spell. It worked tirelessly to transform the mana from one affinity to the other. But it wasn¡¯t good enough.


    Pushing the technique along, one small nudge at a time, Percy risked giving himself mana poisoning to eek a few more drops of soul mana out of the spell. At the same time, he delved even deeper into the conversion process, focusing on the very natures of the involved affinities.


    Pure and soul mana were different in many ways, but similar in others. Both appeared soft and weak at first, with pure mana making for flimsy constructs that crumbled easily, and soul mana not even perceptible to the naked eye, nor particularly effective in a fight when used blindly. In fact, Percy had personally suffered from this perceived ¡°weakness¡± of each of his cores at different times.


    Neither of these mana types was truly as they seemed. When used correctly, soul mana was one of the deadliest. By now, he had already honed it into the sharpest, most potent weapon in his arsenal. And that was without mentioning its utility in mending and preserving souls, or the unprecedented interaction with his Clone bloodline that had given him so much.


    And the same was true for pure mana. While it was widely considered the weakest affinity, that only held true for those too ignorant of its many uses. Whether it was the revolutionary elixirs that had turned Remior upside down, or the reinforced constructs that elevated his cyan mana into a true pillar of his arsenal, pure mana held its fair share of secrets once one dug deep enough.


    At that moment, something clicked in Percy¡¯s mind, as his understanding and appreciation of the two affinities rose to a new level. Responding to his thoughts, the cyan mana in his sternum began to shift even more rapidly, seemingly eager to transform. His soul core, too, started devouring the substance with even greater zeal, as Percy¡¯s Status finally pitched in.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Self-bestowal ¨C Crude -> Soul Conversion ¨C Refined!]

 Chapter 168: Outcome

    Seeing the notification, Percy couldn¡¯t help but crack a smile. This wasn¡¯t what he¡¯d set out to accomplish, but it now meant that even if the operation ended up failing, it wouldn¡¯t have all been for nothing. That said, he wasn¡¯t going to give up so easily either.Leaning onto his newly upgraded spell, he intensified his efforts in releasing the mana out of his body. Opening his eyes, he couldn¡¯t help but draw a sharp breath as he gazed at the scene before him, almost messing up his boosting art¡¯s rhythm!


    Everywhere he looked, he was surrounded by a thick, silver mist. He had no idea how far it reached, but it was definitely beyond the edge of his sight. And, judging by Nesha¡¯s awestruck expression, she could probably see the substance too, even without Soul Vision.


    But Percy didn¡¯t allow himself to get distracted.


    Diving back into the task at hand, he used both of his Refined spells, continuously pouring more mana out of his body, pushing it outwards into the cosmos. Or, well¡­ at least, that¡¯s what he was doing.


    Either way, he kept at it for a long time, only stopping when, at some point, he noticed the mana had stop seeping through the cord. Creasing his brow, he was about to ask Micky what happened, but the crow beat him to it.


    Micky said, sounding a little disappointed.


    Truth be told, Percy wasn¡¯t feeling much better. By now, he¡¯d had to face the fact that this was unlikely to work. He was already well into the tail end of the operation, his current output a mere shadow of what he¡¯d started with. Despite their excessive preparations and the many risks they¡¯d undertaken, it appeared they had still failed to lure the mysterious creature to Remior.


    Lots of questions were floating around Percy¡¯s mind, though he hadn¡¯t halted his efforts quite yet. He knew his odds of succeeding dwindled with every passing minute, but he figured he should see this to the very end ¨C just to be thorough. He¡¯d come this far, after all.


    Synchronization was the first of his spells to give out ¨C which happened a few hours later. Perhaps, it might have lasted a while longer had he attempted the experiment in a better state, but he¡¯d chosen to do this right after barely surviving a brutal fight.


    Soul Conversion didn¡¯t put as much of a strain on his body, but there wasn¡¯t much point keeping it active by itself. Without the boosting art, he didn¡¯t even have any pure mana to convert. With a heavy heart, Percy finally let go of the spell, realizing it just wasn¡¯t meant to be.


    He was about to draw upon whatever dregs of mana were still coursing around his channels, to patch the tears in his soul, when he caught something glinting by the corner of his eye.


    Raising an eyebrow, he examined it more closely. The object glowed in a silver colour, somehow bright enough to even pierce through the dense fog in his surroundings. And it grew brighter still by the second, apparently heading straight towards him! If this was any other day, his first assumption would have been that his clone was on the way back to Remior¡­


    his heart skipped a beat, though his next thought caused the colour to drain from his face.


    So focused had he been on actually luring the creature over, that he forgot he was supposed to keep part of his reserves on the side, so that he could actually it if he succeeded.


    Panicking, he began to breathe rapidly again, forcing some of the mana he¡¯d just released back into his core. Unable to gauge how much time he had left, he hoped he¡¯d be able to replenish enough mana to protect himself.


    The good news was that it didn¡¯t take much effort to gather it, nor did it need to be converted. The silver mist in his surroundings was already filled to the brim with soul mana. soul mana. Percy was practically swimming in it, as it flowed back into his core with a single thought, filling it up rapidly. That said, his channels protested loudly over his efforts, burning intensely wherever the mana flowed.


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    He didn¡¯t even get to complete that thought, when something slammed into him like a meteor. The shockwave shook his very soul, reminding him of when his clones returned. Though, instead of latching into its rightful place inside a crater in his stomach, this object tried to forcefully squeeze through the shallow cuts, worming its way into Percy¡¯s channels! What¡¯s more, it lashed out violently against its surroundings, trying to tear Percy¡¯s soul apart from within!


    The pain was agonizing, but he¡¯d always known this was some kind of living creature he was inviting into his body. Drawing some of his recently replenished mana, he surrounded the intruder from every direction, blocking its paths.


    The creature wasn¡¯t having it, however, biting against the interior of Percy¡¯s channels, trying to dig itself out of the blockade.


    Gritting his teeth, Percy clamped down on it forcefully, trying to trap it in place.


    It resisted, thrashing against the mana, trying to extricate itself from its shackles. It appeared to be on the losing side, but Percy still hesitated to bring this thing into his core. What if it caused him some serious injury?


    However, he shook his head a moment later, realizing he was being silly.


    A mana core was even sturdier than one¡¯s channels. He¡¯d also have a lot more mana there, not to mention much greater control over it. If the creature failed to fight its way out of the channel, it wouldn¡¯t stand a chance inside the core.


    Making up his mind, he finally pushed the creature along the narrow tube, slowly forcing it into his sternum. Once it fell inside, he unleashed all the mana he could muster against it, squeezing it into a tiny ball.


    He couldn¡¯t help but exhale in relief. The hardest part was already behind him. The only thing left was to absorb the creature and reap his reward ¨C whatever that was.


    ¡°Percy? What happened to you? Did it work?¡± Nesha fired a barrage of questions, her voice tinged with concern.


    Opening his eyes, Percy noticed she was giving him a weird look. She must¡¯ve watched him as he fought to contain the mysterious creature, though she¡¯d ultimately chosen not to say anything, not wanting to disturb him during the critical moment. Micky was there too, having returned at some point.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m fine. I¡¯ve got everything under control.¡± he hurriedly explained, his friends¡¯ expressions easing.


    ¡°Micky, can you help me figure out what this thing is?¡±


    Strictly speaking, Percy knew how he was meant to proceed, but he¡¯d rather figure out what exactly he was dealing with before . Especially since the procedure was supposed to be irreversible, as far as he could tell.


    Heeding his request, the crow inched closer, peering into Percy¡¯s sternum with its innate Soul Vision, as Percy did the same. It was hard for them to discern the creature¡¯s shape, compressed as it was. Percy cautiously loosened his hold over it, letting it stretch a little. Though he didn¡¯t see much, only catching a glimpse of what he thought was a bug¡¯s leg.


    ¡°Got anything?¡± he asked his familiar.


    ¡°Not sure. I think it looks like a spider¡­¡±


    Nodding, Percy continued observing the creature for a couple minutes, trying to piece together its appearance from the momentary twists and turns in its shape. In the end, he somewhat agreed with Micky¡¯s assessment.


    The creature resemble a spider ¨C at least to the extent that it resembled any animal he was familiar with. Though it seemed to have a few too many legs. While he failed to count all of them, he was pretty confident it had over a dozen. Moreover, the twig-like limbs appeared to bend in every which direction. Whatever the creature used them for, it wasn¡¯t to walk on solid ground.


    he shrugged.


    Swirling the mana inside his core, he peeled layer after layer of the creature¡¯s body, causing it to squirm in pain. Honestly, this part made Percy feel a little bad ¨C even triggering some traumatic memory for a second there. But he didn¡¯t stop. He couldn¡¯t let a spider¡¯s feelings stand between him and his goals.


    Percy watched the severed chunks of the creature¡¯s body dissolve in his core, before sending some of the mana through his channels, spreading the substance around his soul. And, , this action caused an immediate reaction.


    Wherever the mana travelled, Percy felt his body itch. It was as if somebody had emptied a bucket of ants inside him, the tiny pests crawling all over his organs. Except, this feeling didn¡¯t affect his flesh, but his soul. And just like with soul pain, this unpleasant sensation was a hundred times more intense than the physical equivalent.


    If he wasn¡¯t sitting already, he was certain his knees would have buckled, as he desperately tried scratching the uncomfortable feeling out of his skin. Sadly for him, this wasn¡¯t something he could fix with his fingers.


    Still, he maintained enough awareness to keep an eye inside his sternum, unwilling to let the creature loose in his core. The latter kept its resistance up, struggling to free itself to no avail, its body dissolving rapidly amidst the rotating vortex of mana.


    This went on for a couple minutes, though to Percy they felt closer to hours.


    Luckily for him, the itching vanished without a trace as soon as the creature did. Whatever this operation had done to his soul, it was over. At this point, Percy wanted nothing more than to go to sleep, the past few days having been downright hellish.


    Yet, it would be remiss of him if he allowed himself to pass out before confirming one last thing¡­


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    [???]

 Chapter 169: Truth

    A stray ray of sunlight licked Percy¡¯s eyelid, causing him to wrinkle his nose in irritation. He didn¡¯t wake up until a couple minutes later, however. The first thing he noticed was the stench of rotting wood and spoilt eggs. Not the most pleasant scent to come to, though it didn¡¯t take him long to recognize where he was, having spent months training in this very place.A rush of memories soon followed, reminding him of yesterday¡¯s events. Or, well¡­ At least he they were yesterday¡¯s.


    Shifting a little, he realized he was sitting against a tree¡¯s trunk. Apparently, his companions had been kind enough to not leave him rolling in the mud. Nesha was sleeping in a similar position a few paces away. Tracing Micky¡¯s location through the cord, he soon found him perched up on a branch nearby, scanning their surroundings.


    Percy nodded. There were plenty of things he had to take care of, but one of them took precedence over everything else. Not missing a beat, he pulled up his Status again, this time taking the chance to examine it more closely.


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Orange ¨C Pure]Bloodline:[Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    Spectral trait:


    [???]


    Spells:


    [Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude][Glove ¨C Crude][Mend ¨C Crude][Soul Conversion ¨C Refined][Soul Harvester ¨C Refined][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Synchronization ¨C Refined][Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.


    As usual, the section with his spells was a complete mess. The Status seemed to group them based on their tier, but didn¡¯t bother sorting them beyond that. At least, they weren¡¯t in chronological order, and Percy couldn¡¯t spot any other pattern either. Not just that, but he could swear their order sometimes changed randomly for no apparent reason.


    Percy didn¡¯t want to be too ungrateful towards the titaness ¨C her handiwork had done wonders for his sanity over the years. That said, he had to admit the Status had plenty of room for improvement¡­


    In any case, he shook the pointless thoughts out of his head, his eyes moving to the most recent addition. Not that the question marks were particularly informative, but at least it meant the operation had been a success.


    Truth be told, Percy would much rather just receive his reward directly than have to solve another riddle. He¡¯d it ¨C having worked for months on this project! But it couldn¡¯t be helped. He very much doubted even the temple¡¯s evaluations could shed light on something this exotic.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake!¡± Nesha exclaimed, startling him.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been up for hours.¡± Percy rolled his eyes, trying his best to maintain his composure. ¡°I just didn¡¯t want to disturb your beauty sleep.¡±


    ¡°Nice try.¡± she smirked. ¡°Truthseeker bloodline, remember?¡±


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    Shrugging, Percy didn¡¯t dwell on his poorly executed prank much. He pulled against the tree¡¯s trunk to yank himself to his feet. The movement hurt, his body beyond sore. His mind wasn¡¯t doing much better, his brain feeling like mush. Even his channels burned quite intensely, despite having sat idle for so many hours. The thought of missing several doses of Aurora Dew stung the most, however.


    he grimaced.


    Not that losing a week off his next promotion was the end of the world ¨C certainly not when it was over a decade away. But he¡¯d rather not get into the habit of thinking like that. Growing up, he¡¯d heard plenty of stories of lazy nobles who¡¯d needlessly delayed their advancements by skipping cleansing sessions willy-nilly. Hell, if he wasn¡¯t mistaken, Uncle Gareth had wasted quite a few years like that, reaching Green half a decade later than he was meant to.


    ¡°I think you should be more worried about the mess we¡¯re in.¡± Nesha said, guessing what he was thinking about.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that bad. No matter what we do, House Tantalus isn¡¯t going to send a Blue after us.¡± he replied, before elaborating.


    Following their latest stunt, the enemy family was bound to realize the culprit wasn¡¯t just some wild beast running rampant in the bog. Their first suspect would naturally be House Avalon. And technically, they¡¯d be correct ¨C despite the fact that Percy hadn¡¯t coordinated with his relatives.


    That said, they only had five Blues, so they couldn¡¯t afford to remove them from their posts. Not even for a few days. If they did that, Baldy was guaranteed to pounce on their weakness, dealing a blow far more severe than anything Percy and Nesha had done so far. sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Consequently, House Tantalus only had two viable options. Either they¡¯d ignore Bogside town completely, or they¡¯d have to send more Greens ¨C if and when they could afford to spare them.


    ¡°What if the war ends without us knowing? Or if you¡¯ve misjudged how valuable this town is?¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t. Both their towns are valuable, but not as much as several Greens ¨C which is what they¡¯ll lose if they give my grandfather an opening. As for the war, I wouldn¡¯t worry about that. Wars all over Remior will only keep escalating until the lotus blooms. Probably for a while after that too, until all the losers are eliminated.¡±


    Nesha remained silent for a few minutes, contemplating his words. In the end, she nodded, apparently not disagreeing with any of it. While she wasn¡¯t the most experienced in a fight, she probably understood politics even better than he did, having studied them her whole life.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the plan then? Do we just stay here, waiting for the next Green to come our way? That sounds a little dangerous.¡±


    She wasn¡¯t wrong. Even with all their preparations, Percy had barely managed to kill Broose by the skin of his teeth. The next person House Tantalus sent would be a lot stronger.


    ¡°For now, let¡¯s head back to the town. We need to gauge the situation there before we plan our next move.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s there to gauge?!¡± Nesha asked in protest. ¡°The cat is out of the bag! The guy went into the bog, never to return! If we show up all injured after being gone for two days, they¡¯ll know it was us!¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Percy nodded. ¡°What I meant to say is, we need to gauge their towards all this.¡±


    Nesha tilted her head in confusion, prompting him to explain.


    ¡°We¡¯ll tell them the truth. And we¡¯ll see how they react.¡±


    ¡°Are you crazy?! We¡¯re still in enemy territory! They¡¯ll rat us out to their masters! And that¡¯s only if they don¡¯t attack us themselves!¡±


    ¡°Nesha, I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve noticed, but we¡¯ve done them a favour. These people are of House Tantalus. They¡¯d have revolted a long time ago if they could.¡±


    ¡°So You think you¡¯ll just tell them a few flowery words and get them to march behind you against a noble House?! They only have a few untrained Yellows and Oranges!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need them to ¡°march behind me¡±, or even help us against the Greens. Just to keep turning a blind eye to our actions. The current arrangement already works for everyone. The evil House Avalon is ambushing House Tantalus¡¯s people inside the Grisly Bog, while the innocent commoners of Bogside town don¡¯t know anything about it. They only need to maintain our cover as a Red-born blacksmith living with his wife, and they get to live peacefully with their loved ones. It¡¯s a win-win.¡±


    Nesha shook her head.


    ¡°That sounds great . But there are hundreds of them. All it takes is coward to go behind everyone¡¯s back, and we¡¯ll be the ones who get ambushed.¡±


    ¡°Then, it¡¯s lucky we have somebody who can recognize lies, isn¡¯t it?¡± Percy grinned. ¡°We just need to ask some well-placed questions here and there and we¡¯ll know if anyone intends to snitch on us.¡±


    Nesha exhaled in defeat. This wasn¡¯t the first idiotic plan Percy had forced on her, and it probably wouldn¡¯t be the last. But hey, hadn¡¯t everything turned out fine so far?


    ¡°Let¡¯s assume this works. We¡¯ve only bought ourselves more time until the next group arrives. How do we kill them?¡± she asked, changing the topic.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve got nothing concrete just yet, but the last fight gave me a few ideas. I¡¯ll start working on a new spell as soon as I bring a couple more runes from the Vault. And I¡¯ll need your help with something too.¡±


    The two bid Micky farewell, before heading back. On the way, Percy brought Nesha up to speed on his plans. By the time they arrived they¡¯d even discussed how to approach the townsfolk.


    Entering the town, they made their way to the centre, ignoring the gasps and exclamations of the residents. If the caked mud and bloodstains on their clothes hadn¡¯t clued them in already, the grisly trophy Percy paraded through the streets certainly did.


    The two only stopped once they were outside the tavern, facing a crowd of people headed by Fegan. Percy tossed Broose¡¯s torn robes on the ground in front of them, the bloodied garments eliciting another round of sharp breaths and worried whispers from their audience. But he didn¡¯t let their growing unease deter him, looking at them confidently before speaking.


    ¡°My name is Percival of House Avalon.¡±

 Chapter 170: Snitches and stitches

    At first, the townsfolk stared at the ill-begotten tatters of silk in stunned silence. Over the next two minutes, Percy watched the colour drain from their faces, their eyes widening with panic. But still, nobody dared to utter a sound. It wasn¡¯t until another minute later that somebody finally broke the oppressive stillness.¡°What have you done?!¡± a man cried, his voice quivering.


    ¡°Those cursed life-suckers will have our heads!¡± another shouted.


    Like a spark igniting dry tinder, the second voice set the crowd alight. Mutters and whispers rippled through the gathering. Many of the residents covered their mouths as they spoke, some casting nervous glances at Percy and Nesha, while others pointed at them with trembling fingers. Soon, their fear began to transform into quiet accusations.


    ¡°Everyone, calm down!¡± Fegan raised his hand, causing the chatter to die down.


    Then he took a step forward, approaching Percy.


    ¡°Young man¡­ While I¡¯m sure you have a lot to tell us and, believe me, everyone here is dying to hear you out, there are a couple things I¡¯m going to need you to clarify beforehand.¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t say anything, merely nodding at the old man to speak.


    ¡°Is the owner of those clothes dead?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°And is it safe to assume the other nobles who disappeared over the past few months are too?¡±


    ¡°Naturally. Or did you think they¡¯d gathered together to have a year-long picnic in the swamp?¡± this time it was Nesha who pitched in.


    Percy glared at her to drop the sarcasm. Sure, it was a dumb question, but they wanted to win these people over, not to antagonize them.


    Either way, if Fegan took any offense, he didn¡¯t show it. He cleared his throat before speaking again.


    ¡°May I ask how this is possible? Don¡¯t take it the wrong way, but I don¡¯t think the two of you could have accomplished all this by yourselves.¡±


    ¡°We aren¡¯t alone.¡± Percy replied with a half-truth. ¡°As for the details, trust me, you¡¯re better off not knowing them.¡±


    The old man nodded, clearly sharing the sentiment. He was about to say something else, but somebody from the crowd butted in again.


    ¡°We should hand them over!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right! Maybe the nobles won¡¯t blame us if we distance ourselves from this!¡± somebody agreed.


    Hearing them, Percy carefully scanned the crowd, trying to discern the prevailing opinions. A few of them nodded along with the men who¡¯d spoken, too scared to defy their masters. But the majority grimaced or clicked their tongues instead, evidently not as fond of their overlords. It was one of them who spoke next.


    ¡°You idiots! Can¡¯t you even recognize what¡¯s good for you?! How many of our people died this year?! ¡± Mr. Dylan said, vouching for Percy.


    And he wasn¡¯t alone.


    ¡°Yes! I can¡¯t believe your first reaction is to sell your saviours off to those bastards! We should be building statues of them, not stabbing them in the back! You should all be ashamed of yourselves!¡± a woman yelled, berating her neighbours.


    The faction opposing Percy didn¡¯t give up though.


    ¡°You¡¯re acting as if they¡¯re doing this for our sake. This is nothing more than a war between two noble Houses ¨C and we¡¯re the ones caught in the middle. I¡¯ve no clue who¡¯s going to win, but I¡¯d rather not piss off the people who own us.¡±


    The heated debate continued for a few minutes, as men and women from both sides argued with one another. At times, Percy was tempted to defend himself, but he ultimately held back. He figured it was best to let them speak their minds first, getting everything out there before making his case.


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    Eventually, it was Fegan who cut the discussion short.


    ¡°Ok, that¡¯s enough. We¡¯ve heard both differing opinions, but Percy and Nesha have yet to tell us why they chose to come forward today.¡±


    He turned to Percy, looking him in the eye for a second before continuing.


    ¡°Young man¡­ I admit we got off on the wrong foot all those months ago. And I was the one at fault. You¡¯ve done a lot of good for our town ¨C whether it was your intention or not ¨C but you¡¯ve also kept many secrets from us and put us all at risk. Would you care to explain what you¡¯re trying to accomplish?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s there to explain? I¡¯m my actions have improved your lives, but I admit that wasn¡¯t my goal in coming here. I have my own reasons for targeting House Tantalus. Like some people have said, you all just happened to get caught in the middle.¡±


    ¡°So, why tell us now? And what are you going to do next?¡± Fegan asked. ¡°Are you leaving?¡±


    ¡°Honestly, I¡¯d have kept it a secret if I could. Sadly, it wasn¡¯t an option this time. But no. I¡¯ve no intention of going anywhere. Though, that will depend on your stance.¡±


    ¡°This is madness!¡± somebody interrupted. ¡°They¡¯ll get us all killed!¡±


    But Mr. Dylan slapped the guy to shut him up.


    ¡°Just let him finish.¡±


    Seeing hundreds of pairs of eyes return to him, Percy continued.


    ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to help us, nor to fight House Tantalus alongside us. Just pretend you didn¡¯t hear any of this. Let us keep doing what we¡¯ve been doing in secret. That¡¯s all we want.¡±


    ¡°Can you House Avalon will win?¡± Fegan asked.


    Percy shook his head.


    ¡°Naturally not. But what difference does it make? We¡¯re the ones taking all the risk. If we lose, . Nobody will blame you. Not to mention, regardless of whether we win or lose, every person with the Drain bloodline we kill is one less person slaughtering your loved ones in the years to come.¡±


    ¡°Basically, you only need to keep your mouths shut.¡± Nesha jumped in. ¡°Simple enough?¡±


    More chatter ensued, as the two sides argued some more, before Fegan ultimately put the issue up for a vote. In the end, the side supporting Percy and Nesha won by over 300 votes to the opposition¡¯s 25. It was an overwhelming victory ¨C which made sense, really. The townsfolk didn¡¯t have much to lose by covering for them. Like Percy and Nesha had said, all they had to do was , and they¡¯d come out ahead either way.


    That said, 25 people were plenty enough for somebody to do something dumb and screw things for everyone. Keeping her bloodline a secret, Nesha took the opportunity during the discussions to pick those people off one by one, discreetly asking them a couple of questions here and there, to determine whether they intended to behave.


    ¡°Well?¡± Percy asked once they were back in their house.


    The girl shook her head.


    ¡°Like I told you, it¡¯s impossible. I¡¯ve identified at least 5 people who I¡¯m confident will screw everything up. Unless you want to try assassinating them, we should get the hell out of here.¡±


    But Percy grinned.


    ¡°We aren¡¯t going anywhere.¡± he said, causing Nesha to raise an eyebrow. ¡°Obviously, there was always the chance of things turning out this way. But we can make it work in our favour.¡± S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure if House Tantalus would continue throwing people at us after losing Broose. Too much risk, and too many unknowns. But what if they had a clearer idea of what they were getting into, and even thought they were going to catch us off-guard?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re intentionally baiting them over! You people to snitch on us!¡± Nesha realized.


    ¡°Well, no. It would have been simpler if they could just do as they were told. It¡¯ll be much harder to lure the Greens over to the swamp like this. But we can give them a warm welcome here ¨C in the town ¨C instead.¡±


    Nesha gave him a long look, seemingly reevaluating the person she¡¯d chosen to follow. But she didn¡¯t say anything. They¡¯d already discussed several aspects of Percy¡¯s plan. The only thing left was to piece everything together.


    Percy didn¡¯t speak either, instead grabbing the sewing kit Mr. Dylan had generously given him earlier. Honestly, Percy had wanted to pay for it, but the man had refused to accept any money. He¡¯d even offered to waive the cost of the pig iron in their future dealings, though Percy wasn¡¯t planning to continue posing as a blacksmith now that their cover was up. Micky provided them with more than enough food to get by, and they no longer needed to hide their money either.


    Threading the needle, Percy then lifted his shirt, trying to stitch one of the nastier cuts the potions had failed to close. Having grown in a house full of life users, and then spent half a decade in a place where one could easily buy healing potions, Percy had never learned how to apply basic first aid.


    But how hard could it be?


    Yet, the moment he was about to pierce his skin, something strange happened. It was almost as if some primal instinct took over, guiding his hand forward. Before he even realized what was happening, he¡¯d finished patching his wound up ¨C adding 7 stitches in total.


    Thinking of something, Percy then took his shirt off, examining it closely. His fight against Broose had left it full of holes. Perhaps he was better off just buying a new one, but walking around in patched rags would better sell the image of a harmless peasant. Either way, there was something he wanted to test.


    Passing another linen thread into the needle, he began working on his shirt, allowing the same strange feeling to overcome him. Percy had never felt anything like that before. It was almost like he finally found his true calling after a lifetime of searching!


    Not even a minute later, he was done.


    Staring at the formerly banged up piece of cloth, he marvelled at his handiwork. One could still spot the stitches if they looked closely but, overall, the shirt had been repaired near-seamlessly. Not just that, but Percy had accomplished this with the speed and efficiency more befitting of a master tailor than an amateur.


    Growing more and more certain of his guess, he opened his Status again. As it turned out, he wouldn¡¯t have to wait that long for his answer¡­


    Spectral trait:


    [Weaving]

 Chapter 171: Disgust

    Percy wanted nothing more than to dive back into his work, having lots of urgent tasks to tend to. The looming threat of House Tantalus aside, there were only 9 more months until the lotus bloomed, and he wanted to return to his family by then.Sadly for him, his injured channels forced him to place everything on hold for a few more days. Unable to use mana, he couldn¡¯t condense crystals, nor cleanse his cores. Even sending out his next clone had to wait a while longer.


    But that didn¡¯t mean he remained completely idle.


    Knowing the name of his trait, he figured this was as good a time as any to explore the benefits it granted him. Of course, he still had no clue how it could possibly help him improve his magic, but there were other, mundane ways to put it to the test. S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    To this end, he approached Leah, the lady who¡¯d spoken for him and Nesha during the other day¡¯s discussions. Apparently, she was the town¡¯s resident tailor ¨C the very person Nesha had purchased their clothes from. Though it wasn¡¯t a wardrobe change Percy wanted from her.


    ¡°Do you think I could work here for a couple of weeks?¡± he asked, eliciting a raised eyebrow from the woman.


    Naturally, she was a little surprised to see a young man ¨C and a noble scion at that ¨C display a sudden interest in her profession. Still, she eagerly agreed to his request as soon as her initial confusion faded, happy to help Percy after everything he¡¯d done for the town. In fact, she offered to tutor him of her own volition, and even to pay him for his work.


    Suffice to say, Percy refused to take any money. Besides the fact that he didn¡¯t need it, he had no idea if he¡¯d be any good at this. His trait might have raised his proclivity towards the art, but he wasn¡¯t sure if being a little skilled with a thread and needle would cut it.


    Over the next few days, Percy showed up at Leah¡¯s workshop every morning. At first, he merely watched her as she wove patches of linen, stitching them together into shirts and trousers. The outfits she crafted weren¡¯t anything special. They looked simple and unassuming ¨C a far cry from the silken robes and elegant dresses noble men and women regularly wore. But they were certainly practical. Far better suited for the difficult, laborious lives of the commoners they were meant for.


    ¡°Do you want to give it a try?¡± she asked on the third day.


    Under different circumstances, Percy might have chosen to observe her for another week or two. But his channels were almost back to normal, and he knew his schedule was about to grow a lot more hectic. The more practice he got with his trait now, the better.


    Recalling the way the tailor had handled her tools, Percy set to work. The first thing he noticed, was how it all felt. Holding the needle wasn¡¯t awkward in the slightest, and guiding the thread came with an innate understanding of how to avoid knots and tangles. Paying more attention to the process, he was surprised by the sheer dexterity and precision by which his hands moved. .


    Not wanting to freak the poor woman out too much, Percy took a step back, trying to appear more . He knew it wasn¡¯t his own talent at work, but the Weaving trait doing most of the heavy lifting. Still, he continued to experiment a little whenever she wasn¡¯t looking.


    At some point, he discovered he didn¡¯t even need the needle!


    , he could pinch and push the end of the thread through the smallest of holes and openings with his fingers alone! It almost felt like an extension of his body, responding to his will as well as his mana did! By now, Percy would have to be a fool if he couldn¡¯t tell his skill in this profession bordered on the


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    Tracing his fingers along a coarse linen shirt, he could easily visualize the way the horizontal weft and vertical warp threads interlocked into its grid-like texture. More than that, he instinctively understood why they¡¯d been woven like that, and how the slightest variation in their structure could affect the final shape and seam of the shirt.


    he chuckled.


    Of course, that was not to say he had nothing to learn from Leah. While he could handle fabric as naturally as breathing, there was still a lot of nuance involved in crafting a functional set of clothes.


    ¡°You¡¯ll want to match the stitch to the weave,¡± the tailor said, watching him closely. ¡°If you just sew straight across without following the grain, the fabric will bunch up, or worse, the stitches might tear again.¡± she advised him at some point.


    Well, that certainly explained why the patches he¡¯d hastily applied to his own clothes were starting to come undone already. Whatever instincts he¡¯d stolen from the mysterious spider, they didn¡¯t cover making clothes for .


    In any case, to accommodate his rapid learning speed, Leah handed him progressively tougher tasks over the next three days, before culminating in his final project ¨C weaving an entire linen shirt from scratch. It was time-consuming work ¨C ¨C yet Percy still managed to finish it in an afternoon after putting everything the tailor had taught him into practice.


    he wondered, half-jokingly.


    He vaguely remember he was only ever meant to absorb one, but he¡¯d have to ask the girl about it once he figured out how to return to her world. The only thing he lamented was that his trait didn¡¯t seem to have a direct application in combat. Having achieved so much with it in a single week, he could hardly imagine how powerful he¡¯d grow with a trait related to spellcasting.


    he sighed.


    Bidding his mentor farewell, he returned to his house. He¡¯d agreed to drop by Leah¡¯s to help her out whenever he could, but he could no longer afford to do it full-time.


    ¡°Is your little vacation over already?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°More or less.¡± he shrugged. ¡°What¡¯s the situation with the snitches?¡±


    Percy had asked Nesha to keep an eye on the people she¡¯d singled out. If they were right, the traitors should be leaving town soon, to report them to their masters. Of course, people did travel to and from the town every now and then, mainly to transport goods to the neighbouring Greyquarry town or House Tantalus, but such occurrences weren¡¯t that frequent.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Nesha nodded. ¡°Two of them left this morning under the pretence of transporting wheat to House Tantalus. For context, the harvest season isn¡¯t even over yet ¨C so typically they shouldn¡¯t have done this until a couple weeks from now. Not to mention, they aren¡¯t the ones normally in charge of this.¡±


    the crow groaned.


    Naturally, the bird complained. Waking up several times per night was bound to be unpleasant. Still, he agreed, not wanting Percy or Nesha to get killed in their sleep.


    It wasn¡¯t until all of that was settled that Percy finally activated his boosting art, sitting down to condense some crystals. As cumbersome as it was, it had grown into a bit of a habit by now. In fact, he thought he might have even missed it after not doing it for over a week¡­


    Forming a blob of cyan in his hand, he soon shaped it into a solid sphere, before squeezing it between his palms. Its size shrunk rapidly as Percy settled into the routine task.


    And a few minutes later ¨C seven to be exact ¨C it was done. Percy had managed to shave a lot of time off Crystallization over the years, though his improvements had already slowed down to a crawl. He estimated he wouldn¡¯t be getting much faster before Yellow.


    Shrugging, he was about to condense another one, when he noticed something strange. A weird feeling bubbled up as he stared at the cyan orb pinched between his thumb and index finger. It was almost like disdain¡­ or , even.


    He frowned.


    It wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d done anything new. Nothing he hadn¡¯t done a million times before. Yet, for some reason, condensing his mana like this had felt wrong. He could instinctively tell there was a better way to do it.


    Suffice to say, he had no clue what it meant, but he harbour a pretty good guess as to where this feeling was coming from.

 Chapter 172: Hot or cold

    Percy was dying to explore the strange feeling, but he had to finish all his chores first. He spent a couple days brewing ahead for himself and his companions. He also sent a new clone out ¨C hopefully to the Vault, but he wouldn¡¯t know that until he was back.Only then did he finally allow himself to delve into this new project. Perhaps it would lead to a dead-end, but until he obtained the runes he wanted from the artificial world, he couldn¡¯t start working on his next spell upgrade anyway.


    Leaving his fused mana aside ¨C since it was structurally identical in its corporeal phase ¨C Percy manifested his cyan mana in all its different states, one after the other. At the same time, he allowed himself to sink into the clarity afforded to him by Weaving, contemplating the feedback it provided.


    First, the regular mana felt soft and squishy. Trying to fashion it into any sort of solid construct was ill-advised, as Percy had found out years ago. Not that Weaving was particularly constructive with its criticism. While it was happy telling Percy what it about the substance, it didn¡¯t bother explaining how he was meant to fix it.


    Then came the crystals. Again, his trait loudly protested their creation, warning him that they were way too brittle. And too rigid. He wouldn¡¯t be able to weave a web out of¨C


    he creased his brow.


    Were these intrusive thoughts some side-effect of the trait? Percy wasn¡¯t particularly happy evaluating his magic based on how suitable it was for catching But he shook his head, unwilling to write this path off before he even treaded it.


    Next was the intermediate step he obtained by mixing the soft mana with the cyan powder. In his analogy to concrete, these rice-shaped grains were equivalent to the gravel that made up most of the substance. Expecting the trait to complain again, Percy was shocked to receive some feedback for a change! He could tell Weaving still wasn¡¯t overly thrilled with the grains, but it wasn¡¯t as quick to dismiss them as before. Instead, it nudged him along, encouraging him to keep going.


    Finally, Percy used Reinforcement. Filling the space between the grains with powder, he held everything in place with regular mana, before hammering at the mixture with his willpower, trying to lodge its pieces together. Over the next few minutes, he gradually ironed out the kinks in the material, purging its impurities one after the other. In the end, he was left with a cylindrical slab of cyan in his hand ¨C a small section of what he usually used for his scythe¡¯s shaft. It hadn¡¯t taken him too long either, as he¡¯d grown much faster at this over the past year.


    Unfortunately, the response from Weaving was lukewarm again. It was indeed satisfied with the rod¡¯s strength, but it still protested loudly over its excessive rigidity. The greedy trait wanted its mana strong flexible! After all, how else would he spin it into the ultimate thread?!


    Percy frowned.


    He smiled bitterly. Who was he even talking to? Was it himself, the spider, or the trait? Either way, this was quite the high standard his customer had imposed on him. Pure mana was universally hailed as hot garbage for a reason. Percy was counting his lucky stars that he¡¯d managed to amend that into something useful, yet Weaving demanded so much more¡­


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    Then again, it wasn¡¯t so strange, given the trait¡¯s name. Percy couldn¡¯t help but wonder what effect such a result would have on his magic. Could pure mana truly be as hard as steel, yet as flexible as silk at the same time? If possible, that to qualify as a spell.


    ***


    From that day onward, Percy spent his mornings brewing for the group, while devoting his afternoons into researching the new form of his pure mana.


    As for how he did that? Well, he was essentially playing a game of hot or cold with his trait. He tried applying subtle changes to his Reinforcement, using the trait¡¯s reaction as well as his own intuition to assess whether they brought him closer or further from his goal.


    At first, he¡¯d started with something obvious ¨C decreasing the width of his constructs. Originally, the shaft of his scythe was about as wide as a finger, so Percy gradually reduced that a few millimetres at a time, gauging how its properties changed. Not surprisingly, the rod grew far more fragile past a certain point ¨C namely as soon as it had shrunk to around half its previous width.


    And it didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out why. If somebody was to examine the rod¡¯s cross-section, they¡¯d quickly notice it wasn¡¯t homogeneous, as it was made of three different variants of pure mana, held together in a very specific configuration. Obviously, shrinking the shape too much messed up the delicate balance, compromising the object¡¯s integrity.


    Percy realized.


    The next step was to play around with the grains themselves, adjusting their shape. Which was easier said than done, as even the slightest tweak affected the construct greatly. For example, making the grains thinner allowed Percy to fit more of them in the rod¡¯s cross-section ¨C which was good ¨C but it also made each individual grain more fragile ¨C which was bad.


    The solution was to make them shorter too, maintaining their rice-like shape while scaling them down. However, the shorter they were, the harder it was for them to interlock with one another, which again compromised the integrity of the material.


    To amend that, Percy tried making them thinner while packing them more densely, to counterbalance their fragility. This worked, but it made the rod even more rigid ¨C it wouldn¡¯t bend at all!


    In any case, Percy had to admit this wasn¡¯t going to work with just three ingredients. The only way forward was to add another intermediate step in the process, giving himself an extra variable to play around with. However, this also meant that the number of possible combinations would shoot up exponentially. As would the effort required to sift through each of them¡­


    Not seeing any other path, and since his clone had yet to return, he gritted his teeth before diving into the experiments again. This time, he used two grain variants. One was small and sturdy, the other long and thin. This seemed to yield some results, as he did manage to shrink the rod some more by the end of the second week. Even better, he did that without compromising its strength!


    he thought as he examined the long, cyan fibre in his hand.


    Its cross-section was smaller than a ladybug, and it seemed to bend rather easily too! A few quick tests confirmed that it wasn¡¯t any weaker than his scythe¡¯s shaft either. Percy had verified this by stacking a few of them together and then comparing how much force it took to break them.


    As it was, he couldn¡¯t think of a good application for it. It wasn¡¯t nearly as thin as a thread, so the prospect of weaving it into a fabric was nothing but a pipe dream. Shrinking it down any further wasn¡¯t going to be easy either.


    He¡¯d have to put this project on the side for now. For all he knew, it might be years until he got anywhere with it. The realization filled him with disappointment, as he¡¯d been looking forward to perfecting the mana threads. Perhaps it was the thought of obtaining a Masterful spell, or maybe it was just the trait¡¯s influence on his subconscious, but he¡¯d really enjoyed the past couple of weeks. Sadly, it couldn¡¯t be helped.


    On the bright side, the clone finally returned a few days later. And it brought with him exactly what Percy had ordered.


    Finally, he had some shiny new runes to play around with!


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 Chapter 173: Rune delivery service

    The clone¡¯s memories settled in place, the events of the past few weeks rapidly flashing through Percy¡¯s mind.This time, he¡¯d ended up in the body of a semi-sentient for a change! It was a weird, gnoll-like creature ¨C some kind of ugly humanoid racoon. Not his finest moment, but that didn¡¯t detract from the novelty of the experience in the slightest.


    Suffice to say, the creature¡¯s tribe was quite primitive ¨C they couldn¡¯t even communicate without grunts and growls, nor did they have much of a civilization going for them. In the few hours Percy had deigned to spend there, he¡¯d determined they couldn¡¯t even build their own houses. Instead, they lived in caves, using only the most rudimentary tools made of sharpened stones and rugged bones.


    Of course, Percy didn¡¯t leave


    He did spend an afternoon or so exploring the surrounding area, as he always did, in case there was anything of note. As it turned out, the mountain inhabited by his ¡°people¡± was surrounded by a dense, fairly normal-looking forest, brimming with wildlife ¨C not unlike something one might see on Remior.


    As he travelled through the exotic woods, he made a point to forage for any edible fruit and nuts he stumbled upon, tossing them in a large piece of some animal¡¯s hide he¡¯d ¡°borrowed¡± from the cave.


    In the end, he didn¡¯t find any traces of sentient life, nor any treasure worth his time. His Status didn¡¯t contain anything particularly important either ¨C just his host¡¯s Orange grade and fire affinity, along with the other regulars.


    Shrugging, he activated Metatron¡¯s Decree, throwing his supplies in before jumping after them, as was his original plan. Soon, he found himself lying on the familiar metallic floor, boxed inside the world-sized cube.


    Honestly, he half-expected Metatron to show up, giving him a piece of his mind. Though that didn¡¯t happen. A quick check also revealed the titan hadn¡¯t revoked his access to the life mana necessary for his second core.


    Percy exhaled in relief.


    In any case, he had no intention of using the mana, as he wouldn¡¯t have enough time to awaken the core anyway. Nor did he plan to try his luck in the Orange challenges either. Maybe he could have cleared a couple if he did his best, but he was on a tight schedule.


    he wondered.


    Percy had never forgotten about his friend¡¯s crippling disabilities. Walking to the residential area, he soon met up with him, bringing him up to speed on the recent developments.


    ¡°You mean you can just waltz in with a random body once a week and ask the system to give you¡­ a million refills of life mana, just like that?!¡±


    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re making it sound like I¡¯m fleecing the guy or something!¡± Percy rolled his eyes. ¡°Last time I only got 500 credits or so. Anyway, want me to ask if I can transfer the privilege to you this once? I was also thinking of maybe pooling resources together, so we don¡¯t have to buy the same books twic¨C¡± S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy didn¡¯t even get to complete his sentence before all the runes in their surroundings flashed red, the system berating him in a scathing tone.


    ¡°WARNING: Unauthorized exchange detected. Registered users are not allowed to exchange credits, information or other resources without permission. Calculating penalty¡­¡±


    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s my fault!¡± Gabe said. ¡°I should have warned you about it. Last time, I checked with the cube if I was allowed to lend you a couple of books. It didn¡¯t seem to mind as you were still registered as a guest.¡±


    ¡°Calculation complete. User¡¯s first infraction detected. Penalty reduced to 1 infraction point. Total infraction points: 1.¡±


    ¡°Wow. Just¡­ wow. What this place needs is a ¡°stinginess¡± challenge. You lot would never have to worry about credits again¡­¡± Percy groaned.


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    That said, he wasn¡¯t too surprised by this development. If the Vault¡¯s residents were allowed to freely exchange information between themselves, everyone would be doing it. That would only undermine the entire point of the challenges ¨C to motivate the most talented people to grow while weeding out the weaklings.


    Part of him wanted to slap himself for not abusing his guest status some more back when he had the chance. But, deep down, he knew Metatron wouldn¡¯t have allowed that. Not if his goal was to entice him into joining the Vault¡­


    ¡°What do these points even do?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ Normally, each point lasts 50 years. If you accumulate 3, you get executed. That said, I¡¯m not sure what¡¯s going to happen in your case. Though I doubt Metatron will let you get away without any consequences.¡± Gabe explained.


    ¡°3, huh? There¡¯s still some room for¨C¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it. You¡¯re lucky the cube only gave you 1 this time. It¡¯s usually not as lenient.¡±


    Percy swallowed hard, realizing that most of the Vault¡¯s residents got if they broke the rules once or twice. Sadly, there was nothing he could do about it for now.


    Bidding his friend farewell, he then returned to the challenge cube, beginning the Orange magiscript challenge. He didn¡¯t intend to complete it, but learning how the requirements scaled from one grade to the next would be useful. Besides, this was the best place to get some privacy, unless he wanted to rent a room.


    Percy raised an eyebrow.


    It turned out that the first wave of the Orange level was somewhere between the third and fourth waves of the Red level in difficulty. He could already draw the concealment, preservation and control runes well enough, so he¡¯d only need two more to pass.


    In any case, he¡¯d have to practice with the new runes anyway. Plus, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to pile up some more credits for his next visit. Making his mind up, Percy then browsed the system for the runes his main body had requested. Of course, he didn¡¯t know exactly what he¡¯d find ¨C he¡¯d only come here with a vague idea of what he wanted, but the enchantments sounded simple enough that they should exist.


    That said, he did eventually find what he needed. This time, he¡¯d settled on 7 books on 3 different runes, costing 70 credits in total. The first two were for his own use:


    The ¡®hardness¡¯ and ¡®absorption¡¯ runes.


    Percy wanted to include both of them in his new spell. But he didn¡¯t have any special mana type requirements this time, so he¡¯d only get two tomes on each. That should be more than enough to settle on a couple variants he liked.


    As for the final rune, he needed it to work with space mana again, as it was meant for Nesha. This wasn¡¯t part of their preparations for the upcoming fight ¨C just the next step in her studies to craft a spatial amulet. The ¡®stability¡¯ rune was a key component of the artifacts, as it ensured the pocket dimension could safely store objects for a prolonged period of time. Percy was going to look through 3 tomes on it, picking the most suitable variant.


    He would still have to memorize it by the end of his trip, but he couldn¡¯t activate the stability rune without space mana.


    ¡°Alright, just buy those. I want them in hard-copy format.¡±


    ¡°Confirmed. Deducting credits. New balance: 109. Delivery in 6 rits.¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t waste a second before diving into the stack of books. The hardness rune he ended up picking consisted of a single circle, with several progressively smaller hexagons nested inside one another. . Even better, he estimated he wouldn¡¯t have much trouble visualizing its effect, as he could simply focus on his reinforced constructs, doubling down on their existing properties.


    As for the absorption rune, it was a little trickier to learn, as he didn¡¯t have a very clear image of how it would work in his mind. Absorption runes came in all shapes and sizes, from heat absorption to light absorption, to sound absorption and so on. What Percy wanted was a relatively simple absorption variant that worked with pure mana.


    Overall, mastering the new runes was relatively straightforward. Getting them to the level the challenge wanted took a bit longer, but he figured he¡¯d have to put in the effort back home anyway if he didn¡¯t do it here. So, he simply gritted his teeth for a few more days until¡­


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 1 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 100. Current balance: 209.¡±


    Percy finally had enough credits for the index, though he wouldn¡¯t have any left for the next runes if he bought it now. Deciding to postpone it once more, he quickly checked the second wave¡¯s requirements.


    The darn thing was even tougher than the fourth wave of the Red level!


    Shaking his head, he finally allowed the ethereal cord to pull him out of the gnoll¡¯s body, letting Metatron do whatever the hell he wanted with his new toy as he drifted back towards Remior.


    ***


    Percy opened his eyes, a smile tugging at his lips as he pondered over his latest acquisitions. His new spell would involve quite a few moving parts, but it should massively raise his survivability even against a Green once he got it to work.

 Chapter 174: Gauntlet

    Percy¡¯s efforts to use his mana defensively dated as far back as his first month in the Alchemists¡¯ Guild, when he developed his Glove spell.That said, the flimsy layer of cyan mana had never been particularly impressive. Back then, he hadn¡¯t even known about Reinforcement. Not to mention, his second core had still been at Red. Consequently, the Crude spell was arguably the least impressive entry in Percy¡¯s Status to this very day.


    he grinned.


    Of course, there were plenty of obstacles standing between him and his vision for the new spell. For one, he had to navigate around the contradictory requirements that any piece of defensive gear had. Namely, it had to be strong enough to resist an enemy¡¯s attack, while at the same time being flexible enough to not inhibit its wearer¡¯s movements. The good news was that Percy had already taken this into consideration back in the day, learning how to properly distribute the mana around the spell for this exact reason.


    Gathering some mana from his abdomen, he instinctively allowed it to wrap around his hand, forming the construct. Having used the spell countless times, it no longer even required much thought to summon it, though it had admittedly been a while since he last needed it.


    In any case, he flexed his fingers a little as he closely examined the construct, reminding himself how he had designed the thinner layer of cyan to coat his joints, allowing them to bend more easily. At the same time, he¡¯d made the rest of the structure thicker, thus offering better protection.


    he grimaced.


    Obviously, if he wanted the spell to survive a Green¡¯s attack, using the stronger variant of his pure mana was a no-brainer. Unfortunately, that wouldn¡¯t work for the joints, as it would make them way too rigid, regardless of how thin he made it. Suffice to say, the only solution would be to use both his soft and hard mana, and to ensure the spell transitioned seamlessly between the two.


    He sighed. The magical silk his trait had commissioned would be the perfect fit for this spell. Sadly, there was no way he¡¯d complete the ambitious project anytime soon. Then again, it wasn¡¯t the end of the world. Practicing how to smoothly blend the soft and hard mana together would only help with that.


    Walking over to a corner of the room, he picked up a large clay jar. It was old, dusty and unassuming ¨C exactly how he wanted it. Removing its lid, he peered into the seemingly empty vessel. The only things one could see were a couple of concealment runes he¡¯d carved along the inner walls of the jar.


    However, not everything was as it seemed.


    Suddenly, a flash of teal shone within the clay jar, illuminating its dark belly. A fine powder of the same colour soon manifested out of thin air. This was one major advantage the teal powder had compared to the cyan variant ¨C it was easier to hide.


    Naturally, Percy would have preferred to keep all his valuables inside his spatial amulet, but he couldn¡¯t fit everything. Definitely not the large stash of powder he¡¯d prepared for both his elixirs and his weapons. That had left him no choice but to get a little creative with his hiding spots.


    Shrugging, he pinched a handful of the substance, before pulling some more pure mana from his abdomen, blending the two. Obviously, mixing fused and unfused mana together meant the resulting constructs couldn¡¯t be made invisible or intangible anymore. Doing that would only result in the spells crumbling apart. But he didn¡¯t need to worry about that right now.


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    Condensing a few rice-shaped grains, he next mixed all three types of mana, before wrapping them around his free hand. Next, he placed his hands side by side, comparing the two as he started working on the upgrade.


    At first, he focused on distributing the mana properly, determining how much he¡¯d need in each region for Reinforcement. Only once he was happy with that did he begin hammering at it with his willpower, forging the harder pieces in the correct shapes.


    Crafting the upgraded glove took much longer than the Soul Harvester. While it only needed a fraction of the mana, its structure was many times more complicated, as it involved over 15 different pieces. And Percy had to work on each of them separately. In fact, he even discarded a few, recreating them from scratch after realizing he¡¯d made a mistake.


    By the time he was done, the sun was already down. Still, Percy wasn¡¯t satisfied with the result. At first glance, it appeared exactly like how he¡¯d imagined it. In fact, he was confident it would probably survive a Yellow¡¯s spell too. Plus, he didn¡¯t have much trouble flexing his fingers.


    However, there was a different issue with it.


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    Withdrawing his hold over the soft mana, he watched all the connecting tissue of the glove crumble into motes of cyan. With nothing linking the hard pieces together, they began to fall apart, a couple of the fingertip guards making crisp sounds as they hit the floor.


    It wasn¡¯t ideal, but only the crystallized and reinforced variants of his mana could survive on their own for a prolonged period of time. Though it wasn¡¯t that bad ¨C he already had to manually keep the regular Glove active ¨C he¡¯d just have to do the same with its upgrade.


    ***


    Over the past few days, Percy had modified the regular Glove spell, making it even thinner than before.


    The idea was to wear it underneath the harder pieces, and to design everything so that it slid together nicely. That way, it would only take him a few seconds to equip it before a battle. He even added a few small holes in the harder pieces, so that he could fasten them in place with a few strings of soft mana.


    After he was satisfied with the new glove¡¯s practicality, he fine-tuned its design some more. He strengthened some pieces here and there, shrinking or re-shaping a few others, to maximize its defensive capabilities while keeping it comfortable to wear. In the end, he even added a couple more components, such as a wristband and a forearm protector, to extend the protection it afforded all the way to his elbow.


    he thought as he scanned his armoured hand.


    There was no doubt in his mind the spell was already usable in a fight, but neither he nor his Status were satisfied enough with it to declare it as such. After all, it currently took him several hours to forge all the components, and it would only survive a few days at best. That meant he¡¯d have to keep replacing it over and over again ¨C something he had no intention of doing. Not only that, but he didn¡¯t think it was strong enough to endure a Green¡¯s spell just yet. Which was a problem, because he¡¯d already graduated from Yellows.


    That said, Percy had already foreseen both of these problems. And he¡¯d come up with a solution:


    Runes.


    Allowing the soft mana to fizzle out again, he removed the pieces one by one, laying them on a table in front of him. Next, he picked one of the smallest components up ¨C one of the pinkie-guards, before willing the mana to shatter.


    Collecting the scattered powder, he then pulled some mana from both cores, fusing it together before mixing the soft teal mana with the dust of the same colour. This time, he intended the construct to last a couple of weeks, so he was going to do it properly.


    Replicating his previous steps, he soon reforged the piece exactly like before, with two small additions. Careful to not compromise the spell¡¯s integrity, he embroidered two circular symbols on it.


    Within its inner wall, he added a preservation rune, to ensure the construct survived a while longer than normal. On its exterior, he instead added a hardness rune, which should elevate the construct¡¯s rigidity somewhat, allowing it to endure stronger attacks. Whether this would be enough against a Green remained to be seen, but Percy had a few more tricks up his sleeve.


    Breaking and reforging the pieces one by one, he then finally slotted them back onto his arm, fixing them in place with some soft teal mana once more. Only when he was done did he lift his arm, marvelling at his handiwork.


    And the Status didn¡¯t miss its cue either, announcing his achievement.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Glove ¨C Crude -> Phantom Gauntlet ¨C Refined!]

 Chapter 175: Just getting started

    ¡°Wow, that looks like quite the spell.¡± Nesha pitched in.¡°You haven¡¯t seen anything yet.¡± Percy grinned.


    Reaching into the mana around his arm, he willed one of its properties to shift. Without warning, the entire gauntlet vanished into thin air, causing Nesha¡¯s eyes to widen. She opened her mouth, seemingly about to ask, though she held herself back. She knew enough about Percy¡¯s magic by now to figure out what he¡¯d done.


    ¡°It¡¯s still visible through Mana Sense.¡± she noted after a second.


    ¡°Of course. Though I¡¯ve thought of a way around that. I¡¯ll work on it later.¡±


    Nesha nodded, but she didn¡¯t say anything.


    Next, Percy tried to make the Gauntlet incorporeal, though that didn¡¯t go nearly as nicely as he had expected. Having failed to time all 18 or so transitions properly, he watched the pieces of the gauntlet fall apart as they lost contact with one another in several spots. S~ea??h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Hearing Nesha chuckle, he rolled his eyes.


    ¡°This last bit might require some more practice¡­¡±


    At any rate, this would only be useful if he had to defend against a soul user.


    ¡°Percy¡­ I don¡¯t want to rain on your parade right after you upgraded a spell, but I don¡¯t think this is enough for you to survive against a Green by yourself. We don¡¯t even know how many they¡¯ll send this time.¡±


    ¡°Why not? I can just point my hand at their spells and block them with my amazing gauntlet!¡±


    ¡°Come on. Be serious. What¡¯s the plan here?¡± Nesha asked, not buying his bullshit.


    ¡°Alright. Just lighten up a little.¡± he shrugged. ¡°Who said this is all I¡¯ve got? Nesha, the Vault of Magic is a treasure trove of runes.¡±


    ¡°Meaning?¡±


    ¡°Meaning, I¡¯m just getting started.¡±


    ***


    Percy stared at his Gauntlet¡¯s pieces in its deconstructed form. Technically, it was already useable like this, but he had much greater plans for the spell.


    Like he¡¯d told Nesha, he¡¯d worked hard to master several runes from the Vault, and it would be a waste if he only used the preservation and hardness runes on it. Of course, Percy had yet to delve into magiscript proper, so he wasn¡¯t able to merge multiple runes into the same enchantment. The solution had been to engrave the two runes on different sides of the object, applying one to the interior, while leaving the other for the exterior. Sadly, his Gauntlet had already run out of surfaces for him to draw on¡­


    Pinching some teal powder from his trusty jar, he mixed some soft mana with it as he used Reinforcement once more, shaping it into a new piece. It took him several minutes until he was satisfied, but he eventually moved it close to his eyes, a grin tugging at his lips.


    It was a circular band similar to the pieces that went around his fingers¡¯ segments, yet this one was a little wider, as if it was meant to loop around them. Picking one of the previous components from the table, he pushed it inside the new one, rotating it at the same time. A few teeth in the interior of the wider band slid right through the nooks Percy had carved in the other one, as the two objects joined together with a satisfying click.


    It fit perfectly!


    Even the two sets of holes on the pieces aligned nicely ¨C those were there for the teal strings to pass through, fastening the bands to the rest of the Gauntlet.


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    Nodding in satisfaction, Percy examined the structure once more, verifying there was nothing out of place. The two bands didn¡¯t have exactly the same shape, the second one extending a little further back ¨C resembling a spiky scale. That way, it would even cover the joints somewhat, protecting them without inhibiting them much. R????£Î???????


    By adding a second layer to the band, Percy had just created two new sides waiting to be engraved! Naturally, one of them would have to be adorned with the preservation rune again ¨C it had to be present on every single piece to ensure their longevity ¨C but that still left him one free slot.


    Of course, he didn¡¯t bother drawing the runes right now. He still had plenty more pieces to perfect. Besides, his armour would probably end up replaced a dozen times over before he needed it.


    His eyes shifted to the next piece, as he picked up another handful of powder from the jar, resuming his work.


    he sighed.


    ***


    Besides the ridiculous amount of time required to prepare the new spell, its greatest downside was arguably the sheer amount of teal powder he needed for all the pieces. If he had to condense them on the spot, Percy would easily need a week just for that.


    While he had to reforge his Gauntlet every few weeks, he didn¡¯t have to keep condensing new crystals ¨C well, besides the ones he needed for the elixirs. Suffice to say, the contents of his jar were immensely valuable for him, as they represented several months of accumulation.


    he smiled bitterly.


    Regardless, he knew it was worth it.


    Based on what he¡¯d learned in the Vault, a rune¡¯s effect largely depended on the grade of the one who drew it. Given Remior¡¯s underdeveloped runecrafting techniques, it would take a Green or even a Blue to match the potency of Percy¡¯s enchantments. By that point, the runes wouldn¡¯t be effective enough for them to rely on during a fight ¨C which was why he¡¯d never heard of anybody else carrying enchanted equipment.


    In any case, Percy donned his Gauntlet once more ¨C ¨C marvelling at its improvements again. He had actually not stopped at the second layer, instead opting to add a third one on top!


    He could have pushed it further, , but at this point he¡¯d already have to spend a huge amount of time maintaining all the pieces. Besides, he was swiftly approaching the limits of how bulky it could get without starting to bog him down during a fight.


    That said, the imposing teal Gauntlet now had several spiky protrusions covering each joint like a dragon¡¯s scales, all of them adorned with runes. Percy had even reordered them, deciding to keep the force absorption enchantments in the deepest layer, to mitigate the impacts his body received. As for the hardness runes, he¡¯d moved them to the middle layer, to protect the armour itself.


    The only layer that wouldn¡¯t be protected was the outermost one ¨C but that one had a different purpose. Turning the construct invisible, he looked at Nesha.


    ¡°Well? How is it?¡±


    The girl squinted as she circled Percy. Presumably, she¡¯d activated her Mana Sense too. It wasn¡¯t until half a minute later that she replied.


    ¡°I can tell something¡¯s off, but only because I¡¯m actively looking for it. It¡¯s not immediately obvious.¡±


    Percy nodded. Naturally, he¡¯d engraved concealment runes all over the third layer! While his runecrafting technique had plenty of room for improvement, it was more than enough to hide the construct from plain sight!


    ¡°Neat!¡± he exclaimed, taking it all in.


    Getting this far had taken him weeks, but Percy thought the result was worth it. And, apparently, his Status agreed.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Phantom Gauntlet ¨C Refined -> Phantomscale Gauntlet ¨C Refined!]


    This was his second spell to evolve while remaining within the confines of the Refined tier, the other being Synchronization. Percy had no idea where Refined spells ended and Masterful spells began, but this to mean he was getting closer, right?


    ¡°Percy¡­ I still don¡¯t see how a gauntlet is going to help you.¡± Nesha said, bursting his bubble.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be plenty¡­ together with the pieces.¡±


    ¡°Other pieces?! Was that your goal?!¡± Nesha seemed taken aback. ¡°We don¡¯t have time for this! It¡¯s been weeks since those people snitched on us! The Greens might be here any day now!¡±


    But Percy wasn¡¯t deterred.


    ¡°Like I said. If we get attacked before we¡¯re ready, we¡¯ll just abort the operation. Micky is still regularly patrolling the area around the town. He¡¯ll spot them hours before they reach us.¡±


    ¡°Do you actually think you¡¯ll have a ready in time?¡±


    ¡°Probably.¡± he shrugged. ¡°The Gauntlet was the hardest piece by far. It¡¯s full of joints and required dozens of pieces. The rest of the armour should be much simpler. I¡¯ll have everything done in a couple of weeks.¡±


    Seeing she wasn¡¯t convinced, he continued.


    ¡°Nesha, House Tantalus can¡¯t just send a of Greens whenever they want. I¡¯m more worried they won¡¯t take the bait in the end.¡±


    ¡°If they do, do you think our preparations will be enough?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Did you finish enchanting those slabs of stone I gave you?¡± he asked back.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Then, they¡¯ll be enough.¡±

 Chapter 176: Stitching

    Percy had chosen a Red host this time. The lower grade might be a little annoying, but this was the first soul he found today that was both sentient and in a relatively decent condition ¨C right past the threshold where it could be possessed.Naturally, he wasn¡¯t planning to return to the Vault just yet ¨C his main body was still busy finishing up the armour spell. In fact, Percy had decided to not bother with the artificial world again until all the madness surrounding the lotus died down a little. There was no point, as he had plenty of other things to be working on in the meantime.


    he asked once he found himself inside his new vessel.


    a timid voice rang in his mind. It sounded young too.


    Percy was ecstatic to get a normal response for a change. Not an overly defensive outburst like Micky¡¯s, or a snarky remark like Gabe¡¯s, or a brain-dead host like Takeo. Just somebody asking the obvious questions!


    he replied.


    The child then remained silent for a few seconds, seemingly recalling his circumstances.


    Listening to his host, Percy felt his metaphorical heart clench. The poor kid was just out having some fun when disaster struck. While it was nice they weren¡¯t being hunted by an enemy or anything of the sort, he wasn¡¯t sure how much of a problem the venom in their veins would pose moving forward.


    The boy sent a mental nod back, which was more than enough for his soul¡¯s innate resistance to disappear, allowing Percy to interact with it more easily.


    Scanning the soul, Percy was somewhat surprised at how little damage the poison had caused. The cracks were admittedly quite deep, but they were also narrow and fairly scarce. As far as he could tell, Enki could have probably survived this on his own, had he been a bit luckier.


    Percy thought grimly.


    He could patch the boy¡¯s soul temporarily, but unless they found an external source of soul mana later, Enki wouldn¡¯t survive. Percy still had no idea what kind of world he¡¯d found himself in, or if they had any soul healers available ¨C but from his past experience, he didn¡¯t think their odds were great.


    he suddenly thought.


    It was more than a long shot. It easily bordered on impossible. Percy had never succeeded in healing his hosts¡¯ souls before ¨C it took way too much mana for his measly stash. If he tried to do this instead of patching the boy up, he¡¯d probably fail, wasting his opportunity here. Of course, he had no idea if there was anything of value in this world, but that was how all his clones started out. That said, the thought of putting his gains before the boy¡¯s life left a sour taste in his mouth.


    Besides, there was technically no better patient to experiment on than Enki. The kid was only at Red, which meant his soul would need the least possible amount of mana to heal. Even better, his injuries were less severe than most of his hosts. If he couldn¡¯t heal this boy, he wouldn¡¯t be able to heal anybody.


    Pulling a trickle from his stash, he guided it to one of the cracks. Using Mend, he directed the mana along the wound¡¯s surface, pouring it in several interspaced locations. The crack wanted to drink the mana up directly, but Percy held it back, forcing it to work on the soul¡¯s natural regeneration instead, just like the mysterious girl had taught him.


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    It worked, a few tiny tendrils sprouting like blades of grass after a spring rain. But this was never going to be enough¡­


    Yet, just when he was starting to reconsider his decision, something strange happened.


    A primal instinct kicked in, forcing him to yank the thin tendrils up, pouring more mana in them. At first, Percy panicked, thinking he¡¯d gone crazy. If this kept going, he¡¯d waste even more of his stash for nothing! ???????????§¦?


    He was about to stop himself, when his instinct intensified, causing another unexpected change. Percy felt his soul squirm and shift, seemingly transforming in some manner. The whole thing was extremely uncomfortable, as if somebody was bending his limbs the wrong way, trying to mold them into a weird shape. Except, there was no bone or flesh inside his soul wisp, so it didn¡¯t hurt.


    He couldn¡¯t actually see what was happening, but he could almost swear his soul had just sprouted a dozen thin, insect-like legs! Each of them pounced greedily on the tendrils, grabbing them, and pulling them, and spinning them to their liking.


    Percy might have thrown up, had it been an option. But he stopped fighting back, letting his soul do as it pleased. By now, he¡¯d be a fool if he didn¡¯t know what had caused this.


    Apparently, Weaving had a few more surprises for him than he had initially expected. Of course, he still had no idea how it could possibly help in this situation, but the trait had never given him any reason to mistrust it in the past. Besides, Enki was doomed anyway, unless he found a way to save him.


    Over the next few minutes, Percy observed his own soul as it cultivated the tendrils in the boy¡¯s soul, growing them longer still, knitting them together into a weird structure. His original plan had been to stick them to the opposite side, and then fill in the gaps between them as the girl had shown him. But this wasn¡¯t what his trait was doing. Instead, it treated the tendrils like wool, trying to guide them into a strange shape.


    That said, it was too late to give up just now, as he had already invested a hefty sum of mana into this. Letting the trait fully take over, Percy fell into a trance, watching it as it continued working on its bizarre task. More and more tendrils grew from the wound, soon joining the others in the complicated tapestry, as Percy¡¯s mind struggled to make sense of its ill-defined shape.


    He barely even registered when the trait was done, finally pulling at all the loose ends, bringing the two chunks of Enki¡¯s soul closer together. At the same time, the mind-bending shape folded and rotated upon itself, as all the contours settled in place.


    It was only now that Percy finally recognized the pattern too. Evidently, his trait hadn¡¯t worked in a vacuum, drawing inspiration from some unknown dimension. Everything it had done, it had pulled it straight out of Percy¡¯s mind, manifesting an enchantment he was intimately familiar with, having spent hundreds upon hundreds of hours drawing it during the past year.


    A preservation rune!


    And, evidently, weaving the enchantment out of Enki¡¯s very soul had made it a dozen times more potent than anything Percy could have accomplished with his limited mana. As soon as it took shape, the rune bathed both of their souls in a gentle radiance, slowing their decay noticeably.


    At the same time, the boy¡¯s soul passively absorbed whatever scant motes of mana neared the wound, using them to bolster its own recovery. The improvements were minuscule, but between the more efficient recovery brought about via the Mend spell, and the potent preservation afforded by the rune¡­


    The importance of this breakthrough could hardly be overstated. This time, Percy had only managed to apply it to a Red kid in a relatively salvageable condition, but who was to say what he could accomplish in the future, given more practice and more mana? Like this, he might be able to save his hosts from certain death, doing some real good wherever he visited! S§×ar?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    he reminded himself, dousing his bubbling enthusiasm.


    He¡¯d only healed a single crack so far, and it had already cost him around 10% of his stash. Plenty of wounds remained, and he¡¯d have to tend to them even more efficiently if he hoped to save Enki in time.


    Diving back into his work, this time with newfound purpose, he worked in tandem with his trait, using Enki¡¯s soul as the very fabric to weave his enchantments. Everywhere he touched, the tendrils bent, and stretched, and interwove with one another, bringing the runes to life.


    Percy paused at some point, examining Enki¡¯s soul. It still looked a bit like a jigsaw puzzle, but it felt a lot more stable. Naturally, he hadn¡¯t managed to salvage every single piece ¨C a few were either too damaged or too small for him to properly stitch together. Not to mention that his mana was already running dangerously low. That said, he was confident he had done enough for the boy to survive.


    Pride and relief blended together, fanning the flames of triumph in Percy¡¯s heart. And¡­ his Status seemed to share in his excitement.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Mend ¨C Crude -> Spectral Art: Soul Stitching ¨C Refined!]

 Chapter 177: Ea’s Gift

    Evidently, involving one¡¯s trait in their magic resulted in yet another flavour of spell. In any case, Percy was glad Weaving had more to offer than just the long-term project he was working on.Enki suddenly exclaimed, bringing him out of his thoughts.


    It was only now that Percy remembered he had yet to link himself to his host properly. Finding a few still-open cracks, he slid through as many of them as he could, the boy¡¯s senses finally feeding into his mind.


    The first thing he noticed was cold all around him, coupled with an oppressive pressure trying to squeeze him into a ball. Luckily, his host¡¯s body seemed to have been perfectly designed to survive in this exact environment. Twitching his fingers, he explored the resistance some more, determining they were probably underwater. It wouldn¡¯t be his first time possessing a sea-dweller, but it was his first sentient one.


    Opening his eyes, he saw nothing but darkness. A few faint shapes settled in place a moment later, the exotic landscape beneath him softly illuminated by a dim red glow burning somewhere in the distance like a dark sun. To his left, Percy spotted a large, forest-like structure. Though there weren¡¯t any trees inside it, but rather a series of huge, pale corals. Was this the ¡°Marble Reef¡± the boy had mentioned?


    Then came the pain. It mostly originated from his chest, an agonizing jolt branching outwards to his extremities with every thrum of his heart.


    Nodding grimly, the boy took control of his body, shooting towards a certain direction like an arrow. Percy was taken aback by the sheer elegance and speed of his host¡¯s strokes, having never seen anybody swim like that before. He felt the water press against the membranes between his digits, as Enki wormed his way through the cold abyss. Even at Orange and his boosting art active, Percy doubted he¡¯d be able to keep up with the boy in his natural environment.


    Along the journey, he marvelled at the native flora and fauna, ranging from the deep sea fish with luminescent lobes and mouths full of needle-like fangs, to the strangely shaped chunks of algae drifting aimlessly in the darkness, to the exotic crab-like creatures grazing the cold seabed ¨C only visible through faint reflections captured by their smooth shells¡­


    Eventually, Enki reached some kind of town. Surprisingly, the place didn¡¯t look much different from what somebody might find on land. All the buildings were made of carved chunks of stone, though they were decorated by glowing pearls of all colours and sizes, illuminating everything. One important difference was that they didn¡¯t have any streets ¨C or even doors for that matter ¨C as people here clearly didn¡¯t need to walk on the ground. Instead, they swam from building to building, entering through the wide windows.


    The people themselves looked vaguely humanoid, though their skin was a pale blueish colour. All of them sported the same membranes between their clawed digits as his host, a set of gills decorating the sides of their necks, allowing them to breathe.


    Their clothes weren¡¯t anything special, all of them donned simple seaweed skirts, only a touch more intricate than what he¡¯d personally crafted for his monkey host a few months back. Other than covering their privates, they didn¡¯t seem to be interested in fashion, most of them leaving their chests bare.


    The one detail that really drew Percy¡¯s attention was their eyes, however. And it only captured his attention more than everything else, because of a simple reason ¨C the strange dichotomy he spotted.


    Nine out of ten locals seemed to have a regular-looking pair of eyes, the irises coloured in a bright topaz colour, split down the middle with a vertical pupil. But every now and then, he spotted somebody who stood out from the rest, their eyes glowing in a bright pale light.


    In any case, this wasn¡¯t the time for sightseeing, he reminded himself. Enki had already slowed down greatly, and it seemed the boy was having trouble breathing. Evidently, he was close to having another episode, caused by the deadly venom that had claimed his life once already.


    The locals gave them concerned glances, but Enki just ignored them, his eyes fixated on a large building in the distance. It wasn¡¯t until he drew nearer that he slowed down some more, this time not due to his affliction ¨C just so that he wouldn¡¯t crash into something.


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    Entering through a window on the second ¨C maybe third level ¨C the boy hastily swam through the winding corridors of the sunken structure. Many people seemed to recognize him, but he didn¡¯t have time to greet them as he continued swimming, aided only by the gentle glow of the pearls adorning the walls.


    Only once they reached a certain person did Enki finally stop. She appeared to be a woman, her features slightly softer than many of the other locals they¡¯d seen on the way. What¡¯s more, some fond feelings seeped through their bond. Apparently, the boy saw her as some kind of mother figure.


    ¡°Enki, what¡¯s wrong?!¡± she asked, her voice tinged with concern.


    Not that Percy would have known, had it not been for his connection to his host. These people seemed to communicate in a very strange manner, a few gurgles escaping their throat as a high-pitched sound rippled outwards with each spoken word.


    In any case, the boy remained silent, merely pointing at a nasty-looking bite mark marring his lower calf, some brownish blood slowly oozing out.


    Gesturing towards a bed, the woman directed them to lie down, helping them strap themselves in place so they wouldn¡¯t float away. Next, she approached them after preparing a syringe filled with a deep purple liquid.


    The boy raised an eyebrow, but still did as he was told.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s just the antidote.¡± the woman said, forcing a strained smile.


    Then, she injected them without delay, probably recognizing they were running out of time. Only once every last drop of the liquid was flowing through Enki¡¯s veins did she take a moment to explain a couple things. Apparently, the heart-stopping venom of the marble-dwelling eels wasn¡¯t that difficult to counteract. Beyond that, the boy shouldn¡¯t have much trouble recovering by himself. ?£Á¦­????????¦¥?


    Percy merely sighed in relief, but he didn¡¯t say anything. As long as they didn¡¯t have to go through the greedy second core waiting restlessly in their abdomen, they should be fine.


    It wasn¡¯t until a few hours later, after the pain had already begun to die down, and the danger looming over their head had largely passed, that Enki seemed to remember the passenger in his mind.


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    Percy shrugged.


    the boy smiled bitterly.


    Percy guessed.


    The question caused Enki¡¯s eyes to widen, however.


    ¡¯ the boy suddenly asked, a wave of excitement seeping through their bond.


    Enki nodded.


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but wonder.


    The boy appeared dumbfounded for a moment, seemingly stunned by the stupidity of Percy¡¯s question.


    Enki spoke matter-of-factly, as if he was explaining something obvious to a toddler.


    this was Percy¡¯s turned to be shocked, however.


    the boy rolled his eyes.


    he clarified.


    Though Percy was still confused. Every world he¡¯d been on that had some relationship with a foreign race, it was always one of hostility. That remained true whether it was Remior, Huehue or the Vault of Magic. Other than the races which banded together ¨C probably temporarily ¨C to conquer Micky¡¯s world, this was the first time he¡¯d heard of two civilizations cooperating peacefully.


    Percy insisted.


    Hearing that, Enki grinned.


    ¡®


    At this point, Percy had plenty of questions, but he figured his Status might be able to answer a few of them.


    ___


    Enki (Percival''s clone)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Red ¨C Fire][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spectral trait:


    [Weaving]


    Spells:


    [Phantomscale Gauntlet ¨C Refined][Spectral Art: Soul Stitching ¨C Refined][Soul Harvester ¨C Refined][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[Moirais¡¯ Decree (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.


    ___


    Enki drew a sharp breath.

 Chapter 178: Alchemic principles

    Percy asked.Thinking of something, Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat. But he didn¡¯t show it. He wanted to pry some more information from his host first.


    Percy struggled to contain his excitement.


    This was getting better and better! Did these people have some sort of alchemy-based version of Phoebe¡¯s Decree? If so, he  to get his hands on that, whatever it took!


    Enki confirmed, oblivious to Percy¡¯s inner turmoil.


    Percy considered explaining that Phoebe¡¯s Decree probably had a different purpose to what they used their version for, but he was more curious about something else.


    The boy appeared taken aback by Percy¡¯s question. Almost insulted, even.


    Enki protested rather animatedly.


    Percy rolled his eyes.


    Enki tilted his head.


    he smiled bitterly.


    Hearing that, Percy felt his heart clench. It was only now he realized just how much he and his host had in common.


    Enki asked, some hope seeping into his voice.


    Like a needle¡¯s stab, the boy¡¯s question caused Percy to deflate a little. S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    he said, trying to mask his embarrassment. he hurriedly added upon seeing Enki frown.


    The boy remained silent for a few moments, seemingly contemplating Percy¡¯s words.


    he said.


    Though he seemed to catch himself a second later.


    Percy asked, a smile tugging at his lips.


    the boy asked.


    Percy exclaimed.


    The boy didn¡¯t seem convinced, however.


    ¡®I¡¯ll have you know that, amongst my many, many talents, I am first and foremost a master alchemist. In fact, my main body is currently on the run from multiple gods back home ¨C each of them eagerly yearning for my wisdom.¡¯ ??N¨°§£??


    the boy asked.


    Percy scratched the back of their head.


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    ***


    Apparently, Enki¡¯s orphanage have a library. Even better, it contained a few books on alchemy. Though, seeing their condition, Percy wasn¡¯t surprised his host hadn¡¯t thought it possible to teach himself the basics. He held a stack of loose sheets, trying to rearrange them into the correct order. The blurred page numbers weren¡¯t making his job easy.


    he groaned.


    For an entire world that seemed to survive by selling alchemical products to outsiders, their libraries were surprisingly poor. Even the Guild¡¯s library had been in a better state.


    Then again, this might not be the fairest comparison. The Alchemists¡¯ Guild was the central hub for all alchemists on Remior, whereas this was just some random library in an orphanage, in some remote town¡­


    Enki asked.


    Percy explained.


    The two remained silent in the library for several hours, as Percy tried to make sense of the alien books. Their pages weren¡¯t made of paper, apparently, but some slightly oily pieces of parchment, crafted out of some creature¡¯s skin.


    Every now and then, Enki grew hungry ¨C or bored ¨C or, probably, both ¨C asking him to take a short break to grab a quick snack from his room. It was some kind of pink roe stored in a sealed bowl. It tasted quite nice too, its rich, salty flavour reminding Percy of a cross between crabsticks and eggs.


    In any case, despite the semi-frequent interruptions and the poor condition of his reading material, Percy did manage to piece together an overview of the locals¡¯ alchemic ways.


    Their main product ¨C the thing they exported to their trade partners ¨C were some cultivation pills that didn¡¯t differ much from the elixirs on Remior. They were made from some kind of amber pearls ¨C a local ingredient rich in stable beast mana, not unlike the nectar the Starry Wasps produced.


    Percy grimaced.


    He had no idea how the lifespans and advancement speed of the natives compared to a human¡¯s, but their potential seemed to be confined within the same range as theirs. In other words, Red-borns here could only ever make it to Yellow, Orange-borns to Blue and so on ¨C just like on Remior. Suffice to say, it probably meant the pills weren¡¯t much better than elixirs.


    However, that was not to say there was nothing to be gained here.


    What set the locals apart was precisely Ea¡¯s Gift that Enki had mentioned. Percy assumed it was a Decree ¨C ¨C and it was the reason other races didn¡¯t dare to touch Atlantis.


    Apparently, this Decree was a lot more proactive than Phoebe¡¯s, directly affecting an alchemist¡¯s ability, allowing them to greatly increase their alchemic yield. As for how exactly it achieved that, these books didn¡¯t say, but Percy guessed it had something to do with the weird glowing eyes he¡¯d seen on some of the natives earlier.


    He wasn¡¯t a native, which should automatically disqualify him based on everything he¡¯d read. Then again, he was currently inhabiting the body of a local, so maybe he could trick whatever mechanism was responsible for disseminating the Decree? At the very least, it had worked with the Moirais¡¯, so it was worth a shot.


    Beyond that, there was also the question of whether this Decree could even stack with the one he already had. Would he have to carry two separate Statuses from now on, or could they merge?


    He shrugged.


    Luckily, the books hadn¡¯t been useless on that front. Cross-referencing the gist of their contents with his own expertise, Percy had been able to discern a few important details about the locals¡¯ branch of alchemy.


    Apparently, many of the central concepts carried over from one world to another, and even from one product to another. Whether he was brewing an elixir, a potion or a pill, and whether they were on Remior or Atlantis, similar techniques were involved.


    When brewing cleansing resources in particular, the so-called andwere paramount. The people of Atlantis referred to them as and had their own name for each of them, but Percy could tell they were functionally the same. After all, beast mana always had to be handled in the same manner.


    There was one Percy had chosen to translate as . It involved separating and condensing an ingredient¡¯s properties, which was more relevant when brewing potions and potion-adjacent products, as other affinities weren¡¯t as potent as beast mana, and needed to undergo this procedure to become useable.


    In fact, Percy was almost certain they had this back home too ¨C it was probably the missing knowledge about potion-making that he¡¯d never had the chance to study. And it was also the very thing he needed to master and teach Enki, if he wanted to get his hands on that Decree.


    the boy asked after noticing Percy had stopped reading for a while.


    Enki had tried not to sound too eager, but he¡¯d done a poor job keeping his excitement from spilling through their bond.


    Percy said.


    Enki asked.


    The boy remained silent for a bit, seemingly considering it. Eventually, he spoke.


    Percy frowned, thinking this wasn¡¯t going to work. Yet, his host rekindled his hope a moment later.

 Chapter 179: Marble Reef

    Percy felt the temperature go up rapidly, as the red glow in the distance intensified, the very water around him vibrating.Apparently, that light he¡¯d seen the other day was an underwater volcano ¨C and an one at that! From what Enki explained, his people tended to build their towns and cities in similar locations all around Atlantis, settling as close to the volcanoes as they safely could. These were their main sources of heat ¨C and also food, as they attracted marine life of all shapes and sizes.


    This particular volcano was called Samo, and its eruptions lasted a couple hours at a time, interspaced in regular intervals around five times longer than that ¨C according to Percy¡¯s estimates. This was how the townsfolk kept track of time, though each region on Atlantis had to rely on a different system.


    ¡¯ Enki rolled his eyes.


    Percy protested.


    The boy shrugged, before swimming towards the Marble Reef they¡¯d seen the day before. They hoped to make it there while the eruption was still underway, as the extra light would help them in their search. If they missed it, it would just make their life harder until the next one.


    Percy suddenly asked.


    As he¡¯d come to learn, Enki was a rather fearless kid. He didn¡¯t seem scared to return to the reef in the slightest ¨C almost as if he hadn¡¯t nearly died there just yesterday. In fact, Percy had to force him to ask the caregiver at the orphanage to lend him more of the antidote, in case they got bitten again. After some placating, the lady had begrudgingly agreed, though a single dose wouldn¡¯t help much if the place was teeming with the creatures.


    Enki scoffed.


    Percy wasn¡¯t entirely convinced, but he did let go. After all, he wasn¡¯t the kid¡¯s dad, nor would he be able to babysit him forever anyway.


    Eventually, the two reached the undersea forest, diving into the dense embrace of the corals. The dim glow of the volcano looked even scarier from within, as the scant rays of crimson danced against the deep shadows of the reef itself, both clawing at Enki from every direction. Suffice to say, Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat whenever a small creature jumped in front of them, much to his host¡¯s dismay.


    the boy groaned.


    Percy asked, though some heat still gathered in his cheeks.


    As embarrassing as it was to be called a coward by a kid, he didn¡¯t think Enki fully appreciated how unsettling this experience was for a land-dweller. Percy was essentially swimming at the bottom of an alien ocean, his only company being a Red cored kid who couldn¡¯t light a candle to save his life. And it only got more frightening once the eruption finally died down, plunging their surroundings into complete darkness.


    Enki acknowledged.


    Percy rolled his eyes.


    In the end, the two continued their search in silence, this time relying on Mana Sense to locate their target. The good news was that the fast-growing moss they needed was a mana-rich ingredient, so it shouldn¡¯t be too difficult to spot, even like this.


    Of course, Mana Sense couldn¡¯t help with navigating the maze-like interior of the reef itself. The corals didn¡¯t contain much mana, making them practically invisible in their sixth sense. Consequently, Enki bumped his head against the hard structures a few too many times for his liking. Not to mention that the moss they were looking for wasn¡¯t the only thing containing mana nearby, which meant they¡¯d wasted a fair amount of time on false positives.


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    Enki eventually said.


    Percy grunted, but still carefully examined the area beneath their feet.


    They were floating inside a ring-shaped section of corals, a blanket of Orange coating both their inner walls and the crater¡¯s floor. This was already a good sign, as that was precisely the moss¡¯s natural mana grade. Even better, the chaotic pattern via which the substance spread over the coral also matched the description somewhat. ?§¡??????¨º?


    Percy asked.


    the boy replied.


    The darkness made it difficult to verify this was indeed the ingredient they were after. In theory, they could wait a few more hours for the volcano to light their surroundings, but Percy had a quicker method at his disposal.


    Taking control of the body, he swam closer to the wall, unsheathing a knife strapped to their skirt. Next, he carefully stabbed into the substance at an angle, peeling a layer out. Its texture was definitely soft enough, though there was an even better way to confirm it.


    Enki protested as Percy grabbed a handful of the slimy goo, plastering it over their stomach.


    As their name implied, the lesser regeneration pills they needed to brew weren¡¯t that different from the healing potions he was familiar with. Sure, they were solid objects rather than liquids, and they worked by enhancing one¡¯s natural regeneration rather than healing them directly. Still, their primary component was still rich in life mana.


    And indeed, the seed of their second core awakened from its deep slumber mere moments later, seemingly realizing what a tantalizing feast had been laid before it. Without delay, it pulled at the substance greedily, the Orange colour of the moss soon seeping into their skin. As soon as it reached the centre of the vortex, it vanished entirely, leaving nothing but inactive sludge on Enki¡¯s belly.


    the boy asked.


    Though Percy replied with a question of his own.


    Whether he wanted to or not, Percy would have to repair the boy¡¯s second core before they could even start working on the pills. After all, handling the ingredient would be a pain in the ass if the ethereal organ kept sucking the mana dry.


    Luckily, Enki nodded.


    Receiving a positive answer, Percy then unstrapped a large pouch from his waist. Next, he scraped more moss from the coral, stuffing it into the pouch with his knife. He took care not to let it touch his skin.


    It wasn¡¯t like he didn¡¯t trust Enki, but he wanted to save some just in case they emptied out the reef before the second core was complete. Brewing without repairing the Decree wasn¡¯t going to be pleasant ¨C he¡¯d have to wear gloves or something ¨C but it was better than missing out on Ea¡¯s Gift.


    Only after the pouch was full of moss did he seal it shut with a piece of string they¡¯d brought along. Then, the two took turns harvesting as much of the substance as they could, feeding the boy¡¯s Decree. The laborious task lasted several hours, neither of them finding it particularly enjoyable.


    By the time they were done, Samo had erupted thrice more, and they¡¯d also had to look for several more moss-covered areas. Still, the seed was eventually satiated, the second core taking form.


    Even more notably, Percy overcame his initial unease over the bizarre environment at some point. As strange as it had appeared at first, he understood by now it was just Atlantis¡¯s equivalent of the Whistling Woods ¨C


    Enki asked.


    Naturally, Percy had already brought the boy up to speed over the last couple of days. The kid had found the news difficult to accept, though Percy didn¡¯t miss the wave of excitement seeping through the bond.


    At any rate, they¡¯d already collected what they came here for. In the end, they hadn¡¯t even run into another eel ¨C as Enki was more than happy to keep reminding Percy.


    Following his instructions, the boy swam upwards to extricate himself from the suffocating embrace of the corals. Only once he was floating above the reef did he turn towards the town, shooting towards it at top speed, eager to play with his new toy. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Truth be told, Percy was just as excited to return to the orphanage, looking forward to practicing with the moss. Leaving Ea¡¯s Gift aside, studying the fundamentals of potion-making was something he¡¯d already wanted to delve into.


    His current plan was to spend the next few weeks guiding Enki into awakening the new core. At the same time, he¡¯d try wrapping his head around the locals¡¯ alchemy. And as soon as he mastered the extraction principle, it would finally be time to take the test.

 Chapter 180: Extraction

    Crafting a bandage for Enki hadn¡¯t been too difficult. The concealment rune didn¡¯t have any special requirement ¨C it worked with pretty much any material that contained some mana.Visiting the town¡¯s marketplace, they only had to beg a few hunters and gatherers for some scraps of mana-rich ingredients, until they collected enough fibres for Percy to do his thing. Between his Weaving trait and his growing skill with runecrafting, sewing the enchantment on a long piece of parchment was a piece of cake. Though it did mean Enki would have to pull his skirt a few inches higher to keep the bandage hidden.


    Percy rolled his eyes.


    Returning to the orphanage, Percy rummaged through the kitchen for whatever tools he could salvage. Naturally, he couldn¡¯t afford a proper alchemy kit, so he¡¯d have to make do with common cooking utensils.


    Being underwater and everything, the local alchemists couldn¡¯t use a regular cauldron to heat up the ingredients, as everything would just float away. Consequently, they typically used an airtight container, made of a transparent glass-like material so that they could still observe the reaction happening within.


    Percy smiled bitterly.


    The best he¡¯d found was a metallic, spherical pot. The top half could be twisted on and off, allowing him to replace the tool he needed to an extent. Still, it was opaque, which meant he wouldn¡¯t be able to peer inside it with anything other than his Mana Sense. Suffice to say, he wasn¡¯t looking forward to brewing blindly.


    And that wasn¡¯t the only issue. The actual tool was supposed to contain a few enchantments ¨C such as one for controlling its internal heat, one for the pressure and one for steering the ingredients. Percy had never learnt the corresponding runes, so he¡¯d have to reproduce everything using Enki¡¯s fire mana.


    he shrugged.


    Putting the Aurora Dew aside, Percy estimated his yield with the regular elixirs should have already reached about 32% after brewing for thousands of hours over the past few years. And that was while going through all three of the familiar steps.


    Luckily, potions and potion-adjacent products appeared much simpler, many of them only requiring a single step ¨C the very extraction principle he was trying to learn. He guessed some of the more complicated recipes like the rejuvenation potions they had in the Guild involved more than that, as they contained multiple mana types. But that wasn¡¯t the case for the lesser regeneration pills.


    Percy only needed to gather and condense the moss¡¯s properties into a solid ¨C that was it. Suffice to say, his yield would have been over 68% if he was more familiar with the principle and the recipe, and if he was to do this on Remior, using his own tools.


    Naturally, his yield would take a massive hit due to all the additional obstacles he had to overcome. Still, according to the textbook, a 20% yield was enough to condense a single pill ¨C which was incidentally the requirement to pass the test.


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    Unfortunately for Percy, reality didn¡¯t quite match his expectations. While the books he¡¯d found in the library had vaguely outlined the pill¡¯s recipe, they didn¡¯t go into specifics. After exhausting the entire stash they¡¯d brought back from the reef, he had yet to even determine the correct dosage of moss for each attempt.


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    Percy was by no means a novice in brewing, but blindly tossing a random amount of the ingredient ¨C mixed with saltwater ¨C into the sphere was never going to work. At least, not unless they burned through way more materials than this.


    Thinking of something, Percy left the orphanage, roaming the town in search of people with the strange glow in their eyes. If his guess was correct, that was a side-effect of Ea¡¯s Gift ¨C which meant that all those people were qualified alchemists. The sheer number of them was insane compared to what they had on Remior. Then again, it wasn¡¯t that strange considering Atlantis survived by exporting their products to outsiders.


    In any case, Percy approached as many of the suspected alchemists as he could find, begging them for tips and tricks to solve whatever issue he was facing, one question at a time. Inhabiting a kid¡¯s body definitely helped a lot with that, eliciting a fair amount of kindness from the strangers.


    Naturally, he asked Enki to take a break from his own task many a time, helping him retrieve more moss from the reef whenever he ran out. The boy complained, engrossed in activating his new core as he was, but still helped Percy out. ????¦¡??????§§?


    It wasn¡¯t until around three weeks later that Percy managed to make some tangible progress, however. He hadn¡¯t condensed a complete pill just yet, but this was the first time the moss¡¯s essence wasn¡¯t wasted entirely, leaving behind a few useable dregs inside.


    he grimaced.


    At this rate, it would take him months to hit his target, which was something he had to avoid at all costs, not wanting to keep his main body waiting longer than necessary. At least, there wasn¡¯t a timer looming over his head with regards to Enki¡¯s condition, as the boy had healed almost completely by now. In fact, Percy had been forced to manually keep some of the injuries open, so that he wouldn¡¯t get kicked out of the body prematurely.


    Enki exclaimed one day.


    Percy rolled his eyes.


    the boy said, a sheepish grin plastered all over his face.


    Following his instructions, Enki soon began to gather some mana in his hand, though that didn¡¯t last for long. As soon as he started, Percy took over, recognizing the feel of the mana instantly. While he hadn¡¯t paid much attention to his host¡¯s efforts over the past few weeks, there was no mistaking these channels, as they were the exact same ones branching out of his own abdomen back home.


    ___


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Red ¨C Fire][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Pure]


    ___


    Enki asked, disappointment evident in his tone.


    Percy felt a little bad hearing the boy.


    Enki asked with some hope in his eyes.


    Though that only added a pang of guilt to Percy¡¯s pity. It wasn¡¯t like he hadn¡¯t considered teaching the boy Circulation or Crystallization, but they didn¡¯t have the time for either. It would take years to hone Enki¡¯s body enough for the former. As for the latter, it would be even tougher for him than it had been for Percy without a boosting art to fall back to.


    he ultimately said, watching the boy deflate.


    While Percy could heat up the sphere with his fire mana and stir it by rotating it, he had no answer for the internal pressure. He couldn¡¯t use his fire mana for that, as it would only mess with the moss, burning it. Consequently, he¡¯d been working with a massive handicap, as he could only control two of the three main variables.


    That said, pure mana was a lot less reactive than fire mana. Not to mention how much better he could control it. By injecting some into the reaction, he could probably apply as much pressure as he wanted, improving far more rapidly than before.


    If he got lucky, he might even reach his target within the next couple of weeks.


    Percy said, before continuing.

 Chapter 181: The alchemy test

    Another month passed since the activation of Enki¡¯s second core, and Percy hadn¡¯t stopped working on the regeneration pills in that time.Now that the boy was free from the arduous task of clearing his channels, Percy had asked him to pay attention to what he was doing. After all, observing a trained alchemist at work with one¡¯s own body was a unique learning opportunity. Enki would benefit a lot from feeling the mana flowing through his channels, getting used to the visual cues informing him of when he was meant to increase the heat on the concoction and so on.


    Of course, Percy¡¯s fumbling attempts with his shoddy equipment weren¡¯t the most ideal teaching aides, but they would still save the boy years of study down the line. Something that was of paramount importance if Enki truly wanted to work as an alchemist after he was gone.


    the boy asked one day.


    Percy¡¯s success with the pills had been quite mixed. He managed to brew them many times over, but his results were anything but consistent. Sometimes, he would end up with a pill nearly twice as large as what was needed, indicating a yield approaching 40%! In fact, he got really lucky once, retaining enough of the moss¡¯s properties to split it into pills of acceptable quality!


    Then again, there were plenty of times when he failed the brewing process entirely, not even getting to 20%. If this happened during the test, they¡¯d miss their opportunity. This was unavoidable, as he was brewing blindly, so a lot of it ultimately came down to guesswork and luck.


    Still, Percy was satisfied with the experience. While he didn¡¯t know if they would achieve their goal in the end, his practice here was bound to pay dividends down the line.


    Back on Remior, he mainly relied on his eyesight to predict the concoction¡¯s reactions during the brewing process. According to what Orin had told him, the best alchemists learned how to combine visual cues with information they glimpsed through Mana Sense, to act with even greater precision.


    Now that Percy was forced to rely on Mana Sense alone, he had no choice but to master this auxiliary skill at an accelerated pace, which should have a positive impact on his yield in the long-term.


    he sighed.


    In theory, they could have delayed it until he got even better. Unfortunately, he¡¯d already spent way too long on Atlantis. The time of the lotus blooming was rapidly approaching, and he had no idea what had happened with House Tantalus either. For all he knew, his main body might need him back already.


    Not just that, but there was no point in delaying much longer. His improvements had already slowed down to a crawl so, unless he got his hands on some better equipment, it would be years until he was confident in passing the test with any certainty. Suffice to say, their best option was to give it a shot right now, and hope they won the coin toss.


    the boy spat.


    If they could do that, they¡¯d pass for sure. And, technically, there wasn¡¯t a hard limit preventing people from retaking the test, though there were a few rules to make it more difficult.


    For one, the test required a hefty entrance fee. Enki would have needed years to save up enough money for it by himself. Luckily for him, the multitude of regeneration pills Percy had brewed in the past month were barely enough to cover the expense, though they¡¯d need another month for a second attempt.


    Even worse, applicants had to wait 200 eruptions to retake the test after failing it ¨C a period of time longer than 3 months according to Percy¡¯s estimates. These rules were intentionally put in place to ensure applicants were serious about it, and that they didn¡¯t take the test every other day just for fun.


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    ***


    Enki swam towards a large stone building, approaching the singular window near the top. Luckily, there didn¡¯t seem to be a queue today, so he made his way directly towards the guard.


    ¡°Here for the test?¡± the man gurgled in typical Atlantean fashion.


    The boy just nodded, handing him a small pouch filled with some fingernail-sized fish scales, giving off a pale greenish sheen.


    Accepting the money, the man asked to see his other possessions. Fortunately, he didn¡¯t make him lift his skirt, but still frowned upon seeing the shoddy cooking utensil they planned to use as a makeshift cauldron. S§×ar?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Kid, are you sure you don¡¯t want to save up for some proper tools? You¡¯re just wasting your money.¡±


    Enki shrugged.


    ¡°The tools are way more expensive than the entrance fee. I¡¯d need over a thousand eruptions to amass enough scales.¡±


    The guard shook his head, but didn¡¯t say anything else. Still, he confiscated most of the moss, leaving only enough for a single attempt. Next, he moved aside, gesturing at them to enter.


    As soon as they were inside, the man closed the gate behind them, leaving them alone in the room. It was a large circular area, with a single totem-like structure erected in its centre. Enki approached it, as both he and Percy marvelled at its beauty. ?????¨§?


    It was seemingly built out of dozens of large pearls, each bigger than a watermelon. They were stacked together into a vertical column, with multiple faces carved into them. Percy was a little taken aback by their wild, toothy expressions, but he knew part of it was just due to how the natives looked. In any case, all the pearls had one important feature in common ¨C they all shone in a deep crimson colour.


    It wasn¡¯t that surprising, considering that Ea¡¯s Decree worked similarly to Phoebe¡¯s. In any case, he was just glad his clones didn¡¯t need mind mana for their second cores anymore, or things could have easily turned ugly.


    Enki asked, taking him out of his thoughts.


    Unpacking the cauldron and the moss, the kid laid them in front of them, as he waited for Percy to do the honours. As much as he would have liked to pass the test honestly, he knew he wouldn¡¯t stand a chance as he was. This was going to be all Percy.


    the latter shrugged.


    Twisting the lid of the sphere off, Percy then tossed the portion of moss the guard had generously allowed them to keep inside. He also threw a sticky piece of yellow mud in there ¨C this was what the locals used to counteract the sea salt. Next, he pulled a trickle of pure mana from his abdomen, pouring it into the pot too. This was how he¡¯d compress the pill later.


    Finally, he twisted the top of the sphere back on, as he gathered some fire mana to his fingers, passing it onto the metallic surface of the tool. He felt the sphere instantly rumble, as the ingredients began to bubble within it. Giving the tool a spin, he closed his eyes, letting his mind sink into the inner world of the concoction with his Mana Sense.


    The whole thing shone in a dim Orange colour, but he could faintly discern ¨C based on his experience ¨C a few lumps clustering together here and there. Intensifying the flow from his sternum, he upped the heat a little, before spinning the ball the opposite way, to eliminate the pesky lumps before they had the chance to cause trouble.


    Several minutes passed, as both Percy and Enki remained quiet, their attention glued to the contents of the sphere. The concoction¡¯s hushed rumbles were the only thing softly breaking the oppressive silence of the vast chamber, as beads of oily sweat seeped out of Enki¡¯s skin one after another, crowning his forehead.


    At some point, Percy could have sworn he caught the totems¡¯ many eyes flash a shade brighter than before. Evidently, the structure had begun observing their efforts.


    he smiled bitterly.


    Though there was nothing he could do about it, besides diving back into the brewing process.


    In the end, the entire session finished without any climactic turn of events, nor any impossible last-minute hurdle they had to overcome. It didn¡¯t last any longer than his previous attempts either.


    Of course, that was not to say that everything had gone smoothly ¨C the concoction still presented him with its standard share of unfortunate surprises ¨C each gnawing at the eventual yield a little.


    But they wouldn¡¯t know whether they had succeeded until they looked inside the sphere.


    Carefully opening the lid, they gazed at its contents with bated breath, the verdict of their endeavour looming silently over their head. There, a single marble floated quietly. It was among the smallest Percy had crafted, and its condition wasn¡¯t the greatest either. Its surface was full of cracks, though they didn¡¯t detract from its undeniable green lustre.


    It was a success!


    Although somewhat imperfect, there was no mistaking it!


    This was a lesser regeneration pill!


    Lifting his head, Percy saw the totem staring at them with what he could only describe as silent approval shimmering in its countless crimson eyes.


    Suddenly, the entire column flashed twice as brightly as before, a dense crimson aura radiating outwards, rapidly enveloping them. Clearly, their examiner had found them worthy and was about to grant them their prize!

 Chapter 182: Alchemist’s Eye

    A soothing feeling massaged Percy¡¯s mind as the totem¡¯s gentle radiance seeped into his host¡¯s head.Over the next few minutes, he sensed something sprout, almost like a new window opening in his mind, waiting to be peered through. This would have probably felt bizarre if he hadn¡¯t had access to something similar for most of his life already.


    Yet, his celebration was cut short when the totem¡¯s glow died down halfway through, leaving the new Decree incomplete. Panicking, Percy tried to access it, but Ea¡¯s Gift didn¡¯t respond, making him fear something had gone wrong.


    Enki asked.


    Percy didn¡¯t say anything, not having an answer for his host. Opening his eyes, he carefully scanned the glowing pillar in front of them. It was a lot dimmer than before, its colour blinking erratically, almost as if it was unsure as to what it was supposed to do.


    If Ea¡¯s Decree affected one¡¯s mind like he suspected, it was conceivable the totem would need twice as much mana to grant it to both of them. Had their efforts been doomed to fail from the start?


    As if responding to his thoughts, the structure seemed to finally come to a decision. It flashed brightly once more, resuming its work. A new round of crimson soon emanated from it, bathing Enki again.


    Percy relaxed as soon as the refreshing feeling in his mind returned. Over the next few minutes, he was content to merely wait there, enjoying the process. What worried him a little, however, was the fact that the totem almost grew entirely dark by the time it was finished.


    In any case, that was a problem for later.


    As soon as the procedure stopped, Percy felt a far more complete sensation in his head ¨C something finally clicking in place. Eager to put his new toy to the test, he reached into the door in his mind, willing Ea¡¯s Gift to manifest.


    Though, that was when he ran into another issue.


    Unlike before, his efforts didn¡¯t go unanswered this time. However, what happened wasn¡¯t at all what Percy had expected. Rather than Ea¡¯s Gift, it was an intense wave of agony that slammed into his mind like a meteor, making him feel as if his skull had been split in half.


    he asked nobody in particular, folding to his knees.


    Enki asked, seemingly oblivious to his situation.


    His voice sounded normal too. The boy clearly wasn¡¯t affected by whatever was causing his pain.


    Percy asked, getting a nod back.


    Thinking of something, Percy fell back to his regular Status instead. He hoped that the other ¨C more familiar ¨C door in his mind would be able to shed some light into his situation.


    Yet, he couldn¡¯t have been more wrong¡­


    Contrary to his expectations, it didn¡¯t work!


    For some inexplicable reason, the trusty Decree that had always followed him to the edge of the universe and back had suddenly gone silent, refusing to appear before him!


    Even worse, the mere act of calling upon it only intensified his headache further, making his eyes water and his soul squirm!


    If this stunt had somehow caused him to lose Phoebe¡¯s Decree, he¡¯d want to slap himself!


    Ignoring the skull-splitting pain, Percy continued his vain efforts to reach to his Status, unwilling to accept this result. Yet, the Decree didn¡¯t respond for several minutes, causing Percy¡¯s panic to grow like a wildfire. ?¨¤N???????


    Just as he was beginning to lose all hope, his efforts finally caused some kind of blurry message to blink into his sight for a few seconds, before fading back out.


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    [Overlapping¡­ %!?¡±¡­ detected¡­ Calibra*(%*¡­ unavailable¡­ ^&)+¡­ assimilation¡­ underway.]


    Seeing that, Percy allowed himself to calm down slightly. The pain in his head was still raging on, stronger than ever, and it wasn¡¯t like this was guaranteed to end well. That said, his Status seemed to be of the problem at least. It also seemed to be actively working towards a solution. According to the message, it was currently ¡°calibrating¡±, or trying to ¡°assimilate¡± Ea¡¯s Gift.


    Either way, there was nothing he could do about it, besides waiting for the results.


    Enki said, his voice quivering.


    It was only now Percy realized his host had been talking to him for a while.


    he replied.


    Percy still had no idea if he¡¯d end up receiving the new Decree himself, but he¡¯d be lying if he said he wasn¡¯t curious to see what it did.


    Nodding, the boy then went silent for a second, seemingly reaching into his latest acquisition. Soon, a new panel flashed before their eyes, not unlike how Percy¡¯s Status normally worked. Yet, it had a different owner this time.


    ___


    Enki


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Red ¨C Fire][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Pure]


    Mutations:


    [???]


    Alchemic principles:


    [Extraction] ¨C Separate and condense an ingredient¡¯s essence.


    ___


    Percy frowned upon seeing it.


    The only common section was the one listing the boy¡¯s cores. As for bloodlines, spectral traits, spells or Decrees, there wasn¡¯t a word on them. The first two weren¡¯t too surprising, as the boy probably didn¡¯t have any. But the absence of the other two was a little odd. S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    He could understand why the Decrees were hidden ¨C this had originally been the case for him too. If this Ea guy was anything like Phoebe, he clearly didn¡¯t think mortals needed to know about high-level information like that. But that didn¡¯t explain why there weren¡¯t any spells.


    It was certainly possible, given how little the boy had practiced with his core. Hell, Percy hadn¡¯t obtained his first spell until after reaching Orange. Still, he had a hunch there was more to it than that. Did Ea¡¯s Gift not even bother listing one¡¯s spells?


    Its focus seemed entirely different. For one, it acknowledged Enki¡¯s budding understanding of the extraction principle. Percy was quite certain that his Status didn¡¯t care about alchemy in the slightest, as it had never bothered to list his own knowledge of the three pillars.


    Percy didn¡¯t even get the chance to talk to his host about it, when the boy let out a pained cry, pressing his palms against his eyes. Both Enki and Percy felt their eyeballs burn intensely, as if somebody had just poured boiling oil into their face. It almost reminded him of the time he and Gabe fought against the golem.


    the boy asked, his voice shaking, as some sticky droplets accumulated in their hands.


    Percy didn¡¯t even know whether to laugh or cry. His own splitting headache had yet to go away, and now he had to deal with another ¨C probably unrelated ¨C source of agony.


    Still, seeing the boy sob made his heart clench. The poor kid didn¡¯t deserve so much shit. He was about to speak a few words to console him, when the two heard the gate slam open.


    Activating Mana Sense, Percy saw somebody ¨C the guard most likely ¨C swim rapidly towards them. Yet, the man stopped right in his tracks about halfway through, his head jerking in alarm towards the totem.


    ¡°Holy One have mercy! Why is the totem so dark?!¡±


    Next, the man turned to Enki, seemingly catching sight of the boy bawling his eyes out.


    ¡°Did you actually pass the test with that shoddy cauldron?¡± he asked in incredulity.


    Enki only nodded back.


    ¡°Mister¡­ do you know what¡¯s happening to me?¡±


    The guard remained silent for a few seconds before answering, his voice a lot calmer this time.


    ¡°Kid, has nobody explained to you how Ea¡¯s Gift works?¡±


    Enki merely shook his head.


    ¡°Ha! That must be why you look like your mother just died. Boy, cheer up! This is a good thing!¡±


    ¡°How is it a good thing?¡± Enki asked bitterly.


    Percy, on the other hand, relaxed upon hearing the guard¡¯s words, having put two and two together by now. Sure enough, the man¡¯s next words corroborated his guess.


    ¡°What you¡¯re feeling right now are your eyes . The pain should go away in a few eruptions. After that, you¡¯ll have a lifetime to enjoy the new benefits they bring you. Congratulations! You¡¯re now officially an alchemist of Atlantis!¡±


    The man¡¯s words didn¡¯t fully alleviate the boy¡¯s worries, however.


    ¡°Mutating? What sort of benefits are we talking about?¡±


    ¡°Have you noticed the strange glow some of our people have in their eyes?¡± the man asked, getting a nod back.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s what the Alchemist¡¯s Eye looks like. Why do you think the Holy One even bothered disseminating His Gift on our world?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand. What does Ea¡¯s Gift have to do with one¡¯s eyes? I thought it just listed some important information on our alchemy skills¡­¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re telling me you worked so hard for this, and you don¡¯t even know why?¡± the guard asked. ¡°Yes, the Gift does list the alchemic principles you master, but it¡¯s much more than just a glorified piece of parchment!¡±


    Enki didn¡¯t say anything, waiting for the man to continue.


    ¡°The Gift itself is intimately connected to the mutation. Your eyes will draw from your cumulative knowledge of alchemy, allowing you to discern things you wouldn¡¯t otherwise notice. The more alchemic principles you master, the more things you will be able to see!¡± the guard said with some pride in his voice.


    This time, the boy finally calmed down, but Percy wasn¡¯t paying them any attention anymore, his mind drifting elsewhere.

 Chapter 183: Tools for a better future

    Following the guard¡¯s explanation, the next couple of weeks passed by in a blur.Luckily, the man didn¡¯t dwell much on the totem¡¯s strange state. As it turned out, it was a lot more reasonable to assume there was something wrong with the relays supplying the structure with mana, than to guess Enki was possessed by an alien ghost. Who¡¯d have thought?


    The guard was then kind enough to escort the blind kid to the local alchemists¡¯ association, even going as far as to hold his hand through the registration process. Better still, the people there were all shocked upon learning how Enki had managed to pass the test despite all his handicaps, showering him with praise.


    the boy asked at the time.


    Percy didn¡¯t say that merely to console his host. He genuinely meant every word. The boy had proven quite hardworking during his stay in Atlantis, whether it was back when he was clearing his channels, or his subsequent alchemy practice. As far as Percy saw it, he¡¯d done nothing more than level the playing field for an unlucky orphan, giving him a chance to make it in the world.


    Upon hearing the words of encouragement, the boy nodded enthusiastically, tears glistening by the corners of his still-burning eyes. Suffice to say, it was with great eagerness that he followed the association¡¯s people as they escorted him to his new room, supplying him with brand-new tools and reading materials to further his studies. At that point, Percy was just as excited as his host, keen to put the new equipment to the test, getting a better feel for his newly mastered alchemic principle.


    Even better, Enki¡¯s eyes were done mutating about a week later, allowing them to make leaps and strides with their practice.


    ___


    Enki


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Red ¨C Fire][Mana core 2 ¨C Red ¨C Pure]


    Mutations:


    [Alchemist¡¯s Eye] ¨C Draws from the cumulative knowledge listed in Ea¡¯s Gift to enhance one¡¯s vision, allowing them to discern details previously unseen.


    Alchemic principles:


    [Extraction] ¨C Separate and condense an ingredient¡¯s essence.


    ___


    Much like the guard had explained, Enki¡¯s now-glowing eyes allowed him and Percy to peer through the outer layer of the concoction, observing the extraction process of the moss¡¯s essence in even greater detail than ever before. And that was just the start.


    Even more importantly, the mutation seemed to passively fuse the boy¡¯s Mana Sense into his eyes, adding an entirely new dimension to Enki¡¯s vision!


    Of course, mages could already use their Mana Sense whilst simultaneously looking with their eyes, but the two images didn¡¯t blend together nearly as seamlessly, forcing one to consciously sift through the two feeds in their mind.


    In Enki¡¯s case, his sixth sense naturally bled into his sight, the two working one another rather than , achieving things greater than the sum of their parts. Of course, he still had to manually use Mana Sense to observe things outside his line of sight, but even having a part of it passively active was a boon that couldn¡¯t be overstated.


    Percy said.


    Sadly, that didn¡¯t come to pass. Despite lots of begging, the veteran alchemists refused to just hand the boy everything in the end, arguing that the primary ingredient ¨C the amber pearls ¨C were quite expensive.


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    Still, they did gift them all the secondary ingredients, and it wasn¡¯t so hard for Percy and Enki to earn enough money to buy a pearl by themselves. With his new tools at hand, and with the Alchemist¡¯s Eye aiding him, Percy¡¯s brewing yield with the lesser regeneration pill shot through the roof, letting him procure a single pearl within mere days.


    The concoction itself failed, as Percy couldn¡¯t get the recipe down after one attempt. That said, he still made it far enough through the three stages to properly demonstrate the new principles to his student, registering them in the boy¡¯s panel.


    ___


    Alchemic principles:


    [Extraction] ¨C Separate and condense an ingredient¡¯s essence.[Pacification] ¨C Delay an ingredient¡¯s activation rate.[Redirection] ¨C Adjust an ingredient¡¯s effect.[Deattunement] ¨C Prevent multiple conflicting ingredients from reacting with one another.


    ___


    Of course, Enki would still need several months of laborious study to fully wrap his head around the principles, and even longer to actually put them to practice. However, due to how his Alchemist¡¯s Eye worked, simply understanding the basics would vastly accelerate his progress. ?????????¨¯????¦¥?


    And this wasn¡¯t everything Percy did for his host.


    Having grown fond of the kid over the past two months and, not knowing if they¡¯d ever meet again, he went all out, trying to help him as much as possible before leaving. He explained everything about Circulation and Crystallization, giving the boy numerous tips and tricks as to how they could be used.


    That said, Enki was unlikely to meet the requirements for the boosting art anytime soon. Even when he did, it was entirely possible he¡¯d fail to figure out the correct patterns for the mana flow. At any rate, it was going to be a dozen times harder for him than it had been for Percy, since he wouldn¡¯t have anybody to demonstrate the spell for him.


    As for Crystallization, the boy shouldn¡¯t have as much trouble mastering it, as the technique itself wasn¡¯t anything complicated. However, it remained to be seen whether he¡¯d figure out how to bond the powder into the cultivation pills or reinforce his constructs like Percy.


    And the same was true for affinity fusion.


    the boy said, two streams of tears flowing out into the room.


    The boy nodded.


    Percy had sewn him a few more of them, but he didn¡¯t have the time to teach him runecrafting too. Then again, they definitely had at least rudimentary understanding of the art on Atlantis. Getting some basic enchantments shouldn¡¯t be too difficult for the budding alchemist.


    Saying that, Percy then began removing his soul from Enki¡¯s injuries one by one, allowing them to resume their recovery as his main body¡¯s pull grew stronger. His headache was still killing him, and his Status had yet to assimilate the new Decree, but he couldn¡¯t delay his return any longer. At this point, his best hope was that joining with the rest of his soul would speed up the process.


    Percy said without a moment¡¯s hesitation.


    He¡¯d already thought long and hard about this issue.


    Truth be told, Percy had always been extremely cautious with what secrets he revealed during his travels, afraid to accidentally give one of Remior¡¯s enemies the means to conquer his world. Hell, he had yet to even reveal these breakthroughs to his own people, making the situation even more precarious.


    But it wasn¡¯t like this knowledge would be lost, even if something was to happen to him.


    Circulation would eventually leak out of the Avalon House into the rest of Remior. Plus, Orin would disseminate the Aurora Dew¡¯s recipe sooner or later. By temporarily withholding the information, Percy had merely carved a brief window of opportunity for himself to get a little ahead. Nothing more, nothing less. S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Besides, he¡¯d never forgive himself if he stinted his first student¡¯s growth out of selfishness.


    the boy asked, still concerned about that.


    Yet, the boy wasn¡¯t quite convinced.


    Percy chuckled in response. Next, he pulled his soul wisp from even more of Enki¡¯s injuries, while continuing to talk to his student ¨C no, his new friend, through the whole thing.


    the boy asked, receiving his answer as Percy¡¯s wisp finally got whisked out.

 Chapter 184: Advancing in the Grisly Bog

    The swamp reeked of decay as Percy and Nesha dragged their feet through the murky waters. Each step sucked their boots deeper into the mud, almost like the bog itself was trying to pull them under.Had this been a year ago, they might have been attacked by an oversized crocodile or python by now. Luckily ¨C or perhaps unluckily ¨C the local wildlife had really taken a hit during Micky¡¯s reign of terror. Whatever animals had survived to this day had done so by learning to keep their heads low. Consequently, the only living things they had to worry about at the moment were the irritating insects constantly buzzing in their faces.


    ¡°So, are you going to carry this stuff everywhere?¡± Nesha asked, staring at the oversized sack slung over Percy¡¯s back.


    Its contents were spacious enough to fit a human body, though that wasn¡¯t what was inside it. Every time Percy moved, countless objects rolled and tumbled within the bag, making crisp metallic sounds upon colliding with one another. Thanks to the multitude of concealment runes he¡¯d sewn on the fabric, it was impossible for anybody to peer inside through Mana Sense. Of course, Nesha was already familiar with its contents, having spent months watching Percy forge them, one by one.


    ¡°What¡¯s the alternative?¡± he shrugged. ¡°We need to be ready. House Tantalus could attack us any day now.¡±


    Despite his words, Percy wasn¡¯t particularly happy with this arrangement either.


    Naturally, the sack contained the pieces of his magical armour. It had actually been over a month since Percy completed his new spell. That said, he hadn¡¯t had a proper opportunity to use it just yet. Even worse, he¡¯d been forced to replace the components a couple times already. Plus, he would continue having to do so once every few weeks, until their enemies deigned to show up.


    ¡°If they attack us right now, we¡¯re .¡± Nesha said, her expression grim.


    Normally, it was Micky¡¯s job to patrol around the town, keeping an eye out for them. Unfortunately, the crow was otherwise occupied today.


    ¡°Huh, can you imagine?¡± Percy chuckled. ¡°How unlucky would that be? They don¡¯t show up for , and then they pick the day we¡¯re not paying attention?¡±


    But it couldn¡¯t be helped. There was a reason Micky couldn¡¯t tend to his job today, and it was the same reason why Percy and Nesha had come to the swamp. That said, it wasn¡¯t a bad thing per se¡­


    The first strands of Orange had appeared in the bird¡¯s second core!


    Percy smiled wryly.


    Not that he wasn¡¯t happy for his friend ¨C Micky¡¯s strength was essentially his. Still, he couldn¡¯t help but compare his familiar¡¯s rapid advancement speed with his own more sluggish pace. Of course, the bird¡¯s second core didn¡¯t advance any faster than a human¡¯s ¨C it was just the Aurora Dew doing all the heavy lifting. However, Micky¡¯s first core would likely reach Green over a century before Percy did.


    he decided, shaking any unnecessary thoughts out of his mind.


    Soon, the two reached a clearing amidst the dense thicket, the warm midday rays illuminating a large circular area. There, they saw Micky perched atop a boulder, an empty gemstone vial lying carelessly by his talons. The bird didn¡¯t react upon seeing them, immersed within his inner world as he was.


    Technically, the crow didn¡¯t need any bodyguards. Nothing in the swamp dared approach him anymore. Still, Percy wanted to keep watch over his familiar during the promotion, as it generally took a little longer than a regular cleansing session.


    Percy sighed.


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    Naturally, this was one of the first things they had checked as soon as Micky awakened his second core. And it actually worked ¨C to an extent. Due to his control over his own mana, Micky direct it to remove the impurities in his second core in an acceptable manner, without having it undergo pacification, redirection or deattunement.


    It wasn¡¯t as perfect as drinking an elixir, a few mistakes here and there lowering the cleansing efficiency slightly. That said, the difference was small enough that they could stomach it, to save thousands of doses of elixir down the line.


    At least, this would have been the case had Percy never invented the Aurora Dew. Once the cyan powder came into the fold, things got a great deal more complicated. It was even harder for Micky to prevent his beast mana from reacting with the crystallized pure mana, as the two were essentially polar opposites.


    Their only option would be to have the bird use the cyan paste separately, but that would only lower his advancement speed even more. Considering everything, Micky would be losing a lot of valuable time over nothing. Consequently, there was no choice but to have him use Aurora Dew like him and Nesha. ??????¨®??s


    Oblivious to his thoughts, the crow eventually sent him some images of his second core, letting him watch the process. The last drops of the elixir were nearly exhausted, but the Orange strands had already began to dominate the core, twisting and banding together as they rapidly consumed their weaker cousins.


    At the same time, they violently lashed out against the ethereal organ¡¯s inner walls, scraping even more impurities than one should generally cleanse within a single session. Suffice to say, this wasn¡¯t sustainable in the long-term. Overindulging like this could permanently damage one¡¯s core if done often. Still, advancements were special occasions.


    Soon, all the free space inside the core was occupied by thick strands of Orange, exerting a great amount of pressure on the organ. With nowhere else to go, the strands had no choice but to finally fuse together a moment later. The mana condensed into a blob with a satisfying click, splashing down at the core¡¯s base, filling around a third of its capacity.


    As for the rest of it, it only took Micky a few minutes to replenish, letting out a content caw as a wave of vitality flooded his body.


    ¡°Congratulations Micky!¡± Nesha exclaimed.


    Percy couldn¡¯t suppress a grin tugging at his lips either, though his next words weren¡¯t quite as celebratory.


    ¡°Now go do your job before we all get killed.¡±


    ¡°Party pooper.¡± the bird spat back, but he acquiesced.


    They both knew Micky was just as eager to put his newfound power to the test. Taking off, the crow activated his boosting arts as he sped out of the swamp. Apparently, Micky wasn¡¯t satisfied with breaking the advancement record today ¨C he wanted to break the speed one too.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about you, but I suddenly feel a lot more confident about taking on the Greens.¡± Nesha said as soon as they were alone.


    By now, they were operating under the assumption that House Tantalus would send at least two of them. Percy intended to take one down by himself, so Nesha and Micky would have to team up against the second.


    ¡°He¡¯s strong all right, but I wish I had the time to teach him another spell or two.¡±


    Micky was already as smart as a human. Circulation and Acceleration weren¡¯t bad, but the bird should be capable of a lot more than that. At the very least, Percy wanted to teach him some form of mana conversion at some point. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    In the same way that his own pure mana was more suitable to feed other affinities, Micky¡¯s beast core should have an easier time transforming other mana types into its own. With a little guidance, he might even be able to solve his stamina problem.


    Percy doubted the bird would be able to keep his Yellow core fed during a fight, but replenishing his strength afterwards might not be so difficult. Like that, they wouldn¡¯t have to remain fixed at locations like the Fungal Spire or the Grisly Bog, giving them more freedom to roam Remior.


    In any case, Percy had had too much on his plate over the past few months. But he¡¯d definitely invest some more time into his familiar the first chance he got.


    Suddenly, something unexpected happened, capturing Percy¡¯s attention. For a moment there, he felt his ethereal cord vibrate ¨C the one in his stomach, not his sternum. Evidently, his clone was finally on the way back.


    ¡®


    This one had stayed away for over two months, shattering all previous records. Percy wasn¡¯t as worried that something bad had happened, as he hadn¡¯t felt any atypical response from the cord ¨C unlike the time with the mysterious girl.


    Whatever had delayed his clone was probably a good thing. Rubbing his hands in anticipation, Percy brought Nesha up to speed as the two headed back to their hut. He¡¯d rather be in the safety of his home by the time the clone arrived.


    That said, Percy might not have been as eager to reunite with his clone had he any idea how painful the next couple of days were about to be¡­

 Chapter 185: Ea’s Decree

    Percy had no idea what to expect from this latest clone of his, but whatever it was, it had to be a lot, right?And, well... Reality didn¡¯t disappoint. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The silver meteor punched through Percy¡¯s soul like a molten dagger, leaving him gasping for air as memories, pain, and pressure ruthlessly slammed into his mind.


    The crushing weight of an ocean¡­ the frigid embrace of an abyss¡­ a dead orphan¡­ an ambitious venture¡­ exotic knowledge¡­ a narrow success¡­ a selfless decision¡­ a grateful student¡­ a stern warning¡­


    Percy would need a lot more time to properly sift through everything, but a boatload of memories wasn¡¯t the only thing the clone had brought. By far the most noteworthy was arguably the new Decree! But there was more still. A spell upgrade, a new alchemic principle and¡­ a mutation?


    Suffice to say, it took him a couple moments to fully grasp why his head felt like it had been cracked open by a hatchet, or why his eyes felt like they were on fire. Evidently, his new improvements came with their fair share of growing pains. But it should ultimately be a good thing, right?


    ¡°Percy! What¡¯s going on?!¡± Nesha cried out in alarm.


    The poor girl had never seen one of his clones cause this much damage upon their return. Not that Percy had, either.


    He forced himself to stand with difficulty, gesturing at Nesha that everything was fine ¨C or would be. Next, he fumbled his way to his bed, nearly tripping on his jar of powder, blind as he was. Only once he was sitting on the familiar mattress did he try opening his Status again, hoping he hadn¡¯t just crippled himself out of greed.


    ___


    P????a? A?a???


    Ma?a ????:


    [Ma?a ???? 1 ¨C ??a??? ¨C S???][Ma?a ???? 2 ¨C ??a??? ¨C P???]


    B????????:


    [?????] ¨C ???


    M??a????:


    [???]


    Sp????a? ??a??:


    [??a????] ¨C ???


    Sp???s:


    [S????? A??: ?am???a? ¨C ???d?][P?a???ms?a?? ?a?????? ¨C ??????d][Sp????a? A??: S??? S???????? ¨C ??????d][S??? ??????s??? ¨C ??????d][S??? ?a???s??? ¨C ??????d][?????????m??? ¨C ??????d][S?????????a???? ¨C ??????d][Ma???? ?? D????? ¨C ??????d]


    A????m?? p?????p??s:


    [E???a?????] ¨C ???[Pa?????a????] ¨C ???[??d????????] ¨C ???[D?a?????m???] ¨C ???


    D?????s:


    [P?????¡¯s D?????] ¨C ???[???] ¨C ???[M???a?s¡¯ D?????] ¨C ???[M??a????¡¯s D?????] ¨C ???[???] ¨C ???


    ___


    Percy winced as the page opened, the very act tuning his pain up to eleven.


    That said, it wasn¡¯t as bad as it could¡¯ve been. Unlike back on Atlantis, he was at least able to his Status ¨C on the first try no less. Even better, after a quick count, he confirmed that all the sections were there ¨C both the old and the new. The only thing left was to figure out how to fill them up properly.


    Not the most groundbreaking idea, but he felt it was worth a try.


    Starting with the easiest one, Percy pulled some mana from both of his cores, fusing it into a sliver of teal, before tossing a handful of throwing stars against the wall. Nesha jumped back in surprise.


    Percy didn¡¯t bother explaining himself, as he dove back into his spell list.


    ___


    [Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    ___


    Suffice to say, seeing part of his Status restored caused his heart to skip a beat. And the change went so much deeper than a couple of words¡­ As soon as the entry corrected itself, Percy felt something click inside his head ¨C almost as if a broken shard snapped back into place, a smidge of fog lifted from his aching mind. ?§Ñ?????¦Â¨§?


    At the same time, something flowed into his eyes. It wasn¡¯t mana, nor blood. It was something more ethereal ¨C almost like the thoughts and feelings he regularly shared with his familiar through their connection. If he had to put his finger on what it was¡­ it was


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    ¡°Percy! Will you pause for a second and tell me what¡¯s happening to you? You¡¯re scaring me!¡± Nesha snapped at him, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to worry you. Just hold on for a little longer. Whatever this is, I think I know how to fix it.¡± he said, not going into too much detail.


    Next, he began casting his spells one after another. Grabbing some teal powder from the pot, he started with two of the easiest ones, spending the next half an hour forging a new scythe. He had no doubt that the weapon was laughably misshapen, but his Status didn¡¯t seem to mind, recognizing the entries for both Reinforcement and the Soul Harvester.


    Moving a trickle of pure mana into his sternum, he then began refilling his first core until Soul Conversion registered too.


    The following part was a little trickier, because his clone had only registered the spell upgrade while they were separated. Digging into his memories was still quite painful, but Percy eventually managed to remember how Soul Stitching worked, using it to accelerate his soul¡¯s recovery. As a bonus, using his Spectral Art lifted the fog off his Weaving trait too.


    By now, Percy was doing a great deal better, graduating from feeling like somebody had cracked his skull open to feeling like somebody had¡­ cracked his skull open¡­


    In any case, there was only one path forward, and it was to keep going until every word in his Status was back to normal.


    Ironically, his only Crude spell was the hardest to reproduce. At the very least, Percy had no intention of creating a new familiar on the spot. Luckily, trying to pull up Micky¡¯s Status seemed to do the trick, sparing him the trouble.


    The next spell was his Phantomscale Gauntlet. The Status hadn¡¯t registered the upgrade to the full-body armour yet ¨C maybe because he hadn¡¯t used it properly ¨C which made his life a little easier. Still, reforging 54 pieces of his magical gauntlet was going to take , and that¡¯s if he wasn¡¯t doing it blind. Fortunately, the first couple of components seemed to jog the broken Decree¡¯s memory, saving him a great amount of time there as well.


    Taking a few breaths, Percy directed the mana to both of his cores as he slowly activated his boosting art. As soon as the entire section was repaired, Percy¡¯s headache died down greatly, allowing him to exhale in relief.


    However, that only lasted a second, before another unexpected complication emerged.


    His eyes ¨C which were still burning as painfully as before ¨C reacted to the new spell in a way they hadn¡¯t during his previous attempts. A powerful attraction emanated from them, pulling a ridiculous amount of mana from Percy¡¯s body, as a wave of vertigo now accompanied the pain, making him sick.


    Percy wanted to deactivate Synchronization, but he didn¡¯t dare too. Given how violently his eyes were devouring his mana, he was afraid he might seriously injure himself if he failed to meet their demands.


    he shrugged.


    His spell and spectral trait sections were already back in order, which left his mana cores, his mutation, his bloodline, the alchemical principles and his Decrees. Some of that he hadn¡¯t a clue how he was meant to fix. Still, some weren¡¯t as complicated.


    Activating Mana Sense, he scanned both of his cores, marvelling at their Orange lustre. He¡¯d already used both of his affinities for his spells, so this last morsel of information was the final clue his Status needed to fix the first section.


    Unfortunately, this trivial action introduced yet another problem.


    By now, he¡¯d be a fool if he couldn¡¯t recognize the pattern. The only two things he couldn¡¯t deactivate were his Mana Sense and Synchronization. Or, more precisely, it was the passive Soul Vision afforded to him by his boosting art.


    Percy already knew from Enki that the Alchemist¡¯s Eye tended to passively incorporate Mana Sense into its features. Evidently, Percy¡¯s version intended to go a step further down that route.


    Whatever the reason was, the influx of information brought about by his sixth sense put a lot of strain on Percy¡¯s already tired mind. He honestly had no idea how much longer he¡¯d last like this.


    Still, there was only one way forward, and it was to complete what he¡¯d set out to do.


    Gritting his teeth, he delved into his memories, trying to visualize the act of brewing an elixir. Naturally, he wanted to use that to repair the alchemic principles in his Status. It would have been better to actually brew an elixir than to rely merely on his imagination, but he didn¡¯t have any nectar at hand, nor was he in any state to practice the delicate art at the moment.


    It took several minutes, but the principles eventually snapped in place one after the other, each of them washing his mind in a soothing wave of relief, alleviating more and more of the crushing pressure.


    Next was his bloodline¡­


    he clicked his tongue.


    Perhaps, he could repair Clone through his imagination alone, but there was something else the clone could help out with. In any case, the most recent crater in his stomach was already nearly healed ¨C between Soul Stitching and Synchronization, his recovery speed had reached an all-time high.


    Actually preparing the clone took a few more hours ¨C especially with his eyes snatching a significant part of his mana. And naturally, Percy hated every second of it, wanting nothing more than for this shitty day to end. But he pulled through, eventually.


    Scanning the final section, he was positively surprised to see that most of the Decrees had snapped back in place too. Between his discovery of his second core, as well as his use of both his bloodline and his Status, only two remained.


    Metatron¡¯s and Ea¡¯s.


    Wanting to leave his latest acquisition for last, Percy then waited for his clone to return. It didn¡¯t take long, as he¡¯d already instructed him to jump into the first body he found, open a portal to the Vault, and then rush right back to Remior without entering it.


    And soon, the clone did come back, informing him of his success as the fourth Decree revealed itself within his Status.


    Percy had done everything on a whim, but he was confident his efforts to manually rebuild his Status one entry at a time had helped. At least, his dulled headache seemed to corroborate that guess.


    ¡°Nesha.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm?¡±


    ¡°Wish me luck.¡±


    The girl didn¡¯t say anything, but she grabbed his hand, squeezing it tightly.


    With only one last step before him, Percy then tugged at the new window in his mind, calling upon Ea¡¯s Gift. No second tab opened, but the new Decree still responded to his thoughts, as it finally melted wholeheartedly into his Status, relieving him of the last traces of pain, as the words settled in front of him.


    ___


    [Ea¡¯s Decree (Modified)] ¨C Augments and enhances your Status. Grants the Sorcerer¡¯s Eye.


    ___

 Chapter 186: Sorcerer’s Eye

    Upon seeing the new Decree take shape in his Status, Percy was ecstatic and, most of all, relieved.


    The weeks of blindly brewing pills in an air-tight cooking pot at the bottom of an alien ocean, and the several hours spent in agony trying to repair his Status¡­


    It had all been worth it! He could finally get some well-deserved rest!


    Or so he thought.


    While his Status was back in order, his mutation was still underway. His headache might have disappeared, but his eyes still felt like they were on fire, greedily absorbing his mana without end, forcing him to keep both Synchronization and Mana Sense active. Too scared to interrupt the process half-way through, Percy was left with no choice but to grit his teeth and soldier through it, running his boosting art at full power for however long his eyes demanded.


    Nesha stayed up with him the first night, keeping him company. She gave him some excuse, saying she didn¡¯t feel comfortable sleeping when House Tantalus could attack them at any time. She claimed she was worried Percy wouldn¡¯t be able to fight ¨C or even run ¨C like this, so it would be up to her to get him out of town.


    It was all true of course, but Percy could tell there was more to it than that.


    Feeling her genuine worry warmed his heart up, reminding him he wasn¡¯t on this journey alone. Besides Nesha and Micky, there was also Baldy and Elaine out there, fighting alongside him against their common enemy. They might have not coordinated ¨C ¨C in the last two years, but it was because of them, applying pressure on all fronts, that Percy had been able to develop peacefully during his stay in Bogside town.


    The second night, he asked Nesha to just go to sleep and not worry about him. She argued back a little, but her exhaustion won out in the end. Besides, Micky would warn them if something were to happen. It wasn¡¯t until the third day that Percy¡¯s eyes finally finished mutating. Naturally, he was quite eager to discover all their secrets, but something else took precedence.


    ***


    ¡°Nggghhh¡­ What happened?¡± Percy asked upon waking up, his voice raspy. ¡°Have they attacked yet?¡±


    ¡°Finally done sleeping?¡± Nesha asked back.


    ¡°Why? How long has it been?¡±


    ¡°Over two days since you passed out. And no. At this point, I don¡¯t think they will.¡±


    Percy nodded.


    They¡¯d known this was a possibility since the start. The lotus was going to bloom in just four short months, so they¡¯d have to return to the Avalon mansion soon regardless.


    Sitting up on the bed, he turned towards Nesha, both of them drawing a sharp breath as soon as they exchanged glances. He wasn¡¯t sure what was surprised about, but his shock was due to the bizarre sight before him.


    Concealed within her figure, he spotted a person-shaped silhouette of silver, flowing like a liquid flame through her body, flickering and wavering with her every thought. In her sternum, a bright Yellow star thrummed against her chest. Strictly speaking, neither of these things was to him, but he¡¯d never seen them like before.


    Nesha¡¯s flesh, soul and core were interwoven seamlessly with one another, revealing details to Percy¡¯s mind that he had previously been unable to glimpse. Usually, whenever he focused on one of his senses, the others would blur and fade out a little, meaning he could only ever partially observe an object. Right now, however, the three channels in his mind were fully integrated with one another, almost as if he had grown two more heads and just as many pairs of eyes.


    ¡°Your eyes! They¡¯re glowing!¡± the girl exclaimed.


    Ah, right. That. It was only now that Percy remembered this would be a permanent side-effect of the Decree. With everything else happening, he hadn¡¯t even considered this, though it might prove troublesome if it ended up garnering him unwanted attention. ???¨®????§¦?


    ¡°How bad is it?¡±


    ¡°Very. If you go out like this, expect people to stare.¡±


    ¡°Shit.¡± he spat. ¡°Could you please go fetch me a mirror from Dylan¡¯s? I need to know what I¡¯m dealing with.¡±


    Nesha nodded before heading out.


    Percy then picked his tools up from the spatial amulet, along with a few elixirs, setting his equipment on a table. Next, he grabbed a bowl, filling it up with some teal powder from his stash.


    Honestly, they could use a few more doses of Aurora Dew, their stock having fallen a little behind during the past week. Still, Percy would be lying if he said that¡¯s what was going through his mind right now. . First and foremost, he wanted to play with his new toy!


    The results were immediate, and staggering.


    Whether it was his extensive practice brewing with just Mana Sense, or his new eyes mixing his senses together, he could see cues in the concoction he would have certainly missed before. He could tell when a lump was about to form a second before it did, and he could more accurately estimate the correct temperature and pressure needed to deal with it.


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    Overall, both his brewing time and his yield saw massive improvements by the end of the session.


    It was shocking, considering he normally needed around 25 minutes, only successfully converting around 46% of the elixir into Aurora Dew. But this was just the start.


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new alchemic principle: Bonding]


    Percy grinned.


    He was pretty sure this was a new feature exclusive to and Phoebe¡¯s Decree only ever notified people of a new spell and didn¡¯t even list alchemic principles. As for Ea¡¯s Gift, he hadn¡¯t seen it present Enki with any notifications either.


    he wondered.


    Now that his eyes had gained another principle to draw knowledge from, that should increase his yield even more, right?


    Sure enough, the next session only took him 15 minutes, and he ended up with a 56% yield!


    Of course, brewing elixir into Aurora Dew was a two-step process, down from the regular three-step process of converting nectar into elixir. After a quick calculation, Percy estimated his actual brewing yield ¨C at least when compared to the Guild¡¯s alchemists ¨C should have jumped from around 32% to over 42%.


    It might not appear like a large increase to the uninitiated, but Percy was well aware of how difficult even the slightest improvement was after 30%. Hell, Orin had been doing this for centuries, and his yield was ¡®only¡¯ 44% ¨C just two points higher than this!


    ¡°Are you done playing around?¡± Nesha asked.


    It was only now that Percy realized she had returned. That said, she should have been here for a while, clearly hesitant to interrupt him.


    Grabbing the mirror, Percy examined his eyes. They glowed brightly, much like the Atlanteans¡¯, but his were a different colour. Shining in a pale teal, his irises were split down the middle by a vertical pupil.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you turn it off or something?¡±


    ¡°Afraid not.¡±


    It was a little inconvenient, but Percy would have to avoid meeting people from now on. At least until he found a solution.


    That was another issue he hadn¡¯t considered. Perhaps he could skip all this if he didn¡¯t link himself to his hosts¡¯ eyes, but that wouldn¡¯t be much better.


    In any case, that was a problem for later. Percy had yet to fully explore his new mutation. Pulling up his Status, he read everything from beginning to end, appreciating the recent additions.


    ___


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Orange ¨C Pure]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    Mutations:


    [Sorcerer¡¯s Eye] ¨C Draws from the cumulative knowledge listed in the Status to enhance one¡¯s vision, allowing them to discern details previously unseen.


    Spectral trait:


    [Weaving] ¨C Boosts one¡¯s proclivity in manipulating one-dimensional structures.


    Spells:


    [Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude][Phantomscale Gauntlet ¨C Refined][Spectral Art: Soul Stitching ¨C Refined][Soul Conversion ¨C Refined][Soul Harvester ¨C Refined][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Synchronization ¨C Refined][Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Alchemic principles:


    [Extraction] ¨C Separate and condense an ingredient¡¯s essence.[Pacification] ¨C Delay an ingredient¡¯s activation rate.[Redirection] ¨C Adjust an ingredient¡¯s effect.[Deattunement] ¨C Prevent multiple conflicting ingredients from reacting with one another.[Bonding] ¨C Enrich an ingredient with crystallized pure mana.


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[???] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.[Ea¡¯s Decree (Modified)] ¨C Augments and enhances your Status. Grants the Sorcerer¡¯s Eye.


    ___


    As expected, the description of the Sorcerer''s Eye was nearly identical to that for the Alchemist¡¯s Eye, save for one minor detail. Rather than drawing from the knowledge listed in Ea¡¯s Gift, it would now draw it from Percy¡¯s expanded Status.


    While Ea¡¯s Gift was merely a tool for alchemy, the new version of Percy¡¯s Status covered a far wider variety of topics. If his eyes could draw information from all of them, he could hardly imagine all the possible applications.


    Shrugging, he then pulled his familiar¡¯s Status up too, to see if anything had changed there.


    ___


    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s familiar)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Yellow ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Orange ¨C Air]


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    [Soul Predator] ¨C Allows one to more easily interact with the souls of others.[Wind Dancer] ¨C Allows one to augment their flight using air mana.


    Spells:


    [Wild Art: Acceleration ¨C Crude][Circulation ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    ___


    Percy¡¯s eyes widened upon seeing the new section listing Micky¡¯s previously hidden mutations. While he had often referred to them as such, he had no idea they belonged in the same category as his Sorcerer¡¯s Eye.


    Had Ea drawn inspiration from the beast affinity when designing his Decree? Or was this just some kind of coincidence? Perhaps, he¡¯d merely reached a similar result through completely unrelated means?


    Either way, gaining the ability to see Micky¡¯s mutations was a fortunate accident. Not that there was anything there Percy hadn¡¯t previously inferred, but it could be helpful if he gained any new mutations during his next evolution.


    ¡°Nesha¡­ Wanna head back to the swamp?¡± he suddenly asked.


    ¡°Sure, I guess. It¡¯s not like I have anything better to do. But what do you want from there?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ I haven¡¯t had my fill of the new Decree yet, and I know the perfect place to put it to the test.¡±


    ¡°Where?¡±


    ¡°Remember that tribe of trolls we¡¯ve heard about a while back? I think it¡¯s finally time to pay them a visit.¡±

 Chapter 187: Foresight

    ¡°Do you think this place will recover after we leave?¡± Nesha asked, her voice tinged with uncertainty.


    ¡°Sure.¡± Percy shrugged.


    Micky rarely hunted the Red or Orange beasts of the swamp. He only ever indulged in them if he failed to find something else to eat. The lower-grade animals vastly outnumbered the Yellow variants too, so the ecosystem should bounce back within a few years. At least, Percy hoped it would.


    After all, the bog wasn¡¯t just a patch of wilderness. It was a cornerstone of the town¡¯s fragile economy. While Percy and Nesha¡¯s exploits had brought the townsfolk peace and safety ¨C a pair of arguably more important commodities ¨C that did little for their bleeding pockets.


    Even after uncovering the truth behind the mysterious ¡®guardian spirit¡¯, fear kept the residents away from the swamp. Nobody in their right mind would dare place themselves between two warring Houses for a couple coins. Besides, even if they were braver, there weren¡¯t that many resources here anymore.


    Soon, Percy and Nesha pushed into a part of the bog untouched by human hands. The dense undergrowth felt primal, each gnarled branch and mossy root a barrier against intruders. Even Micky avoided this area ¨C not out of fear, but indifference. The swamp trolls that dwelled here were mostly Reds and Oranges, which didn¡¯t make for great snacks.


    Still, , the creatures were more dangerous than any lone Yellow beast. This was why predators and humans alike tended to leave this place alone, even before Percy¡¯s group came along.


    ¡°Why are we here again?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°Call it curiosity.¡± Percy replied, sidestepping her question.


    In truth, he was here for more than idle exploration. Unlike beasts, demi-humans had the potential to develop a rare affinity for him to study. That alone was plenty reason to check this place out while they still had the chance. But that wasn¡¯t everything.


    Percy hoped to use this opportunity to explore his new ocular abilities, while searching this place for anything else of interest, thus killing three birds with one stone.


    ¡°Alright. Just be careful. From what I¡¯ve heard, these things are a lot more dangerous than their grade implies.¡± the girl said, a hint of worry seeping in her voice.


    Percy nodded, brushing aside a curtain of vines. The swamp seemed to breathe around them, shadows shifting as they ventured deeper. Had Micky been with them, they¡¯d have found the trolls already. Sadly, the crow was out patrolling again.


    Luckily for them, it turned out to be .


    A rustling ahead froze them both in their tracks. Moments later, their quarry emerged. Strictly speaking, it wasn¡¯t that strange. The creatures had no need to hide, as they probably weren¡¯t used to intruders in their territory.


    ¡°Wow. It¡¯s bigger than I expected.¡± Nesha murmured.


    Indeed, the creature was twice as tall as a goblin, standing a full head taller than Percy. Its bulky build exceeded that of an adult human too. Even at Red, this thing would likely cause some serious damage if it landed a hit with its oversized stone club. Its skin looked especially rough, its blueish green hide covered in warts and granules. Two long tusks jutted out of the creature¡¯s mouth, pointing towards them.


    Suffice to say, their sudden appearance startled the creature, though it didn¡¯t seem frightened enough to run away. Standing at a distance, it stared at them warily through its bulbous eyes, likely contemplating whether to attack them or call its tribemates.


    ¡°Crap. This one can¡¯t use magic.¡± Percy clicked his tongue in annoyance. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°How can you tell?¡±


    ¡°Its mana channels are all blocked.¡±


    ¡°You can see that from ¡± Nesha struggled to contain her surprise.


    When a creature wasn¡¯t actively using its mana, it was much harder to spot its channels. Typically, one would need to get very close, examining it carefully to hopefully spot the faintest trickles passively flowing through. It was definitely not the kind of thing one could reliably pull off from thirty paces away.


    ¡°Neat, huh?¡±


    Uninterested in their conversation, the troll then let out a guttural roar, its previous uncertainty seemingly evaporating as its deep voice reverberated through the swamp. Having made its mind up, it didn¡¯t even bother waiting for its friends to arrive. It charged towards the pesky humans, its club raised high.


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    Percy let go of the sack, the pieces of his magical armour clinking against one another as they hit the ground. Then, he motioned for Nesha to stay back as he strode ahead, his demeanour almost casual. He didn¡¯t bother using his spells, figuring his two Orange cores should be plenty to cover for the gap in mass ¨C on the off-chance he got hit. ??????¨°???


    Though he wasn¡¯t planning to.


    When the troll¡¯s massive weapon came down, he sidestepped effortlessly. The club slammed into the swamp floor, sending up a spray of mud and water.


    Percy thought, his gaze studying the troll¡¯s soul.


    His enhanced vision painted the creature in shifting light, every flicker of its silver silhouette betraying its intent. Had this been a week ago, he would have had to dial down the mana gathered in his eyes, to examine the creature from this close.


    But there was no need for that anymore.


    The new eyes took care of that, constantly adjusting themselves, ensuring the creature¡¯s soul was always as clear as a glass of water.


    Another flicker of the troll¡¯s soul betrayed its boiling fury. Percy was experienced enough by now to tell that a follow-up attack was coming.


    Sure enough, the creature swung again, this time with greater force. Percy evaded it with a step back, his movements unhurried. This only seemed to infuriate the troll further, however.


    It persisted in its relentless assault, as Percy dodged its wild swings one after the other, not bothering to fight back. He was content with merely protecting himself, using this opportunity to adjust to his improved eyesight, relearning how to read his opponent¡¯s intentions with far greater skill than ever before.


    The blows never stopped coming, each attack a brand-new lesson, the silver silhouette revealing patterns he¡¯d never noticed in the past.


    ¡°Percy, we¡¯ve got company!¡± Nesha called out.


    Allowing his Mana Sense to expand outwards, Percy soon detected five more of the creatures emerging from the undergrowth, their bestial growls piercing through the oppressive silence of the swamp. Two of them were at Orange too, their frames a little larger ¨C more imposing.


    Putting some distance from his opponent ¨C it wasn¡¯t hard, the poor thing was panting heavily by now ¨C he scanned the newcomers with his eyes, making a couple more details out.


    ¡°The leaders are both mages.¡± he noted out loud ¨C for Nesha¡¯s benefit.


    Evidently, it was only the more talented trolls that bothered to learn magic. Lacking the means to advance, the Red variants probably struggled to get enough value out of their cores to justify the effort.


    ¡°Can you keep them busy for a few minutes?¡± Percy asked. ¡°There¡¯s something I want to test.¡±


    At any rate, the group didn¡¯t pose much of a threat to them. At Yellow, Nesha might even be able to take them on unarmed, let alone if she used her magic. Though things might get a bit dicey if they allowed a few more groups to surround them.


    ¡°Should I just kill them?¡±


    ¡°Nah. No need. If I find an interesting one, I might make a clone out of it, but let¡¯s not butcher the poor things unless we have to.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t like Percy was above harming the creatures if there was some concrete benefit to be had, but he wasn¡¯t a fan of senseless cruelty either.


    The girl nodded, summoning a handful of black butterflies. Sending them after the trolls, she forced them to back away, keeping them all at bay.


    Meanwhile, Percy shifted his eyes back to his opponent, waiting for it to make a move.


    Not missing its cue, the troll rushed at him again, having recovered some of its stamina already.


    Allowing himself to fall into a trance, Percy resumed dodging the creature¡¯s attacks once more, as he tried to further his understanding of the soul¡¯s movements. He had been able to foresee his opponents¡¯ attacks for a long time, but that skill had always been imprecise, . A wild flicker of the silver silhouette betrayed the intention to move, but Percy was quickly coming to realize there was so much more to it than that.


    Not every twitch was equal!


    If the lower part of the soul flared more intensely, it typically meant the creature was about to move its legs, not its arms. And vice versa. Yet, that was just the beginning. Based on how aggressively it flickered, he could discern whether the troll was going to step , closing the gap, or him, trying to put some distance.


    When its movements were wilder, they betrayed the creature¡¯s fury, suggesting it was about to attack him head on. But sometimes they were subtle, twisting slyly, indicating a feint or a sneak attack. The intensity of the flickers was often correlated with the interval between intent and action. The most intense flares were followed by swift attacks, whereas if the silhouette was to simmer over several seconds, it meant the creature was planning ahead.


    And the way they blended together with the movements of its flesh mattered too ¨C something Percy hadn¡¯t been able to focus on before his mutation.


    Percy could tell he was on the verge of something big ¨C a third image vaguely forming before his eyes, outside flesh and soul. Still, evading the attacks before they even formed only gave the troll a chance to adjust its course, causing the image to blur again.


    Deciding to take a risk, Percy neared the creature some more, shrinking the margin of safety he¡¯d given himself, dodging the troll¡¯s furious blows by a hair¡¯s breadth.


    He felt the violent rush of wind brush by his ears and by his scalp, each time coming this close to shattering his skull into splinters, as he delved deeper and deeper into the faint image before his eyes, trying to pin it down.


    More time passed, as Percy danced with death himself as his partner, gambling his life on the altar of magic.


    he suddenly thought, his heart missing a beat.


    As soul and flesh bled together into one, Percy saw it. A projection of the troll¡¯s club, passing through his very , a secondbefore the creature even began its attack!


    It felt , he could almost his teeth cracking and taste the iron in his mouth. Yet none of it happened. Never before had Percy predicted an attack with such precision.


    With unprecedented ease, he ducked the real blow with time to spare, delivering a heavy punch in the creature¡¯s stomach, his fist sinking an inch into the troll¡¯s abs.


    The creature slid back through the mud, a splash of spittle and bile raining on Percy as it stared at him in incredulity. But he wasn¡¯t paying the troll any attention, his thoughts occupied by his breakthrough.


    It might not sound like much in the grand scheme of things, but, in the midst of combat? . And Percy¡¯s Status thought so too.


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new spell: Wild Art: Foresight ¨C Crude!]

 Chapter 188: Casters

    ¡°A little help here would be nice!¡± Nesha yelled, capturing Percy¡¯s attention.


    Only now did he realize that more trolls had gathered, about a dozen of them surrounding them in total. At least, the newcomers were all Reds, only the first two capable of casting magic. Still, they put a lot of pressure on the girl, who struggled to keep them all away with her butterflies.


    ¡°Leave the casters to me.¡± he said, rushing towards the leaders. ¡°If more of them show up, stop going easy.¡±


    Not missing their cue, the Oranges exchanged a quick glance before switching targets, trying to pin Percy down with their spells.


    he clicked his tongue as he leapt out of the way.


    Neither of these affinities were worth his time. Then again, that was to be expected. Assuming the trolls were even capable of using rare affinities, he¡¯d probably have to go through dozens of them until he found one. But that wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing. His new spell had plenty of room for improvement, so he could just hone it against these willing whetstones.


    Taking a few deep breaths, he kept his distance until his boosting art took effect. He wanted to practice, yes, but he wasn¡¯t suicidal. Fighting two Orange casters barehanded could get dangerous.


    The creatures didn¡¯t wait for him, continuing to pelt his location with blasts of blue and red. Still, they failed to prevent him from activating Synchronization, the two sets of lines lighting up along his reddening skin, beads of sweat seeping out of his pores as motes of cyan and silver mixed into wisps of teal.


    Suffice to say, Percy no longer had any difficulty dodging the spells.


    Realizing they wouldn¡¯t get anywhere with magic alone, the troll casters clenched their clubs tightly ¨C they were even larger and heavier than those wielded by their subordinates. Then, they rushed at Percy, intent on drowning him in attacks both arcane and mundane.


    Of course, he didn¡¯t sit still either. Drawing some mana from his abdomen, he shaped it into a cyan rod, ready to greet his opponents. This was the old variant of the Quarterstaff ¨C he didn¡¯t have time for Reinforcement. Still, it should be plenty for this.


    More spells descended on him, forcing him to crush them all into motes of mana one after another. The trolls reached him a second later. Percy scanned them with his eyes, the projections of their swings taking shape, betraying the trajectory of the clubs.


    he grinned.


    Capitalizing on the intimate connection between his Status and his latest mutation, his new spell became second nature for him the instant it registered. Unlike mere minutes ago, he no longer expended much effort to visualize the trolls¡¯ physical attacks, his eyes seemingly doing everything by themselves.


    Having designed the spell by observing the interaction between one¡¯s flesh and soul meant that he had left the third aspect of one¡¯s existence out of the equation, as it didn¡¯t account for the flow of mana. That said, this unfortunate blind spot was precisely what he aimed to fix during this fight.


    he corrected himself as a series of pressurized blobs rained on him.


    With a quick spin of his weapon, he crushed the constructs into a harmless drizzle, his staff cracking already. Percy certainly hadn¡¯t missed . In any case, he didn¡¯t get the chance to dwell on it, as a fireball enlarged before his eyes, about to melt his face off. It was followed by two club projections flinging at him from either side.


    Ducking below the flames, he tiptoed around the trolls, avoiding their attacks with some well-placed footwork. Next, he responded to them with a few swift blows of his own, slamming their joints with the now-repaired rod. One of them fell to its knees, the other groaning in pain, giving Percy a chance to disengage. Checking up on Nesha, he confirmed she was doing alright before diving back into his own fight.


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    More time passed, as Percy fought to expand the scope of his spell, trying to force magic under its purview. Mana manipulation encompassed too many possibilities. Way more than flesh did, at least. After all, one¡¯s limbs could only bend in so many ways, whereas a spell could take an infinite number of shapes, from arrows, to spears, to bolts, to swords¡­ . And there were too many affinities and bloodlines giving the mana all sorts of unique flavours beyond that.


    But magic still operated under strict rules and, before long, Percy began to slowly wrap his head around them.


    A spell needed mana to take shape, and that had to come from somewhere. In most cases, that somewhere was the caster¡¯s sternum. Of course, it could flow through a multitude of channels, but those were still finite. Not to mention, Percy had plenty of time to read its movement ahead of the attack. ???????¦¢§¦?


    Even more importantly, some affinities favoured specific patterns over others. For example, the trolls had never tried to shoot a single spell through their feet. Had one of them possessed an earth affinity, that might have been different, but water and fire were best utilized through one¡¯s palms.


    Additionally, water spells were more flexible and easier to control, though no individual projectile was particularly deadly by itself. The water casting troll tried to trap Percy using a barrage of smaller constructs raining at him from various angles, primarily aiming to knock him off his feet. S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    On the other hand, the fire user couldn¡¯t control its mana nearly as well, focusing on head on attacks instead. That said, what the fireballs lacked in manoeuvrability, they made up for in sheer lethality, pressuring Percy to dodge or block every last one of them without fail.


    Percy grinned as he spotted the first few faint shadows precede his opponents¡¯ spells.


    Of course, it had taken way longer than he cared to admit, and he wasn¡¯t anywhere near done. Still, the contrast between the two affinities made it a little easier for him to predict their patterns, as he got more used to the trolls¡¯ rhythm. Sadly, this was about the most he could accomplish today, as the first traces of exhaustion took root in his mind.


    A quick glance revealed that Nesha wasn¡¯t doing much better. She struggled to keep fifteen butterflies active, clumsily holding just as many Reds at bay. She was panting heavily too, though she hadn¡¯t complained in a long time ¨C to her credit. Evidently, she took this opportunity to practice her magic as seriously as him.


    ¡°Let¡¯s call it a day.¡± he said.


    What scarce rays pierced through the thicket revealed the sun was close to setting. In any case, Percy suspected his forthcoming spell upgrade would be Refined, so he hadn¡¯t really expected to get it done in one go.


    Nesha nodded, spooking the trolls with a burst of mana. At the same time, Percy knocked both his opponents off their feet, before sprinting towards his sack. The two then ran away, leaving an entire tribe of trolls staring dumbfounded at their backs. Still, none of them dared to chase, probably having realized how brutally outmatched they truly were.


    ¡°What was that spell you were practicing?¡± Nesha asked once they had returned to Micky¡¯s clearing.


    The crow was back from his duties too, carelessly munching on some oversized frog atop his boulder, not paying them much attention.


    Percy took a few moments to bring her up to speed, explaining how his Soul Vision worked, and how his new mutation had allowed him to elevate the ability to a proper spell.


    ¡°Wow. This Sorcerer¡¯s Eye sounds insane.¡± she whistled in appreciation. ¡°Say, do you think I¡¯ll get that too, when you give me a second core?¡±


    Percy shrugged.


    Naturally, he hadn¡¯t forgotten his promise to her. With Soul Stitching now at hand, he felt more confident than ever passing her the Moirais¡¯ Decree. Though he wasn¡¯t sure about Ea¡¯s.


    ¡°The clone I made a couple days ago didn¡¯t get the mutation. I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s because I can¡¯t pass this Decree along, or because my Status was still a mess at the time. We¡¯ll have to wait until my current clone returns.¡±


    Nesha nodded, not saying anything else.


    Whether or not House Tantalus gave them a good fight, Percy intended to use his remaining time in the Grisly Bog wisely. He¡¯d already sent another clone out before visiting the trolls, and he wasn¡¯t done with them either. His current plan was to keep fighting against more of the demi-humans over the next few weeks, testing his Foresight against different affinities, while looking for a suitable target to possess.


    They still had some time to kill today, so he took his trusty ocarina from his pocket, plopping down on the boulder. Moments later, a high-pitched tune broke through the gloomy silence, bouncing from tree to tree, permeating the bog. While the poorly crafted instrument twisted a note every now and then, neither Nesha nor Micky complained as much anymore.


    Percy had grown a lot better at this over the past two years, his music no longer an insult to the ears!


    The trio banded closer together, enjoying the humble tune as they gazed at the bright moonlight, appreciating what little time they had left in this place¡­

 Chapter 189: Trollsden

    Percy wasn¡¯t sure if the central area of the swamp had a name. He certainly hadn¡¯t heard the townsfolk mention one if it did, and he was confident the trolls couldn¡¯t give it one either. From what he¡¯d seen, the creatures could only communicate by gestures, grunts and growls. Thus, at the risk of looking silly later, he¡¯d taken it upon himself to give the place a monicker, to make it easier to refer to.


    .


    Over the next few weeks, he and Nesha continued to visit the place daily ¨C whenever Percy wasn¡¯t busy with his chores, at least. Micky joined them too, whenever he was both free and sufficiently bored.


    Every time they ventured into the Trollsden, they entered from a different side, to avoid meeting the same trolls over and over. As they¡¯d come to learn, the creatures were split in several small tribes, each consisting of six to eight individuals. Most of them were typically Reds, with a single Orange caster leading them. And these pocket-sized groups tended to be highly territorial, never straying far from their own homes.


    Suffice to say, the two groups that had joined up to attack them on the first day had been outliers, as nothing similar had happened since. Percy guessed the two Orange leaders might have been siblings or something, overcoming the societal expectations of their kin to give themselves an advantage over other tribes.


    That said, it wasn¡¯t like he particularly cared about the trolls¡¯ social structures much either. During each venture, they sought out a new tribe to challenge, giving Percy an opportunity to test his developing Foresight spell against different elemental affinities and flavours of casting.


    ¡°I think it¡¯s close to evolving!¡± he said, a shit-eating grin plastered all over his face.


    Laying face-up on the ground in front of him, a troll chieftain gasped for air. As for its subordinates, they weren¡¯t doing much better. Evidently, Nesha had improved a lot too, keeping the creatures occupied without exerting herself all that much.


    ¡°Have you found an affinity you like?¡± she asked.


    The question wiped the smile off his face, however.


    ¡°Nope.¡± he sighed. ¡°Only elemental and pure affinities across the board.¡±


    ¡°I mean¡­ that¡¯s not too strange. We¡¯ve only fought a few dozen tribes so far. Statistically, they shouldn¡¯t have been enough.¡±


    ¡°I know. I guess I just hoped we¡¯d get lucky.¡± he shrugged.


    The two disengaged from their defeated opponents, putting some distance from them. The good thing about the trolls was they never attacked them a second time. Apparently, they were smart enough to understand how outmatched they were after getting their asses handed to them for several hours in a row. That, coupled with Percy¡¯s unwillingness to harm them did wonders in dousing their aggression. Well¡­ most of the time at least. Every now and then, they did stumble upon a stubborn chieftain who didn¡¯t know when to quit.


    After waiting for Micky to join them, the trio took a break from their tasks to drink their midday dose of Aurora Dew together. Naturally, Percy hadn¡¯t stopped brewing for them, their stash of elixirs dwindling with each passing day.


    Luckily, the recent spike in his brewing yield would stretch their supplies for a month longer than they had originally planned. However, stealing more elixirs from House Tantalus¡¯s warehouse was looking more and more unlikely. The war didn¡¯t seem like it was close to ending, and Percy had yet to find a way to infiltrate the enemy family. S§×ar?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy had intentionally avoided dealing with his family back in the Guild, precisely to avoid bringing them unnecessary trouble. And that had proven to be the right choice. Unlike him and Nesha who could just run and hide from the Divine Root, his grandpa couldn¡¯t exactly do that ¨C he had an entire House to lead. ??????????


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    Then again, Percy wasn¡¯t sure where to find a different source of elixirs as things stood. He did have ideas, but they needed a lot of the darn things. In any case, he¡¯d just have to discuss everything with Baldy once he returned home. This wasn¡¯t something he could solve right now. Nor was it particularly urgent either.


    ¡°Wanna delve a little deeper today?¡± he suddenly asked, shaking the pointless thoughts out of his head.


    So far, they¡¯d only explored the outskirts of the Trollsden, but the place was quite massive. And they were already running out of new tribes to challenge in the outer ring.


    ¡°Sure. I suppose it¡¯s still early today.¡± Nesha shrugged.


    Bidding the crow farewell, the two then entered the Trollsden again, walking past the trolls, ignoring the nasty glares they were giving them. The further they ventured into the swamp, the more the stench of rot and decay intensified too. And that wasn¡¯t a coincidence.


    While the trolls were opportunistic carnivores, occasionally snacking on any unfortunate critter dumb enough to approach them, there wasn¡¯t enough meat in the Grisly Bog to sustain their numbers. Neither could they easily expand outwards, their fear of stepping on the humans¡¯ toes deeply ingrained in their bones. Thus, the creatures had found another way to keep their bellies full, without risking their lives.


    ¡°Yuck. Are these things even edible?¡± Nesha wrinkled her nose, examining the base of a nearby tree.


    The wood appeared old and damaged, as did the multitude of deteriorating carcasses carelessly piled up among its roots. Some of the corpses might have been there for months, reduced to skeletons by now, while others were a little fresher, the meat still slowly melting off the bones.


    And amidst this intentionally designed mess, Percy and Nesha saw the food the trolls cultivated to sustain themselves. Growing on spoilt flesh and decaying roots alike, countless whitecap mushrooms blanketed the area. Some of them jutted out of a skull¡¯s eye sockets, others neatly lining the spaces between a creature¡¯s ribs.


    By far the most disturbing detail, however, was the fact that many of the corpses appeared to have belonged to the trolls themselves! They fed their own dead to the mushrooms, and then ate those!


    ¡°Trust me, you don¡¯t want to see the kinds of things some of my clones have eaten.¡± Percy chuckled.


    He wasn¡¯t as bothered by the sight before him. His adventures had long numbed him to the idea of doing what one had to, to survive. If anything, the tiny mushrooms looked cute ¨C nostalgic even, reminding him of his time in the Guild.


    Of course, these mundane fungi were as far removed from their colossal cousins as they could be, not a speck of mana flowing through them. Still, they were clearly as important to the trolls as the Fungal Spire was to the rest of Remior.


    Continuing their journey, Percy and Nesha saw more scenes like that, at some point every single tree in their path having been transformed into a grim mushroom farm. Though they hadn¡¯t met any more trolls in a while, for some reason.


    ¡°Are the tribes in the outskirts assigned there on purpose, to guard the perimeter or something?¡± Nesha wondered out loud at some point.


    ¡°Well, it would explain why all their food has been left unguarded, but that still leaves a lot of questions¡­¡± Percy wasn¡¯t quite as convinced.


    For one, most of the troll tribes they¡¯d encountered had shown no intention of cooperating with one another. How would they have all organized to such an extent?


    Even more importantly, they would have never allowed them to pass had that been the case. Outmatched or not, who would give an intruder free access to their food?


    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s strange. They should have done everything in their power to stop us¡­¡± Nesha agreed after listening to his reasoning.


    Suddenly, Percy stopped in his tracks, causing her to raise an eyebrow.


    ¡°Unless they didn¡¯t need to¡­¡± he muttered.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Nesha asked.


    But Percy didn¡¯t respond, merely gesturing at her to be quiet. Far in the distance, he faintly spotted a shadow shifting within the depths. It was too dark to make out, but his eyes captured more than just light nowadays.


    Right there, walking amidst the trees, he saw it. It was a tall silhouette, shimmering in a faint silver. It was even bulkier than the trolls he had met so far, though it was hunched over. He even spotted a hint of Yellow sparkling in its chest. Soon, two more silhouettes appeared by the first one¡¯s sides. These weren¡¯t quite as big, though they were still larger than the regular trolls ¨C all of them at Yellow.


    Well, that certainly explained who had commanded the other tribes, as well as why the weaker creatures had allowed them to reach the centre of the Trollsden.


    ¡°They thought we wouldn¡¯t survive anyway.¡± Percy said, his lips curling upward.


    Dropping the sack by his feet, he took a deep breath, and then another, activating his boosting art. The trolls had clearly hoped their leaders would take care of them, but they had gravely miscalculated.


    After all, a few Yellow mages were exactly what Percy currently needed!

 Chapter 190: Honourable

    Before Synchronization was even done activating, Percy rummaged through his sack, hastily putting as many pieces of his armour on as he could manage. Not that he wasn¡¯t confident beating a few Yellow demi-humans without it, but there wasn¡¯t any harm in playing it safe. Regardless, he only got to don his gauntlets by the time the creatures reached them.


    he shrugged.


    The trolls themselves were downright massive, Percy¡¯s head barely reaching up to their chest. The one in the middle was even taller than the others, despite its hunchback. Their thick hide was marred in warts and granules like their weaker kin, but, unlike the others, these three were covered from head to toe in crisscrossing scars. Some were deeper too ¨C trophies from a lifetime of fighting, apparently.


    Even more strangely, these trolls had something else growing on their bodies that the others had lacked. . And not the mundane, edible whitecaps Percy and Nesha had seen on the way here. No, shone brightly in his vision, shimmering in a deep Orange colour. Not only that, but they softly glowed in the regular part of his sight too, sporting a strange green lustre.


    Unfazed by Percy¡¯s observation, the trolls strolled casually towards them, each of their thunderous steps lifting a screen of mud. Their heavy frames sank a few inches into the bog from one footfall to the next, but they didn¡¯t seem to mind it much, apparently well-used to their habitat by now. Their attention was glued to their guests instead, their bulbous eyes scanning Percy and Nesha up and down.


    ¡°Take the one to the left. I¡¯ll handle the oth¨C¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t even get to complete his sentence when the trolls suddenly halted, still thirty or so yards away from them. Then, the one in the middle ¨C their king probably ¨C gestured at one of his attendants to step forward.


    ¡°Are they challenging us to single combat?¡± Nesha asked in incredulity.


    That was a sign of intelligence neither of them was used to seeing in demi-humans. Then again, the creatures weren¡¯t that much dumber than sapients, and these three in particular stood atop their species¡¯ ladder. Their higher grade coupled with decades of wisdom had clearly left their mark.


    ¡°Well, I guess declining at this point would be rude.¡±


    Stepping forward, he waited for Nesha and the other trolls to put some distance from them, giving them space. The two combatants then eyed one another for a couple seconds, sizing each other up. This troll was the leanest of the three, though it still looked stronger than the Orange variants. Sapients didn¡¯t transform when advancing ¨C that was a unique feature of beasts, due to their affinity. Suffice to say, Percy didn¡¯t know if it was just a coincidence these three were a little larger, or something else.


    Maybe semi-sentients carried some traces of beast mana in their bodies? Or, perhaps, the Yellow-born trolls just lived long enough to hone their physique further than the rest?


    In any case, it didn¡¯t really matter. The creature was unarmed, its posture carrying the aura of an experienced mage. Satisfied with his assessment, Percy waited patiently for his opponent to make the first move. And the troll didn¡¯t stand on ceremony either. It didn¡¯t move an inch from its spot, but Percy didn¡¯t miss its soul and core flaring up, a trickle of mana flowing down to its feet.


    he raised an eyebrow.


    He¡¯d seen enough of both affinities by now to tell their channels apart. That said, he was surprised to see a water mage use their mana like this. Not that it was impossible for them to take advantage of their environment like earth users regularly did, but it was much harder right now, given the circumstances. All the water in the swamp was mixed with soil, slowing down its movements.


    he sighed.


    Another common affinity. It seemed there wasn¡¯t anything of interest in the Grisly Bog¡­


    Yet, Percy¡¯s disappointment didn¡¯t last long. As soon as the troll was done spreading its mana, it finally activated its spell. Suddenly, dozens of aquamarine bolts shot at Percy from every direction, zigging and zagging through the air like snakes!


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    Percy hurriedly leapt backwards, dodging about half the projectiles, crushing a few more with his armoured hands. Still, two of them reached him, leaving some nasty cuts. The first stretched diagonally across his chest, the other vertically along his upper forearm.


    ¡°How?¡±


    The troll was grinning smugly, clearly amused by his surprise. Though it didn¡¯t seem to have any intention of letting him go. Pressing on its advantage, it unleashed more spells, the magical attacks raining upon Percy one after the other. And they all had one thing in common. They all shone in a bright aquamarine light, not a speck of dirt bogging them down.


    The difficulty in extracting clear water from the mud so quickly was simply staggering. Not to mention controlling so many constructs at the same time with such finesse. Evidently, Percy had underestimated the creatures, betrayed by his preconceived notions about them.


    ¡°Want help?¡± Nesha asked, though that only prompted the other trolls to growl angrily.


    ¡°No. I¡¯ll handle it.¡± Percy spat between pants, as he continued to evade the attacks to the best of his ability.


    As it turned out, this wasn¡¯t the walk in the park he was expecting. Then again, this was a good thing.


    If he wanted, he could probably end the fight with a few invisible throwing stars. While the troll had proven to be a formidable opponent in some areas, Percy doubted it was fast enough to dodge his own attacks, given its bulk. ??¦­§à????§¦?


    But why would he do that? Wasn¡¯t this exactly the kind of training he needed?


    Settling at a more comfortable distance from the troll, Percy danced through the onslaught of spells, focused on evading only the most dangerous attacks, while allowing some of them to scrape him out of necessity.


    The projectiles were both numerous and chaotic, though there was still a clear rhythm behind them ¨C an unavoidable delay between one attack and the next, albeit small. After all, the troll had to channel the mana through the dense swamp water before unleashing it against Percy.


    Letting his gaze sink deeper into his opponent¡¯s frame, Percy allowed Foresight to do its job, faint projections appearing in his vision, preceding the water snakes by mere inches. After a month of nonstop training, the spell had already started working on magic, though it wasn¡¯t nearly as effortless, nor as complete as it was for physical blows.


    he grinned.


    Little by little, Percy got used to the pace and the patterns of the projectiles. With each blow he avoided, the projections grew clearer, as both his reactions and his eyesight were slowly honed to perfection. At the same time, he never allowed himself to relax. Whenever he got used to the troll¡¯s speed, he took a step forward, inching closer to the creature with each passing minute. No matter what, he had to keep pushing himself to the very edge of his ability, treading the fine line between life and death. That was always the fastest way to improve.


    Percy wondered at some point, as the onslaught of spells ended abruptly.


    So absorbed had he been on predicting his opponent¡¯s attacks, he had failed to spot the traces of exhaustion accumulating on the creature¡¯s soul. The troll panted heavily, its core completely dried out, its previous nonchalance nowhere to be seen.


    Its companions too had realized they had stumbled upon a formidable opponent today. They glared at him silently, their expressions sombre. Though, to their credit, they hadn¡¯t moved to interfere yet, apparently intent on honouring the terms of the fight.


    nodded in appreciation, feeling some newfound respect towards the creatures.


    Next, his eyes fell back on his opponent, the troll still trying to catch its breath. Honestly, this was only to be expected. While the creature¡¯s sheer skill in mana manipulation was arguably impressive, at the end of the day, it was still ¡®just¡¯ a Yellow. It never stood a chance of keeping up with Percy in a prolonged battle.


    ¡°Take your time. I¡¯ll wait.¡± he shouted, not knowing whether the trolls could understand him.


    Then again, actions spoke louder than words. If they couldn¡¯t understand his words, they certainly got the message once he turned around, walking to a nearby tree before leaning on its trunk. He¡¯d have taken a seat too, but the roots were covered in mushrooms and rotting carcasses.


    Under other circumstances, allowing his opponent to recover might have been foolish. But not right now. After all, he had never intended to harm the trolls, nor did he much care about winning. His priority right now was only the evolution of his spell ¨C nothing more, nothing less. And he doubted he¡¯d find a better sparring partner.


    Yet, this simple gesture seemed to be received well by the creatures.


    ¡°Garruuk!¡± the troll grunted, capturing his attention.


    Then, it turned towards its leader, apparently waiting for permission to do something. Only after the bulky troll nodded did the water mage look back at Percy. Next, it moved one of three stubby fingers on its oversized hand, pointing at a green mushroom growing on its shoulder.


    The troll didn¡¯t leave him in suspense for long, its following action answering his question. Pinching the mushroom with all three of its digits, it squeezed it tightly, as Percy followed a splash of mana flowing into its skin, spreading through its body. Soon, the troll¡¯s exhaustion was visibly lifted, as its muscles relaxed, and its rugged breath settled down.


    And, of course, Percy would be a fool if he failed to recognize what had happened. Between his mutated eyes, the extraction principle he had mastered, and the dozens of potions he had consumed, he couldn¡¯t have possibly mistaken the potent life mana restoring the troll¡¯s stamina.


    He still had no idea what the trolls were up to, revealing such a valuable secret to him so easily, but he was certain of one thing as he stared at the glowing mushrooms with greed.


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 Chapter 191: Exchange

    Over the next several hours, Percy and the troll fought many more rounds. Every time the creature¡¯s mana ran out, he gave it a few minutes to refill it. At the same time, the troll consumed one of its verdant mushrooms once every few breaks, to remove its exhaustion too.


    As for Percy, he¡¯d already mastered keeping Synchronization active since before leaving the Guild. He hadn¡¯t had a choice, as many of his activities depended on it. Of course, that was not to say he wasn¡¯t tired. Dodging the troll¡¯s relentless onslaught took a lot of effort, and he lacked the means to recover. Still, he pressed on, knowing this was a rare opportunity he couldn¡¯t afford to waste.


    He had no idea how the trolls even cultivated them on their bodies, nor how easily they could be replenished, but he struggled to understand why his opponent would go so far for his sake. It wasn¡¯t until the creature increased the pressure on him that he realized what was going on.


    The troll wasn¡¯t doing it for his sake at all!


    It was training too!


    Evidently, these guys were battle maniacs, just like him!


    At first, it hadn¡¯t been immediately obvious, as his own improvements vastly eclipsed the troll¡¯s. After all, it couldn¡¯t compete with the positive feedback loop between his Foresight spell, his Status and his Sorcerer¡¯s Eye. However, the creature still worked hard to hone its own magic, trying to increase the number of projectiles it could launch at once.


    Percy counted, confirming his guess.


    He was confident the troll hadn¡¯t been able to throw more than thirty snakes at him during their first bout. Its improvements were modest, yet undeniable. But increasing the number of projectiles it could fire wasn¡¯t the only thing the creature was working on. S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Suddenly, the bolts closed in on him unexpectedly, blocking all his escape paths. The projections that had previously grown clearer shattered at this moment, rendering him unable to predict the spells¡¯ trajectories.


    Percy twisted his body as he leapt backwards, evading most of the snakes while guarding his vitals with his gauntlets. Still, he was forced to let a few of the attacks land painfully on his legs, drawing some blood. At least, each individual projectile wasn¡¯t too dangerous.


    The creature had clearly varied its attack pattern just now, trying to catch him off guard. And it had succeeded too, nullifying his previous efforts to memorize its movements. That said, this wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing. The more the troll pushed back against his Foresight, the stronger the spell would grow once reforged.


    Diving back into the fight, Percy opened up the distance to the creature some more, until he managed to adjust to the new pattern. Peering into the troll¡¯s body, he observed how the mana flowed through its channels, and how its soul¡¯s flickers different from before, trying to rebuild his understanding.


    Like that, one man and one troll continued to fight, round after round, hour after hour, in a relentless tug of war between offense and defence, each trying to outgrow one another. Sadly for the troll, however, this was a contest it had never stood a chance of winning¡­


    ***


    Percy tiptoed between the azure snakes, navigating the muddy battlefield with the elegance of a dancer. Over eighty projectiles shone brightly in his eyes, though only half of them were real. The rest were nothing more than projections of a future he had glimpsed.


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    Bobbing and weaving, he dodged the majority of them, occasionally swatting one or two with his gauntlets, as he steadily advanced towards the troll. Loud splashes could be heard around him, as azure jets of pressurized water pelted their surroundings one after the other. Many of them landed on the trees, the rotting bark having long been shaved clean, revealing the fresher wood beneath, a few shades lighter.


    But Percy didn¡¯t pay the noise any heed, having already learned to tune it out some time ago, his focus entirely reserved for his opponent.


    Seeing him approach, the creature panicked. It pushed more mana out of its core, increasing both the size and speed of its spells, whilst mixing and matching their patterns in a desperate attempt to stop the human in his tracks. ?¨¤?¦Ï¦Â?????


    But it wasn¡¯t meant to be.


    Percy had long seen through his opponent¡¯s magic, the snakes now appearing clearer in his eyes than they ever had before. And they grew clearer still, with each passing moment!


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Wild Art: Foresight ¨C Crude -> Wild Art: Greater Foresight ¨C Refined!]


    With a satisfying click, something snapped in place within his mind.


    Percy blinked, the tension leaving his brows. When he next opened his eyes, the projections were still there, no longer flickering in and out of existence. Better yet, they seemed to have travelled a few metres further from the actual spells, expanding Percy¡¯s window by another second!


    Closing the rest of the distance to the troll was now trivial, the creature no longer holding any surprises for him. Percy ignored the remaining spells completely, walking through them with an ease that would have seemed impossible just hours ago.


    Realizing it had already lost, the creature finally halted its assault, letting its arms fall weakly by its sides. Upon reaching it, Percy clenched his armoured fist, as the troll closed its eyes, resigned to its fate. It stood there motionless, waiting for the blow to land.


    A blow that¡­ never came.


    Opening its eyes, the troll blinked twice, seeing Percy¡¯s extended hand. It tilted its head in confusion, glancing back and forth between Percy¡¯s clenched gauntlet and his grinning expression. Only a few seconds later did it seem to understand something, raising its own fist too, letting it hang in the air for a while. Grabbing the opportunity, Percy bumped fists against the troll, his smile widening in the process.


    ¡°Graaakhaak!!¡± ¡°Groook!¡± the other trolls exclaimed, their deep voices echoing throughout the gloomy depths of the Trollsden.


    Looking at them, Percy noticed their expressions weren¡¯t those of anger, but excitement. He could tell they both wanted their own turn at him, having grown sick of waiting for him to finish.


    Percy was about to say something, but the troll king beat him to it. Ignoring his second attendant, he leapt forth, covering half the distance towards him. Next, he let out a guttural roar as he slammed his fists against his chest, each blow sending a tremor through the ground.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re going to fight the rest of them too?¡± Nesha groaned.


    She hadn¡¯t interrupted him either, having patiently remained on the side, ready to intervene had something gone wrong. Percy smiled bitterly. He felt bad about dousing the trolls¡¯ excitement, but he could use some sleep right now. He was about to try explaining himself, though the troll king cut him off with a proposal.


    ¡°Gahak!!¡± he grunted, gesturing at his wrists.


    It took Percy a moment to realize what he was trying to say.


    ¡°You mean these? You want them?¡± he asked, pointing at his gauntlets.


    The creature nodded back, confirming his guess.


    But Percy shook his head.


    ¡°They are too small for you.¡± he said, placing his arm next to the other troll¡¯s for comparison.


    ¡°I can try making one your size, but it¡¯ll just break after a few weeks.¡± he added a moment later.


    To demonstrate his point, he used his willpower to chip a small piece from one of the components. Still, he wasn¡¯t sure if the king understood him. The creature stared at him in silent contemplation for a few seconds, before gesturing at his other attendant. The third troll then walked forward, drawing some mana from its core. It was only now that Percy realized this guy had a pure affinity too.


    ¡°You want me to teach him how to build these?¡± he asked in amusement, pointing between himself and the troll.


    It was true these guys were smarter than the average demi-human, but he wasn¡¯t sure they could learn something as intricate as his Phantomscale Gauntlet spell. Crystallization shouldn¡¯t be too difficult for them, but Reinforcement would definitely be a challenge. Even if they could somehow master the Refined spell, how was he supposed to teach them runecrafting? Could they even forge something as delicate as his fingerguards?


    The troll king seemed to have misunderstood the source of his hesitation, however. Thinking Percy was just being stingy, he turned around, before pointing at his back. It was full of mushrooms, both their size and numbers far exceeding the ones on his attendants¡¯ bodies! They glowed more brightly too, and there were two types of them!


    Other than the verdant mushrooms rich in life mana that Percy had already seen, there was a second variant, these burning in a blazing red. Naturally, he had no idea what these did, but he wanted them.


    ¡°You want to exchange these for Reinforcement?¡±

 Chapter 192: Duel

    Percy cracked a smile at the absurdity of the idea. Everyone on Remior wanted to get their hands on the secret behind the Aurora Dew. The thought of sharing it with a tribe of trolls in the middle of nowhere was as rebellious as it was hilarious.


    He¡¯d worked so hard for this head-start. . This was a gamble he couldn¡¯t afford to take. What if somebody stumbled upon this place at some point? Perhaps House Tantalus would conduct an investigation here after the war was over. Or the Divine Root might pass through the Grisly Bog while searching for him. Or, maybe, the townsfolk would delve deeper into the swamp, looking for resources.


    Yet, it seemed Percy was just overthinking things.


    Seeing his confusion, the troll king grunted, breaking him out of his thoughts. He pointed at Percy¡¯s bag, before gesturing at the mushrooms on his own body. Finally, he slammed his chest with vigour, stomping his feet in the mud, clearing Percy¡¯s misunderstanding. Apparently, it wasn¡¯t a trade the creature had in mind.


    ¡°You want to fight for it? Winner takes all?¡± Percy asked.


    The troll king nodded, seemingly understanding the question. Next, he drew a tremendous amount of mana out of his sternum, emptying his core completely. Then, he pulled everything to his hand, as Percy recognized the channels indicative of an earth affinity. A bright flash of brown lit the place up, before condensing into a construct.


    A colossal chunk of rock formed ¨C taller than a person ¨C suspended in the air between them. Cracking and crunching sounds emerged as the oversized shard of stone collapsed upon itself, its size shrinking rapidly. . Its top end narrowed more than the rest, soon turning into a hilt just thin enough to fit in the troll king¡¯s grasp.


    Next, whatever force was holding the construct airborne vanished. The club hit the ground with a deafening boom, the splashing mud doing very little to soften the impact. A shower of stinking dirt drenched Percy and Nesha as a tremor reverberated through the Trollsden.


    Ignoring the still-shaking trees, Percy watched in stunned silence as the demi-human picked his weapon up. He lifted it with an ease more befitting a feather than a boulder, raising a gust of wind as he swung it back and forth.


    The troll king was definitely strong, but this wasn¡¯t a feat he could have pulled off with physical strength alone. Wielding the monstrous club like this clearly took both physical and magical effort. Apparently, the troll king wasn¡¯t a caster like the others, though that didn¡¯t make him any less dangerous. Backing his bulk with the full force of his core, he could make each swing deadlier than a Yellow¡¯s strongest spell. Evidently, the creature was more of a warrior than a mage ¨C his style not that different from Percy¡¯s, actually.


    ¡°GAAAAAALAAAAAAAK!!!¡± the troll king roared in excitement, his thunderous voice an affront to the ears.


    ¡°Alright. I¡¯m up for that.¡± Percy said. ¡°But tomorrow. I¡¯m too tired today to give you a proper duel.¡±


    The creature didn¡¯t understand him at first, forcing Percy to spend the next hour or so trying to explain the concept of ¡°tomorrow¡±. Suffice to say, the troll king¡¯s disappointment was palpable as soon as he realized he had to wait longer. Still, he allowed them to leave in the end, probably aware he wouldn¡¯t get the exciting spar he wanted if he tried to force it.


    ¡°Couldn¡¯t you kill him with your soul mana and just take the mushrooms?¡± Nesha asked on the way home.


    ¡°Sure.¡± he shrugged.


    Percy had never truly been in danger. Even in his exhausted state, it wouldn¡¯t have taken much effort to take the creatures out with a couple sneaky spells. He was pretty sure they wouldn¡¯t be able to react to his sickles. Had the trolls been more aggressive, they would have certainly paid the price. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


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    ¡°But I kinda want to spar with him too. This is a great opportunity to put my new armour to the test.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t like he hadn¡¯t tried using it before, but there was a reason his Status hadn¡¯t registered the upgrade yet. The armour was a lot trickier to wear in a fight than a mere gauntlet or two. Putting it on wasn¡¯t a problem, but for it to be worth the trouble, he had to be able to hold all the pieces together while enduring powerful blows from a Green core. This was something he hadn¡¯t been able to test against the weaker trolls, as their attacks weren¡¯t nearly strong enough to push him to his limits.


    Remembering the troll king¡¯s oversized weapon, however, Percy¡¯s lip curled upwards.


    ***


    Percy and Nesha were back in the Trollsden, standing some distance away from the cohort of Yellow trolls. The creatures grinned and roared in boiling anticipation, watching him don his armour, one piece at a time. ??????????


    His muscles were already tense, his boosting art active. A thin layer of teal coated his entire body, as he slid the components of his most intricate spell on, one by one. Every time he wore a piece, he manifested a few strings of fused mana, fastening it in place, attaching it first to himself and then to its neighbours. Naturally, he¡¯d already designed the armour to be as easy to equip as possible.


    Still, that was a lot of moving parts to keep track of during a heated battle.


    Once he was done, he borrowed the mirror Nesha had brought along, checking that everything was in order. His body was covered from head to toe in armour, its pieces softly glowing with an ethereal teal colour. Magical runes could faintly be seen decorating it in various spots, as spiky protrusions jutted out here and there, protecting his joints.


    Flexing his limbs, Percy nodded in appreciation as he confirmed how little his movements were inhibited. His vision wasn¡¯t affected much either, as he had left plenty of space in front of his eyes, which shone even more brightly than the armour itself, hidden beneath the visor¡¯s shadowy veil. Teal smoke poured out of a few carefully placed vents on his shoulders and upper back, already accumulating mana for his Mantle of Deceit, shaping it into a proper cape.


    And with just a thought, everything vanished. From his magical boots, all the way to the very tip of his helmet, the entire armour seemingly disappeared, revealing Percy¡¯s swollen body beneath it. The next moment, the armour reappeared, as if it was never gone. Being able to turn the spell invisible could be handy when facing an unaware opponent, but there wasn¡¯t much point in hiding it from someone who already knew about it.


    ¡°GRAAAAAH!!!¡± the troll king cheered in excitement, summoning his own club once again, preparing for the fight.


    Stepping forth, Percy cracked his knuckles and his neck both, before taking his fighting stance.


    Unable to wait any longer, the troll rushed at him, as Nesha and the attendants hurried out of the way. The colossal club descended on Percy with a frightening speed as he crossed his hands to block it, intent on taking the attack head on.


    Through Mana Sense, he caught the absorption runes glow brighter, seemingly doing their job as the impact sent him sliding back. His bones ached and his organs were rattled as he slammed into a tree, splinters of wood flying all over the place as the trunk nearly split in half. The armour held, however, as did Percy¡¯s body. As painful as the blow was, it had failed to cause any serious damage.


    Percy smiled bitterly as he saw his two shoulderguards glitter from beneath the surface of the murky water, some distance away from him. At the same time, the fingerguards in his left hand made clinking sounds as they collided with one another, hanging loosely within his palm. Unfortunately, he had failed to maintain all the knots in place while eating the powerful blow.


    ¡°Again.¡± he said as he fixed the fingerguards. As for the shoulderguards, he left them in the mud for now. He could retrieve them later, after getting some more practice.


    The troll king didn¡¯t need to be told twice, charging forth. Swinging his weapon once more, he tried to bat him right through the tree. That said, Percy was done getting pushed around. Kicking against the trunk, he bolted forth, punching the club with both hands.


    Another shocking impact caused the Trollsden to quake, this time both combatants shooting backwards. In the end, the tree didn¡¯t survive the second hit, as Percy tumbled through it. That said, the troll king failed to remain on his feet too. The creature raised a tall wave as he sank into a puddle of mud.


    Neither of them stayed on the ground for long, however, both of them climbing back to their feet a moment later, already on course for their third clash. The club slammed into the magical armour once more, as Percy focused on holding all the pieces in place, fighting against the snapping strings and loosening knots. This time, his chestguard came undone, as did both of his kneeguards. But he wasn¡¯t deterred in the slightest, a savage grin carved into his face.

 Chapter 193: Troll king

    A boulder rapidly enlarged in Percy¡¯s pupils, but he ignored it, allowing it to pass through him harmlessly. Naturally, it was just a projection, arriving seconds before the actual attack. Greater Foresight made the troll king¡¯s telegraphed swings laughably easy to dodge, though evading them would only defeat the whole purpose of the spar.


    Bracing himself, Percy then received the real club head on, the blood rolling and tumbling in his veins as he skidded on the muddy terrain. With a sickening crunch, he landed on another pile of rotting corpses, the old ribcages crumbling under the weight.


    Pulling himself to his feet, he saw the creature hadn¡¯t bothered to pursue. The troll had plopped down instead, breathing heavily. Sighing, Percy let go of his boosting art too, just as happy to take a break as his opponent. Next, he dragged his feet across the ravaged battlefield, scouring the place for the missing pieces of his magical armour, scooping them from the filth. Luckily, he received some welcome help.


    ¡°There you go.¡± Nesha said, handing him the shoulderguards.


    ¡°Thanks.¡± he replied, strapping them back in place.


    The pesky things were always the first to come off.


    ¡°How close are you?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Close.¡± he spat, too tired to elaborate.


    It had been hours since he began fighting the troll king, and they¡¯d already gone at it for several rounds. At first, he couldn¡¯t last a single exchange without his armour crumbling. Every blow would cause at least a couple of pieces to fall off.


    To survive the troll¡¯s onslaught, he had been forced to improvise, blocking the attacks with whatever body parts were still covered, often doing so in all sorts of awkward orientations. It wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d had a choice. He knew he¡¯d have been reduced to a pulp by now if it hadn¡¯t been for the layered defence afforded to him by his spell.


    That said, he improved over time.


    By midday, he¡¯d been able to take a hit or two without any knots breaking, giving him some hope. Still, he was a fair distance away from his goal, and the troll king¡¯s attacks weren¡¯t even as strong as a real Green¡¯s.


    he declared with determination.


    Fastening the last piece in place, he reactivated Synchronization, staring at the troll king expectantly. Responding to his unspoken challenge, the creature leapt back to his feet, grabbing hold of his weapon.


    Digging his heels in place, Percy waited for the hulking monster to arrive, his eyes glued on the attack. Watching the club¡¯s shadow carefully, he adjusted his stance, preparing to absorb the blow in the most favourable angle.


    Soon, the two spells connected, Percy feeling as if an entire house had fallen on him. Still, he tensed his muscles and steeled his will, trying to keep the knots on the right side of his body from snapping.


    They held!


    Regardless, he slid back again as always, the swamp not being the best place to get a proper foothold. Before he even came to a halt, the troll was already upon him for the follow-up.


    This time, Percy shifted, opting to use the left side of his body instead. With a well-placed uppercut, he punched the club above his head, deflecting its trajectory. Next, he took the opportunity to sink a blow of his own right under the creature¡¯s ribs, sending him reeling back. R??????????


    Not giving the troll a chance to recover, he leapt after him, trying to land a knee to his face. The demi-human hastily blocked with his club, before pushing Percy away. Neither of them paused to catch their breaths, both rushing back, desperate to mount the pressure on each other.


    Another swing. Percy blocked with both arms, the impact nearly knocking his shoulderguards off again. Expecting that, he strengthened the connection at the last second, barely keeping them in place.


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    The troll attacked again, this time with a vertical blow. Sidestepping, Percy circled the creature with his footwork, sweeping at its legs with a low kick. One knee buckled, though the other didn¡¯t, the troll swatting him aside with a backhand.


    Still, Percy didn¡¯t let go of the opportunity, rushing back to headbutt the demi-human, pressing him to the ground.


    He was about to land another hit, when he caught the club¡¯s shadow by the corner of his eye. Realizing he was about to be sent flying, Percy barely strengthened the knots again. Just in time too. The weapon slammed into him the very next second, tossing him a dozen metres up in the air. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    By the time he landed, the troll king was ready to greet him with a second swing, blasting him through a tree. All the strings strapping his armour to his body stretched and tensed, as he fought to keep them intact.


    He didn¡¯t even get a chance to recover before the creature reached him again, landing a third blow, and then a fourth one. The troll king chased him through the swamp, batting him again and again, as Percy slowly lost track of his surroundings. Soon, his entire world was reduced to the magical connections within his head, as he desperately tried to hold them together.


    More blows connected.


    Each one bruised his bones, shaking his innards. Still, his head hurt the most, almost as if every impact was delivered directly to his mind rather than his flesh. The pieces of his armour shook and recoiled as they received the full brunt of the troll king¡¯s fury, yet Percy simply refused to let them fall off.


    At some point, his body and mind were both numb to the pain, leaving only clarity behind. There was a rhythm behind the creature¡¯s attacks, the blows interspaced by necessary delays. And Percy recognized this pattern. It was the very same he had learnt to read back when he was developing his Foresight spell. Yet, right now, he wasn¡¯t observing it with his eyes but feeling it with his body. The blows continued to rain on him, as he grabbed hold of this sensation, using it to survive.


    An attack landed.


    The strings tensed.


    The armour vibrated.


    he realized.


    Anticipating the blow, he reinforced the knots right before it landed, weathering the oncoming storm. Then, he allowed them to relax the very next moment, accumulating strength for the following attack. Giving the strings a chance to ¡®rest¡¯ was just as important, it seemed.


    Like a punching bag, the troll king continued to pummel him, sometimes through a tree, other times to the air, never ceasing his relentless barrage for a second.


    But Percy no longer cared to dodge, or even to open his eyes. He knew his body would survive as long as his armour protected it. And his armour would continue to do so as long as he held it in place. At least, the creature hadn¡¯t given him any indication he could put a scratch on the pieces themselves.


    Swing after swing, Percy absorbed the blows, the previously disparate bonds between the components starting to feel more like muscles than dead objects. Like his lungs, they breathed. Sometimes they tensed, other times they laxed. A network of magic, dispersing the concentrated force of the troll king¡¯s attacks into something he could withstand.


    At some point, the attacks ceased.


    Opening his eyes, he saw the creature kneeling, propping himself up on his knuckles, his weapon carelessly abandoned on the ground nearby. The troll king was breathing heavily, making wheezing sounds as he greedily inhaled as much air as he could.


    Percy tried to stand up. Everything hurt. His armour had protected him, but his body was still sore. Battered. But he was the first to climb back to his feet. Unwilling to admit defeat, the demi-human followed. He grabbed the club, using it as a cane to push himself up.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you using your fancy mushrooms to recover?¡± Percy asked, unsure if the creature understood him.


    The troll chuckled in response, however, shaking his head. It appeared he was too proud to resort to that, to lose to Percy in sheer grit. Dragging the weapon through the mud, he walked up to him, raising it high in the sky. Releasing a guttural bellow, he swung it again, resuming his onslaught.


    But Percy didn¡¯t close his eyes this time.


    Observing the club¡¯s shadow, he let the weapon connect, tapping on his newfound understanding. Like before, he allowed the network of strings to absorb and disseminate the blow, though he took it a step further.


    As the monstrous demi-human continued to push him around the Trollsden, Percy honed his spell, localizing his focus. Wherever the club landed, the knots tensed. Then, they laxed, as the ones next to them tensed instead, like a wave of resistance rippling through his frame.


    At first, he made a few mistakes, several pieces threatening to come undone. Soon, he improved, noticing that less and less force reached his body with each blow. As the impact was transferred from piece to piece, the cascading absorption runes did their job, nullifying the attacks completely.


    Realizing something, the troll king stopped. It stared at Percy in incredulity, unable to comprehend how he could still stand, nor why he was looking at him defiantly.


    ¡°If you¡¯re still holding anything back, I suggest you use it.¡± Percy said as his Status spoke.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Phantomscale Gauntlet ¨C Refined -> Phantomscale Raiment ¨C Refined!]

 Chapter 194: Fury

    The troll king scanned Percy from head to toe for several seconds, seemingly contemplating his words. Eventually, he appeared to have made his mind up, nodding with determination.


    Accepting that he was no longer a match for the human as he was, he decided to finally let go of his pride. First, he stabbed his club into the ground, before letting go, leaving it upright. Then, he reached for his back, squeezing one of the crimson mushrooms. Percy recognized a rush of fire mana sinking into the creature¡¯s frame, spreading through it.


    Whatever it did, it wasn¡¯t a painless endeavour in the slightest.


    The troll king¡¯s bulbous eyes quivered, his pupils taking on a reddish hue. He gritted his teeth, a few of them making cracking sounds, threatening to shatter. The creature¡¯s muscles visibly shook, before swelling ¨C in a manner not too dissimilar to what Synchronization did to Percy. However, it wasn¡¯t his mana channels spreading raw power through his body, but the boiling blood in his vessels. Like snakes, his veins bulged and squirmed along his skin.


    Percy readied his stance, waiting for his opponent to attack. Though the troll wasn¡¯t done preparing quite yet, it seemed. He pinched a second mushroom, and then a third, releasing a pained groan as he continued to push his body far beyond its limits.


    It wasn¡¯t until a minute or two later that the creature regained his composure. He picked his weapon up, lifting it horizontally before his torso. Grabbing each end with a different hand, he pulled the misshapen boulder apart, splitting it in two uneven halves. These crumbled further into pebbles, rolling up his forearms.


    Percy grinned.


    He watched as the chunks of earth condensed into a pair of oversized gauntlets, clearly inspired by his own. Of course, the crude constructs were a far cry from the Phantomscale Gauntlets, both their design and the lack of runes leaving much to be desired. Still, between the troll king¡¯s higher grade and nominally stronger affinity, Percy had no doubt they¡¯d pack quite a punch. .


    ¡°Bring it on then!¡± he taunted.


    The creature didn¡¯t need to be told twice. Tensing his calves for a moment, the troll king pounced on him with a speed that would have seemed impossible just seconds ago. Percy barely dodged the first punch, his opponent¡¯s newfound agility shrinking the prediction window greatly.


    But that was only the beginning.


    The second blow was even harder to evade, the third one landing squarely on his chest. The network of strings nullified much of the force, though whatever dregs remained were still enough to knock the breath out of his lungs, sending him flying backwards.


    By the time he arrested his momentum, the troll king was already upon him again, a new rain of fists ¨C some fake, some real ¨C appearing before him. Suffice to say, Percy was instantly on the backfoot, trying to dodge as many as he could. A few he sidestepped, weaving and bobbing to narrowly evade others, letting a couple glance him.


    But the troll king didn¡¯t give up. Between whatever the mushrooms had done to him, and his change of weapons, his attacks had grown several times quicker, yet without losing much of their previous strength.


    Percy thought grimly.


    He had his hands full just defending against the flurry of punches. Then again, that wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing. Over the past month, Percy had developed not one, but Refined spells, focusing on different aspects of defence. Yet, neither Greater Foresight nor the Phantomscale Raiment had been properly woven into his fighting style, nor had he pushed either to its very limits.


    Over the next hour or so, Percy took advantage of the troll king¡¯s temporary boost, using his furious assault as a whetstone to hone his magic. With the Dance of the Savage Gods as the fabric, he tried to stitch the disparate components of his arsenal together. Tiptoeing around the battlefield, he taught himself when to dodge and when to block, sharpening his instincts and his footwork both, learning how to best leverage his new tools.


    Initially, he was clearly on the losing side, eating way more blows than he cared to admit, getting pummelled through trees and muddy pools alike. At some point, however, he started finding openings in the troll king¡¯s movements. Perhaps it was the indiscriminate effect of the mushrooms taking its toll on the monster¡¯s body, or maybe it was just Percy¡¯s improvements giving him an edge. Either way, opportunities began to flash before his mutated eyes one after the other.


    Seamlessly shifting to Takeo¡¯s style, he seized every chance his opponent gave him, responding to the assault with blows of his own. At first, Percy¡¯s punches didn¡¯t even faze the troll, however. His gauntlets were great for absorbing impacts, but not so much for delivering them.


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    Yet, where there¡¯s a will, there¡¯s a way.


    Soon, Percy started taking advantage of the creature¡¯s momentum, using the troll¡¯s inertia to reinforce his own blows, essentially causing his opponent to fall into his punches.


    However, Percy wasn¡¯t the only one using this bout to improve. Getting used to his new weapons, the troll king soon grew even faster still, sharpening his new instincts, learning alongside Percy how to fight at this level. ???????????¨º?


    Every now and then, the effect of the fire mana showed signs of declining, forcing the creature to consume more of the crimson mushrooms, desperately clawing more strength out of his body. Of course, this boost came with a hefty price, but the troll king didn¡¯t pay that any heed. He used some of the green mushrooms every few minutes, restoring his stamina and undoing some of the damage.


    Watching him, Percy knew this wasn¡¯t sustainable. The creature would eventually run out of mushrooms, or his body would fall apart at some point. And sure, that was probably true. That said, it seemed the demi-human hadn¡¯t run out of surprises for him just yet. As the mushrooms on the troll¡¯s hunchback grew scarcer, he gradually straightened his spine, his bones creaking as they settled in place. At the same time, the monster¡¯s movements grew even faster, his undeniable handicap slowly lifting.


    Gritting his teeth, Percy persisted, ignoring the painful blows slamming into his armour, rattling his organs. The two combatants pressed on even more fiercely than before, commencing the final act of today¡¯s duel, both of them too stubborn to accept defeat.


    One fought gracelessly, not unlike a wild beast. The other danced around him elegantly, taking a technique that had already been honed for millennia, adapting it into his own, intent on elevating it further still. Yet, despite all his efforts, Percy could tell he was falling behind. Not by much ¨C the difference to his opponent was downright minuscule, almost imperceptible. But, having fought the troll king for several hours already, he could tell where it was headed.


    Four more fist shadows rained upon Percy. The first three he dodged, though the last one was about to land right in his face. His helmet would probably save his life even if he got hit, but the troll wouldn¡¯t miss his chance to punish him further.


    Deciding to take a gamble, Percy allowed his focus to sink into the components of his armour once more. Yet, he wasn¡¯t trying to negate the attack this time.


    The instant before the punch connected, Percy suddenly gained an unexpected burst of speed, his figure shifting out of the fist¡¯s path like a teal blur. Suffice to say, the troll king raised an eyebrow at this turn of events, though Percy didn¡¯t give him a chance to comprehend what had happened.


    Taking two swift steps ¨C far faster than any of his prior movements ¨C he circled around the demi-human, putting all his weight before a cleaving hook. The creature barely turned his head in time to receive the blow right to his face, his right tusk shattering in an explosion of yellowed shrapnel. Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Not allowing his focus to waver, the troll king still went for a counterattack, trying to swat Percy aside with his backhand. It didn¡¯t do much, as Percy blocked with a crossed guard, sliding a couple metres back before diving in for another clash.


    The two continued their fight for a few more minutes, before a similar situation repeated itself. Pinning Percy in a corner, the troll king was about to land a savage blow, when Percy blurred out of the way at the last second, responding with another brutal counter. This time, he dug his fist in the creature¡¯s liver, bringing him to his knees.


    Only after receiving a few more blows did the demi-human recover again enough to push Percy back, resuming the brawl for a while longer, just to get punished with a knee to his face a few seconds later. Uncertainty overcame the troll¡¯s expression, as he failed to grasp how Percy could tap into those momentary boosts each time.


    Percy smiled bitterly.


    Naturally, his heightened bursts of speed hadn¡¯t come out of nowhere. They were all hard-earned, with Percy putting his very life on the line for each and every one.


    One feature of his Phantomscale Raiment that he hadn¡¯t used before, was its ability to turn incorporeal at will. Earlier, he hadn¡¯t really had a good application for it, though the narrow brawl against the troll king had given him an idea.


    By robbing his armour of its substance, he could remove some of the weight bogging him down, allowing him to move a little faster. Of course, the price for this boost was that he had to completely forsake the protection afforded to him by the spell, leaving him vulnerable to the troll¡¯s attacks.


    Should he fail to dodge, the demi-human¡¯s savage blows were guaranteed to turn him into minced meat. Additionally, should he mess up the transition, he could easily cause the armour to fall apart, leaving him without it for the rest of the battle.


    In the end, the troll king lost without even understanding what had happened. Laying with his back on the ground, he panted heavily, his battered limbs splayed out like a starfish, his thick hide bruised in countless spots. Even worse, the effect of the mushrooms finally ran out, causing his body to shrivel like a dried waterskin, his expression twisting into one of agony.


    Percy on the other hand wasn¡¯t doing much better. While he had won, today¡¯s battle had taken everything he had and then some, as he¡¯d pushed both his mind and his body far beyond their limits.


    Still, a satisfied grin tugged at his lips. One that even his rugged breaths failed to fully break. The troll king had been a worthy opponent. Arguably, the strongest Yellow he had ever met. In the past few hours alone, he¡¯d progressed more than he would have after fighting the weaker trolls for months.


    And¡­ that was without even taking his prize into account.


    Turning to the king¡¯s attendants, Percy¡¯s grin widened further still, his unspoken request eliciting nods of understanding ¨C and even ones of respect ¨C from the creatures.


    It was finally time to see what those mushrooms were all about¡­

 Chapter 195: To the victor go the spoils

    The troll¡¯s second attendant ¨C the one Percy hadn¡¯t personally fought ¨C rushed out to tend to its leader¡¯s injuries. Pulling a few of the verdant mushrooms out of its body, it brought them to the king¡¯s mouth before crushing them into paste.


    Percy didn¡¯t interrupt, partly because he didn¡¯t wish the troll king any harm, and partly because he was genuinely interested in seeing the mushrooms work. Learning from the experts would only save him a lot of head-scratching later.


    He watched the life mana spread through the creature¡¯s frame, though its effect was greatly muted compared to earlier. Evidently, cultivating the fungi in their own bodies wasn¡¯t just some weird fashion statement, but a practical consideration.


    ¡°You¡¯re not actually going to plant mushrooms under your skin, are you?¡± Nesha asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°Ha! Don¡¯t you think they¡¯d look good on my shoulders?¡± Percy chuckled.


    The girl rolled her eyes, but didn¡¯t bother responding.


    Of course, he wasn¡¯t really going to do that. From the first moment he¡¯d laid eyes on the mushrooms, he¡¯d been thinking of brewing potions out of them. Strictly speaking, the green ones weren¡¯t anything revolutionary. Just another ingredient rich in Orange life mana ¨C like countless others that could be found all across Remior. While Percy wasn¡¯t sure if the Guild¡¯s alchemists were familiar with these particular mushrooms, there was no doubt they could be brewed into healing potions, on par with the ones he''d bought in the past.


    This was something he had been interested in since before coming to the Trollsden. After all, these potions were still somewhat handy for him and Nesha for the time being, and his stash had already dried out. Plus, his recent mastery of the extraction principle, coupled with his mutated eyes would make his job a great deal easier.


    Now, were something he hadn¡¯t come across before. Maybe the Guild¡¯s alchemist hadn¡¯t found any ingredients like that in the past, or maybe a potion that enhanced one¡¯s physical strength just wasn¡¯t that useful for the average mage. Unlike Percy whose fighting style and boosting art both relied heavily on his physique, others mostly fought by hurling their spells at one another. .


    It wasn¡¯t until about an hour and a dozen green mushrooms later that the troll king¡¯s condition seemed to stabilize. At the very least, he didn¡¯t look like he was going to die if left unattended. Still, it would probably take him days ¨C if not weeks ¨C to recover completely. His body was withered and weak, his eyes drooping. One thing was for certain ¨C the crimson mushrooms had pulled quite a number on him.


    Percy thought grimly.


    Unaware of Percy¡¯s thoughts, the attendants then grunted at him, capturing his attention. No longer concerned with their leader¡¯s survival, the trolls were finally free to lead him to his prize. To their credit, the creatures appeared to have every intention of honouring their king¡¯s promise. Even better, they seemed to have dropped any thoughts of challenging him to another duel.


    The water affinity troll appeared to say something to its companion ¨C likely telling him to stay with their king. Next, he walked towards a certain direction, gesturing at Percy and Nesha to follow. Thus, a man, a woman and a demi-human delved further and further into the depths of the Trollsden, in an area untouched by civilization. The longer the trio walked, the taller the trees in their path became. Older too, their barks rotting and peeling.


    As for the artificial graveyards by their roots, they expanded greatly too, the skeletal remains of the trolls¡¯ ancestors growing denser by the second. The same was true for the mushrooms cultivated there, the whitecaps both larger and more numerous than the ones they left in their wake.


    And that wasn¡¯t everything. As the interweaving canopies of the ancient trees blotted out what little moonlight had previously sept through, a different source of light took its place, illuminating the swamp. Soon, some green mushrooms began to appear amidst the whitecaps ¨C the same ones Percy had seen on the trolls¡¯ bodies. At first, the magical mushrooms were both small and rare. Still, they started to dominate the area before long, bathing the bog in a soft green light.


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    ¡°Wow. The place is full of them.¡± Nesha said, keeping her voice down.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Percy nodded. ¡°No wonder they were so open to giving them away.¡±


    That said, he didn¡¯t miss the conspicuous absence of crimson mushrooms in their surroundings. And those were arguably more important for him, as he didn¡¯t know if he could find a different ingredient with a similar effect. But there was nothing he could do, besides hope that the trolls had more of them somewhere.


    Eventually, the attendant led them to a clearing.


    Finally, the tall trees gave way, allowing the gentle moonlight to blend with the eerie glow of the verdant mushrooms, their combined lime-coloured lustre reflecting off the shallow waters of the swamp. This area wasn¡¯t that large, and neither was it empty. It was densely packed with leather tents and totems of bone. And it was pretty crowded too. Dozens of trolls sat around the campfires set up on a few dry patches of soil. Most of them were busy tending to some routine task such as roasting some whitecaps by the fire or crafting simple wooden tools. These trolls were definitely adults, but they weren¡¯t quite as tall as the ones Percy and Nesha had seen before. ?§Ñ¦­?§£??


    ¡°Are these their females?¡± Nesha asked, her voice hushed.


    Percy shrugged, tentatively agreeing with her guess. Apparently, all the male trolls were assigned to the outskirts of the Trollsden, protecting the heart of their homeland where the more vulnerable members of their society resided. The women weren¡¯t the only ones here. Many smaller trolls were running all over the place, yelling and tossing handfuls of mud at one another, immersed in all sorts of primitive games. Percy smiled at the sight, tilting his head to avoid a ball of dirt thrown at him by accident.


    It was at this moment that their arrival seemed to have caught everyone¡¯s notice, however. Sharp breaths and exclamations could be heard from everywhere, as the female trolls approached the trio, pulling their children behind them. Though they didn¡¯t do anything drastic just yet. Instead, they turned to the Yellow troll, unspoken questions lingering on their expressions.


    ¡°GAAAHUUUK!¡± the king¡¯s attendant said, before making all sorts of signs and gestures, trying to explain the situation to the women. Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    He pretended to swing a massive club, or to crouch, seemingly in imitation of the troll king¡¯s hunched back. Every now and then, he pointed at Percy, before throwing a few rapid punches in the empty air in front of him. The trolls¡¯ gazes shifted between the two, as awed expressions soon began to overtake their confusion.


    ¡°I think you just got yourself some new fans.¡± Nesha teased, jabbing him with her elbow.


    Percy just ignored her, patiently waiting for their escort to finish whatever he was doing. It wasn¡¯t until half an hour later that the interrogation reached its conclusion. By now, the female trolls looked at him with fear and respect, as even the children seemed to have understood something, not daring to stare at him for too long. Honestly, it was a little uncomfortable. Percy wanted nothing more than to receive his mushrooms and get out of this place.


    Luckily, his guide didn¡¯t keep him waiting much longer. He gestured at them to follow him once more, before delving back into the trees. This time, they only walked a couple dozen metres, however, before reaching a rather strange place. Percy¡¯s eyes widened as he saw a colossal tree ¨C wider and taller than any other he¡¯d seen in the entire bog. The air around it felt heavier, almost suffocating, as if centuries of reverence and death had soaked into the soil. Its base was covered in troll skeletons, though these were larger too, their bones thick and sturdy.


    ¡°Is this where they bury all their leaders?¡± he wondered, his tone solemn.


    There was one more thing that corroborated that guess. Unlike all the previous mushroom farms they had seen, this place was covered in only one type. . They pulsed faintly, casting shadows that seemed to shift like watchful spirits.


    ¡°Glak.¡± the attendant said, keeping his voice low. Apparently, he wasn¡¯t willing to disrespect this place either.


    ¡°Am I allowed to take them?¡± Percy asked, getting a nod back.


    Manifesting a cyan sickle, he harvested enough mushrooms to fill his bag, though he left most of them untouched.


    ¡°Should we return for the rest later?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°Nah. Let¡¯s not be too greedy. Besides, whether we have 20 or 200, they¡¯ll still run out sooner or later. I¡¯ll have to find a way to grow more of them.¡± Percy said.


    Once he was done, the attendant escorted them back the way they had come. However, they did stop at a few more spots for Percy to collect some of the green mushrooms too. Beyond that, the troll also took the opportunity to show them how to plant the mushrooms in their bodies. Apparently, it was as simple as cutting a shallow wound into one¡¯s skin and burying a few spores in it.


    It wasn¡¯t until they had returned to the troll king¡¯s side that the attendant finally waved them goodbye, letting them continue the rest of the way by themselves.


    ¡°Percy¡­ are you sure you don¡¯t want to check all those women and children for a rare affinity? That was your original reason for coming here, wasn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°It was¡­¡± he sighed.


    That said, the thought of possessing a troll child after all the trust the creatures had shown him left a poor taste in his mouth.


    ¡°Leave it. We¡¯ve gained more than enough from this place anyway.¡± he added after a moment.


    His new spells aside, he had two brand-new ingredients to play around with. Once he figured out how to cultivate the mushrooms and brew them into potions, he¡¯d get even stronger¡­

 Chapter 196: Shadows and rainbows

    The fields shone in all sorts of vibrant colours beneath the bright sunlight. It wasn¡¯t wheat nor any other mundane crop that was planted here, however. Instead, it was a strange magical fern, glittering in a faint Red within one¡¯s Mana Sense. Its leaves ranged from pale blues to fiery reds, to piercing yellows and exotic pinks in one¡¯s regular vision.


    And, completing the magical scenery, the rhythmic chirps of crickets added a soothing melody to this tapestry of natural beauty. It was almost enough to cover the occasional grunts of the farmers and the dull thuds of their rakes stabbing into the moist dirt. Though there was little it could do to mask the acrid blend of sweat and fertilized soil assaulting the nose. S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Either way, Jason wasn¡¯t in the mood to appreciate any of this. He¡¯d spent weeks travelling to this latest destination, praying to Phoebe it wouldn¡¯t be another dead-end. Yet, it wasn¡¯t until the last day or so ¨C when he had already approached enough to determine what sort of place this was ¨C that his hopes were dashed once again.


    ¡°Fucking waste of time!¡± he spat, his clenched fists drained of all colour.


    He was tempted to toss the objects against the ground to quell his anger, but he held himself back. The last thing he needed was to add more misleading karma threads to the items. Both the Aurora Dew and Nesha¡¯s clothes had pointed him to this location ¨C among many others, each more useless than the last. This time, the trails had already split up, leading to multiple people, many of them among the farmers working here. But it didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out that none of them were his targets.


    ¡°Hey! You there!¡± he yelled at the nearest person to whom both sets of threads were attached.


    ¡°M-My lord?¡± the farmhand stuttered, taken aback.


    He dropped the rake in his panic, hurrying towards Jason. Though he didn¡¯t say anything upon reaching him, seemingly struggling to find the right words. Luckily for him, Jason had plenty of questions for him.


    ¡°What do you people grow in this place?¡± he asked.


    ¡°My lord, our humble town lives off the production of Rainbow Grass and Coloured Silk.¡±


    Jason already had a few guesses, but he wasn¡¯t as quick to voice them. He waited patiently instead, prompting the commoner to elaborate.


    ¡°Rainbow Grass is the colourful plant you see all around you. Each batch takes a few months to grow. We harvest them three times a year.¡±


    Jason clicked his tongue.


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t explain anything. Do you have any idea what connection these objects might have to you?¡±


    Next, he showed him the gemstone vial, a turquoise liquid shimmering within, as well as a set of yellow robes. The man tilted his head as he gazed at the two items, his shock slowly replaced by confusion. It wasn¡¯t until a few moments later that he replied.


    ¡°Sorry, my lord¡­ I don¡¯t know much about the Rainbow Grass itself ¨C just how to tend to it, like my father taught me, and his father taught him. Others are responsible for exporting our produce. Perhaps, one of them might know more.¡±


    Jason was about to snap. Noticing that, the man hurriedly spoke again.


    ¡°That said, I think I know about the clothes!¡±


    ¡°Go on.¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ if you look closely at the plants, you will notice lots of tiny silkworms crawling on their leaves. Each individual insect only eats a single colour of leaves its whole life. It then produces a cocoon of the same colour, from which we extract the silk. From what I¡¯ve been told, it¡¯s great for weaving enchanted clothes.¡± ??????????


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    Jason nodded. He¡¯d heard of this material before. It wasn¡¯t just the Alchemists¡¯ Guild that crafted their robes out of this silk. Many noble Houses did the same, including the Divine Root. But it wasn¡¯t the fabric of Nesha¡¯s clothes he was trying to determine.


    At least he wasn¡¯t without clues. The peasant¡¯s useless input aside, he could already harbour a guess as to how the Rainbow Grass was related to the objects.


    Back when they had first arrived at the Alchemists¡¯ Guild, neither he nor Deimos had been very familiar with alchemy. For better or for worse, their mission had forced them to pick a couple of things here and there, however.


    From what he understood, most reagents on Remior fell into one of two categories. The Orange ones were barely potent enough to serve as the primary ingredients for some subpar potions that the low-borns sometimes used.


    As for the Red materials, they were too inert to brew into any potion worth a damn, though that wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing. It allowed them to be used as secondary ingredients, to modify the effects of both elixirs and potions ¨C assuming they had a suitable property, of course.


    ¡°This should buy me some more time at least.¡± he sighed in relief.


    Naturally, Deimos¡¯s patience was already wearing thin after Jason¡¯s repeated failures. Sadly, no matter how much the man berated him or pressured him, it wasn¡¯t like Jason could magically turn himself luckier. All he could do was to follow all the disparate trails one by one, until he located their targets.


    The good news was that he hadn¡¯t come up entirely empty-handed this time.


    Taking a strange device vaguely reminiscent of a pocket watch out of his robes, he pressed a button on its side to unlatch its lid. It was made of a silvery metal, its surface adorned with runes inside-out. Pouring some of his karma mana into the object, he watched as many of the symbols lit up in a multitude of colours. Though a few of them remained dim.


    This artifact was just one half of a pair. The two objects had been designed specifically for him and Deimos to use. After all, one side had to pour karma mana into their watch for this to work, the other side fuelling theirs with sound mana. Suffice to say, this wasn¡¯t a pair of affinities that could easily be found elsewhere.


    In any case, Jason stared at the object with bated breath, waiting for his superior to pick up the call. It wasn¡¯t until about a minute later that the rest of the symbols lit up, shimmering in a dull grey colour.


    ¡°Jason? Any news from your end?¡± Deimos asked.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t found them yet, if that¡¯s what you¡¯re asking.¡± Jason replied.


    He could already feel the bubbling volcano on the other side of the line about to erupt, but he hurriedly spoke again, not giving it a chance.


    ¡°I think I may have discovered another ingredient though.¡±


    That seemed to do the trick, dousing Deimos¡¯s fury with some cold water. The man hadn¡¯t stopped pressuring the Guild¡¯s alchemists into deciphering the recipe over the last two years, clearly unwilling to put all his eggs in one basket.


    Of course, the results left much to be desired. The old coots hadn¡¯t managed to work out the recipe just yet, but that didn¡¯t mean they hadn¡¯t made any progress. At the very least, they had determined that regular elixirs formed the base of the Aurora Dew. After all, their effect was nearly identical, and there were many other tell-tale signs that they were brewed in a similar manner.


    However, they had yet to figure out what Nesha¡¯s partner had done to the elixirs to elevate them to the next stage, allowing them to be consumed more frequently. With any luck, Jason¡¯s latest discovery would help with that.


    ¡°Well?¡± Deimos asked.


    ¡°The dose you gave me is connected to a plant called Rainbow Grass. Wasted two months getting here too, so I hope it¡¯s worth it.¡± Jason said.


    Next, he snapped the device shut, ending the call before Deimos had the chance to lash out at him again.


    Taking his top off, Jason laid it on the ground in front of him, before placing Nesha¡¯s folded robes and the vial on top of it. He had to do this every time, to avoid adding any additional threads to the objects.


    Gathering some mana to his eyes again, he reactivated his Karmic Vision, carefully adjusting it until only the most prominent threads remained in focus. Next, he scrutinized them one by one, ignoring those that weren¡¯t shared, or those he had already investigated.


    Obviously, Jason had no idea how far these threads reached. The other ends could be as close as twenty miles away, or as far as the other side of Remior. Shrugging, he picked the objects up before wearing his robe again. Either way, he had to investigate all the trails.

 Chapter 198: Three

    With steady hands, Percy distilled the turquoise gel, pouring the Aurora Dew into the vial, filling nearly a quarter of it. And this was the third one this batch. Two more rested on the desk, filled and corked.


    ¡°Man, I love these eyes so darn much!¡± he grinned.


    Besides his stash lasting a little longer thanks to his improved yield, Percy¡¯s new mutation had also reduced the time he needed to prepare everyone¡¯s doses. Before Atlantis, it used to take him nearly six hours per day, on average. Nowadays, it only took him close to four. Still a hefty amount, but it left him more time to invest in his other tasks.


    And he did need that, as there were plenty of things begging for his attention. For instance, he had been forced to replace all his constructs over the past few days. His brawl with the troll king hadn¡¯t left any visible damage on them, but it had already been a couple of weeks since he crafted them. Surely, the intense fight had knocked a few more days off the spell¡¯s lifespan.


    ¡°You look like you¡¯re in a good mood today.¡± Nesha noted as she entered the house.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± Percy said, his smile expanding. ¡°Just finished all the chores! I can finally put some time into my new projects!¡±


    Then, he handed her one of the freshly brewed elixirs, before grabbing two for himself ¨C one from his desk and one from his amulet. Opening them, he downed their contents as he began revolving his mana inside his stomach, using his Whirlpool of Four Streams technique to cleanse both of his cores. Nesha didn¡¯t say anything, focusing on purifying her own.


    ¡°Working with the mushrooms again?¡± she asked as soon as they were done.


    ¡°Nah. I¡¯ve put that on the side for now. I¡¯d rather focus on the mana threads.¡± S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Figuring out the recipe for his new potions was definitely easier than creating a Masterful spell. That said, there were a few additional difficulties that made this a bad time to work on that. For one, he didn¡¯t have the means nor the time to cultivate more mushrooms at the moment. After all, they wouldn¡¯t even be staying here a month from now. Plus, he would probably need some secondary ingredients for the potions, and Bogside town wasn¡¯t exactly known for its access to magical reagents.


    ¡°How are things on your end?¡± he asked, changing the topic.


    He wasn¡¯t the only one who had a role to play in the upcoming ambush. Nesha¡¯s traps didn¡¯t last indefinitely either. And she¡¯d planted dozens of them around the swamp. Naturally, she also had to replace them every now and then.


    ¡°The north and east fields are up to date. But the runes planted in the west field are probably close to expiring.¡±


    ¡°How long do you need to get those fixed too?¡±


    ¡°Hmmm¡­ I suppose I can have it done by the end of the week.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Percy nodded. ¡°I guess we¡¯ll have to lure the Greens to the other locations if they attack before then. How about the ones?¡±


    ¡°Are you kidding?¡± Nesha appeared offended at the question. ¡°I replenish every two days or so. I wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep if I wasn¡¯t certain we could rely on them.¡±


    Of course, the odds of getting attacked in the little time they had left were quite low. Percy and Nesha had already decided to leave Bogside town around two weeks from now regardless. That said, they hadn¡¯t relaxed their preparations in the slightest. They both knew that a moment of complacency combined with some bad luck would be more than enough to spell their doom.


    Grabbing a handful of teal powder from the jar, Percy sat at his desk. Then, he pulled some mana from his cores, about to start working on his spell again, when Nesha suddenly moved a chair next to him, sitting by his side. He flashed her a questioning look, getting a playful smile back.


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    ¡°How about you take a break for an hour or two?¡± she asked, resting her chin on his shoulder.


    Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat as her moist breath licked his cheek. Sighing, he returned the powder to the jar so that they wouldn¡¯t spill it on the floor by accident. Following that, he wrapped his arm around Nesha, giving her a small peck on the lips, which she reciprocated.


    Suffice to say, their relationship had evolved a little beyond that of mere collaborators by now. Some subtle tension had existed between them since their frantic escape from the Guild. Beyond that, getting closer was the inevitable conclusion for two healthy adults cohabiting inside a tiny house for nearly two years.


    Then again, it had taken quite a while for their feelings to truly blossom. At first, the pressure they were both under hadn¡¯t left much room for romance to take root. It wasn¡¯t until Percy¡¯s return from Atlantis that things picked up. The scare they both experienced when he nearly crippled his Status made them realize it might be better to take their chances now, while they still could.


    Percy told Micky as he pulled the curtains.


    ***


    In the end, their ¡®break¡¯ lasted a little longer than planned. It was dark outside by the time they finished. Usually, Percy preferred not to waste time that could otherwise be spent productively, but he made an exception for this, allowing himself to mess around with Nesha every now and then. It was probably good for his mind anyway.


    Getting up gently, to avoid waking Nesha up, Percy tossed his clothes on before returning to his desk. He picked up some powder again, intent on spending at least a couple hours working on the mana threads. Distractions aside, he understood he¡¯d never complete his ambitious project if he didn¡¯t put in the effort. ?????????????


    Blending the soft mana with the powder, he allowed his gaze to sink deep into the process as three sets of grains began to form. Some were long and narrow like hairs, others short and stubby like rice, while the rest were small and round ¨C sort of like tiny pebbles.


    Suffice to say, Percy had already added a third intermediate step to the process, increasing the number of variables once more. Luckily, his Sorcerer¡¯s Eye helped him here as well, allowing him to better channel his trait¡¯s intuition, accelerating the development of the mana threads massively.


    he grimaced a few minutes later, looking at his latest construct.


    A quick tug revealed it was rather strong, though it wasn¡¯t nearly thin nor flexible enough to be woven into a fabric just yet. Even worse, the rapid improvements afforded to him by his mutation had already started to slow down. The rest of the distance to his goal promised to be quite a slog.


    ¡°Not there yet?¡± Nesha asked.


    It was only now that Percy noticed she had woken up at some point, watching him work.


    ¡°I knew it would be tough from the start, but I still underestimated it. I¡¯m probably a couple years away ¨C ¨C and that¡¯s despite my new eyes doing all the heavy lifting. I can¡¯t even imagine how long it would have taken without them.¡±


    ¡°Percy¡­ You do realize Masterful spells are meant for Violets and Whites, right? Even Blues rarely create one. I wouldn¡¯t worry too much about it. In fact, I¡¯m more annoyed that you jumped out of bed to do more work.¡± she pouted.


    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re the one who fell asleep first.¡± he quipped back.


    ¡°I¡¯m not apologizing for loving myself a good nap. It¡¯s my most charming feature.¡± she replied.


    ¡°Well, being a workaholic is mine.¡± Percy fired back.


    The two stared at each other in silence for a few seconds. She was the first to laugh, though he soon followed.


    ¡°You know¡­ I¡¯ll miss this place once we¡¯re gone.¡± she said after a while.


    ¡°Really? Remind me again, who was it that kept complaining about the bad smell and the leaking house back when we first got here?¡±


    ¡°What can I say? It grew on me.¡± she shrugged.


    ¡°We can come back.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± she asked, raising an eyebrow.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if my grandpa will manage to eliminate House Tantalus anytime soon, but it doesn¡¯t matter. If he doesn¡¯t, I¡¯ll finish the job myself. . This town will naturally fall under my family¡¯s control when that happens.¡±


    ¡°Dreaming much?¡± she chuckled.


    ¡°Do you doubt I can do it?¡± he asked.


    She appeared to ponder for a second or two, before shaking her head.


    ¡°Nah. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll pull it off. Eventually.¡± she said, a mischievous smile tugging at her lips. ¡°Though our hair might have greyed out by then.¡±


    Percy was about to argue back, when a wave of panic suddenly slammed into him like a crazed horse, oozing through the ethereal cord.


    ¡°Micky?!¡± his chair scraped against the floor as he shot up, his pulse hammering. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?!¡± he asked out loud, for Nesha¡¯s benefit.


    The crow¡¯s response shook Percy to his core. This was something they had never stopped preparing for over the past year, though the situation still felt surreal.


    ¡°Are you sure it¡¯s them?¡±


    Percy nodded, as Nesha stared at him with bated breath.


    ¡°How many?¡± he asked.


    They knew the enemy family was bound to send somebody stronger than Broose this time, though they still couldn¡¯t stretch their forces too thin. Percy and Nesha were confident there would be two Greens.


    Unfortunately, Micky¡¯s response caused the colour to drain from his face, however.

 Chapter 199: Eviction

    ¡°How long till they get here?¡± Percy asked, forcing himself to calm down.


    While he and Nesha were two enemies to arrive, they had for more. Their ambush might be a great deal trickier to pull off now, but they could do it ¨C as long as they made everything count.


    Micky said.


    ¡°Alright. Keep your eyes on them. And fly lower. Try not to be seen.¡±


    Strictly speaking, it wouldn¡¯t be the end of the world if Micky got spotted. After all, House Tantalus already knew there was some kind of avian beast involved in all this. That said, some elements of Percy¡¯s preparations would work better if their enemies thought they were catching them by surprise. This was why he had instructed Micky to deactivate his boosting arts whenever he was flying by the north side of the town, to make himself less conspicuous.


    The enemy Greens had probably chosen to attack in the middle of the night thinking they were giving themselves an advantage. Little did they know, they were about to regret that decision. The shadowy veil of the night sky did more to cover Micky than it did them. The fools were about to walk right into a trap.


    ¡°One hour.¡± he said, relaying the information to Nesha. ¡°Start packing.¡± he added, getting a nod back.


    Naturally, they couldn¡¯t fit inside the spatial amulet, but there was a lot more space in it right now than when they had first arrived here. After all, Percy had already used up over 80% of his stashed elixirs and rainbow grass over the past two years.


    The jar was the first item Nesha stored. There wasn¡¯t powder left in it, as he¡¯d consumed most of it to craft his constructs. Still, there were a few weeks of accumulation left that he¡¯d rather not lose if it could be helped.


    Next were the mushrooms. Nesha stored as many as the artifact could fit, splitting the space evenly between the green and red variants. Sadly, she did have to leave some out, as they¡¯d taken way too many from the Trollsden. Suffice to say, each abandoned mushroom was like a stab in Percy¡¯s heart, especially since he¡¯d yet to figure out how to grow more of them.


    Leaving Nesha alone, he then began working on his own preparations for the ambush. Opening his sack, he picked the components of his armour one by one, sliding them in place. At the same time, he took deep breaths, bringing his boosting art to the verge of activating. Though he stopped before the final step, not in a hurry to make his body light up just yet.


    About ten minutes after Micky¡¯s original message, they were both done. Percy sighed as he tossed one last glance around their humble abode. He¡¯d never forget the decrepit condition they had found it in, nor the hours he and Nesha had spent rebuilding it to their liking, one plank at a time.


    Countless bittersweet memories swirled within his mind. He keenly remembered Nesha discarding piles upon piles of stones she had ruined with her magic, trying to build him his forge. Or all the times he¡¯d had to patch the ceiling in the middle of the night when it leaked water. This was the place where he had forged his scythes and his armour. And finally, it was where he and Nesha grew closer¡­


    ¡°This is the last time we get to be here, isn¡¯t it?¡± she asked, grabbing his hand.


    ¡°It is.¡± he replied, his voice quivering.


    Even if they managed to defeat House Tantalus and return to Bogside town in the future, Percy knew this place was unlikely to survive.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. There¡¯s no time to waste.¡± he said, pulling her out. Though he didn¡¯t miss her picking his ocarina up from his pillow right before they left, a faint smile tugging at his lips.


    The two rushed out of the town, scurrying into the swamp. But they didn¡¯t travel too far in. They hid in one of the spots they had previously agreed on, keeping their eyes on the house. Then, they used the next few minutes going over the plan for the billionth time, making slight adjustments based on the latest circumstances.


    Micky said at some point, drawing Percy¡¯s attention.


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    the crow replied without hesitation.


    Percy squeezed his hand to let Nesha know, as the two fixated their eyes on the hut, waiting with bated breath. Soon, a group of seven men appeared in their sight. Only three of them wore the noble family¡¯s colours, however. As for the other four, both Percy and Nesha recognized them, having seen them many times around the town. ?????????????


    he couldn¡¯t help but ask himself.


    It wasn¡¯t like they had anything to gain from snitching on him and Nesha. Maybe the idiots thought they were ingratiating themselves to the noble House, or that they would get a free pass the next time an owner of the Drain bloodline visited their town. Either way, they were too dumb, or too scared to imagine a better world for themselves and their families.


    But Percy shook his head. Whatever had motivated these people to do this, it wasn¡¯t important. The only thing that mattered right now, was eliminating all three of their enemies. Shifting his focus to the nobles, he scanned them from head to toe, trying to discern any information he could about them.


    This was Broose¡¯s cousin, possibly here to avenge him. But that was a good thing. The man had a pure affinity, which should make him far easier to handle than the others. As for the second man in the group, Percy didn¡¯t recognize him. The guy had short black hair and no other features that stood out. There were easily half a dozen possible matches, at least based on his outdated information. Though the last one wasn¡¯t too difficult to identify¡­


    Rambert was one of the younger Greens of the family ¨C around Percy¡¯s age. Yet that didn¡¯t make him weak in the slightest. If anything, he was one of their most promising talents, only falling short of Mordred and Elaine in the entire province. And Percy was certain it was him. He was the only Yellow-born redhead with the bloodline, his pale skin painting a stark contrast against his deep crimson hair.


    Seeing him here, Percy suddenly felt a lot more pressure. From what he¡¯d heard, the guy had never lost a duel against anyone his grade. Then again, this was a good thing. The more high-profile his targets were, the heavier the blow to the enemy family once they were dead.


    Percy and Nesha watched as the four traitors led the nobles right outside their house, pointing at it ominously. With next to no warning, one of the Greens ¨C the one who Percy hadn¡¯t recognized ¨C pulled some mana from his core, unleashing a barrage of water droplets on the house, punching dozens of holes through the wall. About a quarter of the roof collapsed too, though the rest survived.


    Turning to Nesha, he flashed her a questioning look.


    ¡°Sixty.¡± she muttered soundlessly.


    Percy nodded. It was far from ideal, but 60% would have to do.


    Looking back at the nobles, he watched as one of them ¨C the same person who¡¯d just ruined their house ¨C kicked at whatever was left of the door, forcing his way in. His expression was nonchalant, without a hint of care for the devastation he¡¯d just unleashed. Had anyone been inside, they¡¯d be dead by now. Then again, these people definitely knew the place was empty, having probably scanned it with their Mana Sense already.


    ¡°Nothing here! Just some glowing mushrooms!¡± the guy shouted once he was inside.


    Through his Sorcerer¡¯s Eye, Percy watched the man¡¯s silhouette walk to the centre of the house, stomping on one of the mushrooms, probably examining it with his boot. Then, Percy checked up on the other two, clicking his tongue upon seeing they had no intention of joining their friend inside the ruined house.


    ¡°Good enough.¡± he whispered. ¡°Do it.¡±


    Nesha tightened her grip as her core flared up.


    ¡°Dranold! Get the hell out of there!¡± Rambert suddenly yelled, being the first to notice something was off.


    The unfortunate water user heeded his teammate¡¯s instructions a moment too late, however. Before he even moved an inch, the countless pocket runes Nesha had planted all over the place lit up, the concealment runes buried alongside them failing to hide them any longer!


    Realizing the danger he was in, the mage tried to jump through the hole in the roof. But he wasn¡¯t fast enough!


    Countless distortions manifested all around him ¨C visible to the naked eye ¨C as the walls, the ceiling and the floor of the house all shrunk and twisted. Even worse, the tears in space soon bled into one another, interacting violently as they fought over the same strips of reality, pulling and stretching, and crushing everything in their path!


    By the time Dranold reached the hole, his surroundings were unrecognizable. The wooden hut was down to a third of its size, crunched into a misshapen ball, with him smack in the middle. He must¡¯ve realized he wasn¡¯t going to escape when a powerful force stopped him right in his tracks, dragging him back to the centre of the house.


    Unleashing every drop of mana from his core, he tried to force his way out. But it just wasn¡¯t meant to be. Nesha might be a grade lower than him, but the sheer devastation she¡¯d carved into this place wasn¡¯t something a lone Green could easily overcome. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    With a sickening crunch, an entire segment of reality collapsed upon itself, as all sorts of colours blended together, from the dull brown of the planks, to the vibrant green of the man¡¯s silken robes, to the unique pink of human skin. Then, it all exploded with a deafening boom, as splinters of wood and bloody chunks of flesh rained all over the town, an eyeball even landing by Percy¡¯s foot.


    Just like that, House Tantalus succeeded in evicting him and Nesha from their new home. The nostalgic scents of the old wood and the forge¡¯s fumes were something he would never smell again. That said, the price their enemies had paid to do this was steep indeed¡­

 Chapter 201: Garden

    Grian tried rushing after Percy and Rambert, but Nesha would be damned if she allowed that to happen. Not after all the trouble they had gone through to split them up in the first place. Remaining hidden behind a tree, she moved her butterflies in front of him, blocking his path. At the same time, she crouched even lower, hoping her bandage would continue masking her core¡¯s flares.


    Drawing a large amount of mana from his sternum, Grian unleashed a barrage of daggers of his own, accurately hitting the butterflies one after the other, shattering them into nothing. Still, Nesha couldn¡¯t help but raise an eyebrow at the poor display.


    The sheer speed and control of his magic was undeniable, of course. . That said, this latest stunt had clearly cost him a lot of his reserves. Then again, it wasn¡¯t that surprising. Not all pure users were like Percy. Cursed with the weakest affinity, they were often treated as lesser among their peers, having to put far more effort to keep up.


    Growing a little more confident, Nesha drew some more mana from her core, summoning a new set of butterflies, sending them after him before he escaped.


    However, it appeared she had been tricked.


    Grian¡¯s expression morphed into a savage grin, as he manifested more bolts. This time, they were even thinner ¨C more akin to needles than knives ¨C shooting the butterflies down the moment they emerged from behind the tree. Unlike before, he used much less mana to deal with her attack too.


    ¡°There you are.¡± he said, turning to face her before casually strolling her way.


    At the same time, he created more needles, launching them at the tree. Nesha barely managed to leap out of their path, a series of cyan projectiles drilling dozens of holes through the wood, as well as the ground where she had previously stood.


    ¡°A space affinity, huh?¡± he smiled coldly. ¡°What a waste, at the hands of an Orange-born. You really thought you¡¯d beat me with just that, didn¡¯t you?¡±


    He looked at her with disdain, manifesting countless more cyan needles around him, about to finish her off. But he never got the chance.


    ¡°KRAAAAA!!!¡±


    Unleashing a piercing screech, Micky dove in the attack¡¯s path, shielding Nesha with his body. The constructs did draw some blood, though they failed to pierce deeper than an inch into the crow¡¯s flesh.


    A pang of guilt gripped her heart as she realized Micky wouldn¡¯t have needed to endure the attack had it not been for her foolishness. Still, she rushed behind another tree, disappearing in the darkness, unwilling to waste the chance the bird had bought her.


    She understood this wouldn¡¯t be enough to take Micky down. Just as Grian probably stood at the bottom of all Greens, Percy¡¯s familiar soared above all Yellows. With his two cores and just as many boosting arts, the crow¡¯s flesh wasn¡¯t something that could so easily be penetrated.


    Sure enough, Micky took off a moment later, avoiding another round of spells with ease, his injuries having failed to slow him down in the slightest. Grian clicked his tongue in annoyance, though he continued to shoot at the crow, trying to pin him down.


    she thought grimly.


    The crow flew circles around the man, Acceleration doing wonders for his speed. That said, dodging the rain of needles was still difficult, a few grazing him every now and then. And it didn¡¯t look like Grian had much trouble keeping the attacks coming, using far less mana than before. At the very least, he seemed content keeping the bird at bay, slowly whittling down his strength without giving him a chance to counterattack. £Ò????¦­?§£¨º?


    Carefully observing the two with her Mana Sense, Nesha waited with bated breath for an opening. Eventually, Micky attempted to dive at Grian, only to be driven off with another barrage. Still, that was precisely the chance she had been looking for.


    Creating more butterflies, she made them curve towards Grian, as she ran in the opposite direction. Naturally, the man spotted her instantly, pelting her location with more attacks. That said, hitting her on the move was harder. Especially since he had to split his projectiles three ways, to deal with the butterflies while also keeping the crow at a safe distance.


    Nesha did her best to guard her vitals, though a few needles still pierced her leg. Sadly, her flesh wasn¡¯t nearly as tough as Micky¡¯s either, the cyan constructs punching right through, sending her tumbling through the mud.


    she smiled bitterly.


    Crawling away, she hid behind another tree as she followed the battle through Mana Sense again. Micky hadn¡¯t wasted the opportunity she had created for him, diving towards Grian. He allowed himself to get hit by a few needles on the way ¨C clearly having deemed it was a worthwhile sacrifice. He managed to carve a few nasty gouges on the man¡¯s left arm and leg, throwing him on the ground. Still, Grian didn¡¯t waste any time before fending him off with more needles.


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    The good news was that he appeared to have trouble standing afterwards, though Nesha wasn¡¯t entirely convinced they had come out on top in this exchange. Sure, their opponent had arguably suffered the worst injuries among the three, but his fighting style was probably affected the least. After all, he fought by staying in one spot and shooting spells at them. Meanwhile, Nesha¡¯s immobility meant she couldn¡¯t repeat her previous move without giving her life up. Even Micky looked like he had more trouble flying right now.


    she thought, the back of her head making a soft thud as she hit the tree¡¯s trunk with it.


    She¡¯d worked so hard over the past two years. For the first time in her life, she¡¯d done everything in her power, just so that she could support Percy and Micky without getting in their way. And for what? Here she was, as useless as always. It was at that moment that Grian¡¯s earlier words rang through her mind again, truer than ever.


    Taken to its extreme, the space affinity could bridge entire worlds together, overcoming unimaginable distances. And what was doing with it? She just made a few pretty constructs fly around¡­


    There to be more she could do.


    Right now, her biggest issue was that she betrayed her location every time she tried to get involved. How ridiculous was that? The owner of a affinity should have complete control over a battlefield! Not hide in some corner, afraid to cast a single spell!


    Bringing her hands in front of her chest, she drew some mana between her palms, manifesting another butterfly. This time, she only formed one. Plus, she took extra care to keep all the involved channels hidden behind her bandage, unwilling to draw Grian¡¯s attention. Looking at the construct, she couldn¡¯t help but crack a faint smile. It really was pretty. She¡¯d definitely grown better at making them.


    Closing her eyes, she concentrated on her mana, trying to dig deeper than before. This was mana. It to be capable of something more than just flying around. Scanning the battlefield with her Mana Sense, she allowed her focus to sink into Grian¡¯s head. Could she make the butterfly pop right inside that fucker¡¯s brain, turning it into mush from within?


    She¡¯d never tried anything of the sort, but this sounded like it was within her affinity¡¯s alley. . Just a couple dozen metres or so.


    Concentrating, she tried every mental exercise she could think of, from simply willing the butterfly to appear in a different location, to imagining it dig through the very fabric of space. At first, her efforts seemed to yield no result, but she didn¡¯t give up, knowing this was her only means of helping Micky.


    Eventually, she noticed something strange.


    The butterfly still hovered in the same spot, showing no signs of moving. However, some mana suddenly vanished from her core, a blob of Yellow popping up in a random location near Grian. Naturally, the man instantly unleashed a barrage of needles to bring it down, but Nesha didn¡¯t care about that, instead focusing on what ¡¯d done.


    She¡¯d wanted to teleport her there, not a random blob of mana from her core. Why did that even happen? Was it because she was more intimately connected with the mana still in her sternum?


    Either way, this could work. Did she even to manifest the butterflies in her hands first? . If she could teleport it right out of her core, could she directly form her spells from it at the same time?


    Trying again, this time she imagined some mana ¨C the same amount she usually used when creating a butterfly ¨C vanishing from her core. She pictured it materializing as a butterfly inside Grian¡¯s head.


    Something happened again!


    More mana disappeared. This time, it did take the correct shape, though it still didn¡¯t go where she wanted it, appearing a few metres away from her target. Spooked, Grian hurriedly put some distance from that spot, before destroying the construct. Though in his panic, he nearly gave Micky another opening to attack, only managing to drive him off at the last second.


    Nesha¡¯s heart skipped a beat at the sight.


    Her latest trick wasn¡¯t accurate in the slightest, but it could still work! Getting the butterflies to manifest inside her enemy¡¯s body didn¡¯t seem possible, and neither did she think she could teleport them a second time after they left her core. However, she should be able to control them remotely like she normally did.


    Repeating her actions, she created a second one, and then a third, and a fourth¡­ One butterfly after another popped into existence around Grian, each of them appearing in a random spot in his vicinity.


    Taken aback, the enemy mage unleashed much more mana than before, trying to destroy them as soon as they appeared. Still, he seemed to have trouble keeping track of them all at once. Especially since they flew around erratically, making it even harder for him to hit them, as they all tried closing in on him.


    Mana kept draining from Nesha¡¯s core at a ridiculous rate. It appeared each construct sucked a little more than it normally did too, the very act of teleporting them not without its own cost. Still, she didn¡¯t pay that any heed, doing everything in her power to gnaw at Grian¡¯s attention. Sear?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    It wasn¡¯t until a minute later that her core dried up completely. In the end, she still failed to land a single hit, the enemy mage having just barely managed to defend himself against the chaotic spell.


    That said, her efforts didn¡¯t go unrecognized.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Butterfly ¨C Crude -> Chaotic Garden ¨C Refined!]


    And her Status wasn¡¯t the only one to have appreciated her efforts.


    Through Mana Sense, she watched Micky dive towards Grian one last time. The man shot more needles at the crow ¨C as he had been doing during Nesha¡¯s assault. However, his half-assed attempts seemed to have finally reached their limits.


    The bird dodged most of the needles, choosing to meet the last few head on. Drawing every last drop of mana from his abdomen, he allowed it to shroud him completely, sticking to his plumage. At the same time, he spun through the air, the wind itself fuelling his rotation, swirling right alongside him.


    Some of the needles even bounced off him, only a couple actually digging into his flesh. Ignoring the pain, he continued speeding towards Grian, who was in no position to dodge. Reaching him, the crow dug a massive hole in the man¡¯s chest, his beak drilling out of his back in a rain of blood and gore.


    Nesha exhaled in relief, a faint smile tugging at her lips. Evidently, she wasn¡¯t the only one with a brand-new spell¡­

 Chapter 202: Grim Dance (1)

    ¡°It was you, wasn¡¯t it? Behind all of it.¡± Rambert asked, though he could already guess the answer.


    Travelling to Bogside town, he and his companions hadn¡¯t really cared much about Nesha and Percy. They¡¯d heard of them, of course, but they¡¯d thought the two were just a front ¨C a couple of low-born informants House Avalon had placed there. Their actual fighters to be hiding in the swamp, right?


    It was with that mindset that he¡¯d chased Percy through the bog, hoping to squash the pesky insect before his leaders had the chance to join him. Not to mention erasing the sheer humiliation their family had endured when Dranold got caught in that trap.


    But the enemy reinforcements he had expected never arrived. Not when he chased Percy through the trees, nor when they tried to ambush him and Grian with those pitfalls. Throughout the whole thing, it had always been just Percy ¨C and maybe his girlfriend too. And yet, despite everything, Percy was still alive. , he had kept up with him, evading him and even enduring some of his blows, luring him all the way here.


    ¡°What even are you?¡± Rambert asked again, looking up at his opponent¡¯s otherworldly figure.


    Crouching atop the branch, Percy was clad in an ethereal suit of armour, shimmering in a pale teal light. The armour was cracked in many places, an entire layer almost gone, yet the rest of it was in good condition.


    Percy¡¯s entire frame shone in a rich Orange through Mana Sense. The sheer amount of mana contained within it would put any Yellow to shame. Resting on his shoulder was a huge scythe made of the same material as the armour, its curved edge glinting beneath the moonlight. And then there was the teal smoke pouring out of his back too, flowing into the wind like a cape.


    Yet, by far the most ominous trait, were Percy¡¯s eyes. Like a pair of gemstones, they shone from within the shadow of his visor, piercing through the darkness. They appeared to stab right into Rambert¡¯s soul, their cold gaze sending a shiver down his spine.


    But Percy remained silent, clearly not in the mood to chat. Then, he shifted. Robbing the weapon of its colour, he swung his arm at him, presumably flinging the scythe at a ridiculous speed.


    Still, it wasn¡¯t difficult for Rambert to sidestep the attack. The construct could be observed via Mana Sense if one knew where to look. Besides, Percy had already used this trick over a dozen times. Just the movement of his hand alone was more than enough to betray the weapon¡¯s trajectory by now.


    Rambert responded with three fireballs of his own, the first blowing the entire upper half of the tree into smithereens, the other two an attempt to catch Percy mid-air.


    Percy twisted his body to narrowly evade both of the projectiles, doing so with relaxed grace. And this wasn¡¯t the first time tonight he¡¯d done something similar.


    Rambert wondered.


    Though he didn¡¯t get the chance to dwell on it for long, as the scythe was already on its way back, about to cut him in half!


    But he didn¡¯t panic, seeing an opportunity instead. Jumping over it, he sent three more fireballs at Percy. If he wanted his weapon back, he¡¯d have to eat the blasts.


    Unwilling to take the risk, Percy chose to dodge instead. Tough as it was, his armour clearly had its limits.


    Seeing that his enemy was now unarmed, Rambert capitalized on his advantage, launching a barrage of fireballs at Percy. Each was a little smaller than before, but there were too many of them to dodge them all.


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    Left with no choice, Percy barely avoided whatever he could, as the rest clashed against his armour, peeling the rest of the outer layer off.


    Rambert was about to pick up the pace, to try and eat through the second layer too, when he sensed something flying towards him by the corner of his eye.


    He barely managed to lean back just enough to not get bisected, though the scythe still carved a deep horizontal cut across his chest, missing his heart by an inch.


    Ignoring the thick smell of iron and the blood gushing out of his wound, he shifted his attention back to Percy, only to notice the scythe was spinning towards him once more.


    Hastily pulling some mana from his core, he allowed it to explode out of his right palm, propelling himself out of the weapon¡¯s path.


    Yet, before he even had the chance to catch his breath, the scythe flew at him again, this time coming from his left!


    Panicking, he drew even more mana than before, blasting downwards with both hands, shooting himself to the air. But he didn¡¯t allow himself to relax this time, scanning his surroundings with Mana Sense. How was Percy doing this?! The scythe couldn¡¯t possibly move that fast! ?¨¤??????¦¥????


    Not letting up, Percy shot some throwing stars at him, as the scythe spun towards him from below. S~ea??h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Unleashing two more blasts, Rambert manoeuvred around the attacks, before resorting to his sixth sense again, still trying to make sense of this mess.


    Percy continued pressuring him, somehow sending the scythe at him from all sorts of directions, as Rambert tried to piece together what was happening between fleeting glances.


    For a couple minutes, the only sound breaking the eerie silence of the bog were the deafening booms of his explosions, as he danced in the air, frantically dodging the insidious weapon.


    It wasn¡¯t until his mana was down to about half that he finally understood how Percy was doing this, the realization causing him to draw a sharp breath.


    Percy hadn¡¯t just created scythe. There were of them, scattered around the battlefield, hidden in plain sight! And Rambert wasn¡¯t even sure these were all of them ¨C as each of them was both invisible and under the same cloaking enchantment.


    Knowing it would only be a matter of time until he lost his life at this rate, Rambert decided to switch things up. Dodging the next two scythes ¨C at least it didn¡¯t seem Percy could control too many of them at once ¨C he then propelled himself right at his opponent.


    Percy leapt backwards, trying to put more distance between them. At the same time, he sent more of the weapons at Rambert, hoping to slow him down. Still, it was much easier for him to dodge the scythes now that he knew about them, as he always kept track of the nearest ones.


    Metre by metre, blast by blast, Rambert slowly closed the gap to Percy, delivering a heavy punch at his torso. Furthermore, he unleashed a hefty amount of mana on impact, supplementing the physical blow with an even stronger explosion. Rambert grinned as he felt something crack beneath his fist, as Percy was sent smashing through a tree.


    Though his smile soon soured, noticing two more scythes spin towards him! Caught in an awkward position, Rambert hurriedly jumped upwards, not having time to draw any more mana. He managed to avoid the constructs, though the third one he failed to notice in time. He barely shifted his torso to protect his vitals, but the scythe still sliced through his shoulder, cleaving his left arm off!


    he grimaced, landing in a muddy pond with a loud splash, a fountain of blood pumping out of his stump.


    Evidently, Percy hadn¡¯t eaten that attack for nothing. Rather, he¡¯d gambled his armour against Rambert¡¯s offensive, hoping to extract an even heavier price in return.


    The only silver lining was that the pain of his amputated limb had yet to register. Getting back on his feet, Rambert sidestepped another scythe, his gaze falling on Percy.


    Walking towards him, the young man clearly hadn¡¯t escaped the previous scuffle scot-free either. Percy¡¯s chest-plate appeared slightly caved in, countless cracks branching outwards from his sternum. At the same time, some blood trickled down from his helmet, painting a vertical line of crimson all the way to his boot. His steps were uneven too, though his eyes still blazed with determination, just like the first moment Rambert saw them.


    Next, Percy called upon two more weapons, this time summoning them to his own hands. He cracked his neck, before dashing towards Rambert, as another pair of scythes flew towards him.


    Unwilling to fall behind, Rambert propelled himself forward with an explosion, before drawing even more mana to his one remaining hand, lighting his fist up in a scorching blaze. Locking onto Percy¡¯s weapons with Mana Sense, he paid close attention to the invisible edges. He couldn¡¯t afford to get hit by them again.


    The two men dove upon one another, engaging in their final clash¡­

 Chapter 203: Grim Dance (2)

    Percy thought, his scythe catching nothing but empty air again.


    Had it been Broose facing him ¨C ¨C they would have long been reduced to pieces by now. The sheer speed by which Rambert was adapting to his fighting style was staggering. The man had already grown used to Percy¡¯s invisible constructs, seemingly having no trouble keeping track of them with his Mana Sense any longer.


    Even worse, having given up on hitting him with long-ranged attacks or taking him out with a single blow, Rambert had switched to a fast-paced, closed-combat style. He was trying to wear Percy¡¯s armour down, one piece at a time, while conserving his mana reserves.


    Unlike the heavy blast he had used earlier, Rambert now released lots of tiny explosions all over his body, each giving him a significant but momentary burst of speed. Even down to one arm, he manoeuvred around the battlefield like a hurricane, dodging Percy¡¯s scythes while looking for openings of his own to pounce on.


    Every time he took a step, a series of fireworks went off, bathing the gloomy swamp in flashes of red and orange. The shockwaves sent the muddy waters rolling and tumbling, as the heat slowly caused them to boil, transforming the landscape into a pond seemingly taken straight out of hell itself.


    But Percy was no slouch either.


    Initially, his Greater Foresight hadn¡¯t been particularly effective, as the surgical application of Rambert¡¯s mana was far removed from anything he¡¯d seen before. As time went on, however, Percy¡¯s eyes slowly adjusted to his opponent¡¯s movements, the spell growing more accurate with every passing moment, expanding the predictive window slightly.


    he grinned.


    Percy¡¯s own fighting style was arguably even more exotic than Rambert¡¯s. He might not have the physique of a Green, or countless explosions to push him along, but he had his own footwork, honed over years of gruelling practice. His moves ranged from the wild swings and wide pivots of the Dance to the much narrower ¨C but no less rapid ¨C strikes of Takeo¡¯s style.


    The ethereal nature of his constructs too, added an entirely new dimension to his offensive. While scythes were technically two-handed weapons, normally too clunky to be wielded like this, Percy bypassed most of their limitations by taking advantage of their properties. Whenever one of them was about to stab into the ground, or collide into the other, he would phase it out, allowing them to continue on their path unobstructed. Carving a soundless crescent with every swing, the weapons danced with eerie grace, their insidious edges stopping at nothing short of their prey¡¯s flesh.


    At the same time, broken shards of teal constantly fell off his crumbling armour, as his Mantle oozed into the air, permeating the swamp. Every now and then, he tried to catch Rambert unaware, by manifesting a dagger out of the substance, or summoning another stray scythe from their surroundings. Still, the guy hadn¡¯t dropped his guard for a moment, seemingly always ready to react in time.


    It was hard to tell with any certainty who had the upper hand.


    Both of them struck true every now and then. Occasionally, Percy would graze Rambert with one of his weapons, the man¡¯s body covered in shallow cuts. This was especially significant, as the guy had already lost a ton of blood thanks to his amputated arm, each additional drop seeping out of his wounds bringing him a second closer to death.


    Then again, Rambert had landed plenty of blows himself. They didn¡¯t carry the same weight as that first one, but they¡¯d still dealt a lot of damage to Percy¡¯s armour. Each of them caused the cracks in the Phantomscale Raiment to expand, as more and more of the enchantments failed with every passing moment. Overall, his armour was dangerously close to failing completely. Should that happen, the very next blow he received would be his last.


    Worse still, Percy¡¯s body was bruised and battered. Even breathing was painful, that first blow having damaged his lungs to an extent. But he persisted, not allowing the burning agony in his chest to interrupt his rhythm, unwilling to lose Synchronization.


    he thought grimly.


    It was easier said than done. Just keeping up with Rambert took everything he had and then some. There were too many things constantly begging for his attention. Reading his opponent¡¯s moves, dodging, weaving his own attacks in between, shifting the constructs from corporeal to ethereal and back whenever he needed to, absorbing the blows through the network of strings holding his armour together¡­ The list was endless.


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    a strange thought suddenly crossed his mind.


    The sheer elegance and finesse by which his friend had wielded not one, not two, but a whopping weapons at once wasn¡¯t something Percy would easily forget. Like extensions of his body, Micky had effortlessly manipulated his constructs, unleashing a flurry of blows against that beast.


    Despite all his gains over the years, Percy wasn¡¯t even close to reaching his pal¡¯s skill. And it wasn¡¯t just due to the lacking pair of limbs either. In theory, he could replace the missing arms with his willpower, handling another scythe or two without having to touch them. . Ever since Rambert closed the distance between them, Percy had a lot more trouble attacking with his spare constructs. It was just too difficult to hit his opponent without harming himself in the process.


    he wondered.


    While his combat experience couldn¡¯t yet compare with the decades Micky had spent fighting in the arena, Percy had his own advantages to fall back to. Namely, . Was there a way to leverage his mutation once more, to elevate his fighting style to the next level?


    The battle raged on, the mud boiling with greater fury, the explosions growing louder and more frequent as Rambert picked up the pace, doing everything he could to murder him. But Percy was unfazed, the faint teal mist leaking from his cape painting a stark contrast against the infernal scenery, the cold glint of his scythes splitting the air with undeniable lethality.


    Though one thing was different now.


    As the two mages fought for their lives, Percy allowed his focus to sink into the shadowy projection of Rambert¡¯s fist, faintly glimpsing a future not yet realized. This was nothing new by itself, though one small detail had changed. Along with Rambert¡¯s attacks, Percy tried to visualize his own ¨C to better understand how the two would clash, and what the outcome would be.


    Of course, his Greater Foresight worked by reading a person¡¯s intentions through the flickers of their soul, or the flares of their core. Naturally, Percy didn¡¯t have the luxury of examining himself in the midst of combat, meaning that his spell failed to capture the essence of his own moves. . He didn¡¯t need any help, as he was already privy to his own thoughts, even without the aid of a spell. If anything, his moves appeared even clearer inside his mind.


    Two sets of actions ¨C two opposing wills ¨C fought for dominance over the swamp. Each tried to exert control over the battle, to steer it into a different direction. And wherever they met, blood was drawn, or mana-forged constructs shattered.


    Soon, Percy realized he might have bitten off way more than he could chew. Reading the flow of the entire fight was, frankly, impossible. Even keeping up with the present moment was a tall order ¨C especially against such a fearsome opponent. Let alone trying to peer into the endless possibilities the future might hold.


    he thought, his eyes burning with determination.


    He didn¡¯t need to see the future. Not of it, at least. A tiny piece would do. He only needed to give himself a small opening. That would be plenty. And it was only a matter of time too. Perhaps not with every clash, but once every couple of minutes his and Rambert¡¯s movements were to align in a slightly favourable manner. And, sure enough¡­


    Sidestepping a brutal blow leaving a blazing trail behind it, he swung at Rambert¡¯s torso, trying to cleave it right in half. The man easily leapt above the weapon, avoiding it. He was already rolling in the air, about to land a hit on Percy¡¯s face with his backhand.


    Percy didn¡¯t panic, however. He merely watched the burning fist enlarge in his eyes, a faint grin hidden behind his helmet. If Rambert stayed on this course of action, he would lose another hand!


    Sadly, it wasn¡¯t meant to be.


    The Green seemed to notice something was off the very last second, releasing a small blast from his palm instead, pushing himself out of the way. Percy crouched to avoid the scorching air blowing at his face, as a scythe spun right through the spot where Rambert had been in just a moment ago.


    He clicked his tongue in annoyance, but didn¡¯t give up. Letting go of one of the weapons he was holding, Percy grabbed the new one at a more favourable angle, before pouncing towards his opponent, pressing on his advantage.


    Rambert was suddenly on the backfoot, clumsily dodging Percy¡¯s wild swings, desperately trying to restore his footing into something more sustainable.


    Though Percy wasn¡¯t having it. He¡¯d worked hard to get this far ¨C he wasn¡¯t about to let it go to waste. Unleashing a flurry of attacks, he did everything in his power to land a hit. Just one slash was all it would take!


    The scythes kept missing Rambert by a hair¡¯s breadth, as the latter abandoned all caution, consuming his mana thrice as rapidly as before, barely dodging the lethal swings by the skin of his teeth.


    Percy was about to push himself even further, when he caught wind of a sudden counterattack his opponent had brewed up. Apparently, the talented Green wasn¡¯t about to go down so easily.


    Releasing a significant amount of mana all at once, Rambert unleashed a powerful explosion between them, forcing Percy to leap backwards, bringing his offensive to an abrupt end.


    And that was only the beginning.


    Realizing that caution and patience weren¡¯t going to get him anywhere, the fire mage leapt after Percy himself this time, fuelling his attacks with even more mana than before. The sheer rate by which he was draining his core wasn¡¯t sustainable ¨C he would run out in the next minute or so!


    Percy smiled coldly.


    Impulsive as it was, Rambert¡¯s strategy was brutally effective, however. Within mere moments, he landed several more hits on Percy¡¯s armour, smashing the second layer into bits. Even the final layer was already damaged severely. Percy doubted it would last longer than Rambert¡¯s remaining mana. Sear?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

 Chapter 204: Grim Dance (3)

    Percy swung both scythes at Rambert, hoping to trap him within their lethal embrace. The man leapt above the closing stranglehold with relative ease, before trying to land a blow of his own.


    But Percy wasn¡¯t deterred so easily. Letting go of his weapons, he used a third scythe to divert the attack. The construct still shattered in the process, unable to survive the full brunt of the Green¡¯s fury. Yet, that was merely the start. Percy doubled down with another slash from a fourth scythe, soon discarding it for a fifth after that also failed.


    Like that, the two men fought with everything on the line, hinging everything on their battle¡¯s final act. Whenever Rambert¡¯s fist made contact, Percy¡¯s armour crumbled. Without the hardness runes keeping the pieces stable, the absorption runes alone struggled to fend the powerful attacks off. At the same time, Percy¡¯s bones cracked, his flesh turning to mush beneath the armour, bloodied patches already exposed in several locations.


    But he wasn¡¯t without his own victories. Sear?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Using the scattered weapons as disposable replacements for his own, he pressed onward with greater confidence, inflicting more injuries on Rambert. The man¡¯s already pale skin had grown even paler, making him resemble a corpse more than a living person by now, his gaunt body animated through sheer grit and unyielding rage.


    Though Percy couldn¡¯t care less about his opponent. He even ignored his own pain, or the very real possibility of death looming around the corner. Instead, he allowed himself to fall into a trance, grasping at a new opportunity emerging by the edge of his consciousness.


    Swapping his scythes one after the other, he failed to properly wield them all, often resorting to all sorts of awkward grips out of necessity. Sometimes, he held one with his elbow, other times even using his armpits. Suffice to say, the circus act wasn¡¯t particularly effective, unless his goal was to make Rambert laugh.


    Still, the feeling of the mana-fuelled constructs pressing against the inside of his joints inevitably jogged some long-buried memories, bringing them to the surface of his mind. These weren¡¯t merely his own. They were experiences he had shared with a friend all those years ago. Naturally, they were from the colosseum back on Huehue, from when Micky demonstrated how he fought.


    Doing his best to remember, Percy capitalized on the lingering remnants of muscle memory, trying to reconstruct part of his friend¡¯s style, and to adapt it to his current needs. After all, he couldn¡¯t use it in its original state, as many of his circumstances were different, from his affinity to his physiology, and to the very nature of his weapons.


    At first, he made several mistakes. He¡¯d accidentally drop a scythe at an inconvenient moment, or swing it without putting enough force behind the attack. And Rambert made sure to punish him each time, making his situation even more dire.


    But Percy wasn¡¯t an amateur, and this wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯d tried replicating Micky¡¯s style over the years. In fact, his growing connection to his teal constructs only made his job easier. At the same time, his heart beat wildly, just like it had on that fateful day.


    Little by little, he improved, making fewer errors, as his weapons¡¯ shafts rolled along his limbs, their edges spinning elegantly in ever-shifting arcs around his body, carving an inviolable zone of death in their passing.


    Still, he wasn¡¯t as good as Micky. This was nothing but a cheap imitation. Or at least, that was the case until his Status spoke.


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new spell: Wild Art: Grim Dance ¨C Refined!]


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    A refreshing wave of clarity washed over his mind, his blossoming understanding of the fighting style growing ever firmer, as the shadows of his own moves finally emerged before his eyes. Though these worked differently from the projections created by Greater Foresight. Those were formed by reading his opponent¡¯s intentions, predicting their moves. In other words, it was a tool which relied on external stimuli.


    As for the Grim Dance, it drew its strength from within, fuelled by Percy¡¯s own thoughts. It was more of a learning aide, showing him how his moves would manifest a second in advance, giving him an opportunity to adjust them ¨C ¨C before committing. Working in tandem with his mutation, the new spell finally lifted a heavy load off his tired mind. It allowed him to improve several times faster than before, while giving him the freedom to experiment some more.


    Percy swung his scythes again. Seeing Rambert avoid the initial strike, he let go of the weapons, sending them after him. And that was just the start. Not giving his opponent a chance to breathe, Percy grabbed another pair of scythes from his surroundings before chasing after Rambert.


    Rambert was taken aback by the sudden shift in momentum. Surviving the relentless barrage was a struggle, as scythes flew all over the place. Some were still held in Percy¡¯s hands, others rolling down his limbs, many spinning towards Rambert from random directions. Countless crescents clawed at him, most of them above ground ¨C though a few stabbed at him from beneath his feet, trying to catch him off guard.


    Wielding three, or four, or even more of them at once, Percy used every nook and cranny of his body, and every last drop of his willpower. He turned the very battlefield into a demon¡¯s maw, its many fangs biting hungrily at his opponent.


    Rambert did his utmost to evade the attacks. . One cut about halfway into his thigh, nearly slicing his leg off. Another headed towards his heart again. Pivoting at the last second, he prevented the worst of it, though the weapon still shaved a slice of skin off, drawing even more blood.


    Soon, Rambert¡¯s feet wobbled, as the damage he had endured over the course of the fight finally reached a critical point. Even if the blood loss hadn¡¯t taken its toll, his core was almost empty. Either way, he was screwed.


    Flashing Percy a hateful glare, he called upon whatever dregs of mana he could still summon, rushing at him for his final stand. . Three more scythes carved deep into his flesh ¨C one into his forearm, two more on his torso. Still, he ignored them, gritting his teeth as he opened his bloodied palm, aiming at a gap in Percy¡¯s armour.


    It almost worked too, Rambert¡¯s sudden move being too quick for Percy to evade completely. Shifting his body slightly, he instead forced the Green¡¯s grip to land in a different spot ¨C one still guarded by a loose plate of mana.


    Clicking his tongue, Rambert closed his fist at the last second, punching Percy with as much strength as he could muster.


    A wet cough escaped Percy¡¯s lips, as he was sent smashing through another tree, the remains of his armour finally falling apart.


    ¡°Nice¡­ try¡­¡± Percy spat amidst pants, speaking for the first time since the start of the fight.


    Rambert¡¯s final move hadn¡¯t been random. Percy knew his opponent had tried to use his bloodline, to save his own life. But he¡¯d be damned if he allowed Rambert to recover.


    ¡°Would you look at that¡­ he can actually speak¡­¡± Rambert chuckled weakly. ¡°For a moment there¡­ I thought you were mute.¡±


    Neither of them spoke over the next few minutes. Nor did they move. .


    Darkness took over the swamp once more, as the shards of Percy¡¯s armour sank into the mud, robbing the place of even their dim light. Silence prevailed too, only occasionally broken by the two men¡¯s soft, ragged breaths. The only evidence of the apocalyptic battle that had taken place mere moments ago, was the scent of charred wood blending with the stench of spoilt eggs.


    But it was ok. As bad as Percy¡¯s injuries were, Rambert¡¯s were worse. The man would bleed out long before he did.


    he asked through the cord, finally getting a chance to check up on his companions.


    Though he never took his gaze off Rambert for even a second. Percy wouldn¡¯t allow himself to relax until the guy was dead.


    the response was prompt, but tired.


    A faint smile took root by the corner of Percy¡¯s lips. Their work wasn¡¯t over quite yet, of course. He¡¯d need help standing up, and they¡¯d also have to clean the place up before leaving the Grisly Bog for good.


    But the worst of it was over. Despite the shocking force that House Tantalus had chosen to unleash on them, they had prevailed. Together, two Yellows and one Orange had defeated a group of three .

 Chapter 205: Rending Tornado

    It wasn¡¯t until late the following night that the trio left the area.


    Their injuries weren¡¯t nearly as fatal as those of their opponents, but they were still quite serious. Micky¡¯s wings were full of small holes, making it difficult for him to fly. . While Nesha wasn¡¯t in any danger of bleeding out, she couldn¡¯t walk on her maimed leg. As for Percy, he had it the worst among the three. His whole body was swollen, his skin purple and bleeding in many spots.


    ¡°Such a waste¡­¡± he sighed, looking at the handful of green mushrooms left in his spatial amulet.


    Most of his stash had been destroyed inside the trap they killed Dranold with. The rest, they¡¯d consumed to fix the worst of their injuries, just barely allowing them to move. Naturally, the mushrooms were far less effective when eaten raw. Sadly, Percy didn¡¯t have the time or mental capacity to figure out how to brew them into potions right now.


    ¡°Do you want to take a detour to the Trollsden before we go? We can get some more from the trolls.¡± Nesha suggested.


    He grimaced at the sound of that. Honestly, he¡¯d spent enough time in the Grisly Bog to last him a lifetime. Even over the past day, he and Micky had stayed in the swamp, having plenty of tasks to tend to.


    Among them, was cleaning up the various battlefields, getting rid of any lingering runes. The enchantments Percy used weren¡¯t anything special, but the Vault¡¯s script still differed from Remior¡¯s. He¡¯d rather not deal with the fallout if somebody stumbled upon them by accident.


    Plus, he also wanted to salvage some of his constructs¡¯ pieces. Obviously, they didn¡¯t bother scooping every last shard from the filth. It was too much work. Especially limping and in pain as they were. That said, they managed to collect some of the still-intact scythes and the largest fragments they could find. All in all, Percy retrieved about 20% of his teal powder, adding another week or two of accumulation to his trusty jar. Not that he was looking forward to replenishing the rest, or reforging his armour. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Nah. Let¡¯s leave it. Honestly, I just want to go home right now.¡±


    He could ask Baldy to help him grow more mushrooms once he was back at the mansion. Percy had a hunch his grandpa¡¯s clones would be an excellent place to plant the parasitic mushrooms on. With any luck, Archibald¡¯s Violet life mana would accelerate their growth too. And there was another favour he wanted from him...


    ¡°How did the townsfolk treat you, by the way?¡± he asked, changing the topic.


    Since he couldn¡¯t exactly appear in front of others until he came up with a way to hide his glowing eyes, the job of scavenging through their house¡¯s rubble had fallen on Nesha. Not that she¡¯d found much. Just a couple of vials of Dranold¡¯s elixirs that had miraculously survived the implosion, along with another mushroom or two.


    ¡°Most of them, like a hero. They offered us some food and a place to stay ¨C if we wanted. But I declined.¡±


    Percy nodded. This was what they had agreed on. As nice as it would be to rest for a few days before travelling, they wanted to reach his family¡¯s mansion before their enemies caught wind of their latest losses.


    ¡°What about the snitches?¡±


    ¡°Ha! You should have seen the looks on their faces! Are you sure you don¡¯t want to get back at them though?¡±


    Percy shrugged. Truth be told, he had considered it. The bastards definitely deserved to be punished for what they had tried to do to him and Nesha. But at the end of the day, he didn¡¯t care enough to waste more time on such small-minded people. They weren¡¯t worth it.


    ¡°Did you tell the others about it?¡± he asked.


    Nesha nodded.


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    ¡°Then, that¡¯s enough.¡±


    Their neighbours wouldn¡¯t treat them too kindly moving forward. Not after such a betrayal. And that was the least of their problems too. After all, they were the ones who had reported Percy and Nesha to House Tantalus, only for the family to end up with three more dead Greens. Naturally, this wouldn¡¯t look great on their informants.


    Shaking the pointless thoughts out of his head, Percy wrapped his hand around Nesha. The two supported each other, trudging through the swamp, heading west. Micky walked beside them, apparently not finding flying to be particularly pleasant at the moment.


    Technically, their current location could be considered an extension of the Grisly Bog, though it wasn¡¯t treated as such by mapmakers ¨C or anyone else, really. The trees here were much scarcer, and the soil less mushy. Even the wildlife rarely went beyond the occasional Red critter.


    Had they travelled along a proper road, the trip to House Avalon would only take them a few days. However, that wasn¡¯t an option. They had to circle around the province to avoid running into more of House Tantalus¡¯s people. Suffice to say, the extra distance, coupled with the rough terrain would greatly extend the trip. Their poor condition wouldn¡¯t do them any favours either. Everything considered, they¡¯d probably need over a week to reach their destination.


    "It¡¯s not going to be as bad after we cross river Glein." Percy said after noticing his companions¡¯ sour expressions.


    While this was his first time making this trip, he did remember a few details about the area. The soil was supposed to be firmer on the other side, as the swamp gradually transitioned into a proper forest. That, in turn, grew denser and denser, until it was populated with the unique variety of trees with the melodic cones that the Whistling Woods were known for.


    That would be a much safer direction to approach his family from. Not that it was impossible for House Tantalus to venture in that area, but it was far less of a certainty. Especially given their current lack of manpower ¨C that Percy and Nesha themselves had contributed to.


    His words did seem to cheer the others up a little. Still, this promised to be a long and tedious trip. To kill some time, Percy opened his Status, checking up on his familiar. From what Nesha told him, the crow had probably registered or upgraded a spell.


    ___


    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s familiar)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Yellow ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Orange ¨C Air]


    Mutations:


    [Soul Predator] ¨C Allows one to more easily interact with the souls of others.[Wind Dancer] ¨C Allows one to augment their flight using air mana.


    Spells:


    [Wild Art: Rending Tornado ¨C Refined][Circulation ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    ___


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but crack a smile.


    The bird didn¡¯t say anything, but Percy didn¡¯t miss the wave of pride seeping through the cord. And honestly, it was well deserved too. Getting that far as a Yellow was no small feat. It was proof that his familiar had worked hard over the past two years, like him.


    he thought, squeezing her shoulder gently.


    The girl had arguably progressed the most out of the three. Sure, the sheer number of Refined spells he had registered vastly eclipsed hers, despite his lower grade. Still, he had plenty of advantages aiding him, while she had started completely from scratch.


    Over the next few minutes, he asked the others for some more details of their fight against Grian, hoping to understand his familiar¡¯s new spell a little better. Unlike Acceleration, which used much less air mana over a prolonged period of time, the Rending Tornado consumed nearly all of Micky¡¯s reserves to deliver one powerful, deadly strike. Should the crow resort to this move at the wrong moment, or fail to finish his opponent with it, he¡¯d end up in a world of trouble. Luckily, the bird had already proven smart enough to use it wisely.


    Granted, the events of the past few days had been exceedingly dangerous. Even with all of their ¨C arguably paranoid ¨C preparations, they had barely managed to survive the ambush. And Percy was keenly aware that they owed their survival to his lucky trip to Atlantis. After all, they had already planned to face off against House Tantalus since before his clone ended up in Enki¡¯s body.


    He¡¯d really thought that their traps and his Phantomscale Raiment would be enough. And they might have been, if their enemies had only sent two Greens like they had expected. . However, the final clash had been so close that Percy was sure he wouldn¡¯t have survived it without both of his Wild Arts.


    he decided.


    It was true that risks often came hand-in-hand with rewards, as was the case here. And Percy needed that, if he hoped to ever realize his ambitions. But he¡¯d need to prepare himself better the next time, as he wouldn¡¯t always get so lucky.


    Especially since it wasn¡¯t just his own life on the line anymore¡­

 Chapter 206: Food

    ¡°I¡¯m hungry.¡± Micky complained for the billionth time.


    ¡°Alright. I suppose we could all use a break.¡± Percy sighed.


    At least, they¡¯d already crossed the river a while ago, so the place didn¡¯t stink of rot anymore, ruining their appetite. Walking over to the nearest tree with Nesha by his side, they sat on an exposed root. Next, he opened his spatial amulet, tossing a chunk of meat to his familiar. A poor replacement for a mana core ¨C even a Red one ¨C but they weren¡¯t in any condition to hunt for live prey. Nor had they seen any in a while. Finally, he grabbed a loaf of bread, splitting it with Nesha.


    ¡°Gods, I miss Freddy¡¯s Honey Rolls so damn much!¡± he groaned, nearly breaking a tooth on his stale meal. ¡°If I could go back in time, I swear I¡¯d kidnap him.¡±


    ¡°I think your buddy really dodged an arrow there.¡± Nesha chuckled. ¡°I doubt he¡¯d enjoy hiding from the Divine Root alongside us.¡±


    Turning to Micky ¨C who had already finished his own food ¨C however, her smile faded.


    ¡°Say, what are we going to do about him? Our supplies will run out in a few days.¡±


    Percy nodded. This was something he¡¯d been thinking about for a while. He and Nesha would be fine, as they¡¯d reach his family¡¯s place by then. But Micky was a different story. There was a reason why beasts above Red were aggressive, dangerous and rare. Naturally, it was all caused by their insatiable appetite, as their bodies demanded a ridiculous amount of food and mana to survive.


    This was obviously why they had left for the Fungal Spire in the first place ¨C in addition to his own need for elixirs, of course. And the problem was even worse now, as the crow had evolved again, making the Whistling Woods an even poorer habitat for him.


    ¡°I suppose there¡¯s only one solution.¡± he said. ¡°Micky! Come over here!¡±


    The bird acquiesced, waddling over clumsily. His injuries had improved a little since they left the Grisly Bog, though not as much as they would have if he had more food. Flying wasn¡¯t impossible for him, though he still preferred walking for now.


    In any case, the crow didn¡¯t seem to care about his wounds much, reaching him and Nesha promptly, some excitement glinting in his silver eyes. Seeing him like that, a pang of pity gripped Percy¡¯s chest. The poor thing probably thought he was going to get more food.


    Though it wouldn¡¯t be food. Just a substitute, to quell his hunger.


    ¡°What is it?¡± the familiar asked.


    ¡°I¡¯ll show you one of my spells. I¡¯ll need you to start working on it as soon as possible. I think it¡¯ll help with your hunger.¡± Percy explained.


    Hearing that, Micky¡¯s head drooped in disappointment. Though, to his credit, he didn¡¯t complain. Clearly, he also wanted to do something about this.


    Naturally, Percy was thinking of his Soul Conversion ¨C or, well, a version of that suitable for Micky¡¯s affinities. This hadn¡¯t been an option for them back when they left for the Guild, for multiple reasons. Most importantly, the crow had lacked the cognitive ability to understand the process back then. Not to mention that they hadn¡¯t even repaired his second core yet. And Percy hadn¡¯t been able to spare any of his own soul mana for his familiar, as he¡¯d also had his own injuries sapping at his reserves.


    It wasn¡¯t until recently that Percy even considered this approach, the books he had read in the Vault opening new doors for him. Though it hadn¡¯t been a priority while Micky could still hunt in the Grisly Bog. They¡¯d had other, more pressing concerns to worry about at the time.


    ¡°Will he be able to do this in the next few days though? Didn¡¯t you spend months on it?¡± Nesha pointed out.


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    But Percy shook his head.


    ¡°It took me several months to upgrade it to . It would be nice if he can get there, but even a Crude variant would improve his situation. If he could convert 15~20% of his air mana, it would do wonders for his body¡¯s needs.¡±


    He was confident in that assessment, though there was something he¡¯d left unsaid. It wouldn¡¯t be easy, nor particularly pleasant for the bird. Due to the grade disparity between his two cores, as well as the low conversion rate at the start, Micky would have to spend several hours per day to sustain himself.


    Over the next couple of hours, Percy demonstrated his Refined spell a few times, having Micky observe the mana flow between his cores. Additionally, he went a step further, sending his familiar a few images and thoughts through the cord, to better explain everything.


    It wasn¡¯t until they were back on the move that Micky started practicing the conversion himself, Percy paying him close attention. Initially, it didn¡¯t go well. The crow was careful not to send too much of his mana to his beast core at once ¨C as Percy had instructed ¨C though the conversion lacked direction. Without Micky properly guiding the process, his core simply devoured the mana automatically, wasting nearly all of it.


    Percy thought.


    ***


    The trio continued on their arduous journey for two more days, until they were well within the Whistling Woods. By now, they could hear the nostalgic tunes of the cones rattling in the wind, and Percy even started recognizing some of the scenery. They¡¯d already reached their old haunts!


    ¡°So, we¡¯re almost there I¡¯m guessing?¡± Nesha asked after Percy pointed out the spot where Micky had advanced to Orange all those years ago.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ We can reach my place in a few hours if we want. Though, I¡¯d rather get Micky¡¯s situation sorted first.¡±


    Nesha nodded, letting him focus on his familiar. The crow had improved a lot over the past couple of days, his wounds having nearly closed. His conversion rate had also climbed steadily, and he even asked to be fed less frequently, which was a great sign that Percy¡¯s plan had merit.


    That said, the bird¡¯s efficiency was still lower than they¡¯d like. At this rate, Percy was afraid that Micky would struggle to survive off the scarce food here, even if he spent all day using his new spell. Of course, it was just a matter of time until Micky improved enough, but time was the one resource they were currently short of. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but notice.


    In his case, his pure mana was a lot more malleable, almost as if it to transform into something else. It was mostly his soul core¡¯s ability to assimilate it that was lacking, making his job harder. For Micky, it was the other way around. His air mana felt a lot more rigid, as if it was too fixated in its own ways to bother changing into something else. Instead, it was Micky¡¯s beast core that did all the heavy lifting, forcefully replacing the mana¡¯s qualities with its own. Comparing the two of them, an idea suddenly flashed in Percy¡¯s mind. If this worked, it might solve the problem.


    Percy couldn¡¯t think of a reason why not. In any case, they had nothing to lose even if it failed. Calling Micky over, he explained what he had in mind, getting a nod back. Drawing some mana from both of his cores, Percy fused it, before pushing it through the cord.


    As early as when they joined the Guild, he had learned that the ethereal cord only accepted soul mana. Still, while they¡¯d never had much of a reason to try this, he was confident his teal mana in its incorporeal state would work just as well. It was functionally identical to soul mana, after all.


    Sure enough, the fused mana soon flowed through the cord without much difficulty, reaching Micky.


    ¡°Try feeding into your core.¡±


    Micky did as he was told, under Percy¡¯s supervision. Of course, neither of them expected this to work on the first try. The crow had never wielded this type of mana in his life, let alone having any experience using it to fuel his latest spell.


    They couldn¡¯t have been more wrong, however.


    As if the two were made for one another, Micky¡¯s beast core greedily absorbed the fused mana, converting it with even greater eagerness than ever before. On the other side, the mana itself was quite agreeable, happy to meld into its surroundings, to be restructured into a new type. Though it seemed to have a little more trouble doing so than Percy¡¯s pure mana. Apparently, the portion made of soul mana held the substance back from its full potential.


    Percy grinned.


    It would be a little annoying, as he¡¯d have to keep fusing and sending his mana to Micky over the next few days, but it should buy the bird time to improve some more. It shouldn¡¯t be long before he could sustain himself on his own.


    ¡°You look happy.¡± Nesha noticed. ¡°Have you solved it?¡±


    ¡°We should be good for now.¡± Percy replied, before turning to Micky. ¡°Just don¡¯t slack on the spell. The sooner you stop relying on me, the better. And keep an eye out for people. This place is busier than the swamp.¡±


    Only after he got a nod back from Micky did he and Nesha leave him behind ¨C after dropping him a few doses of Aurora Dew to last him for a while of course. Next, they headed to his family¡¯s mansion.


    It was finally time to meet Elaine and Baldy again!

 Chapter 207: Homecoming (1) – Galahad

    Galahad pushed through the crowd, making his way to the centre of the room, curious to see what the commotion was all about.


    The Main Hall had always been one of the busiest places in the mansion, serving both as a lounge for everyone to mingle in, as well as the spot where they could pick their missions from. That said, things had changed a little since the advent of the war. Nowadays, the family avoided assigning non-essential missions, as Archibald was afraid of risking people¡¯s lives unnecessarily. sea??h th§× NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    However, this only made the place busier than before. Not only was there a higher concentration of people inside the building, but everyone seemed more inclined to spend time with their relatives during these uncertain months. Due to that, the family¡¯s management had installed more couches and tables, turning the place a little more comfortable and welcoming.


    Still, that wasn¡¯t what was going through Galahad¡¯s mind right now. Another thing that had changed in recent years was how few outsiders visited them nowadays. Naturally, anyone coming in was bound to draw a lot of attention. Ignoring the sharp gasps and hushed whispers, he finally reached the source of all this unrest.


    Two people.


    Yet, one of them wasn¡¯t an outsider at all, despite how long it had been since the last time anybody saw him. Most curious was Percy¡¯s appearance. His gruesome wounds aside, he wasn¡¯t wearing the family¡¯s colours like the day he had left the mansion, nor was he wearing the Guild¡¯s robes.


    While nobody ever spared the boy much thought ¨C ¨C it wasn¡¯t a great secret he had gone to the Alchemists¡¯ Guild. Most people assumed he was still stuck there, the Divine Root not letting anyone enter or leave easily following the Aurora Dew fiasco.


    Galahad wondered.


    It was the only logical explanation. How else would he have escaped the blockade? Perhaps, he had failed to make a living as an alchemist ¨C it wouldn¡¯t be that strange ¨C and was forced to leave with his tail tucked between his legs. Next, he must have tried his luck outside, only to fail there as well, before ultimately returning home. At least, that was what Galahad would have assumed in the past. Though he¡¯d long decided to stop making assumptions about the boy.


    he soon corrected himself.


    Percy¡¯s outward appearance was arguably more pitiful than ever before. The torn scraps he was wearing, and the numerous injuries still oozing blood aside, it was the filthy bandage looping around his head that was the most lamentable by far. Had Percy gone blind? That would certainly explain why he had returned. Eyeballs were intricate organs. While they were relatively small, it would take a powerful and experienced healer like Archibald to repair them.


    Percy¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t that of a scared kid anymore, nor was it that of a defeated man. There wasn¡¯t any sign that he had abandoned his ambitions, nor any trace of shame in returning home like this. Instead, he radiated the unyielding confidence of a victor, the unmistakable shine of triumph. Even more strangely, he didn¡¯t like a blind person either. He slowly scanned the room, his non-existent gaze seemingly landing on Galahad of all people. It then examined him from head to toe, as if Percy could still somehow see! And through the blindfold too!


    It was as if Percy could peer right through his flesh, observing his soul. The very notion sent a chill down Galahad¡¯s spine.


    ¡°Uncle, is Grandpa in his office?¡± Percy asked, his voice hoarse but oddly calm.


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    ¡°Come. I¡¯ll take you there.¡± Galahad replied.


    Turning around, he headed towards Father¡¯s office, Percy and his girlfriend right behind him. Had this been before, Galahad wouldn¡¯t have even spared his nephew a moment. He would have chastised him for ruining his opportunity and embarrassing their family in the Guild. Then, he would have admonished him for seeking to waste more of Archibald¡¯s time.


    But he no longer knew what to even think. At the very least, the boosting art Percy had contributed to the family was a treasure valuable enough to warrant the bare minimum of respect. Maybe Father¡¯s blatant favouritism towards him hadn¡¯t been an error in the old man¡¯s judgement?


    That shouldn¡¯t be the case, right? At the end of the day, the most important thing was somebody¡¯s grade at birth. Even if a Red-born had a special or prodigious bloodline, they were better off just passing it along to the next generation than to try using it themselves. After all, there was a limit to how much they could accomplish with a weaker core and a shorter lifespan.


    There was no doubt that Circulation was valuable, but Percy didn¡¯t need to be given expensive elixirs, did he? He had plenty of time to have many kids with his bloodline, and to bring more interesting techniques to their family as he was, without robbing them of a stronger fighter they could deploy on the front lines. Why waste resources on him, just to bolster his pitiful personal strength?


    ¡°Baldy taught you Circulation, didn¡¯t he?¡± Percy suddenly asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    ¡°How can you tell?¡± he asked, halting his steps.


    ¡°Other than your strange behaviour, you mean?¡± Percy chuckled. ¡°All the channels in your body are developed more than the average person¡¯s.¡±


    Questions clawed at Galahad''s mind, but only one escaped his lips.


    ¡°Do you disapprove? Surely, I¡¯m the last person you¡¯d want to have it, am I not?¡±


    Surprisingly, Percy shook his head.


    ¡°I admit I¡¯ve never liked you much. Frankly, I think you¡¯re an asshole.¡± he said, completely uncaring about the difference in age, status or power. ¡°But I understand why he did it. If the future leader of the family ¨C and our second strongest mage ¨C can¡¯t even be trusted with a secret, House Avalon is doomed anyway.¡±


    Hearing his nephew¡¯s response, Galahad resumed his walk down the corridor.


    ¡°And do you even care? You haven¡¯t been around in what? Seven years?¡±


    ¡°About the family as a whole? Not that much. But there people I care about here. And their survival might depend on one day. Honestly, I was planning to tell Baldy to teach you the technique.¡±


    Galahad raised an eyebrow, though he didn¡¯t say anything else. Soon, the three reached their destination. Knocking on Father¡¯s door, he waited respectfully for a couple minutes to be allowed in.


    A strange concoction of surprise, joy and concern painted the old man¡¯s face as Percy walked through the door. It was by far the most expressive Galahad had seen Father in months. Standing up, an orange glint shifted on Archibald¡¯s shaved head as it reflected the afternoon sunlight coming through the window. Some moisture even seemed to gather by the corner of his eyes, though it was gone as soon as he blinked.


    Stepping forth, he hugged the young man firmly but also gently. At the same time, a powerful wave of life mana gushed out of his core, shrouding Percy from head to toe, the cuts and bruises along his body closing and fading within mere moments. Still, the old man seemed to be at a loss for words.


    ¡°Been a while, hasn¡¯t it?¡± Percy was the first to speak, a grin plastered on his face by the time Father let go. Then, he pulled the girl forward, placing his arm around her back.


    ¡°I know there¡¯s a lot to catch up on, but first things first. This is my friend, Nesha of House Veritas. We¡¯ve spent the last three years working, travelling and living together. Grandpa, can you please heal her too?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you, Nesha.¡± Archibald offered his hand.


    ¡°Likewise.¡± she replied, grabbing it.


    Next, another burst of life mana bathed the office in a vibrant green colour. The girl recovered even faster than Percy did, her wounds not nearly as serious, nor as numerous as his.


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    Archibald opened his mouth again, seemingly about to speak. Though he hesitated, exchanging a glance with Galahad, a silent question lingering between them. Percy chuckled, probably guessing what they were thinking of.


    ¡°Ah, you don¡¯t have to worry about what you say in front of her. Honestly, she knows more about me than either of you at this point.¡±


    Before the two even had a chance to respond to that, Percy pulled the bandage off his head, opening his eyes. It was only now that Galahad realized it wasn¡¯t an injury Percy was trying to conceal from the rest of their family, but something else entirely¡­


    Galahad and Archibald found themselves speechless once more ¨C as they examined Percy¡¯s glowing teal eyes, his slit pupils staring at them ominously. Shrugging, the young man then pulled two chairs, passing one to Nesha before plopping down on the other.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve got a lot of questions.¡±

 Chapter 208: Homecoming (2) – Percy

    Percy was about to start explaining everything to his uncle and grandpa, when somebody knocked on the door. . Grabbing his bandage again from Baldy¡¯s desk, he was about to put it back on, though he relaxed upon hearing the person speak.


    ¡°Grandpa, is Percy here?!¡±


    It was a chirpy female voice ¨C though a little more mature than Percy remembered. Still, he would have recognized it anywhere, regardless of how long it had been.


    ¡°Come in.¡± Archibald said.


    Elaine didn¡¯t even waste a second, spilling into the office like a flood. Her gaze instantly landed on Percy, her eyebrows briefly shooting up as she noticed his mutation. But she didn¡¯t dwell much on it.


    ¡°Seriously?! You come home after being gone for 7 years and quiet for the last 2, and you don¡¯t even bother to look for me?!¡± she asked, some bitterness seeping through.


    ¡°You were going to be my next stop.¡± Percy smiled wryly.


    Elaine opened her mouth, seemingly about to snap at him again, but she held herself back upon seeing the caked blood still dirtying his clothes. Her anger faded the very next instant, as she rushed at him, hugging him tightly. Percy felt his bones creak ¨C as always, his cousin wasn¡¯t the best at controlling her own strength.


    ¡°Geez, I hope you don¡¯t hug your baby brother like this.¡± he spat out with difficulty, getting a chuckle back.


    ¡°So, are you not going to introduce me to your ¡± Elaine asked with a hint of playfulness.


    ¡°Ahem. Like I just told the others, this is Nesha. We actually registered on the same day, though we didn¡¯t really get to know each other until years later.¡±


    ¡° So, you¡¯re just ¡± Elaine jabbed at him mischievously with her elbow, nearly bruising his ribs again.


    ¡°Look. It¡¯s going to be a long story, so just grab a chair and sit like the others.¡± Percy rolled his eyes as he dodged the question. Though he did catch a hint of red flushing on Nesha¡¯s cheeks.


    Next, he looked at the others in the room, a little surprised they hadn¡¯t interrupted his little reunion with Elaine. Not Baldy as much, but that prick, Galahad, was acting rather oddly today. It wasn¡¯t like he had suddenly changed his entire worldview just because he¡¯d learned Circulation. Percy hadn¡¯t missed the faint traces of disdain in his uncle¡¯s eyes ¨C the man was still struggling to wrap his head around him and his bloodline. That said, he clearly wasn¡¯t in a rush to outwardly dismiss or insult him anymore, opting to try and understand him a little better instead.


    The only thing Percy wanted from his uncle was for him to be a strong and trustworthy leader for their family ¨C in case something happened to Baldy. And that was something Archibald himself could vouch for, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t have taught him Circulation in the first place. Beyond that, Percy wasn¡¯t interested in improving his own relationship with the man.


    Shrugging, he then proceeded to give his relatives a quick summary of his time in the Guild, as well as his clones¡¯ adventures. Apparently, it wasn¡¯t until now that Galahad finally understood how his bloodline even worked, or how it had allowed him to accomplish what he had.


    Even Baldy and Elaine stared at him wide-eyed as he talked about the world of the floating cats, the demonic infestation in Takeo¡¯s world, the bizarre technology in the Vault of Magic, or the underwater world of Atlantis. This was the first time they were hearing that the Status everyone on Remior enjoyed actually came from a Decree ¨C the very qualification a god needed to call themselves a titan. Their jaws fell upon learning that his new eyes were the result of a brand-new Decree ¨C which was also an excellent opportunity for him to flex his second core to his uncle.


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    Of course, he did water some specific elements down, not wanting to worry everyone. While he¡¯d talked about the mysterious girl he had possessed and the spectral trait he had acquired as a result of that, he didn¡¯t go into detail about how that clone had died on the way back to Remior. As for the Vault, he avoided mentioning his dealings with Metatron, or the corresponding Decree, making it sound like his adventure there was more of a one-off experience than a recurring thing.


    However, he didn¡¯t shy away from bringing up his and Nesha¡¯s connection to the Aurora Dew, as that was relevant to his family.


    ¡°Have you lost your damn mind?!¡± Galahad yelled, losing his composure for the first time. ¡°What madness possessed you, to pick a fight with the Divine Order?! And to even bring this nonsense to our doorstep?!¡±


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t brought anything to your doorstep, as long as nobody speaks of this conversation again. Why do you think I didn¡¯t involve our House in the first place? If anything goes wrong, just disown me and say I did this behind your backs. It¡¯s the truth anyway¡­¡±


    Nobody spoke for a while, everyone seemingly trying to wrap their minds around this revelation. Even Baldy and Elaine found the confirmation of his involvement more shocking than anything else he had shared, despite having previously suspected it ¨C by their own admission. In the end, it was Archibald who broke the silence first.


    ¡°Why bring it up now, then?¡±


    ¡°Like I said, I didn¡¯t want to involve you ¨C especially since I had no way of talking to you in person before now. However, now that I¡¯m here, I¡¯d never forgive myself if I didn¡¯t even give you the option to benefit from the new elixirs. If you want, we can find a way for me to brew a few doses. Maybe just for the people in this room, since we don¡¯t want it to leak.¡±


    Next, he turned to face Galahad directly.


    ¡°Uncle, I know this is risky, but it can also be a huge boon for our family. If you could shave a few years off your next advancement, it would place our House in a better spot.¡±


    Seeing that Percy was only thinking of them in even bringing this up, Galahad¡¯s expression mellowed somewhat, as he discussed the issue with Archibald over the next few minutes. In the end, he shook his head, however.


    ¡°It¡¯s tempting, but it¡¯s probably unwise of us to accept.¡± he ultimately said.


    Percy nodded, not pressing the issue. Honestly, he¡¯d expected this reaction. While he and Nesha had the freedom to travel around Remior and hide from the Divine Root, this wasn¡¯t an option for Baldy or Galahad. They couldn¡¯t exactly bring the whole family around with them, after all. They had too many people to care for, so they couldn¡¯t risk the secret leaking out one day.


    ¡°Very well.¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m still hoping to get one of the petals, however.¡±


    Galahad sighed.


    ¡°Father mentioned you might want one, back when he taught me Circulation. Honestly, I¡¯m still against it.¡± sea??h th§× Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Seriously?!¡± it was Elaine¡¯s turn to snap, the girl having mostly remained quiet during the previous conversation. ¡°Even after what he¡¯s done for our family?! That¡¯s just unfair!¡±


    But the man shook his head.


    ¡°It unfair. I¡¯m not denying it. And if I ever become the leader of House Avalon, I can promise you now that I won¡¯t be a fair leader.¡±


    Galahad¡¯s declaration left Elaine speechless, the girl struggling to find the right response. In the end, the man just continued.


    ¡°A leader¡¯s responsibility is to ensure the family survives and thrives, not that every member feels like they¡¯re treated fairly. Circulation has greatly boosted my power, as it has yours, and Father¡¯s. But there is no reason why we should give up a petal to a Red-born for it, either. Besides, we can¡¯t even justify it. We can¡¯t speak about any of Percy¡¯s accomplishments, so how would we explain this to the others?¡±


    Then, he flashed Baldy a quick glance, before turning to Percy.


    ¡°That said, I¡¯m not the current leader of the family. Father is. If he wants to go through with this madness, I can¡¯t stop him, nor will I try.¡±


    Percy looked at Baldy too, curious about his reaction. The man didn¡¯t say a word, seemingly torn between Galahad¡¯s scathing words and his unwillingness to let him down. Then, Percy chuckled.


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    ¡°You aren¡¯t wrong, Uncle. But I¡¯ve had plenty of time to think about this issue, and I haven¡¯t returned home empty-handed. I¡¯ve brought something tangible to exchange for the petal, so that nobody can criticize your decision.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Baldy tilted his head, the others in the room sharing in his confusion. Even Nesha didn¡¯t look like she knew where he was going with this.


    Opening his spatial amulet, Percy took out a small pouch he had stuffed in a corner, before tossing it on Baldy¡¯s desk. The man then opened it, spilling its contents on the aged wood for all to see. The thick scent of iron soon permeated the room, as he sifted through the pile, lining the torn pieces of fabric next to one another.


    Elaine wrinkled her nose in disgust, though her eyes remained glued to the objects, much like everyone else¡¯s. 19 of them in total, of which 15 where yellow and 4 were green, all depicting the same insignia ¨C that of a man¡¯s face sporting a set of strangely elongated canines.


    And all of them were drenched in blood¡­

 Chapter 209: Homecoming (3) – Archibald

    ¡°How?!¡± Galahad asked, unable to fathom how Nesha and Percy could have possibly taken a single Green out. Let alone of them.


    Even Archibald was taken aback, though he did know a little more than his son. Percy hadn¡¯t mentioned Micky earlier, but the crow should have progressed a lot after all these years. Between that, and all the other shocking secrets Percy had claimed from the stars above their heads, it wasn¡¯t impossible for him to have caught a Green by surprise. Besides, at the end of the day¡­


    ¡°Does it even matter?¡± he asked.


    Whether Percy had poisoned them in their sleep, or faced them head on in a duel, the end result was the same. No Green besides Elaine and Mordred had contributed as much to their family over the years. However Percy had done this, it was definitely enough to warrant him the last petal.


    ¡°Do you know their names?¡± Galahad asked, still having trouble believing it.


    ¡°That one is from an earth user called Broose. We actually killed him over a year ago. As for the other three, they are much more recent. They belonged to Dranold, Grian and Rambert.¡±


    Everyone drew a sharp breath upon hearing that. Naturally, they¡¯d been in this war long enough to have a decent idea of their enemies¡¯ ranks. The difference between killing a random Green and taking down ¨C of all people ¨C couldn¡¯t be overstated. The young man had already slain plenty of their own mages.


    ¡°Are you certain?¡± Galahad pressed again.


    ¡°Of course. Pale guy with red hair. Had the bloodline and a fire affinity. Fought by using lots of small explosions on his body to propel himself. I took him down .¡±


    Now, even Archibald was starting to get curious. While he definitely expected more from Percy than his son did, climbing to the level where he could take on a genius Green in such a short span was still unfathomable.


    ¡°Anyway, is that enough to justify my petal?¡± Percy asked, seemingly oblivious to their inner turmoil.


    ¡°Honestly, Percy, I would have given you one regardless. While I respect Galahad¡¯s opinion, I don¡¯t share it. Giving us Circulation is more than enough in my eyes. And now, I doubt anyone else will dare complain. Not after the news of your accomplishments spread.¡± Archibald said.


    Percy nodded, exhaling in relief. Seeing his grandson work so hard for this opportunity, Archibald felt his heart clench.


    ¡°Anyway, how is the war going?¡± Percy asked, changing the topic. ¡°We were pretty cut off from news over the past two years.¡±


    Next, the young man proceeded to talk about his and Nesha¡¯s stay in Bogside town, and how they had kept their heads low while staging one ambush after another in the dark depths of the nearby swamp. Of course, he glossed over many details, though he did share enough for everyone to understand the sheer danger the two of them had faced.


    ¡°The situation is a little calmer on our end, probably thanks to your contributions too.¡± Galahad explained. ¡°Little by little, we gnawed at their forces, eking out lots of small victories here and there. Overall, they lost more people than we did, forcing them to fall behind the river. Nowadays, they¡¯ve really slowed down their offensive, probably worried we might start invading their own side of the province next.¡±


    Percy spent a minute or two digesting the information, before Archibald spoke again.


    ¡°So, what are your current plans?¡± he asked. ¡°Are you only here for the lotus?¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?!¡± Elaine exclaimed, clearly not having considered that. ¡°You¡¯re going to leave ¡±


    ¡°Afraid so.¡± Percy sighed. ¡°Look, Elaine¡­ One thing I¡¯ve come to realize over the past few years is that I like travelling and seeing new places, whether that¡¯s on Remior or elsewhere. Besides, I can¡¯t grow while holing up here, nor do I want to bring you guys any more trouble than I already have.¡±


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    ¡°But you just got here!¡± she said, not quite ready to hear this.


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m not going right away. We¡¯ll be here for another month or so. It¡¯s plenty of time to catch up!¡± he shrugged.


    ¡°Where are you going next?¡± Archibald cut in, still curious about his grandson¡¯s plans.


    ¡°I originally wanted to snatch some elixirs from House Tantalus to restock our stash¡­ I¡¯m not sure if that will be possible, but I do know the next best place to get elixirs from¡­¡± Percy said. ¡°And it¡¯s also conveniently close to the best place to drink them.¡±


    Galahad slammed his fist on the desk upon hearing that.


    ¡°Are you seriously going to keep pushing your luck like this?!¡±


    ¡°Hey, we are already wanted criminals.¡± Percy shrugged. ¡°What¡¯s the harm in breaking another law or two?¡±


    ¡°Wait, what are they talking about?¡± Nesha asked, joining the conversation for the first time.


    Archibald rolled his eyes at the sight. Evidently, that irresponsible grandson of his hadn¡¯t even brought his girlfriend up to speed.


    ¡°You¡¯re talking about the Thirsty Valley, aren¡¯t you?¡± Archibald asked, getting a nod back. ¡°That¡¯s a bold move. Then again, you¡¯ve never shied away from those, have you?¡±


    Nesha drew a sharp breath upon hearing that, putting two and two together. Though Elaine still seemed confused.


    ¡°Grandpa, can you please explain what you¡¯re all talking about?¡± she asked.


    He sighed.


    ¡°As you know, the fastest way to advance is using the elixirs.¡± he said, Elaine bobbing her head in agreement.


    ¡°Strictly speaking, the same thing is true for the members of the Divine Order. That said, they have a way to speed the process up even further.¡±


    ¡°Speed up?! You mean they can cleanse their cores faster than everyone else?!¡±


    ¡°Yes and no.¡± Archibald said, before elaborating. ¡°There is a special location on Remior, where time passes many times faster than everywhere else. Unfortunately, this asset has a limited capacity, which is why it isn¡¯t publicly available. The Divine Order reserves this place for their own members ¨C as well as the people of the Divine Root. Of course, it doesn¡¯t give them an advantage in terms of their lifespan ¨C spending 100 years inside the Thirsty Valley still brings them a century closer to death. But it allow them to advance faster than the rest of Remior.¡±


    ¡°Or, more importantly, the rest of the .¡± Galahad added. ¡°After all, the gods of other races are the Divine Order¡¯s opponents. Not mortals like us.¡±


    ¡°Based on what I know now, I¡¯m guessing this place is probably a Decree.¡± Percy pitched in.


    It was a well-known fact that Phoebe wasn¡¯t the first titan to lead the Divine Order ¨C though most people on Remior didn¡¯t really understand the implications of such a title. The previous titans had either died or otherwise disappeared by now, but their Decrees should still be around, at least according to the information Percy had just revealed.


    ¡°It¡¯s possible.¡± Archibald agreed. ¡°Based on what Guinevere once told me, Remior has had three titans in total. The first was Iapetus, the owner of a life affinity. I bet he is the reason why we have bloodlines. As for the second one ¨C Phoebe¡¯s predecessor ¨C he was Kronos, the owner of a time affinity¡­¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t like this, Percy¡­¡± Elaine muttered, her voice shaky. ¡°It sounds like an unnecessary risk.¡±


    But Percy shook his head.


    ¡°It¡¯s a risk, but not an unnecessary one. The Divine Root is already looking for us, and they¡¯ll find us eventually. I can¡¯t afford to wait entire decades or centuries to advance. Besides, the city near the Thirsty Valley is a good place to buy elixirs and other materials I need for my projects.¡±


    Elaine didn¡¯t seem particularly happy about his explanation, though she let it go for now, apparently unwilling to spoil the limited time they had left with petty arguments. Next, everyone agreed to bring the meeting to an end, having already covered all the urgent matters. Galahad went off to tend to his own responsibilities, while Elaine took Nesha out to show her around the mansion. Only Percy remained in Archibald¡¯s office, saying he had a few more things to discuss with him.


    ¡°How¡¯s Micky?¡± Archibald asked once they were alone.


    ¡°Better than ever.¡± Percy smiled. ¡°He can speak normally now, and he is currently teaching himself how to survive without as much food.¡±


    Archibald nodded.


    ¡°So, what did you want to talk to me about?¡±


    ¡°A couple of favours, actually.¡± Percy said, before elaborating. ¡°I¡¯m teaching Nesha Circulation, but the physical training is taking forever. I was hoping you could help her out for a few weeks ¨C if you¡¯re not busy with the war, that is.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Like we mentioned earlier, things are a bit quieter right now. Galahad can take care of things for a while.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the best, Grandpa!¡± Percy said, trying to hug him again.


    Archibald pushed him back, rolling his eyes at his grandson¡¯s antics.


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    ¡°What¡¯s the other thing?¡±


    Percy flashed him a sheepish grin.


    ¡°Well, about that¡­ Do you think I could borrow a clone or two from you? And¡­ uhm¡­ when I say borrow¡­ Sure, you can have them back after I¡¯m done with them, but I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll them.¡± S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°What for?¡± Archibald creased his brow at the odd request.


    ¡°I want to plant a few magical mushrooms on them.¡±

 Chapter 210: Homecoming (4) – Nesha

    Nesha stood still, basking in the water¡¯s warmth as dozens of tiny rivulets splashed on her shoulders, before trickling down her back, gently caressing her. Only after a few minutes of silent appreciation did she begrudgingly step out of the stream. She didn¡¯t want to keep Elaine waiting for too long.


    Picking an expensive-looking glass bottle from a marble shelf on the wall, she opened it, dripping a viscous liquid that smelled of lavender in her hand. Next, she applied it to her hair, bubbles forming as she scrubbed away the accumulated dirt and grime.


    Naturally, she hadn¡¯t had a proper shower since before their escape from the Guild. And not for a lack of one. Sadly, for the longest time she¡¯d had no choice but to wash herself with whatever laughable amount of water would fit in a barrel. Which, for the record, hadn¡¯t always been enough to rid herself of the swamp¡¯s stench.


    Though, it wasn¡¯t her time in the Guild flashing through her mind right now, but a series of nostalgic memories from even further back. Scenes from a tender age long past, within walls long destroyed... Not that she¡¯d enjoyed her childhood much at the time, yet she couldn¡¯t help but miss it ¨C ¨C now that they were all gone.


    she sighed.


    Most nobles took simple pleasures like warm showers or fresh food for granted. And Nesha wasn¡¯t an exception. It took living for two years among commoners for her eyes to open to the hardships the have-nots faced on a daily basis. Of course, even nobles were deprived of such amenities when they were travelling, but that was just a temporary arrangement. Not having a proper to return to was downright depressing¡­


    That said, her time in Bogside town hadn¡¯t been all bad. Her relationship with Percy aside, the sheer progress she had made with her magic was far beyond what she would have thought possible. And she wasn¡¯t just thinking of her Refined spell. The runes she had studied alongside Percy were ¨C ¨C out of this world. Much like him, Nesha had actually grown rather interested in the field after all this time.


    Overcome by curiosity, she leaned forward, trying to make out the runes carved on the wall. They were there for controlling the water¡¯s flow and temperature, much like the ones she had used in the Guild. Sadly, her poor eyesight in tandem with the thick layer of steam filling the room didn¡¯t make her job easy. Thankfully, she wasn¡¯t in a rush¡­


    she realized as she traced their contours with her fingers.


    There was no doubt the enchantments were but they were far bulkier than they needed to be for such a simple task. Not to mention the rather expensive materials they seemed to have been engraved on. Before Bogside town, Nesha hadn¡¯t really been in a position to criticize Remior¡¯s runecrafting techniques, though things were different now.


    she couldn¡¯t help but chuckle at the thought.


    House Etna was another of the seven Great Houses, and they were the leading authorities on runecrafting. Most noble families on Remior commissioned their enchantments from them. Even the Alchemists¡¯ Guild had probably employed their services back when they built their settlement all those thousands of years ago. Percy¡¯s spatial amulet had likely been crafted by one of their experts too. Suffice to say, if the old geezers in charge of the family were to see how much more compact and effective the Vault¡¯s runes were, they¡¯d stop at nothing to get their hands on them.


    she thought, a shiver washing away her amusement.


    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    Stepping beneath the water again, she allowed it to wash away the foam in her hair. Next, she brushed her hand over the runes once more, stopping the flow. Finally, she grabbed a towel hanging on a nearby rack, drying herself. Only then did she walk out of the bathroom, after wrapping the towel around herself.


    ¡°Must¡¯ve been a while since you had a proper shower.¡± Elaine smiled as she saw her, handing her a set of neatly folded robes.


    ¡°Sorry I took so long!¡± Nesha hurriedly said, her cheeks heating up. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Ha! You call that long?!¡± Elaine¡¯s grin only grew wider, however. ¡°Every time I take a shower after a long mission, I get people banging on the door to check if I¡¯m still alive!¡±


    Nesha nodded, her own lips curling up as she ran her fingers over the soft silk. Wearing something nicer than the rough patches of linen she¡¯d grown used to was yet another small pleasure she¡¯d been looking forward to.


    ¡°How did my jerk cousin get you to spend two years in such a lousy place, anyway?¡± Elaine suddenly asked, probably noticing something from her expression.


    Nesha shrugged.


    ¡°He didn¡¯t. I followed him of my own volition. Initially, I did it for the sake of growing stronger, though I¡¯ve come to enjoy spending time with him and Micky. Besides, it¡¯s not like I had anywhere else to go.¡±


    Elaine raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Forgive me if I misunderstood something, but I was under the impression the Guild only recruits nobles. Couldn¡¯t you go back to your own House?¡±


    Nesha sighed, placing the clothes on the nearby bed before sitting. They were currently in Elaine¡¯s room, the girl having been kind enough to lend her her private bathroom. Apparently, the Yellow-borns in House Avalon were given better accommodations than everyone else. Not that different from House Veritas, actually¡­


    ¡°My House no longer exists. I¡¯m all that¡¯s left.¡± Nesha said, her voice cracking a little more than she would have liked. She was surprised at it too, not having realized she still felt so strongly about it.


    Elaine gasped, covering her mouth with both hands.


    Nesha was about to speak, to let her know it wasn¡¯t that big a deal, though Elaine moved first. Sitting beside her, she grabbed her hand.


    ¡°Nesha¡­ I¡¯m so sorry to hear that¡­ Percy should have brought you here right away, instead of making you live in those conditions! I swear I¡¯ll give that idiot a piece of my mind later!¡±


    Nesha shook her head.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I admit I¡¯m not completely over it, but it been nearly a decade since it happened.¡±


    ¡°Do you know who did it?¡± Elaine asked again.


    ¡°I know which family attacked us. But I¡¯ve been thinking¡­ They couldn¡¯t have pulled it off by themselves. There¡¯s probably someone higher up, pulling the strings¡­¡±


    Elaine remained silent for a couple minutes.


    ¡°Is that why you¡¯re trying to get stronger?¡± she eventually asked.


    ¡°Ridiculous, isn¡¯t it?¡± Nesha chuckled. ¡°A lone Orange-born, going up against an entire noble House? Possibly a Great House, too?¡±


    ¡°Not nearly as ridiculous as¡­ . And I think he might actually pull it off one day too. I mean, That¡¯s insane!¡±


    ¡° It¡¯s why I chose to follow him in the first place. I figured if I can accomplish even a fraction of what he does, taking my revenge won¡¯t be as¡­ hopeless.¡± she said.


    Though, thinking of something, she sighed.


    ¡°Then again, keeping up with Percy might be even harder¡­¡±


    ¡°Well, regardless.¡± Elaine slapped her thigh before standing up. ¡°You¡¯ve always got a home here. Even if you break up with Percy one day, I¡¯ll ask Grandpa to let you stay!¡±


    ¡°Y-You don¡¯t have to do that!¡± Nesha panicked.


    ¡°Are you kidding me?! An Orange-born with a rare bloodline, a space affinity, who knows runecrafting Circulation?! Any family would be lucky to have you! Hell, ¡¯ll be the one doing a favour!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know Circulation yet¡­¡± Nesha muttered weakly, taken aback by Elaine¡¯s warmth and straightforwardness.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll learn it in no time with Grandpa helping you!¡± Elaine insisted. ¡°You should have seen how much trouble it gave , but I still figured it out in the end. And you¡¯re more talented than me too. I mean, going from zero to a Refined spell in only two years?! That¡¯s ¡±


    Nesha squeezed Elaine¡¯s hand tightly.


    ¡°Thanks, Elaine. For everything...¡±


    The aquamarine-haired girl flashed her another radiant smile, her face beaming even more brightly than before, somehow.


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    ¡°I didn¡¯t even do anything!¡±


    Next, Elaine pulled her to her feet too, dragging her along.


    ¡°Come on! Percy must¡¯ve finished talking to Grandpa by now! I want you both to meet Owain!¡±


    ¡°Hold on, Elaine!¡± Nesha struggled to keep up with the enthusiastic girl.


    ¡°Let me dress first! I¡¯m not even wearing shoes!¡±

 Chapter 211: Homecoming (5) – Elaine

    In the end, it didn¡¯t matter much whether Elaine and Nesha rushed or not, as they still had to wait for Percy to wash up too. Owain was a highly impressionable toddler by now, and Elaine had no intention of bringing a veritable caveman along to meet him.


    ¡°Looking much better!¡± she exclaimed once she saw her cousin dressed in some proper clothes for a change. ¡°Though, are you planning to keep that thing on forever?¡± she asked, pointing at her eyes.


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°For the time being, at least. I¡¯d rather not have to explain my mutation to the rest of the family.¡±


    ¡°That won¡¯t work forever.¡± Elaine insisted. ¡°At some point, everyone will start wondering why Grandpa has taken so long to heal you. You know that, right?¡±


    The bandage Percy had wrapped around his head wasn¡¯t enchanted like the one hiding his second core. It didn¡¯t have to be, as barely any mana was gathered in his eyes ¨C their effect was mostly passive. Suffice to say, he¡¯d used nothing but a simple strip of cloth to conceal them. Not that it looked any less conspicuous, of course.


    ¡°I¡¯m only staying here for a few weeks anyway. I¡¯ll reveal my eyes in public as soon as me and Nesha reach our next destination.¡±


    ¡°Is that wise?¡± Nesha pitched in.


    ¡°Actually, I think we can spin it in our favour.¡± Percy replied, before elaborating. ¡°Imagine you knew nothing about me, and you just met me for the first time. What would you think of my eyes?¡±


    ¡°I suppose I¡¯d assume it¡¯s your bloodline.¡± Nesha said.


    ¡°Right?!¡± Percy grinned. ¡°That¡¯s going to be everyone¡¯s first thought! Naturally, nobody will consider Decrees or mutations! And remember, we¡¯ve already had to disclose our bloodlines when we registered in the Guild. Officially, Percy¡¯s bloodline is Clone¡­¡±


    Elaine and Nesha exchanged a glance. Indeed, if used correctly, Percy¡¯s strange eyes could easily serve as a mask to divert people¡¯s attention from him and Nesha in the future. At least, it would make it harder for anyone to link him to his real identity.


    ¡°But isn¡¯t it going to be suspicious if you show up in public with a pair of glowing eyes, right after ¡®Percy¡¯ spent a month wearing a blindfold back home?¡± Nesha asked again, still not entirely convinced.


    ¡°Maybe, but I imagine people are more likely to accept it as a coincidence than guess the truth.¡± he shrugged. ¡°After all, nobody just a second bloodline. Or a mutation. That would be an even greater leap of logic.¡±


    The trio remained silent after that, walking to Mom and Dad¡¯s room. Elaine was about to knock on the door but stopped herself as she caught somebody approaching them by the corner of her eye. In fact, she failed to conceal her surprise upon recognizing the young man walking towards them. She certainly hadn¡¯t expected of all people to seek Percy out at this time.


    ¡°It¡¯s Tristan.¡± she whispered in Percy¡¯s ear, guessing he might have trouble identifying him based on his grade and soul alone.


    ¡°Tristan¡­ My condolences.¡± Percy said, extending his hand. ¡°I know it¡¯s a few years late, but I really was sorry to hear what happened to Hector.¡±


    Elaine figured Tristan would say something snarky in response, but the young man shocked her by opting to shake Percy¡¯s hand instead.


    ¡°I¡¯m the one who should say he¡¯s sorry.¡± Tristan said, prompting her to raise an eyebrow. ¡°You know¡­ When we heard you¡¯d left for the Alchemists¡¯ Guild, we felt guilty about the way we¡¯d treated you. We were just dumb kids having fun. We¡¯d never meant to take it that far. At least, I know he would have wanted me to apologize on his behalf too¡­¡±


    Percy chuckled.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t leave because of . I had my own reasons.¡±


    Tristan sighed.


    ¡°I figured as much, as soon as I heard what you¡¯ve accomplished. We always made fun of you for your lower grade, but you were more hard-working than both of us combined, weren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Wait, what?¡± Percy seemed taken aback. ¡°People already know about it? It¡¯s only been like an hour or two since I told Galahad and Baldy¡­¡±


    ¡°Percy, I don¡¯t think you understand how much of a morale boost this is for our family.¡± Elaine jumped in. ¡°We¡¯ve been in this war for years. Suddenly learning that House Tantalus is four Greens down isn¡¯t a small thing.¡±


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    ¡°Right.¡± Tristan bobbed his head in agreement. ¡°Besides, Uncle Galahad had to tell Morgana that she¡¯s no longer getting a petal.¡±


    ¡°Geez¡­ Should I be worried about her trying to murder me? I suppose it must be difficult to believe I¡¯ve pulled this off¡­¡± Percy muttered, a hint of anxiety seeping into his voice.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Tristan replied. ¡°She was definitely pissed off, but nobody is doubting the information. If Grandpa and Uncle Galahad believed you, that¡¯s enough for the rest of us.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡± Percy exhaled in relief.


    Honestly, Elaine was right with him too. Her cousin had worked plenty hard over the years to get this far. He definitely deserved some bloody recognition from their relatives for once.


    ¡°You know¡­ it was Rambert who did it.¡± Tristan said, oblivious to her thoughts. ¡°The one who killed Hector, I mean.¡± he added after noticing everyone¡¯s confused expressions.


    Elaine¡¯s eyebrow shot up at the sound of that. While she¡¯d heard about Hector¡¯s death soon after it happened, this was her first time hearing about this particular detail. As for Percy, he seemed to be at a loss for words too. Thankfully, Tristan just patted his shoulder before walking away.


    ¡°Well¡­ That was weird.¡± Percy said once they were alone.


    ¡°Not weird, honestly.¡± Elaine said. ¡°Tristan matured a lot over the years. Especially after his brother¡¯s death. Everyone in the family has grown closer during the war too. More¡­ , towards one another.¡± sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Huh¡­ I wish I¡¯d been around to see that.¡± Percy smiled bitterly.


    Indeed. Percy had really been unlucky in this regard. From what Elaine had heard, this wasn¡¯t the first time the environment inside the family had shifted like that. Apparently, things had been similar right after the massacre twenty-odd years ago. Sadly, people had gone back to being self-centred assholes by the time she and Percy were old enough to remember. The same thing would probably repeat itself some time after this war ended¡­


    Shaking the pointless thoughts out of her head, she finally knocked on her parents¡¯ door, getting invited in a couple seconds later. Entering, she felt some second-hand embarrassment as she remembered how messy the place was. Tiptoeing around the towering piles of clothes littering the floor was a genuine struggle. And this wasn¡¯t due to a lack of space either.


    Other than Yellow-borns, low-born couples were also given larger rooms with embedded bathrooms, to make life easier for families. Still, Gawain and Ragnelle had somehow managed to run out of space, despite their room being even larger than hers. To their credit, Percy and Nesha didn¡¯t comment on it, at least¡­


    ¡°Uncle Gawain! Congratulations on being a father again! Aunty, it¡¯s been a while!¡± Percy greeted them.


    ¡°Percy? It¡¯s good to see you again.¡± Dad said. ¡°What happened to your eyes?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a long story. Ah, but don¡¯t worry about it! I¡¯m doing fine!¡± Percy waved the concern away.


    ¡°Wow. Little Percy¡¯s all grown up!¡± Mom exclaimed. ¡°Please excuse the mess! We don¡¯t get visitors too often.¡±


    ¡°Mom. Dad. This is Nesha. Percy¡¯s girlfriend.¡± Elaine jumped in to introduce the poor girl, after realizing her idiot cousin forgot about her.


    ¡°Nice to meet you, Nesha!¡±


    ¡°Welcome to House Avalon!¡±


    ¡°Thanks for having me.¡±


    During the earlier meeting, everyone had agreed to keep Nesha¡¯s status as a noble a secret from the rest of the family, to leave their House some plausible deniability in case they got busted.


    ¡°And who¡¯s this handsome young man?¡± Percy asked, turning to Owain who was playing with his toys in a corner.


    Shy as always, the kid got spooked by the attention. Elaine had to pick him up, bringing him closer to Percy and Nesha, who failed to hold back their gasps at the boy¡¯s cuteness.


    ¡°Say hello to Percy. He¡¯s your cousin!¡± she patiently explained.


    Sadly, Owain just sucked his thumb in typical Owain fashion, refusing to say a word.


    ¡°He speak.¡± she chuckled. ¡°He just takes a while to warm up to strangers.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s a pity¡­¡± Percy sighed ¨C rather too. ¡°And I was looking for somebody to give this amazing ocarina to.¡± he added, showing the boy a somewhat crudely crafted musical instrument made of wood.


    Owain¡¯s eyes widened at the sight before him, as he let go of all his previous misgivings.


    ¡°Me! Can I have it, Uncle?¡± he said in his usual chirpy voice, making Elaine¡¯s heart melt.


    Still, she had to go ahead and correct him, like a good older sister.


    ¡°Percy is your , not your uncle.¡±


    Owain bobbed his head absentmindedly, his eyes still glued to the object.


    ¡°Well, there you go then.¡± Percy shrugged, handing him the ocarina.


    Elaine chuckled as she returned him to his corner, letting him fiddle with his new toy.


    ¡°You know he¡¯s gonna get drool all over it, right?¡± she asked Percy.


    ¡°I¡¯ll just make myself a new one later.¡± he said, prompting Nesha to jut him with her elbow.


    ¡°Great!¡± Mom clapped her hands. ¡°So, I guess the two of you will be staying over for dinner, right?¡±


    ***


    In the end, the whole family had pasta together, as Percy and Nesha recounted their story to Mom and Dad. Or, well¡­ A version of it that was safe to leak, at least.


    Owain played with the ocarina until over an hour past his usual bedtime. Eventually, he fell asleep while still holding it. Bidding the couple farewell, the trio snuck out of the room carefully, to avoid waking him up. It wasn¡¯t until they were alone in the corridor that Elaine turned to Percy.


    ¡°Say¡­ did you get a chance to check Owain¡¯s core with your weird new eyes?¡±


    ¡°I did.¡± Percy said, causing her heart to skip a beat.


    ¡°And?!¡±


    He shook his head.


    ¡°Nothing. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to tell his grade or his affinity before he awakens. I guess you¡¯ll have to be patient for a couple more years...¡±


    ¡°I see¡­¡± she replied, struggling to contain her disappointment.


    It wasn¡¯t until she dropped the two off to Percy¡¯s old room ¨C luckily, they hadn¡¯t repurposed it ¨C that she spoke again.


    ¡°What are your plans for tomorrow, anyway?¡±


    ¡°Well, Grandpa agreed to help Nesha train.¡± Percy said, prompting her and Nesha to hi-five one another.


    Percy rolled his eyes at them before continuing.


    ¡°As for me¡­ Grandpa has agreed to help me too, with a different project.¡±


    ¡°A somewhat nastier one.¡±

 Chapter 212: Homecoming (6) – Micky

    Micky lamented as he stuffed his face with the fifth goblin core.


    While the Whistling Woods were a nostalgic place for both of them, it was especially so for him. After all, some of his earliest memories were of him and Percy hunting here together. From back when he was little more than a young, dumb chick. A single Red core, no spells, nor any shred of intelligence worth mentioning. Every single kill had been hard-earned. A constant struggle between life and death. And the food had been so fulfilling too, each meal more than enough to fill his belly.


    Nowadays? Not so much¡­ The place even different than it did in the past. . The same trees that used to tower over him like colossal pillars of aged wood had shrunk many-a-time. Even the thickest branches on their crowns had difficulty supporting his current weight. If it wasn¡¯t for the melodic tune of the cones sounding the same as they swayed in the wind, he might have thought this was another forest entirely.


    he wondered.


    Both their flesh and their cores tasted just like he remembered them, though they hardly qualified as snacks right now. In the end, he shook his head, knowing it wouldn¡¯t be worth the effort. He¡¯d burn through more stamina searching for the next group than he¡¯d get back after consuming them.


    His best bet was to master the new spell, like Percy had instructed him to. Flying to the largest tree he could find, he sat upon the sturdiest-looking branch. It creaked and groaned as it bent but, luckily, it didn¡¯t snap. Adjusting himself slightly to better conceal himself within the dense canopy, he turned his focus inwards. Next, he pulled another sliver of air mana into his first core, beginning the conversion process anew.


    The efficiency was abysmal as usual. And it didn¡¯t help his stomach was constantly grumbling at him either. Sure, Percy sent him a morsel of fused mana whenever he had the chance, but those moments were a little scarcer than he would have liked. Though it couldn¡¯t be helped ¨C Micky understood his partner was busy spending time with his family today. S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Micky had intentionally downplayed the sheer extent of his hunger too, to avoid worrying Percy and Nesha. The truth was, he¡¯d never had it nearly this bad before. It was like his very body was about to start eating . The beast mana violently thrashed against his blood vessels, gnawing at their walls, desperately trying to break his own flesh down to sustain him.


    he thought, his eyes glinting with determination.


    Back when Micky was younger, he hadn¡¯t put much thought into this. But he knew better now. Percy based his decisions on what was best for him. That had been the case when they travelled to the Fungal Spire, as well as the Grisly Bog. Sure, Percy had had his own reasons for going there too, but a huge part had been about finding a good place for Micky to live in. To hide in. To hunt in. Even going behind the Divine Order to sell the Aurora Dew had largely been to earn the money for Micky¡¯s second core.


    The thought of having somebody looking after him warmed his heart up, but also stabbed it full of guilt. The last thing he wanted was to be a burden, dragging his companions down. Restricting their every move. Forcing them to keep accommodating him. He to figure this out.


    He couldn¡¯t be certain, but he didn¡¯t think his efficiency had improved at all today. At this rate, it would be weeks until he managed to reach an acceptable level. Assuming he didn¡¯t starve before then.


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    Micky actually understood a little about how affinity fusion worked. Percy had explained it to him in detail, back when he was trying to help him fuse his own mana types. It wasn¡¯t until after he reached Yellow that they understood it wouldn¡¯t work like that for him. Their current theory was that his mutations his version of affinity fusion.


    The thought caused him to instinctively halt the conversion process, a new idea taking root in his tired mind. Tossing his plumage a glance, his gaze landed on the dark green feathers decorating it. Supposedly, those were the very spots where his two mana types met and combined.


    Micky never bothered to think this deeply about his magic. Percy was better at this sort of thing than him. But perhaps, this was exactly the kind of mindset he needed to rid himself of, if he wanted to stop being a burden. So far, all of his spells he¡¯d either stumbled upon by accident thanks to his mutation, or been taught by Percy how to use them. And he saw how much trouble Percy had run into, trying to elevate his spells to the Masterful tier.


    Micky had often been reminded that he was a unique existence. In all likelihood, there was nobody else in the universe with the same combination of affinities as him. It made him strong and unpredictable, sure, but it also meant he had to be more proactive if he was to ever tap into his potential. Making his mind up, he activated Mana Sense, concentrating on his feathers. He had a hunch he was onto something¡­


    he noticed after a couple minutes.


    He¡¯d never paid much attention to this. Especially since beast mana had a natural tendency of circulating around his body to begin with. However, his feathers were drawing a little more than normal. And there was a faint trickle ¨C ¨C coming from his abdomen too.


    Thinking of something, he pulled some more mana from his second core, about to hack at the conversion spell once more. Only this time, instead of moving the mana directly to his sternum, he took a detour, steering it to his plumage. Soon, his feathers lit up, as a coat of mana enveloped them. This was essentially the same process as his Acceleration spell, after all. But Micky didn¡¯t try to fly, nor did he withdraw his mana. Instead, he allowed it to remain there, soaking his feathers as he contemplated his next move.


    Circulation essentially sped his blood flow up, consuming his energy at a rapid pace in exchange for a boost in strength. What if he did the opposite?


    Figuring he had little to lose, he tried to manually reverse the flow, actively fighting against his body¡¯s instincts. It was actually even harder to execute than his boosting art. Within mere moments, a wave of numbness overcame him, as if a million ants had been poured inside his veins, crawling through his very flesh. At the same time, he felt profoundly weak, a sense of vertigo slamming into his head.


    Micky was about to stop, but he hesitated. The beast mana wasn¡¯t quite flowing in reverse, but it slowed down a little. The difference wasn¡¯t huge, but this might allow him to better conserve his strength!


    Of course, he had still failed at his original goal. He couldn¡¯t see any mana flowing from his feathers to his core, so he hadn¡¯t managed to improve the conversion process just yet. That said, he was confident that was still possible, with some more effort. At the very least, his new breakthrough should buy him some more precious time.


    Curious to see whether his efforts had been recognized by Percy¡¯s Status, he reached out to him through their connection, explaining the situation, asking him to check for him. Of course, he still glossed over how dire his circumstances were, not seeing a need to worry him just yet.


    Sure enough, the response came back swiftly, Percy even making the effort to give Micky the experience every person on Remior was privy to.

 Chapter 213: Homecoming (7) – Rambert

    Several days earlier


    A frog hopped atop a protrusion jutting out of the mud, its rhythmic croaks echoing within the depths of the bog. Big mistake on its part¡­


    Suddenly, a mound of dirt surged outwards, startling the poor creature. Frightened, it leapt away, trying to escape. But it wasn¡¯t nearly quick enough. Catching up in an instant, the object snapped shut around the frog, trapping it in an iron grip. Over the next second or two, the critter visibly shrivelled, its very life sucked right out of its tiny frame. Its skin sank inwards, wrapping around the bones tightly. At the same time, mud flowed down the culprit, soon revealing a few patches of skin beneath the filth.


    It was a person¡¯s hand!


    Though it wasn¡¯t in much better shape than the frog. It was pale as milk, covered in lots of nasty cuts caked in dried blood. It was nearly desiccated too, the almost-skeletal fingers looking even worse than the critter did. . Soon, the frog was reduced to nothing, its drained body crumbling into fine dust. It trickled through the gaps between the digits, scattering silently in the soft breeze.


    With difficulty, Rambert pushed himself to his feet, coughing erratically as he struggled to spit the viscous sludge out of his lungs. The water¡¯s texture was both slimy and grainy, the aftertaste of rot and decay making him gag. But that was the least of his problems. Even standing was painful, as one of his legs was injured badly, threatening to buckle. Looking up, he tried to locate the sun through the dense canopies of the trees around him.


    he guessed, based on whatever gentle rays managed to pierce through the branches.


    Orienting himself, he limped towards a certain direction, shifting most of his weight to his good leg. Next, he checked the stump on his shoulder. Blood still spilled from it, though it wasn¡¯t as bad as before ¨C mostly because he¡¯d lost a ton already. If he didn¡¯t have the physique of a Green, his body wouldn¡¯t even be able to move right now.


    Looking down at his clothes, he noticed they were torn from the fight. An even larger patch was missing right around where his insignia used to be. Ignoring that for now, he tore another strip out, wrapping it tightly around his shoulder, trying to halt the blood flow. It definitely helped a little, but it didn¡¯t stop entirely.


    he thought grimly.


    Taking a few deep breaths, he gathered some mana in his core. Next, he ripped another patch of cloth from his garments, stuffing it in his mouth. Finally, he pulled the mana to his remaining hand, pressing it against the wound. His flesh hissed under the sizzling heat, a wave of agony slamming into his brain.


    ¡°GGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!¡±


    Rambert¡¯s teeth cut through the dirty silk, grinding against one another, cracking sounds reverberating through his skull. They hurt like a bitch too, though not as much as his shoulder. But he didn¡¯t pause. He to cauterize the wound. It wasn¡¯t until a minute or two later that he finally stopped. He breathed heavily, trying to regain his bearing as he scanned his injury. It still oozed blood, though it was much better than before.


    he sighed.


    Taking off, he allowed his Mana Sense to spread through his surroundings, keeping an eye out for more critters. A body released several times more life mana when broken down by his bloodline than what would fit inside a core of the same grade. Even then, a few Red squirrels wouldn¡¯t do much for him ¨C ¨C but he wasn¡¯t going to pass on them if they were dumb enough to cross his path.


    he wondered. The peasants would make for a much better tonic than small animals.


    He considered it for a few seconds, before shaking his head. There were several problems with that idea, not the least of which being the fact that he was unlikely to pull it off. He couldn¡¯t take on the whole town by himself on a good day. Let alone in his present state. The townsfolk would finish him off and try to pin the crime on Percy and his girlfriend.


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    he thought, launching a bolt of fire with a wave of his hand.


    It pierced through a nearby tree, its trunk exploding into a rain of splinters as the acrid scent of burnt charcoal assaulted his nose. The act did little to vent his frustration, however. His physical pain aside, the sheer humiliation of getting his ass handed to him by a Red-born was a stain he¡¯d never wash away in this life.


    ***


    Luckily, he found a couple more animals on the way, but he¡¯d chosen to keep their carcasses intact, to munch on during the journey. They were more useful as food, partly because life mana couldn¡¯t entirely replace nutrition.


    Returning to his family had taken longer than he¡¯d like. Normally, it was a two-day trip ¨C shorter if he rushed. Not like , however. By the time he made it to the mansion, just over half a week had passed. At least, he¡¯d had a chance to cool down and evaluate his situation. His current priority should be to heal.


    Entering the building, he made his way towards Father¡¯s office, ignoring the startled gasps and long stares he got from his relatives. Most of them took a few seconds to recognize him, but nobody tried to stop him, as his core still blazed in a burning Green, the remnants of his clothes the unmistakable colours of House Tantalus. . He probably looked like a reanimated corpse right now¡­


    He only paused once he stood outside the door, hesitating.


    Returning home after a failure was a novel experience for Rambert. Normally, he was the one delivering the news to Broteas. Reporting how everything had gone to shit was typically a shame reserved for the others.


    Steeling his resolve, he was about to knock, when he heard shouts coming out of the room.


    ¡°Lord Broteas, I still think it was a mistake to attack House Avalon in the first place!¡± Elder Nak ¨C the oldest Blue in the family ¨C yelled. ¡°Look at what has happened! We lost more people than they did!¡± sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Not this nonsense again!¡± Father shouted back. ¡°As always, you can¡¯t look beyond what¡¯s right in front of your nose, Nak! You think I had an option?! What do you think will happen once Galahad gets a petal?!¡±


    ¡°Uncle¡­ We¡¯ve already tried to assassinate that bastard, but we all know how that ended. I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll get another chance. The lotus will bloom in a few weeks¡­¡± Halcard said.


    Halcard was another Blue ¨C technically Rambert¡¯s cousin, though he was a few centuries older than him.


    ¡°You think I don¡¯t know that?! I still can¡¯t understand how you and Lendin managed to lose to him together!¡±


    The meeting went on for another hour or so, Rambert waiting patiently by the entrance, not daring to interrupt. The last thing his father and his elders needed to hear right now was how the mission to the Grisly Bog had ended. Listening patiently to the heated debate, he understood once more just how badly the war was going for his House. That said, the people in the office didn¡¯t seem to have the slightest clue of what they were up against.


    Eventually, the meeting ended, the elders leaving the office. Seeing Rambert there, they flashed him curious glances, but nobody seemed in the mood to ask him any questions. Ignoring them, he strode into the office, causing Broteas to raise an eyebrow.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you fucked up too, Rambert.¡± Father spoke sombrely, his barely concealed rage boiling beneath the veneer of calm.


    ¡°They had four Greens stationed in the bog!¡± Rambert lied through his teeth, too embarrassed to look Broteas in the eye. ¡°I didn¡¯t even get to see their faces properly!¡±


    ¡°This is all happening because of my cursed affinity!¡± Father snapped. ¡°Why the hell couldn¡¯t I have any other element?!¡±


    Rambert knew what he was talking about, as they¡¯d had this conversation many times. Unfortunately, Broteas had a water affinity already, meaning that he couldn¡¯t boost his strength with a petal. They had two Blues who could, but their House would still benefit less from the exotic treasure than their rivals. If it hadn¡¯t been for that, they wouldn¡¯t have needed to take such a massive gamble with this war.


    ¡°Can I still get mine?¡± Rambert asked cautiously.


    Perhaps, this wasn¡¯t the best time to bring the topic up, but this was one of the main things stressing him out right now.


    ¡°You have the nerve to ask me that?! After losing both Grian and Dranold?! After showing up looking like¡­ ¡± Father gestured at him, his face distorting in disgust.


    Rambert swallowed hard. He wanted to protest, but chose to hold his tongue instead, not wanting to pour any more oil in the fire. Fortunately, Broteas exhaled in defeat a moment later, before speaking.


    ¡°You¡¯re lucky everyone else in this family is an even greater disappointment than you.¡± he waved at him dismissively.


    Rambert hurried to leave the room while he was still ahead, but his father spoke again, stopping him in his tracks.


    ¡°Can you even fix your body? You look like a complete mess. I¡¯d rather not waste the petal on you just for you to die a week later.¡±


    Rambert couldn¡¯t help but clench his fist upon hearing his father¡¯s callous words. He cared more about wasting resources than his well-being.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡± he spat, before leaving the room.


    It was another lie, of course. Rambert wasn¡¯t entirely sure he could recover from this. But he certain of one thing¡­


    He¡¯d do whatever he had to, to survive.

 Chapter 215: Domain

    In the end, Percy managed to brew a couple healing potions by nightfall. In fact, things went even more smoothly than he¡¯d originally expected. He only wasted a handful of mushrooms before learning to extract their essence properly. If he¡¯d known it would be this easy, he would have brewed some before fighting Rambert. If nothing else, they would have made his trip home less unpleasant.


    That said, his yield was still much lower than he¡¯d like, but he figured it would climb rather quickly as he brewed more doses tomorrow.


    he decided, taking a mental inventory of his newly grown resources.


    According to his calculations, that should get him a few dozen doses. That would be plenty to last them for months, assuming they didn¡¯t get into much trouble. He could always brew more later, if they ran out, though he¡¯d rather save most of the mushrooms to experiment with the other type of potions.


    Satisfied with his plan, he was about to pack his stuff away for the night, when he heard another knock.


    Tossing his blindfold back on, just in case, he made his way to the door. Opening, he was surprised to see somebody else standing there, however.


    ¡°Uncle Galahad? What brings you here?¡±


    While their relationship wasn¡¯t nearly as strained as it used to be, he didn¡¯t expect to get very chummy with his uncle either.


    ¡°Meet me in the third training room by sunrise.¡± the man spat before walking away, not bothering to elaborate.


    he shrugged.


    Admittedly, Percy had a bunch of things on his plate, but he didn¡¯t mind taking some time to see what his uncle wanted from him. Of course, he didn¡¯t exactly appreciate being bossed around like a kid. Then again, Galahad a few centuries older than him. At least, he hadn¡¯t detected any hint of his uncle¡¯s previous disdain towards him just now¡­


    ***


    Come morning, Percy reached the agreed upon location, finding Galahad already there waiting for him. He was meditating on a mat by the centre of the room, an empty vial sitting by his side.


    Keeping his thoughts to himself, Percy also downed two doses of Aurora Dew. Next, he sat opposite his uncle, silently accompanying him in his cleansing session. It wasn¡¯t until half an hour later that both of them were done.


    ¡°You must be wondering why I called you here.¡± Galahad spoke, opening his eyes.


    Percy didn¡¯t say anything in response, but he did toss him a glance back.


    ¡°When Father taught me Circulation, he asked me to thank you for the art. And to apologize for the way I¡¯d treated you.¡±


    ¡°Huh, is that why you brought me here?¡± Percy chuckled. ¡°Too embarrassed to be seen apologizing to a Red-born?¡± S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°No.¡± Galahad replied calmly. If he took any offense from that jab, he didn¡¯t show it.


    ¡°I brought you here because I don¡¯t believe in empty words. I¡¯d rather speak with actions.¡±


    ¡°Meaning?¡±


    ¡°Starting today, I¡¯ll spar with you for two hours every morning. Until the lotus blooms, at least.¡±


    Hearing that, Percy couldn¡¯t help but crease his brow. He didn¡¯t doubt the experienced Blue had a lot to teach him, but he struggled to imagine himself lasting a second against his uncle. Even the weakest Blue on Remior was currently an insurmountable obstacle for him, let alone somebody at the top of the grade.


    ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking, but these won¡¯t be regular spars. I have a very specific objective in mind.¡± Galahad said. ¡°Of course, I won¡¯t force you to do it against your will, but I believe you¡¯ll be grateful for these lessons sooner or later.¡±


    ¡°Domain?¡± Percy asked, having realized something.


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    Galahad nodded, confirming his guess.


    ¡°Based on what you¡¯ve told us, you seem to be capable of fighting Greens. Unlike Greens, however, I doubt you can withstand a Blue¡¯s domain.¡±


    Domain was the special ability that all mages unlocked as soon as they advanced to Blue. Its greatest advantage was that it didn¡¯t require a shred of mana. Fuelled entirely by its owner¡¯s willpower, it was best known as an efficient and powerful tool for subjugating those significantly weaker.


    Of course, domains were much more than glorified flyswatters. If one was sufficiently skilled with theirs, they could potentially incorporate it within their magic too, allowing them to employ their domain against equal or stronger opponents. If used correctly, it could potentially tilt the scales of a difficult battle in one¡¯s favour.


    ¡°You want to prepare me to fight against Blues?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Not exactly. If you end up targeted by a Blue, you and your girlfriend will , regardless of what I teach you. Simple as that.¡±


    ¡°Then, what¡¯s the point?¡± Percy asked, not disagreeing with Galahad¡¯s assessment in the slightest.


    Suffice to say, he wasn¡¯t under the delusion that he would be able to hold his own against a Blue anytime soon. Even if he ignored the existence of domains entirely, the colossal gap between Greens and Blues wasn¡¯t something he could bridge in the foreseeable future.


    ¡°Well, to start with, I want to drill into your head how important it is to avoid provoking a Blue in the first place. If you keep going down this reckless path, you¡¯re going to get yourself in serious trouble. Beyond that, maybe this training will bear fruit a few years down the line.¡±


    Percy nodded. He¡¯d do everything in his power to avoid being targeted by a Blue, but it wouldn¡¯t hurt to be able to at least inside a domain. Either way, getting trained by the most talented Blue in the province was definitely a unique opportunity.


    ¡°So, how are we going to do it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s simple, really. I¡¯ll unleash my domain on you, and you¡¯ll do everything you can to . Bonus points if you can stay on your feet.¡±


    Percy was about to ask more questions, but his uncle never gave him the chance. The very next moment, a powerful pressure descended upon him, squeezing the very air out of his lungs. Landing on his knees with a muted thud, Percy struggled to even lift his eyes enough to look at his uncle. He knew that there was nothing happening to his body This was all in his head. But it didn¡¯t make it any less real.


    Percy smiled wryly. Or tried to, at least. Even twitching his lips was quite a slog, given the circumstances.


    Of course, this wasn¡¯t his first time experiencing a domain. He was quite certain that the Starry Queen had employed one against him, back during his escape from the Fungal Spire. In theory, his uncle¡¯s domain shouldn¡¯t even qualify as a breeze compared to a Violet¡¯s. Then again, he¡¯d never felt the queen¡¯s domain directly. Just whatever cheap knock-off she could manifest while possessing the Starry Knight.


    he shook the pointless thoughts out of his head.


    Gritting his teeth, he dragged the tip of his thumb across his palm, before pulling the faintest sliver of soul mana from his core. Repeating the exact set of actions that had allowed him to break free of the queen¡¯s domain the previous time, he stabbed himself with a hastily crafted construct, using the pain to clear his mind. Standing up was still difficult, but the jolt of agony allow him to take a breath, at least.


    Greedily inhaling one mouthful of air after another, he slowly pushed more and more mana into his channels, activating his boosting art. It took him three times as long as it usually did, but Synchronization eventually took effect. A wave of power washed over him, as his body transformed in its usual manner.


    Percy lifted his eyes just in time to catch a hint of surprise in his uncle¡¯s expression. With some more effort, he managed to climb back to his feet, failing to suppress a smug grin.


    ¡°Interesting.¡± Galahad muttered.


    Percy could¡¯ve sworn he saw the faintest shadow of a smile tugging at his uncle¡¯s lips for a moment there. But it was gone the very next instant.


    ¡°I guess I don¡¯t have to hold back. .¡± Galahad added a second later.


    Before the words even left his mouth, a second wave of pressure slammed onto Percy. It took him by surprise too, sending him face-first into the floor even more forcefully.


    At the same time, his uncle¡¯s domain felt entirely different from before. It was several times stronger, of course, but that was merely the beginning. Beyond the sharp increase in the sheer of the pressure, its seemed to have taken a drastic shift too.


    Percy¡¯s muscles grew numb, as a jolt of electricity ran up and down his skin, prickling his flesh. All the hair on his body stood on end, as he could even smell a blend of ozone and charred wood mixing in the air, wisps of smoke coming out of the floor.


    Percy was about to call his uncle out for cheating ¨C he wasn¡¯t supposed to add mana to his domain. But he held himself back upon failing to spot a single mote leaving Galahad¡¯s core.


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    Unlike before, the pressure had evolved into something tangible ¨C directly affecting the environment. Percy had some difficulty believing that one could accomplish this solely with their presence. But there was no denying the facts.


    ¡°What you experienced earlier was nothing more than the most basic domain. All Blues get that right after advancing. A veteran can take it much further, however. We can infuse our very understanding of magic into our domain, giving it new features. What you¡¯re feeling is my lightning affinity giving a different flavour to the domain, stunning and burning your body.¡±


    A splitting headache thrummed within Percy¡¯s skull, as he struggled to register his uncle¡¯s words. Just like that, the domain had grown over five times as troublesome, to the point that his previous tricks weren¡¯t enough to snap him out of it any longer.


    Of course, Percy had heard about domains before, but it wasn¡¯t until now that he truly understood how terrifying they could be. He smiled bitterly, Galahad¡¯s demonstration having made one thing crystal clear¡­

 Chapter 216: Crimson mushrooms

    Percy¡¯s training session only lasted a couple of hours, though to him they felt closer to years. And that was despite Galahad cutting him some slack every few minutes or so, to keep him from passing out. By the time they were done, Percy wasn¡¯t even sure he had improved in the slightest. If this training was useful, it wouldn¡¯t show for a while¡­


    Dragging his tired feet through the corridor, he wanted nothing more than to take a quick shower and go to bed. Of course, he couldn¡¯t actually do that. It was still rather early in the morning, and he had a ton of things begging for his attention.


    Sighing, he entered his lab, only to find somebody else waiting for him there.


    ¡°Good morning!¡± Elaine greeted him. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you plan to spend all your time home holed up in a room?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have much of a choice.¡± Percy shrugged. ¡°This is the first time in two years I don¡¯t have to constantly look over my shoulder. It¡¯s a golden opportunity for some last-minute preparations before we head out.¡±


    Elaine pouted at the sound of that, but she didn¡¯t press him. She probably understood how important these next few days would be, given the perils waiting for them in their upcoming trip.


    ¡°Say, do you mind if I spend some time with Micky then?¡± she asked. ¡°I¡¯ve missed him too, you know.¡±


    ¡°Knock yourself out. He¡¯s currently trying to learn a new spell in the Whistling Woods.¡±


    ¡°Will I be disturbing him?¡±


    Percy shook his head.


    ¡°Just help him catch a meal or two, and you¡¯ll make up for it.¡± S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Next, he took out several vials from his amulet, tossing them in a pouch.


    ¡°Since you¡¯re going, would you please take these to him? I¡¯ve packed some Aurora Dew for you too. It¡¯s enough to last both of you for a week.¡±


    Elaine drew a sharp breath upon hearing that.


    ¡°Seriously?! I thought Uncle told you not to give us any! Besides, aren¡¯t you running low already?!¡±


    Seeing her reaction, Percy failed to suppress a chuckle.


    ¡°Nobody to know. Besides, we¡¯re good for another couple of months or so. Between me, Micky and Nesha, we¡¯re already drinking 12 doses per day. Taking that up to 15 won¡¯t make that much of a difference¡­¡±


    ¡°You sure?¡± Elaine asked again, still not entirely convinced.


    ¡°As long as you never forget who your best cousin is.¡± Percy grinned.


    Elaine rolled her eyes, though she still squeezed him in one heck of a hug before leaving.


    Percy thought amidst coughs as soon as she was gone.


    That said, he felt better knowing she¡¯d be watching over Micky over the next few days. He understood the bird was struggling more than he¡¯d let on. Then again, it would be hypocritical of him to call the crow out on it, given all the reckless things he¡¯d done himself over the years.


    In theory, it should be fine. Between the fused mana he was regularly sending him, the bird¡¯s new Hibernation spell, and his growing understanding of mana conversion, Percy was confident his familiar would figure it out.


    he thought.


    Micky and Nesha had their training to focus on, and Percy had plenty of tasks of his own. Closing the door, he removed his blindfold before walking to his desk. Then, he took out all his supplies, as well as his alchemy equipment, scanning everything carefully while planning how to best manage his time.


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    Realizing he couldn¡¯t possibly fit everything in his schedule, Percy understood he would have to prioritize the most important things.


    Sadly, that meant shelving his Phantomscale Raiment for now. As powerful as it was, he knew he didn¡¯t have anywhere near enough powder for it, nor the time to reforge all the pieces. Let alone how difficult it would be to maintain it while on the move. While it was a crucial part of his arsenal, the thrice-evolved Refined spell was prohibitively impractical.


    he decided.


    He already had an idea as to how he could eliminate the armour¡¯s greatest drawback. But that was for later. Right now, he could only afford the dust and time for a couple of his weapons, as they were far simpler to craft and replace. That said, he couldn¡¯t exactly make too many of those either.


    Estimating how much powder that would leave him with, he nodded in satisfaction upon realizing it would be enough to convert the last few doses of elixirs into Aurora Dew without having to condense more crystals.


    Next, his eyes fell on the mushrooms again, as he reevaluated his decision not to use too many up. The healing potions were laughably easy to brew, and they were far more compact to store than an equivalent quantity of mushrooms. Perhaps, he was better off brewing more of them, now that his amulet had some space, as it wouldn¡¯t be as easy in the future. After all, the greatest challenge was growing the mushrooms themselves. If he planted them on regular corpses, it would likely take a lot longer than on Baldy¡¯s clones.


    Having made his mind up, he calculated how much time all these tasks would consume. Between Galahad¡¯s lessons and alchemy, he¡¯d need to spend all his remaining mornings, as well as the better part of his afternoons, leaving him only the evenings to work on something else. Replacing his scythes wouldn¡¯t take too long by comparison ¨C just a night or two. As for the rest of his time, he could spend it either on his mana threads, or on the second variant of potions.


    Happy with the plan, he grabbed one of the crimson mushrooms from the desk, tearing a chunk off, before tossing it in his mouth. He wasn¡¯t looking forward to the aftereffects, but there was no better place to experiment on this than in a house full of life users. Besides, it had to be done. He couldn¡¯t work on the potions without first understanding how the ingredients worked.


    he thought as he chewed the chunk down.


    Its texture was soft and spongy, its flavour quite spicy. Percy was forced to wash it down with some water, before focusing his Mana Sense on his stomach. Within seconds, he saw a wave of mana spread outwards rapidly, heating his body up. Everywhere it passed, his blood boiled, and his organs burned.


    It didn¡¯t take long for it to reach his heart either, at which point the changes accelerated greatly. Thrumming violently within his chest, his heart pumped more blood into his arteries, helping the mana travel farther. Soon, his skin began to redden, his muscles tensing, in a manner quite similar to what Synchronization did. However, there weren¡¯t any glowing lines of mana on his body, but veins bulging from head to toe, much like what had happened to the troll king a few weeks ago.


    Taking a seat, he waited for a few minutes until the effect of the mushroom fizzled out, his heartrate dropping back to normal. The wave of energy previously coursing through his muscles was replaced by some lingering soreness and fatigue. Nothing he couldn¡¯t recover from after a good night¡¯s sleep, but that was partly because of the low dosage, and partly because he hadn¡¯t tried exerting himself.


    Of course, a single piece of one mushroom wasn¡¯t nearly potent enough to help him in a fight either. If he brewed this into a proper potion, and drank a bunch of those at once, he was confident he could use them alongside Synchronization, strengthening his body beyond its usual limits. In fact, he even hoped the potion would temporarily increase his capacity for the boosting art, letting him keep some more mana inside his channels.


    The only challenge was figuring out how to mitigate the side-effects to a safe level, so that he wouldn¡¯t kill himself in the process. Admittedly, a rather important detail to worry about.


    This was what the troll king had relied on, though his attempts had been rather clumsy. Percy understood that using two foreign sources of mana at the same time was highly inefficient, as they would inevitably interfere with one another, lowering their efficacy.


    That was largely why the creature had been forced to keep consuming both types of mushrooms. Also, why his body had ended up in such a crappy state afterwards. If Percy was to follow in the demi-human¡¯s footsteps, he¡¯d have to approach this in a more sophisticated manner.


    he grinned.

 Chapter 217: New recipe

    Percy spent the next few hours brewing Aurora Dew and healing potions, though his mind had drifted elsewhere. He was thinking over his idea, fleshing out the details. Alchemic principles were typically quite broad and could be applied in several ways. While pacification, redirection and deattunement were generally considered the pillars of elixir making, there was no reason why he couldn¡¯t use them while brewing potions too. S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    he reminded himself.


    This was something he had deduced years ago, but his understanding of alchemy had grown a lot since then. By now, he was confident he could even pinpoint the exact steps his colleagues had taken when designing their recipes.


    The healing and magic potions were the simplest ones, only involving a single primary ingredient each, as well as the extraction principle. The enlightenment potions were probably a step beyond that, requiring a round of pacification too ¨C maybe more ¨C to get them to last for hours. As for the rejuvenation potions, they were easily the most complex of the bunch. Not only did they involve two primary ingredients, they likely needed a round of deattunement to blend them without issue, as well as several rounds of pacification to stretch their effect overnight.


    What Percy hoped to do with the mushrooms would fall somewhere between the enlightenment potions and the rejuvenation potions in difficulty. Pacifying the essence of the green mushrooms would cause the healing potions to act in a delayed manner. That way, they¡¯d behave more like regeneration potions ¨C enhancing the body¡¯s natural recovery over a prolonged period of time. Thinking back, he was confident the moss he¡¯d used on Atlantis was actually a naturally pacified ingredient.


    In any case, the slower regeneration definitely aligned better with his current needs. After all, it wasn¡¯t a sudden spike of healing that he needed, but a more extended effect, which lasted as long as the boost of the crimson mushrooms did. Like that, it would more easily counteract the damage, before it had the chance to spread and accumulate in his body.


    As for deattunement, it could help him combine the two ingredients more smoothly, so that they wouldn¡¯t mess with one another. Of course, neither life nor fire mana were quite as aggressive as beast mana, but they weren¡¯t exactly docile either. If he could prevent them from lowering each other¡¯s efficacy, the resulting potion would be both safer and more potent.


    The recipe was pretty much set in stone. The life mushrooms had to be extracted first, as he only wanted pacification to affect . The crimson mushrooms already acted slowly enough. Next, he had to deattune the resulting regeneration potion, before extracting the crimson mushrooms directly within it. Suffice to say, going through so many steps would negatively affect his yield.


    Then again, that wasn¡¯t a huge problem. First of all, while growing more mushrooms wasn¡¯t always convenient, it wasn¡¯t remotely as difficult as procuring more nectar. Besides, he didn¡¯t need much of the potion. He only wanted to have a couple of doses available to keep as a trump card in case of an emergency. Even if he wanted to, he couldn¡¯t really use it more often than that, as he doubted he could completely eliminate the side-effects.


    Luckily, Percy had some crushed rainbow grass left, as he¡¯d packed more than he needed before leaving the Guild. Unless the mushrooms proved incompatible with it for whatever reason ¨C which was unlikely ¨C he probably had deattunement covered. Sadly, he didn¡¯t have anything suitable for pacification on him.


    As far as Percy knew, his family didn¡¯t have any active alchemists right now. House Avalon made enough money to cover their needs via other ventures ¨C whether that was through the towns they owned, or through the healers they lent to their allies. It had been centuries since they last needed to send one of their members to the Guild.


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    However, they¡¯d probably accumulated a ton of junk in their warehouse over the years, and some ingredients could survive for a long time before going bad. If he got lucky, he might find a batch or two that he could use.


    Activating Synchronization, Percy began fusing and sending his mana over to Micky for the next hour or so, hoping this would be enough to top him up. From what the crow told him, he¡¯d already met up with Elaine, and she was currently out looking for some food to bring him.


    Apparently, Micky had even made some progress in consuming his air mana through his mutated feathers, confirming that this was indeed a more efficient way to go about it. Currently, he was working on fully integrating this variant of mana conversion into Hibernation.


    Percy whistled in appreciation.


    Once he was sure his familiar was alright, Percy stored his alchemy equipment away, leaving only his jar outside. With his boosting art active, he grabbed a handful of teal powder, before starting to work on replacing his first scythe. All his reinforced constructs were made of five variants of teal mana nowadays ¨C regular mana, crystallized mana, and three intermediate steps.


    While his mana threads weren¡¯t up to par quite yet, he did constantly discover stronger and stronger ¡®alloys¡¯ to use for his armour and weapons while experimenting. Of course, he had already run into diminishing returns, with the improvements being both scarce and modest. But that wasn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing. He took that as an indication that he was getting closer and closer to his goal.


    ***


    he exhaled, wiping the sweat off his forehead.


    Packing everything else up, he only left the newly forged scythe in the lab. Sadly, it was too large to fit in his amulet, and he didn¡¯t want to carry it around the house either. Turning it invisible, he propped it up against a wall, hoping none of his relatives would come snooping overnight.


    he shrugged.


    Having sorted everything, he headed to Baldy¡¯s office, hoping to catch him there. He ought to have finished training Nesha by now. A couple minutes later, Percy knocked on the door, getting invited in almost immediately ¨C to his relief.


    ¡°How¡¯s Galahad treating you?¡± Archibald cut straight to the chase.


    ¡°Huh, I didn¡¯t know he told you about it. The training is definitely tough, but I appreciate it.¡±


    Baldy nodded.


    ¡°He¡¯s not a bad person¡­¡± he sighed. ¡°A little stern, perhaps. And quite prejudiced against low-borns. But he want what¡¯s best for our family.¡±


    Percy remained silent for a moment. He pulled a chair across from Baldy, before plopping down.


    ¡°I get that, but that¡¯s exactly why I was surprised by his offer. After all, your hopes of starting a new branch of the Clone bloodline are going to get dashed when I leave. Isn¡¯t training me a waste of his time? From the family¡¯s perspective, I mean.¡±


    But Archibald shook his head.


    ¡°I think he¡¯s starting to see you as more than just your bloodline. He¡¯d be a fool to not realize your potential by now. I can¡¯t speak about your grade or lifespan, but I tell you one thing. I¡¯d be surprised if your doesn¡¯t surpass mine at some point.¡±


    Hearing his grandpa¡¯s high praise, Percy failed to suppress a smile. Reaching a Violet¡¯s strength as a Red-born wasn¡¯t a small feat. And he feel confident he¡¯d get there, given how far he¡¯d come in less than a decade.


    That said, fighting strength wouldn¡¯t be enough to reach his goals. Sure, it would help him ¨C both in protecting himself and earning whatever resources he needed ¨C but it wouldn¡¯t extend his lifespan. Only advancements could. This was why he had to keep drinking Aurora Dew, and to keep searching the cosmos for another solution. It was also why he had to leave his family¡¯s mansion, to head to the Thirsty Valley. Currently, it was the fastest way for him to reach Yellow.


    ¡°How¡¯s Nesha doing?¡± he asked, changing the topic.


    ¡°She¡¯s working hard. Harder than the three of us did back in the day, actually. After all, I only have less than a month with her, whereas we spent several back then.¡±


    ¡°Do you think her body will be ready for Circulation by the time we leave?¡± Percy asked, though he could already guess the answer.


    ¡°Unlikely. But she¡¯ll be close. Between the training she did on her own over the past few years and my accelerated sessions, she¡¯s over halfway there.¡±


    Percy nodded.


    ¡°What about your fancy mushrooms?¡± Baldy asked. ¡°I trust you won¡¯t let my clones¡¯ sacrifice go to waste?¡±


    ¡°About that¡­¡± Percy grinned.


    ¡°This is actually why I¡¯m here.¡±

 Chapter 218: A favourable deal

    Over the next hour or so, Percy brought Baldy up to speed on the mushrooms. Of course, he¡¯d already briefed him on his plans previously, but it wasn¡¯t until now that he¡¯d come to understand his ingredients better.


    At first, he didn¡¯t expect his grandpa to be interested. They already had a lot of healers at home, so the green mushrooms would only be useful for people heading out on missions ¨C and only if they didn¡¯t have a life user accompanying them. Naturally, this didn¡¯t happen very often. It was generally a dumb idea for a group to not include a healer ¨C doubly so given their abundance in House Avalon.


    Even then, all their Yellow-borns reached Green by the time they were old enough to be allowed out, making potions essentially useless for them. Let alone their raw ingredients, which were even less potent. In theory, Red-borns might benefit more from the mushrooms. Sadly, they were rarely strong enough to risk going on missions. Not to mention how few of those the family even had left, ever since the massacre.


    This all meant that the green mushrooms would only be used in some niche circumstances. Specifically, if and when a group of young Orange-borns decided to head out unaccompanied by a life user ¨C for whatever reason.


    ¡°They wouldn¡¯t be worth it if they were more troublesome to cultivate.¡± Archibald explained. ¡°But things are different, given how easily I can replenish them.¡±


    Percy nodded. The best thing about the mushrooms was that they didn¡¯t need any dedicated infrastructure, nor personnel to grow. Archibald could easily maintain a stock in their warehouse by himself. He¡¯d only need to give up a clone whenever they were close to running out.


    Sure, they wouldn¡¯t be too effective. Not without an alchemist to brew them into proper potions. Nor would they be needed often. Still, it would be handy to have a few around for an emergency. At the very least, it was easier than purchasing normal healing potions from the Guild. Additionally, Percy could brew his family their first batch before leaving.


    ¡°What about the red ones? Their effect is a little more exotic. I was hoping they might be useful when consumed by your clones.¡±


    Baldy shook his head, however.


    ¡°Each of my clones would need several hundreds of mushrooms to get a boost. More than I can produce by one. Even then, the effect would be minimal. Besides, I already have a spell that does something similar.¡±


    Hearing that, Percy deflated. He had certainly hoped his latest acquisitions would prove useful for his House, to curb his guilt over all the time and attention he was siphoning from his grandpa again.


    ¡°But that¡¯s not to say they¡¯re useless.¡± Archibald added a moment later, causing him to perk up. ¡°I may not need them, but many of our younger people have yet to master our family¡¯s Secret Arts. They¡¯ll be more effective on their clones too, thanks to their lower grades.¡±


    His words rekindled Percy¡¯s enthusiasm somewhat. Yet there was still an issue to solve.


    ¡°Do you think they¡¯re safe to use in a battle though?¡± Percy asked. ¡°You saw what happened when I planted them into your clones.¡±


    Baldy grimaced upon remembering that.


    ¡°Looking at my own mutilated body is something I¡¯ll never get used to, no matter how many times I see it. Still, it¡¯s not that big of a problem. It only happened because I wasn¡¯t there to supervise the process. Withholding my mana from the mushrooms to slow their growth down would be trivial otherwise.¡±


    The two spoke for a while longer, ironing out the details of their arrangement. Archibald agreed to give him a couple more clones, which Percy would exclusively use to grow green mushrooms. He didn¡¯t need any more of the red ones ¨C he already had plenty of those. Over the next few weeks, he would brew as many as he could into healing potions. That was both to extend his own stash, and to leave any excess he couldn¡¯t fit into his amulet behind, for his family. Additionally, Baldy would allow him to take any secondary ingredients he wanted from the warehouse ¨C assuming they even had any, of course.


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    he thought, a fuzzy feeling worming its way into his heart.


    Clearly, his grandpa had heavily skewed the exchange in his favour, looking for any excuse to help him out. After all, the four clones he had received were easily worth 10000 contribution points. Meanwhile, the potions Percy would be giving them in return barely cost a fraction of that. And that was without even mentioning the free training he and Nesha were getting.


    ¡°Thanks. I¡¯ll make it up to you, when I can.¡± he said.


    ¡°Just focus on your own progress.¡± Archibald said, casually waving away his concerns. ¡°You¡¯ve done plenty for us too.¡±


    Not arguing the point further, Percy bid the man farewell, before heading to the warehouse. There, he found his uncle Gareth on guard duty, along with another guy whose name he didn¡¯t quite remember. A quick scan via Mana Sense revealed that this person was at Yellow ¨C probably a relatively young Orange-born ¨C though he wasn¡¯t sure how distantly they were related.


    Either way, it was already nearly midnight ¨C way too late for new acquaintances. Explaining his reason for being there, he handed the two a written permit Baldy had given him, asking to be allowed inside. They complied of course, even offering to help him search due to his apparent blindness.


    he couldn¡¯t help but roll his eyes from behind the blindfold as he sifted through the place.


    Even partially obstructed by the cloth, his enhanced vision had already picked up on a couple mana-rich spots that his regular Mana Sense had missed. Unfortunately, he still had to maintain the fa?ade around others.


    In the end, it took the three a couple hours to search the whole place up, with some mixed results. Percy was positively surprised to have found a couple crates of alchemical reagents ¨C even recognizing a few pacification ingredients among them. Unfortunately, the boxes were positively , covered in an inch-deep layer of dust.


    And their contents weren¡¯t much better. The overwhelming majority of the reagents had long gone inert, not a shred of mana left within them. And that was despite magical plants generally having a much longer shelf-life than mundane ones. In fact, several even crumbled to powder in his hands as he tried picking them up.


    he creased his brow as he tallied the surviving reagents.


    There wasn¡¯t much. Barely enough for him to brew a handful of doses ¨C if everything went well. Granted, this was all he really needed, though it also meant he didn¡¯t have much leeway for experimentation. He¡¯d have to get the recipe down in the first couple of attempts, to avoid wasting his limited supplies. Which was made even more complicated by the fact that he¡¯d have to use a different ingredient each time.


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    It would inevitably cost him a few more mushrooms, but those were more disposable, given the circumstances.


    Helping his relatives put everything else back, he thanked them before returning to his room. It wasn¡¯t until he was alone that he finally took his blindfold off again. Tossing her a glance, he didn¡¯t miss the traces of exhaustion still marring her pretty face, as she was sprawled over the bed like a starfish.


    Sighing, he pulled the curtain open, looking at the starlit sky blanketing the heavens. To his relief, it didn¡¯t seem the sun was quite ready to rise just yet, though he knew he barely had a couple hours left. Taking off his clothes, he carefully pushed Nesha to one side, trying his best not to disturb her as he joined her.


    he thought, barely suppressing a chuckle.


    It was tempting, really. Not just as payback for all the shit he¡¯d given him in the past, but also because he really wasn¡¯t in the mood for another one of those brutal training sessions. In the end, he shook his head, however. No sense in antagonizing the man now that their relationship had finally turned around. Besides, as tough as it was, Percy knew he had struck quite a bargain there.


    Forcing all the stressful thoughts out of his mind, he allowed his head to sink into his soft, nostalgic pillow, a more positive note taking hold of him right before he fell asleep.

 Chapter 219: Brown potion

    Two weeks went by in a flash, as everyone pushed themselves to their very limits.


    Percy didn¡¯t actually get to spend much time with Nesha. Even when the two got a few minutes together, they were typically too tired to talk. From what little they did speak, however, he understood she was already well on her way to mastering Circulation.


    He knew she had already cleared her remaining channels a long time ago, as merely opening them didn¡¯t require her body to be trained. That said, she wouldn¡¯t be able to them, nor could she experiment with her mana flow until her physique was fully honed. Admittedly, this was still a few months away, despite all the time she¡¯d saved with Baldy¡¯s help.


    As for Percy, he¡¯d also made a ton of progress on multiple fronts.


    ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t think¡­ this will work...¡± he spat between pants, droplets of sweat dripping off his chin one after the other.


    ¡°Percy¡­ Don¡¯t be too greedy now. You¡¯ve done remarkably well given your grade. I doubt there are many Yellows who can resist even the most basic domain. Let alone an Orange hoping to withstand mine.¡± Galahad consoled in a manner somewhat atypical of him.


    Percy sighed, knowing his uncle was right. Despite all his hard work, the best he¡¯d managed to accomplish was to remain conscious for a prolonged period of time. Still, he couldn¡¯t even twitch a muscle after all these gruelling sessions.


    He only hoped his efforts wouldn¡¯t be for nothing, even if their results weren¡¯t immediately obvious.


    ¡°In any case¡­ Thanks for all the help.¡± he said as soon as he managed to steady his breath. ¡°If nothing else, this was certainly illuminating.¡±


    Galahad nodded.


    Percy turned around to leave, when his uncle¡¯s next words froze him in his steps.


    ¡°I sorry for the way I treated you, you know.¡±


    Looking back at Galahad, Percy caught a fleeting hint of sadness ¨C regret, even. One he¡¯d never expected to see in the man¡¯s expression.


    ¡°Heh. Don¡¯t get all sentimental on me now.¡± he chuckled. ¡°Cold indifference suits you better.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure it does.¡± Galahad replied, letting his lips curl upwards. ¡°I just want you to know that House Avalon was lucky to have you. It¡¯s not an easy thing to admit ¨C especially not for an aspiring leader ¨C but I honestly believe we¡¯d be better off if I hadn¡¯t contributed in pushing you out.¡±


    Percy remained silent for a couple of seconds, letting the words sink in.


    It was true, Galahad was quite influential in the family. While Percy¡¯s decision to leave had ultimately been his, things might have been different had Baldy agreed to give him the elixirs he¡¯d needed back in the day. Had that been the case, he might have sought out a different solution for Micky too, and never gone to the Alchemists¡¯ Guild.


    But it was too late for regrets. Two doses of elixirs weren¡¯t remotely enough anymore. Percy currently needed 22 of them! There was no way they could possibly justify such an outlandish expenditure to the rest of their family. Not without spilling all his secrets. . Not to mention the mess he had raised back in the Guild. The Divine Root was bound to come for him sooner or later. Right now, every second he spent with his family was a risk for everyone involved.


    ¡°No sense in regretting the past, Uncle.¡± he said. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t left, I wouldn¡¯t have met Nesha. The Aurora Dew might have never come to be either. It¡¯s impossible to say which way is better.¡±


    The last thing Percy heard was a sigh, as he closed the door behind him, leaving the training room. Galahad¡¯s words swirled within his mind for a few more minutes, as he walked over to his lab. But he shook them away by the time he arrived. He still had some work ahead of him, and he couldn¡¯t afford to be distracted.


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    Fortunately, his other projects had been a lot more successful. His scythes had been ready for a while now. In fact, he¡¯d even recycled them once already, a couple days ago. His alchemical ventures had progressed just as smoothly too, if not better. To his great joy, Percy had finished converting his remaining elixirs to Aurora Dew, and three clones¡¯ worth of mushrooms into healing potions. By now, his spatial amulet was packed to the brim with supplies, the excess already handed over to Baldy.


    he thought, his eyes burning with determination.


    Closing the curtains, he took out his equipment, preparing everything. He¡¯d already familiarized himself with most of the steps in his free time. He¡¯d practiced extracting both of the mushrooms¡¯ essences separately, as well as deattuning and mixing them together.


    Admittedly, it wouldn¡¯t be exactly the same when he did everything in the correct order. That said, he was at least confident his only potential point of failure would be the pacification step ¨C which he hadn¡¯t had a chance to practice like the rest.


    ¡°Here goes nothing.¡± he said, pouring four vials of healing potions inside his cauldron.


    Next, he grabbed a handful of white powder, adding it to the concoction, before turning the heat up. Percy had actually mixed the crushed pale carrots with the moonflower petals, to end up with a more homogenized resource. .


    Normally, adding multiple secondary ingredients during the same step was ill-advised. If Orin was here, he¡¯d probably want to slap him. After all, introducing too many variables drastically reduced one¡¯s yield. However, Percy estimated he was better off doing this, ensuring that all three of his attempts were as similar to one another as possible. Using a different reagent each time would likely hurt him more.


    he thought as he played around with the enchantments, responding to the concoction¡¯s whims.


    Objectively speaking, the session was going terribly, as he¡¯d already ruined a third of the ingredients less than a minute in. He wasn¡¯t deterred in the slightest, however, his enhanced eyes gathering valuable feedback with every passing moment. Information that would help him greatly in his next attempt.


    ***


    he smiled bitterly, staring at the inert sludge inside the cauldron.


    He¡¯d known not to expect anything from the first batch, though he¡¯d secretly hoped to salvage at least of it. This was just a single step of pacification, after all. Nothing too revolutionary.


    Washing his equipment over a wooden basin, he left everything to dry by the window for a few minutes, as he allowed the gentle breeze to soothe some of his fatigue away. It wasn¡¯t until an hour later that he was in the right headspace to give this another shot.


    This time, Percy was better prepared right off the bat. Avoiding some crucial mistakes he¡¯d made early on the previous time, he preserved a lot of the ingredients as he progressed through the session. That said, he didn¡¯t allow himself to relax for a second, knowing he was still doing far worse than he would be with some proper practice.


    ***


    he estimated, distilling the foam inside a couple of vials.


    Shaking them a little, he spent a few moments appreciating the pale green liquid swirling within them. These were essentially regeneration potions now. They be more useful in a fight than regular healing potions under some circumstances, but he figured the potions he wanted to brew would help him more.


    Mentally calculating what this output meant for his yield, Percy soon grimaced. Nearly two doses were infinitely better than zero, but he¡¯d still started his attempt with four vials of healing potions. Had he been better at this, he should have preserved more than three quarters of that.


    He shrugged. The only thing he could do was to try and improve from here on out.


    ***


    The third attempt got him around two and a half vials of regeneration potion, bringing the total to just over four. Still not perfect, but good enough. There were some inevitable losses during the final two steps too, though not nearly as many as before.


    By the time he was completely done, Percy had collected two and a half vials of a brown syrupy liquid. Its appearance somewhat resembled the rejuvenation potion he had used before, though its colour was a little closer to yellow. It smelled of mint, yet it also left a lingering burn in his nose, subtly hinting at its spicy flavour. Some bubbles faintly fizzed through its volume, as the fluid struggled to contain the magical fury sealed within it.


    He could probably withstand a little more than that, thanks to his second core and his boosting art. Still, it was better not to drink too much on his first try, since he wouldn¡¯t have an opportunity to actually test the potion¡¯s effects before then.


    Pouring the three vials inside a small leather flask ¨C for easier access ¨C he hung it to his waist, nodding in satisfaction. Hopefully he¡¯d never have to use it, but just having it with him already made him a little more confident in leaving the mansion without his trusty armour.


    He knew what to call it too, having settled on its name a long time ago.


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 Chapter 220: Regulation

    Percy allowed his thoughts to sink into the ethereal cord in his sternum, watching the live feed provided by Micky with bated breath, as the crow shared his senses with him.


    His blood flow had greatly slowed, an oppressive feeling of numbness enveloping his body from beak to talon. Micky didn¡¯t seem deterred in the slightest, however, already used to the weakness brought about by Hibernation. Instead, he focused his attention on fine-tuning the spell to the best of his ability. The beast mana travelling through the bird¡¯s veins had halted almost entirely, massively lowering his expenditure. And that was merely the beginning!


    In some places, the mana even flowed in reverse, swimming upstream through the crow¡¯s arteries, fighting against the current of blood. All of those tiny rivulets stemmed from the roots of Micky¡¯s mutated feathers ¨C now dimmer than ever before, despite constantly being flooded with a ton of air mana from his abdomen. The beast mana headed straight into Micky¡¯s core, carrying some traces of air mana with it!


    Even more interesting was the fact that the air mana appeared to rapidly decrease throughout its journey. Only half of what Micky drew from his feathers ever reached his core, the rest of it consumed along the way. Unlike Percy¡¯s Soul Conversion ¨C which solely took place inside his first core ¨C in Micky¡¯s case, the spell¡¯s effect seemed to span his whole body. Contrary to other affinities, the beast mana greedily chipped away at the air mana with every chance it got!


    In the end, only about 20% of it got converted. Barely enough to qualify as a Crude spell on its own, though the additional component of Hibernation made it a great deal more impressive. Still, Micky clearly had his work cut out for him, his new spell having plenty of room for improvement. That said, this was already good enough for them to finally solve their issue for the time being.


    The crow¡¯s Status had noticed too, the entry having changed since the last time Percy checked it, a couple days ago.


    Admittedly, Percy felt a little silly reproducing the notifications for his familiar. But he didn¡¯t want his pal to miss out on one of the most thrilling parts of practicing magic. While his Status had grown more comprehensive since incorporating Ea¡¯s Decree ¨C to the point it registered more than just spells ¨C it still failed to properly extend all its features over to Micky.


    he sighed.


    Oblivious to his thoughts, Micky allowed himself to relax, a wave of exhaustion oozing through the bond. It was accompanied by some lingering traces of hunger he hadn¡¯t quite managed to quash. Still, it was all dwarfed by the sheer exhilaration and overwhelming pride the familiar felt over his accomplishment.


    Micky said.


    Percy asked back, not entirely convinced.


    Micky remained silent for a couple seconds, before sending a mental nod.


    Percy exhaled in relief upon hearing that. While he¡¯d been confident in his idea, it had all been theoretical until just now. And truth be told, they¡¯d have needed a spell like this sooner or later, even if they¡¯d never left the Grisly Bog. After all, Micky¡¯s core would eventually advance again, his hunger growing right alongside it. The Fungal Spire was pretty much the only place on Remior where Micky would always be able to eat his fill. .


    Of course, this still wasn¡¯t a solution. Unfortunately, Micky¡¯s second core was growing more slowly. It was bound to fall behind the other one eventually. Percy estimated it would reach Yellow before the first one hit Green, but he wasn¡¯t sure it would get to Green before the first one reached Blue.


    Well, at any rate, they should be good for the next few decades, at least. As Micky¡¯s conversion rate continued to climb, he¡¯d grow more comfortable too. Right now, he¡¯d have to keep the spell active for several hours per day, not to mention dealing with the fatigue it left behind afterwards. However, he should eventually cut that time down massively. And they had many years to come up with something better, before the gap between his cores widened again.


    Percy asked, changing the topic.


    Percy nodded. His short ¡®vacation¡¯ was finally nearing its end. According to what Baldy had explained, their family should be receiving their petals within the next couple of hours!


    Percy smiled.


    So much had happened since that first time he ever heard a god speak. His growth aside, he¡¯d somehow managed to piss that very same god off! Not to mention his even more bizarre dealings with a different god ¨C a foreign titan, no less!


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    Bidding Micky farewell, he closed the connection, heading to Baldy¡¯s office. Getting there, he found the room quite crowded. In addition to his grandpa, Elaine and Nesha were also waiting for him. Galahad and Mordred were present too, likely waiting for their own petals.


    Upon taking a seat next to Nesha, Percy caught Mordred tossing him a fleeting glance. He couldn¡¯t make out his cousin¡¯s expression through his blindfold, but he did notice traces of curiosity flickering within the young man¡¯s soul. The two were essentially complete strangers, having never interacted much in the past.


    Mordred¡¯s presence was undeniable, however, making Percy inadvertently feel even more on edge than he had while facing Rambert, despite knowing his cousin wasn¡¯t his enemy. If he hadn¡¯t explicitly been told otherwise, he might have even guessed his family¡¯s resident prodigy had awakened his domain ahead of time.


    At any rate, Galahad didn¡¯t seem to have spilled any of Percy¡¯s secrets to his son. Annoyingly, it did mean Percy had to keep the blindfold on during the meeting though.


    ¡°Ahem. Now that we¡¯re all here, I should explain what¡¯s about to happen.¡± Archibald said, drawing everyone¡¯s attention.


    Nobody else spoke, waiting for him to continue.


    ¡°Every noble House was contacted by the Divine Root a few weeks after Hermes¡¯s first message. We were given some more detailed information about how the petals are going to be disseminated. While today marks the official 5-year anniversary since the message, the lotus has already bloomed. Nearly a week ago, in fact. The petals are already being delivered, with some provinces getting theirs a little sooner than others. Ours will be handed to us by an emissary of the Divine Order ¨C ¨C later today.¡±


    Everyone in the room drew a sharp breath upon hearing that. Elaine was the first to speak, however, voicing the question at the forefront of all their minds.


    ¡°They¡¯re sending their As ¡±


    Even Galahad seemed surprised at this. Percy wasn¡¯t sure anyone here ¨C ¨C had ever personally seen a White. Let alone a demigod, standing at a level above even the leaders of the Great Houses. Technically, the Order¡¯s demigods were still considered mortals, though they were just a step beneath divinity. Supposedly, any of them had the potential to take that very step at any given moment. In other words, the person delivering them their petals today could just as easily be a god


    Percy smiled.


    Obviously, it was a little more complicated than that. Only the tiniest fraction of demigods had ever managed to shed their mortal coil in Remior¡¯s long history, despite each of them having a lifespan of tens of millennia. Either way, assigning them to such a menial chore was unprecedented.


    Archibald shrugged.


    ¡°They didn¡¯t really have a choice. The last thing anybody wants is to see such a valuable treasure wasted. As Hermes has already mentioned, the petals only last a little over three weeks before withering. Even for Violets and Whites, that¡¯s not necessarily enough time to reach the most remote Houses. Not to mention how inconvenient it is for a leader to leave his headquarters for months on end¡­¡±


    A few others spoke up, firing more questions, though Percy tuned them out, his thoughts lingering on something else.


    It would probably be fine, otherwise Archibald would have warned him already. These people weren¡¯t personally involved in the search for him and Nesha. Nor would they be likely to bother with something so far beneath them. Still, Percy had plenty of secrets he didn¡¯t want to leak, and he had no idea how perceptive such a lofty existence could be. Perhaps it would be safer for him to hide in his room until the emissary was gone. Just to be safe.


    ¡°I¡¯m more surprised the gods haven¡¯t decided to withhold the petals from everyone, to force us all to help them search for the culprits behind the Aurora Dew.¡± Mordred said, completely oblivious to the fact that those very culprits were sitting right next to him.


    ¡°What would be the point in that?¡± Galahad asked back. ¡°The overwhelming majority of mortals would already gladly hand them over to the Order if they could. Besides, Hermes has already given us his word about the lotus. Going back on it would only tarnish his reputation.¡±


    Mordred was about to reply, when somebody knocked on the door.


    ¡°Father, there is a high-profile visitor waiting in the main hall. He wishes to speak to you.¡± Uncle Gareth said.


    Everyone in the room exchanged glances with one another. The demigod had arrived a little sooner than they were expecting.


    ¡°Is His Grace here for the petals?¡± Baldy asked as he hurriedly stood up, walking towards the door.


    Gareth¡¯s next words caught everyone by surprise, however.


    ¡° Sure, he¡¯s from the Divine Root alright, but why are you being so respectful towards him? He¡¯s just a kid at Green. I think he said his name was Jason?¡± Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Nesha grabbed Percy¡¯s hand, clenching it tightly. It trembled, betraying her inner turmoil. At the same time, several pairs of eyes turned towards them, as Percy felt the blood drain from his face, his very breath growing cold inside his lungs.


    It felt like a bad dream. Of course, he and Nesha had always known this day would come, but he¡¯d hoped to get a few more months of freedom before their pursuers caught up to them. He certainly hadn¡¯t expected this to happen mere hours before he finally got his petal! And after all the trouble he¡¯d gone through to earn it, too!


    But, perhaps, he should be grateful it had taken them this long in the first place. It would¡¯ve been even worse a year ago, or earlier¡­


    Baldy had frozen in his steps too. Turning towards his grandson, he placed his hand on Percy¡¯s shoulder, squeezing it gently. The moment felt so damn fleeting, his heart racing in his chest. Grandson and grandpa exchanged a silent glance, conveying a thousand unspoken words with that gesture.


    Percy wanted to pull his blindfold off . To get one last look at his grandpa¡¯s face. Elaine¡¯s too.


    He was about to do it, when Nesha squeezed his hand even more tightly. Baldy did the same to his shoulder. Keeping the fa?ade about his eyes up was important. . Not that they didn¡¯t trust Mordred, but their leeway for unnecessary risks had just been cut short...


    Letting go, Baldy walked out of the office, as Percy turned towards Elaine for a fraction of a second. He didn¡¯t utter a word, however. Neither did she, nor anybody else in the room. They couldn¡¯t afford to delay any longer, nor implicate anyone more than they already had.


    He and Nesha bolted out of the room, hoping Baldy would buy them enough time to get as far from this place as possible. One thought rang crystal clear in everyone¡¯s mind.

 Chapter 221: Jason

    Earlier


    Jason had grown sick of tasting his own blood, but he couldn¡¯t help it. Biting his cheek was a habit he¡¯d inadvertently picked up over the last couple of months. By now, it had grown a little out of hand.


    He¡¯d already chosen to ignore multiple calls from Deimos, afraid his boss might order him to return to the Guild. Of course, not answering was a serious offense in and of itself, but he could still play dumb later. Defying a direct order, on the other hand, wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d be able to downplay as easily.


    he grimaced as he continued to follow the latest trail.


    Eventually, a large wooden mansion faintly appeared on the horizon, drawing his attention. And the two karmic threads were pointing straight towards it!


    This was certainly more promising than the shitty towns and fields the last couple of threads had led him to. On second thought, it wasn¡¯t surprising. He¡¯d already exhausted more than half of the trails, so he just be getting closer to Nesha.


    One possibility he hadn¡¯t given as much thought to was one where the alchemist had murdered both of his accomplices ¨C Percy Nesha. Should that be the case, the threads extending out of her clothes might never lead him to his target.


    he shrugged.


    Getting a little closer, he managed to make the insignia out, carved on several spots along the outer walls. It depicted two faces, looking away from one another. Digging through his memories, he tried to recall which families had a similar symbol.


    Jason froze in his tracks upon thinking of that last possibility. As in, The dead runt?! No. That couldn¡¯t be the case. Why would Nesha or the alchemist visit the family of their dead collaborator?


    Merely avoiding their own families wouldn¡¯t have been that strange. After all, Nesha¡¯s House was already destroyed. The alchemist might not want to stay at a conspicuous location either. But there were so many alternatives to choose from, if they just wanted to divert attention. Why pick Percy¡¯s House? The only possibility that made sense was that the boy was still alive.


    Jason¡¯s heart skipped a beat, as countless possibilities swirled within his mind. He still had no idea what to make of this mess, but it didn¡¯t really matter. The odds of having finally stumbled upon something important had just shot through the roof!


    Taking out the device, he was about to activate it, though he hesitated. If he contacted Deimos now, there was no going back. His superior was bound to lash out at him over his failures, and the missed calls. All would be forgiven if his current lead yielded a result, of course. But if not¡­


    Making his mind up, he opened the watch, pouring his mana into it. He barely had to wait a moment, before the other side picked the call up.


    ¡°JASON!!¡± a furious voice yelled, barely a second later. ¡°If you ignore one more of my calls, I swear I¡¯m going to skin you alive!! HOW  YOU DISAPPEAR FOR WEEKS ON END?!?!¡±


    Having expected the outburst, Jason had already leaned away from the device, though the sheer fury contained therein still caused him to flinch.


    ¡°Deimos, just shut up and listen! None of that matters! I think I¡¯ve got some real results this time!¡± he hurriedly said, before his boss had a chance to interrupt him again.


    Deimos remained silent for a few seconds, letting his words sink in. When he next spoke, he did so far more calmly, some cautious optimism inadvertently spilling into his voice.


    ¡°If you¡¯re lying to me, I¡¯ll give you exactly chance to reconsider.¡± he grumbled through gritted teeth.


    ¡°Look. I be 100% sure, ok? But I¡¯m confident in this one. The thread has led me to House Avalon.¡± Jason doubled down. ¡°Can you check if there¡¯s anyone else in the Guild from that family? Besides the Red-born, I mean.¡±


    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    Deimos hung up without saying anything. It wasn¡¯t until about an hour later that he called Jason again.


    ¡°Nobody. House Avalon hasn¡¯t sent anybody else here in decades.¡±


    ¡°I see. Well, Nesha to be around, otherwise her clothes wouldn¡¯t have brought me here. Percy has to be too, as nothing else makes sense. I don¡¯t know if the alchemist is with them, but I¡¯ll make them spill his whereabouts out regardless.¡±


    ***


    Activating his Karmic Vision, Jason saw the threads were already on the move. He wasn¡¯t deterred in the slightest, however, his lips only parting into a grin. The fact that they¡¯d chosen to run away as soon as he arrived could only mean that he was correct.


    He could chase after them right away, though he¡¯d rather speak to the family¡¯s leader first ¨C to gauge the House¡¯s stance on the culprits. It was the Divine Root¡¯s protocol to do so in cases like this, to not give their adversaries a chance to come up with believable excuses.


    As for his targets, they were no longer of any concern. He¡¯d only need a couple hours to catch up to them, now that he¡¯d singled out the correct threads.


    Resting one leg over the other, he leaned back, sinking into the couch. This was the first time he was able to relax in years. Ignoring the hushed whispers of the local nobles, he patiently waited for the Violet to arrive.


    ¡°Forgive me for the delay.¡± a bald man said, stepping into the hall. ¡°You¡¯ve chosen a rather strange day to visit. You see, we¡¯re expecting the emissary of the Divine Order to arrive.¡±


    ¡°Oh? Is that today?¡± Jason raised an eyebrow.


    So long had he been on the move, he hadn¡¯t even registered the passage of time. Not that he was particularly concerned with the lotus. The petals weren¡¯t even compatible with his affinity.


    ¡°You must be Archibald, then?¡± he asked again with a shrug after not getting a reply to his last question.


    The man nodded, before speaking.


    ¡°I won¡¯t presume to know what matter was important enough to bring the Divine Root to our doorsteps, but I¡¯ll do my best to entertain you.¡±


    ¡°Really now?¡± Jason asked nonchalantly. ¡°Why do I have this sneaking suspicion you know exactly what I¡¯m here for?¡±


    Archibald remained silent, however.


    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll play along. I¡¯m looking for Nesha Veritas. And Percival of House. I they were here just minutes ago, so don¡¯t even try to pretend otherwise. I¡¯m sure at least one of your relatives will crumble under the slightest bit of pressure.¡± Jason said, gesturing at the other nobles.


    ¡°Did you come into my home to threaten me, ¡± the powerful Violet hissed.


    At the same time, a suffocating domain descended upon Jason, pressing him into the pillows. The latter¡¯s smile only widened, however. He could sense the old man was holding back a great deal. No way his domain was weaker than Deimos¡¯s. Naturally, he just didn¡¯t dare harm a single hair on his head. And they both knew it.


    ¡°Threatening you isn¡¯t quite as serious a crime as inhibiting the Divine Root¡¯s official investigation. Or would you like to personally explain to the gods of the Divine Order why everyone on Remior is still drinking the regular elixirs, after all this time?¡±


    The man¡¯s features softened as he withdrew his domain. The fury in his face all but evaporated, replaced by some unconcealed concern.


    ¡°What does have to do with anything?¡± Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Do you deny the two people I¡¯ve mentioned were here? Or that they came here from the ¡±


    Archibald appeared to ponder the questions for a few seconds.


    ¡°I do not. It¡¯s true my grandson used to be in the Guild. He left our house years ago, of his own accord, after we denied him the elixirs he needed for his growth. A rather common story on Remior, is it not?¡±


    ¡°You do know the Guild has been on lockdown since Hermes¡¯s message, right?¡±


    ¡°Naturally. Percy claimed he¡¯d left months before the incident. You can¡¯t really blame me for believing him either. Are you telling me a young low-born like him somehow got involved in such a grand matter? Or that he managed to slip through the Guild¡¯s perimeter without anybody finding him for years?¡±


    Jason could smell something fishy going on. Archibald¡¯s words made sense, but he couldn¡¯t shake the impression the man had intentionally delayed meeting with him, buying time for his grandson to escape.


    he struggled to suppress a smirk.


    For now, his best bet was to get the man to implicate himself further.


    ¡°What about the girl? Didn¡¯t you question where your grandson picked her up? Also, was there a third person with them?¡±


    Archibald furrowed his brow, appearing to seriously ponder the questions.


    ¡°It was just the two of them. Our House is in the middle of a war right now. We can¡¯t let outsiders join willy nilly. Honestly, I didn¡¯t even know she was a noble. They both showed up in filthy rags, claiming she was a commoner he¡¯d met in some town.¡±


    ¡°You understand how serious the repercussions will be if you¡¯re lying to me, right?¡± Jason asked.


    ¡°Do you take me for a fool? I¡¯ve lived dozens of times longer than you, .¡± Archibald stared him in the eyes, completely unfazed. If he was lying, he was good at it. ¡°This is the first I¡¯m hearing of my grandson¡¯s involvement in this matter. House Avalon had nothing to do with this. We¡¯ll fully cooperate with your investigation.¡±


    Glancing around at his relatives, Archibald then raised his voice for all to hear.


    ¡°From now on, Percy is excommunicated from the family, until such time as the Divine Root determines his innocence. If he tries to contact any of you, you are to arrest him on sight, and deliver him straight to me. His girlfriend too.¡±


    Jason shrugged. This hadn¡¯t been particularly helpful. Guilty or not, the old fox clearly knew to say all the right words. Either way, it didn¡¯t matter. The fate of House Avalon was something for his superiors to decide. His only remaining responsibility was to capture the culprits. Then, he could finally wash his hands of this nonsense.


    Leaving the mansion, he activated his ocular technique once more, pinpointing the conspicuous threads he¡¯d identified earlier. They¡¯d already travelled a few degrees to the north, probably varying their paths to ditch him.


    Such tactics might have worked on anybody else, but not him. Against a karma user, their best bet had been to escape in a straight line, prioritizing distance above all else. Not that it would have made much of a difference, though. At most, it would have bought them another hour or two.


    Cracking his neck, he sped after them, eager to finally get his hands on the bastards that had screwed with him for so long¡­

 Chapter 222: Diplomacy (1)

    Percy dragged Nesha through the Whistling Woods, the two sprinting in the darkness. The moonless sky wasn¡¯t doing them any favours as they struggled to avoid crashing into a tree. Plus, they were out of breath already. Still, he ignored the exhaustion, striving to buy as much time as possible as he contemplated their situation. Several scenarios flashed through his tired mind, each worse than the previous one.


    Naturally, he was under no delusions that they would escape without a confrontation this time. If their enemies had managed to track them all the way here, they clearly possessed some magical means of locating them. Perhaps a specialized bloodline, or an artifact. Percy had no idea what it was exactly, but it didn¡¯t really matter. The only thing they could control, was how to react once they were found.


    Then again, he couldn¡¯t exactly decide on the best course of action either. Not without knowing what they were up against. If the Root had sent any Blues after them, they were already out of luck. His training sessions with Galahad had made that abundantly clear. His only hope was that it would be overkill. Surely, even the Divine Root couldn¡¯t afford to have their Blues roaming Remior for years on end, looking for them.


    he smiled bitterly.


    Unlike their carefully prepared ambush in Bogside town, he wasn¡¯t in any condition to fight at that level right now. They hadn¡¯t set any traps up, not to mention that he currently lacked the majority of his constructs. In fact, he was glad he¡¯d even had the presence of mind to grab his two scythes before rushing out of the mansion, so that he wouldn¡¯t be entirely unarmed.


    His companions weren¡¯t faring much better either. Nesha had dark bags under her eyes. A healing potion would help with that, but there was only so much she could do with a single spell in her arsenal. As for Micky, he was doing worse than either of them. The crow had already met up with them and was currently flying in their vicinity. Still, Percy wouldn¡¯t even let his familiar fight a right now. Let alone a Green.


    Worse still, was the fact that he couldn¡¯t just run away. Even if he could come up with a way to ditch his pursuers, he didn¡¯t only have himself to worry about. While he was certainly glad they¡¯d managed to evade discovery for so long, this was arguably one of the worst possible moments for them to be found ¨C smoked right out of his family¡¯s mansion. If he failed to handle this properly, his loved ones could easily pay the price.


    ¡°Stop.¡± he muttered, pulling Nesha to a halt.


    The girl acquiesced, though she did flash him a questioning look.


    ¡°We¡¯ll have to confront them at some point, whether in a fight, or through diplomacy. Either way, I¡¯d rather not be out of breath when it happens.¡± S§×arch* The ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Nodding, she accompanied him to a nearby tree, the two of them sitting by its roots. Micky landed some distance away too.


    Next, the trio proceeded to go over various possibilities, discussing how to deal with each of them, all the while keeping their senses out for any intruders¡­


    ***


    ¡°Well, well¡­ Who do we have here?¡± a snarky voice pierced through the cacophony of the whistling cones. ¡°I was wondering why the two of you had stopped moving. Did you get tired? Or did you actually think you¡¯d travelled far enough to ditch me?¡±


    Percy failed to see the newcomer¡¯s face, having put his blindfold back on while waiting for him. He¡¯d take it off if he had to ¨C obviously ¨C but the situation hadn¡¯t devolved that far.


    he noted, not finding anybody else.


    It wasn¡¯t going to be an easy fight, given their current state. Still, it was about the best they could have hoped for. Then again, he¡¯d rather try something else before falling back to violence.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Nesha was the first to speak.


    ¡°Yeah... . I¡¯ve already done the ¡®playing dumb¡¯ routine once today. Don¡¯t even bother wasting more of my time. Not after fucking my life up for the last two years.¡± the Green replied, his voice devoid of humour. ¡°Right now, your best bet is to tell me who brewed the Aurora Dew, and where I can find him. Trust me, you don¡¯t want to play games with me.¡±


    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°That can be arranged.¡± Percy said calmly. ¡°Before that, I also want a couple of reassurances from you. Or better yet, from your boss.¡±


    The Green chuckled.


    ¡°Do you honestly think you¡¯re in a position to be making demands?!¡± he snarled. ¡°If you wanted to negotiate, you should have done so two years ago!¡±


    Ignoring the quip, Percy tossed him a gemstone vial, a turquoise liquid swirling inside.


    ¡°It¡¯s me. I¡¯m the one you¡¯re looking for. I know it¡¯s a little late, but two years aren¡¯t that long in the grand scheme of things. I¡¯ll share the recipe with everyone, and we¡¯ll all get our happy ending. Do you have any way to contact your boss? We¡¯ll gladly accompany you to the nearest town if you need to send a letter.¡±


    A wave of amusement rippled through the Green¡¯s soul.


    ¡° Do you seriously expect me to believe that crap?!¡±


    ¡°Do you see anybody else with us? Or do you think we pulled the Aurora Dew out of thin air?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°How could he have possibly succeeded where every alchemist on Remior has failed? For thousands of years, at that?¡± the Green didn¡¯t relent.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple, really. I looked where nobody else did. It¡¯s all thanks to my bloodline. I trust you don¡¯t have the patience for my life story, do you?¡± Percy fired back.


    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you rather pass the responsibility of assessing the validity of our claims to your superior?¡± Nesha pitched in with a question of her own.


    The man appeared to ponder their request for a few seconds.


    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll play along. We¡¯ve already been in this ridiculous dance for years. I suppose a few more minutes won¡¯t change anything.¡±


    Taking something out of his pocket, he drew some mana from his core, pouring it into the object. A series of runes that Percy failed to identify soon lit up on the device. Though he was more focused on the man¡¯s strange mana type than the item.


    On one hand, it was rather troublesome. Escaping would be impossible as long as this person drew breath. Conversely, it also meant the solution to their problem was standing right in front of them.


    Oblivious to his thoughts, the man continued pouring mana into the device for a few seconds, until the rest of the inscriptions lit up.


    ¡°Jason? Any updates?¡±


    The voice was a little difficult to make out. Between the whistling trees and the fact that Jason was standing over a hundred feet away, the quality was terrible. Still, both Nesha and Percy had advanced a few times, their hearing significantly better than a Red¡¯s.


    ¡°Boss, I¡¯ve caught up to the culprits. They haven¡¯t made any attempt to resist so far.¡±


    ¡°Is the alchemist with them? What of Archibald?¡±


    ¡°The old man played dumb. I have no idea if he was actually involved with them. As to your first question, . It¡¯s just Nesha and Percy here. Percy claims ¡¯s the mastermind behind the elixirs.¡±


    A loud sardonic laughter rang through the device.


    ¡°Please tell me you haven¡¯t bought that nonsense.¡±


    ¡°Naturally not. But they said they¡¯re willing to come peacefully as long as they can get some assurances from you. I figured I¡¯d let you make the decision. They can hear you.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°Very well. Percy, was it? Have you any idea of the kind of mess you and your companions have created? How about you stop playing games with the fate of our world, and just spill the beans already?¡±


    ¡°With all due respect, sir. The Aurora Dew is a recipe of my creation. If you ¨C or anybody else ¨C wants it, you should ask for it nicely. What gives you the right to make demands, threats, or snarky comments?¡±


    Jason swallowed hard. .


    ¡°YOU INSOLENT PIECE OF SHIT!!!¡± the man¡¯s voice boomed through the artifact, causing the inscriptions to flicker violently. ¡°Your wouldn¡¯t dare speak to me this way! Let alone a trashy Red-born, still wet behind the ears!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, well¡­ My grandpa doesn¡¯t have the recipe you want. . I¡¯m sure you can have your boy kill us, cripple us, or whatever else¡­ . The easiest way for you to get what you want is to play nicely. Or would you risk me dying and taking the recipe down with me?¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°Can you even prove your ridiculous claim? You can¡¯t seriously expect me to believe that crap just based on your word alone.¡±


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°The primary ingredient for the Aurora Dew are the regular elixirs. The next step is to add a mystery ingredient that massively accelerates a core¡¯s recovery. That¡¯s what allows the Aurora Dew to be consumed three times as often. Finally, rainbow grass is the only secondary ingredient I found that is suitable to deattune the Aurora Dew a second time. It has to be mixed at a much higher temperature too. I¡¯m guessing your alchemists have already figured much of that out by themselves. I¡¯m also willing to bet you¡¯re still missing the most important ingredient. Am I wrong?¡±


    The man remained silent for a minute or two, seemingly digesting the information. At some point, Jason felt the need to interject.


    ¡°Boss, I forgot to mention that they also have some Aurora Dew on them. I still find all this a little farfetched, but these are the facts.¡±


    ¡°Well?¡± Percy asked, pressing the man for an answer.


    ¡°¡­I admit that you¡¯ve crafted quite the story there. Still, you don¡¯t need to be an alchemist to know all that. The real culprit could have told you and given you a few doses to turn you into a scapegoat. Frankly, I¡¯ve no idea why you¡¯d sacrifice your own future for somebody else, but I¡¯ve seen people do dumber things before.¡±


    Percy failed to suppress a chuckle.


    ¡°So what? Even if that was true, I could still tell you what the last ingredient is. And even if I don¡¯t know it, I¡¯m still your best hope of catching this imaginary alchemist. Either way, it¡¯s in your best interest that we come willingly. Or are you so petty that you¡¯d sabotage your entire mission just to hurt us?¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°Very well. What assurances do you want from me exactly?¡±

 Chapter 223: Diplomacy (2)

    ¡°To start with, I need your word that nobody will harm me or Nesha.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not really up to me, is it?¡± the man asked back. ¡°I can promise you the Divine Root won¡¯t mistreat you as long as you cooperate, but I can¡¯t speak for the Divine Order. The gods do as they please. And you¡¯ve kept them waiting for way too long.¡±


    Truth be told, Percy had expected a response along those lines. Still, that didn¡¯t mean he would accept it.


    ¡°Not good enough. If you can¡¯t even guarantee our safety, why the hell would we risk our lives to come quietly? Relay the request to the ones above ¨C if you need to ¨C and get back to us. We¡¯ll wait.¡±


    Jason¡¯s superior didn¡¯t reply immediately, seemingly considering it.


    ¡°My name is Deimos.¡± the man sighed eventually. ¡°Hermes is actually my father. It¡¯s going to be a tough ask on my part, but I think I can get him to agree to your terms with some pleading.¡±


    Deimos sounded sincere, but Percy didn¡¯t miss Nesha¡¯s core flaring slightly by the corner of his eye, specifically upon hearing the second half of the man¡¯s statement. This was the signal they¡¯d agreed upon.


    Not necessarily about being Hermes¡¯s son ¨C that part seemed truthful. Rather, it was his ability to plead for leniency on their behalf that appeared somewhat dubious. But why would Deimos do something this dumb? Surely, he knew about Nesha¡¯s bloodline by now¡­


    ¡°Well? Does that suffice?¡± Deimos asked again, oblivious to the fact that they were already onto him. ¡°Honestly, I thought you¡¯d want me to go easy on your family too. Do you not care about them?¡±


    ¡°Fuck them.¡± Percy spat without a moment¡¯s hesitation. ¡°Why do you think I was forced to leave for the Guild in the first place? If it hadn¡¯t been for those stingy assholes, we wouldn¡¯t even be having this conversation.¡±


    ¡°Hahahaha! Ruthless! I¡¯m starting to like you kid. Perhaps we got off on the wrong foot. If your and Nesha¡¯s safety is all you want, I suppose we can let bygones be bygon¨C¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Percy said, interrupting Deimos. ¡°I never said this was everything. 50 doses of elixir every single day. . Promise me that, and I¡¯ll follow Jason back to the Guild right this instant.¡±


    Jason drew a sharp breath upon hearing that, his flickering soul betraying his inner turmoil. Deimos fell silent too, seemingly taken aback by the outlandish request. Not for very long, though¡­


    ¡°HAVE YOU LOST YOUR DAMN MIND?!¡± the man erupted.


    ¡°Not really.¡± Percy shrugged, unfazed by their reactions. ¡°You know damn well we were able to earn way more than that on our own. For months on end. With virtually no backing, and while having to keep our heads low. The recipe is easily worth thousands of times as much, if not millions. Don¡¯t tell me the Divine Order can¡¯t afford it.¡±


    ¡°Whether they can it is beside the point. These are existences we¡¯re talking about! The ones who keep our world safe! On principle, we can¡¯t just have any random mortal extorting us! runt! What kind of precedent would this set?!¡±


    ¡°How about a precedent that you are generous enough to properly encourage and reward magical breakthroughs? That you respect those capable and creative enough to revolutionize magic as we know it?¡± Percy insisted. ¡°If you can¡¯t even see that, you¡¯re just a bunch of short-sighted fools.¡±


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    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°Kid, save your breath.¡± Deimos eventually sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not the one you need to convince. Terms like these would have been difficult to accept even if you¡¯d negotiated with us properly, two years ago. Let alone after we¡¯ve backed you to a corner.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m aware. Why do you think I chose to ran away in the first place? But these are my terms. Take it or leave it.¡±


    Seeing the negotiations rapidly going south, Percy started taking one deep breath after another, filling his channels with mana. Their adversaries didn¡¯t pick up on that, however, as Deimos offered a compromise a few seconds later.


    ¡°Here¡¯s what we can do. I¡¯m willing to give you of what you asked, out of my own pocket. I couldn¡¯t afford a copper more than that, even if I wanted to.¡±


    Percy had to suppress a chuckle after seeing Nesha¡¯s core flare up more times than there were words in Deimos¡¯s statement. Outwardly, Percy showed no sign of seeing through his fa?ade, however. Instead, he kept his thoughts to himself, to let his enemies believe he was seriously considering their counteroffer. At the same time, he continued building his reserves up, feeling his boosting art take effect.


    Deimos might be under the impression that he was deceiving Percy, but the opposite was equally true. After all, Percy had never really expected them to agree to his demands. Nor had he any intention of letting Jason go. Not after guessing he was the one responsible for locating them. But, while Deimos¡¯s goal had been to trick them into surrendering peacefully, Percy was aiming for something entirely different.


    Contrary to what he¡¯d told Deimos, he care about his family. Very much so, in fact. But he couldn¡¯t let know that, to spare his relatives from their wrath. And then, there was Orin. Percy had to convince Deimos that he was solely responsible for the Aurora Dew, to give his mentor some plausible deniability.


    Of course, he didn¡¯t really know what had happened to the old alchemist, but he assumed he was still alive and well. If not, the Divine Root would have already learned the recipe. That said, things would change now that they¡¯d discovered the extent of Percy¡¯s involvement. It wasn¡¯t a huge secret that Orin had mentored him.


    ¡°I see how it is.¡± Deimos said, having seemingly picked up on something, after seeing Percy remain silent for too long. ¡°Jason. Break all their limbs and drag them both to the Guild. Just make sure to keep them alive.¡±


    ¡°Roger that.¡± Jason replied a little too eagerly. Though his boss hadn¡¯t even waited for that, the runes on the artifact already dim.


    ¡°Go.¡± Percy whispered, having discussed this with Nesha beforehand.


    ¡°Be careful.¡± she replied, bolting off.


    Percy didn¡¯t spare her another glance, turning his attention to Jason as the glowing lines lit up on his body, one after another. His muscles tensed too, his skin reddening as Synchronization fully activated. But he didn¡¯t stop there, grabbing the flask strung by his waist, cleaving its lid off with a hastily crafted construct. Without a moment¡¯s hesitation, he gulped its contents down with one swift motion, not having the luxury to complain about the potion¡¯s peculiar flavour stinging his tongue and throat both.


    Truth be told, Percy hadn¡¯t thought he¡¯d have to resort to his latest creation mere days after brewing it. Still, he didn¡¯t have much of a choice in the matter. As risky as it was, he knew his companions would only slow him down right now. And there was no other way to hold his own against the likes of Jason without his armour.


    he pleaded as a rush of burning mana spread out of his stomach, swiftly enveloping his flesh.


    Within seconds, his blood began to boil, as his veins bulged and squirmed along his skin, painting a stark contrast against the glowing lines brought about by his boosting art. His muscles swelled even more than before, some blood inevitably oozing out of his body as his skin tore in several spots, having stretched beyond its limits. The blood didn¡¯t trickle down either. Instead, it bubbled and frothed by the wounds, traces of crimson joining the teal fog leaking out of his pores.


    Percy winced, feeling his body tearing itself from within. But he couldn¡¯t afford to dwell on the pain, pulling his blindfold off just in time to see Jason sprinting towards him. A lot of that weird mana was gushing out of the man¡¯s sternum too, as he was already preparing his own magic. Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat at the sight ¨C though that might have more to do with his racing pulse than fear.


    he couldn¡¯t help but grin.


    It was another key goal during their previous negotiations. To make himself important enough so that his enemies would focus on him first.


    With a subtle wave, he called upon the invisible pair of scythes propped up against a nearby tree, drawing them to his hands. Percy was perfectly aware that he¡¯d be at a severe disadvantage as soon as the potion expired. If losing its help wasn¡¯t enough to do him in, its severe side-effects might. And his already short window to act would continue to shrink with every passing second.

 Chapter 224: Trollsfury potion

    Three orbs of mana rapidly flew towards Percy, each a separate colour.


    Suffice to say, he hadn¡¯t the slightest idea what would happen if he got hit, but it didn¡¯t really matter. Whatever it was, he couldn¡¯t afford to let a Green¡¯s spell touch him. Certainly not without his armour. , he¡¯d have to dodge every single attack.


    Leaping out of the way, he evaded the bolts. The red and blue ones were the easiest, being a little farther away. Though he did nearly get glanced by the yellow one. If it hadn¡¯t been for the potion drawing even more strength out of his body, the battle would have ended already. Though such power wasn¡¯t without its cost¡­


    Steadying his footing, Percy ignored his aching muscles. He did the same with his heart thrumming against his chest, or the violent storm rolling within every vein. Even the tiniest movement placed a huge strain on him, but he couldn¡¯t help it. He needed to use every advantage he could to stand a chance.


    His eyes fell back on Jason ¨C who was already about to launch his next attack ¨C when a series of cracking sounds came from behind him. It was as if somebody was digging at a dried patch of dirt with an oversized shovel. Unable to turn around, he observed the situation with his Mana Sense instead. Three blobs of Green mana were attached to the ground, swiftly pulling it towards him, trying to rip it from the earth.


    Percy didn¡¯t get the chance to dwell on it for long, however, as Jason sent a few more bolts after him, forcing him to sidestep again. The same scenario repeated itself too. Wherever the mana landed, it stuck to the ground, slowly pulling it up.


    Suddenly, Jason grinned, his cold smile sending a chill down Percy¡¯s spine. At the same time, his core flared up, a large amount of mana disappearing from within.


    Percy raised an eyebrow, unable to guess what his opponent was up to. While his Greater Foresight still warned him of the mana¡¯s trajectory, it remained completely silent about its effects. Not that strange, considering he had no understanding of this affinity whatsoever. Luckily ¨C or perhaps, unluckily ¨C he got his answer soon enough¡­


    The chunks of dirt were torn out with even greater force, flying towards Percy. Sidestepping them wasn¡¯t that difficult, but that was just the start of his troubles. They didn¡¯t fly very far, before slowing down, eventually coming to a halt mid-air, a few dozen metres away. Next, they snapped back at him like stretched rubber bands, seemingly determined to hit him.


    Percy wondered, as Jason resumed sending orbs of mana at him too, trying to overwhelm him.


    It was a well-known fact that Greens had greater control over their mana. Not to mention a top talent like Jason. Still, the way he seemed to individually command so many disjoint objects simultaneously was quite bizarre, to say the least.


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    Struggling to avoid over a dozen objects shooting at him from every direction, Percy decided to go on the defensive, until he knew what he was dealing with. Putting some distance from Jason, he zigged and zagged through the trees, using them as cover while trying to figure out what his opponent was doing.


    The patches of dirt continued to rain at him, though plenty of them crashed against the trees, exploding into dust clouds. Still, that didn¡¯t seem to deter them in the slightest, as the loose pebbles resumed their flight towards him the very next second, stubbornly homing into him.


    Either way, a pebble or two wouldn¡¯t do too much damage if they hit him, but they would still distract him enough to possibly spell his doom. Percy had no choice but to keep running through the woods, all the while trying to decipher the inner workings of Jason¡¯s strange affinity.


    At some point, Percy noticed something rather peculiar. Glancing behind him, he saw a series of small craters, lining up into a trail. And, thinking back, this was exactly the path he¡¯d just taken over the last couple of minutes.


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    An idea flashed through his mind. Pretending he was about to land in a certain location, Percy tried to bait Jason into launching another projectile towards him. It worked like a charm too. Twisting his body mid-air, Percy avoided the bolt while ensuring he never set foot on that spot.


    Watching the orange bolt sink into the ground, Percy¡¯s lips curled upwards after seeing it remain still several seconds later. Apparently, Jason¡¯s spell worked by tapping into some invisible connection between himself and objects he¡¯d previously touched, sending them after him.


    he thought, though his smile soon turned into a grimace.


    The more projectiles Jason shot at him, the more Percy was forced to dodge. That, in turn, meant he¡¯d step on more places, giving Jason even more ammunition. . Especially so, considering that the man appeared to conserve his mana quite well. He was never going to run out at this rate, and Percy couldn¡¯t possibly escape either. Not to mention¡­


    Percy¡¯s greatest problem was that he still didn¡¯t completely understand Jason¡¯s affinity. Approaching him before his eyes fully adapted to his attacks would be suicidal. Yet, delaying wasn¡¯t an option either.


    Making his mind up, Percy pushed even more mana into his channels, taking advantage of the potion¡¯s effect to overload Synchronization further. A reckless move, seeing how much trouble he already had keeping his body together.


    ¡°Ugghhh¡­¡± Percy let out a pained groan, his knee nearly buckling as he dodged another bolt at an awkward angle.


    But he didn¡¯t pay that any heed, focused on flooding his body with even more raw power. His muscles pressed his organs inwards, as his joints threatened to come apart every time they bent or stretched. The cuts along his skin widened too, rivers of blood soaking his clothes. The life mana desperately tried to close them, of course, but it couldn¡¯t possibly keep up with the damage.


    Knowing he¡¯d only run out of time even faster this way, Percy gritted his teeth, rushing back towards his opponent. More projectiles flew at him ¨C some magical, some mundane. He dodged whatever he could, while batting the rest into dust with his scythe¡¯s shaft. Picking up speed, he ran towards his prey with determination, his eyes locked onto Jason¡¯s.


    The Green mage raised an eyebrow at that sight, though he didn¡¯t appear particularly worried. Drawing more mana from his core, he tuned his own assault up to eleven, trying to stop Percy in his tracks. He did so by launching even more colourful bolts, one after the other. The objects he¡¯d previously enchanted seemed to grow quicker too.


    Percy already knew that, but that wasn¡¯t everything.


    Parrying the pebbles got harder and harder as the number of objects stabbing at him increased. At some point, Percy had to start ignoring the smaller ones, enduring the pain as many of them pierced into his skin, drawing even more blood. Another realization soon hit him, however¡­


    By now, Jason had unleashed hundreds of projectiles at him, each having collided against something several times already. Had they all kept chasing him, he would have long drowned into an avalanche of dirt and rock.


    Smashing another stone into fragments, Percy paid closer attention to them, as well as his opponent¡¯s core. Jason¡¯s expenditure instantly flared up, the Green glow soon dimming from many of the smaller shards.


    As obscure as Jason¡¯s affinity was, it clearly operated within strict rules, and under certain limits. The man couldn¡¯t keep all the objects enchanted indefinitely, or his core would be dried out in seconds. He had to constantly decide which of the objects would help him the most, letting go of the least useful ones.


    Suddenly, a narrow shard ¨C sharp as a knife ¨C pierced through Percy¡¯s eye. . It wasn¡¯t a real stone ¨C just a projection, brought about by his Greater Foresight. At last, his spell had begun to affect the mundane projectiles too, his understanding of the affinity having climbed to a new level!


    Resuming his advance, Percy allowed shadows of the Grim Dance to mix with the rest, estimating the results of his own movements. This allowed him to gauge which attacks he should evade, and which he was better off parrying.


    His scythes spun soundlessly through the air, materializing only when they were about to land on a piece of stone, shattering it into sand. His steps grew more elegant too, as he strode forward, pivoting, hopping and weaving with greater confidence than ever before.


    Jason couldn¡¯t help but frown upon seeing him close the distance between them, though he didn¡¯t seem particularly worried just yet.


    Percy smiled coldly, before hurling the first of his scythes at him with next to no warning.


    He kept the second to defend himself, but that didn¡¯t mean this was all he had to attack with. By now, he¡¯d accumulated a ton of fused mana, a thick shroud of teal with hints of crimson enveloping his body. Grabbing a chunk of it with his free hand, he flicked it at his opponent, sending a rain of throwing stars right behind the Soul Harvester.


    Jason¡¯s lips curled upwards, however, as he stood in the same spot, showing no intention of moving an inch, up until the very moment the projectiles were right upon him¡­

 Chapter 225: Shroud

    With a wave of his hand, Jason released a colossal amount of mana in front of him, covering all of Percy¡¯s projectiles like a blanket. At first, both the scythe and the throwing stars continued to stab at him, though they slowed down rapidly. Mere inches before tearing into his pupil, the Soul Harvester came to a complete halt, the rest of the constructs following.


    The weirdest thing was that Percy¡¯s mana had been in its incorporeal state the whole time. Whatever Jason¡¯s affinity was, it could interact with soul mana directly! . The last time had been nearly two years ago, against that time mage.


    Oblivious to his thoughts, Jason poured more mana into Percy¡¯s spells. Soon, he overcame the willpower embedded within them, pushing them back. Slowly at first, they travelled in reverse, steadily picking up speed as they flew towards Percy!


    He tried to dodge, of course, but his opponent showed no intention of making things easy for him. Jason sent the enchanted objects after Percy, surrounding him from every direction, cutting off his escape routes.


    Out of options, Percy used his one remaining scythe to crush as many chunks of dirt as he could, gritting his teeth as he let the smaller ones hit him. At the same time, he willed his own constructs to shatter, moments before they stabbed into his soul.


    The throwing stars turned into wisps of smoke, joining the rest of the fused mana around his body. Jason let go of them too, probably minding his expenditure. The good news was that Percy could now recycle the mana into a new round of projectiles. Sadly, the same couldn¡¯t be said about his scythe¡­


    With a heavy heart, he destroyed the corrupted Soul Harvester, his expression souring as a wave of teal powder showered him. Alas, it was preferrable to having his soul cleaved in half. And by his own spell, no less¡­


    Jason wouldn¡¯t wait for him to figure things out, however. Pressing upon his advantage, he resumed his onslaught, sending more colourful bolts after Percy. His joints protested as he strove to dodge them all. Unlike the enchanted objects, Percy couldn¡¯t let the foreign mana touch his weapon, or he¡¯d lose it too. And things continued going downhill, as the bolts landed on the ground, bringing more patches of dirt to life, sending them after him.


    At some point, Percy dodged a large chunk of rock ¨C ¨C his knees buckling as he coughed out a mouthful of blood. His channels also felt more saturated than before, even though the same amount of mana was coursing through them. Evidently, neither his body nor the potion¡¯s effect were going to last much longer.


    It was easier said than done, however. Jason was different from the other Greens he¡¯d faced in the past. Not much stronger, necessarily, but certainly calmer. Colder. . His moves weren¡¯t as flashy as the others, but his entire fighting style was surgically designed for him to maintain the upper hand. The way he chose which objects to enchant or let go of ensured his mana expenditure was minimal. His ability to deflect attacks thrown at him was arguably the perfect defence. His homing attacks weren¡¯t as damaging, but they were troublesome to handle. And to top it all off, it was impossible to escape from him ¨C the ultimate tracker. His entire kit seemed to revolve around slowly and safely wearing his opponents down.


    Thinking back, Percy had only achieved a single minor ¡®victory¡¯ against Jason since the start of the battle. Specifically, when he managed to retrieve the fused mana Jason had redirected towards him. Jason had probably consumed more mana to commandeer each of Percy¡¯s constructs than Percy himself had spent creating them.


    he wondered, raising an eyebrow at the thought.


    Capitalizing on his singular advantage was common sense, but there were several problems with that idea. To start, his Mantle of Deceit had never really been much of a finisher ¨C not since he began fighting Greens. Whether in their corporeal or ethereal state, the small constructs wouldn¡¯t do much damage against a strong opponent. This was one of the main reasons why he had developed the Soul Harvester to begin with. Then again, he¡¯d never had access to nearly as much fused mana as he did right now. As a side-effect of the potion and his supercharged boosting art, Percy had a ridiculous amount of teal smoke surrounding his body.


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    A few more colourful bolts flew towards Percy, seemingly about to hit him. Unlike before, however, he wasn¡¯t as quick to dodge, doing something else instead. Grabbing a handful of teal mana, he shaped it into just as many throwing stars as there were bolts. Next, he relied on the projections afforded to him by Greater Foresight, to accurately estimate the trajectory of Jason¡¯s attacks, before throwing a projectile at each one.


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but crack a smile upon seeing the colourful mana sink into his constructs. The projectiles themselves didn¡¯t seem to be affected in the slightest, however, flying into the distance. Percy tried to call them back, to retrieve his mana, though Jason had clearly learned from his previous mistake. Rather than return towards Percy, the throwing stars flew away even faster, soon falling outside his reach.


    Still, this was a positive result, all things considered. Even though he had lost some of his mana, it had probably cost Jason more. It must have ¨C to override Percy¡¯s control over his own spell. More importantly, Percy had prevented Jason from enchanting more patches of dirt, leaving him with fewer objects to send after him.


    Grinning, Percy stopped moving around. Using his scythe, he crushed the last chunks of dirt, as he continued to intercept all of Jason¡¯s spells with his own. At the same time, he accumulated more mana, preparing his counterattack.


    Perhaps one or two throwing stars wouldn¡¯t do much against a Green. Even a couple dozen might not be enough.


    With a wave of his hand, Percy unleashed nearly half of his fused mana, sending a rain of projectiles at Jason. Furthermore, he varied their trajectories slightly, making them close into his opponent from a wide range of angles.


    Remaining calm, Jason released a lot of mana, stopping the throwing stars in their tracks. Due to their spread, it cost him more than it would have otherwise. He repelled whatever he could into the distance, though he was still forced to send a few back at Percy, letting him recover a fraction of his mana.


    Percy wasn¡¯t deterred, continuing to push his body to its limits, pumping out as much mana as he could, trying to recover any dregs he could from his surroundings. By the time the throwing stars returned, he was ready to launch a second barrage. And then a third, after a similar situation played out¡­


    The only thing different from one wave to the next was the number of projectiles, as well as their size and spread. Carefully scanning both Jason¡¯s mana reserves and his reactions, Percy fine-tuned his attacks to maximize his opponent¡¯s consumption, while minimizing his own. He was already gaining ground with each exchange, but a Green¡¯s reserves weren¡¯t a joke, and time wasn¡¯t on his side.


    The pressure in the air was palpable, as Percy pushed himself beyond his limits, rapidly improving with each barrage. Never before had he had so much mana to play around with. And, as his projectiles grew sharper, their formations more elaborate, their trajectories more insidious, his Status finally chipped in.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Mantle of Deceit ¨C Refined -> Shroud of Deceit ¨C Refined!]


    Oblivious to Percy¡¯s notification, Jason watched the latest wave of throwing stars close in. He didn¡¯t seem to be in a rush to stop the attack, probably realizing he couldn¡¯t sustain the expenditure for much longer.


    Yet, just when Percy thought he was finally going to land a hit, Jason smirked, some more mana vanishing from his core.


    With no warning, Jason shot backwards like an arrow, at a speed Percy had never seen a human move before. And that was just the start. A few metres later, Jason took a steep turn, and then another. His movements were bizarre, to say the least. . But they were effective too, as Jason bolted away uninterrupted, comfortably avoiding all the attacks.


    The scariest part wasn¡¯t Jason¡¯s speed alone, but the sheer finesse of his movements. On closer inspection, Percy realized what was happening. Jason hadn¡¯t twitched a muscle, his body seemingly dragged along the air by an invisible rope attached to his back, like a marionette pulled by a string.


    Jason could have saved a lot of mana by pulling this trick out a minute or two ago. Then again, it wasn¡¯t that hard to figure out why he¡¯d chosen not too¡­


    Coughing another mouthful of blood, Percy fell to his palms. A wave of weakness flooded his body, a slap of vertigo ringing his skull.


    Indeed, why would Jason reveal all his trump cards? It would have only given Percy a chance to adjust course or run away. All he had to do was spend a bit more mana to give him some false hope, keeping this charade of a fight going for a while longer.


    Grimacing, Percy looked up at his grinning opponent, evaluating his options. Yet, just when he was considering whether to stay or run, something unexpected happened. Both combatants jerked their heads in a certain direction, watching somebody emerge from the woods. Perhaps they would have noticed him sooner, had they not been as engrossed in the battle, or had the whistling cones not masked the newcomer¡¯s steps.


    ¡°Who the hell are you?¡± Jason asked.


    But Percy didn¡¯t have to, recognizing him despite his horrific appearance.

 Chapter 226: The prey and the predator

    ¡°I¡¯m Rambert of House Tantalus.¡± the newcomer replied in a hoarse, raspy voice. Pushing each word out of his lungs appeared like quite the challenge.


    ¡°Tantalus?¡± Jason tilted his head. ¡°Ah! Your families have been fighting over this province, right? But what the hell happened to you? Did you skip your vegetables as a child or something?¡±


    Rambert¡¯s expression soured upon hearing the ill-concealed ridicule, though he didn¡¯t refute Jason, fully cognisant of his poor state. He was still missing the arm Percy had chopped off during their fight, his entire body pale and shrivelled. Countless infected cuts covered him from head to toe, each of them oozing some disturbing brown sludge ¨C a little too viscous and off coloured to be described as blood. If he wasn¡¯t moving and talking, one could easily mistake him for a corpse.


    ¡°What do you think?! This asshole did this to me!¡± he snarled, some hatred spilling into his voice as he pointed towards Percy with a shaky finger. ¡°It¡¯s been weeks, and I still haven¡¯t managed to fix myself!¡±


    ¡°Right. I suppose that would explain the rather strong karmic thread linking you two.¡± Jason shrugged. ¡°I¡¯d have laughed at you for getting your ass handed to you by an Orange, had I not spent the last 15 minutes fighting the little monster.¡±


    Percy focused on the most interesting part, tuning the rest of their conversation out.


    At the same time, he discreetly grabbed a couple healing potions from his pocket, silently uncorking them with his thumb.


    ¡°Honestly, I¡¯d no idea this bastard had pissed the Divine Root off too. I suppose you won¡¯t let me kill him?¡± Rambert asked.


    ¡°Afraid not. My boss wants him alive.¡± Jason replied. ¡°How did you even find us this quickly? Isn¡¯t your family based on the other side of the river?¡±


    Rambert grimaced, but he wasn¡¯t quite ready to give up just yet, apparently.


    ¡°It is, but we¡¯ve been infiltrating their territories in search of easy pickings since the start of the war. And the two of you have raised quite a commotion. At least, tell me he won¡¯t have a good end.¡±


    Jason grinned.


    ¡°That much, I can guarantee. Deimos has never been a patient man, and this piece of shit has screwed with us for way too long. I¡¯m pretty sure he will take great pleasure in gutting him himself.¡±


    Then, he turned towards Percy, who had remained silent during their brief conversation.


    ¡°The only thing I¡¯m not sure about is how long it¡¯ll take for him to spill all his secrets. He¡¯s shown me quite a few interesting tricks tonight¡­¡±


    Undeterred by Jason¡¯s predatory gaze, Percy swiftly turned around, chugging down the potions as he dashed into the trees. He nearly stumbled too ¨C even staying on his wobbling feet being quite the struggle. Let alone keeping Synchronization active. But he didn¡¯t have a choice. If he stayed here, he was done for.


    Jason didn¡¯t seem surprised, nor particularly annoyed by Percy¡¯s escape attempt. He casually strolled behind him, launching one karmic bolt after the other, forcing him to clumsily dodge each of them by the skin of his teeth. Suffice to say, all of Percy¡¯s bones screamed in agony every time he rolled on the ground or collided against a tree. Still, he had to pick himself up quickly each time, lest the enchanted projectiles turn him into a pincushion.


    Through Mana Sense, Percy saw Rambert following behind them. Though he hadn¡¯t interfered, seemingly content enjoying the sadistic show for now. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The only good news was that the healing potions were doing their job. The first two had already alleviated some of his pain and exhaustion, allowing him to keep moving. And he¡¯d stashed quite a few of them in his pockets before the battle, preparing for the worst-case scenario. By the time he downed the sixth one, he was already doing much better ¨C almost as if he¡¯d never drank that trollsfury potion. Then again, he was at a severe disadvantage without its help. As things stood, dodging Jason¡¯s attacks was about the most he could manage.


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    ¡°I¡¯ve got to hand it to you, you¡¯re quite resourceful.¡± Jason said a couple minutes later, pausing his attacks. ¡°I¡¯m starting to believe you really are an alchemist. A genius one at that. Not to mention your second core, your weird spells¡­ and a sharp mind for battle too. Out of respect for all that, I¡¯ll give you one final chance to come with me willingly.¡±


    Percy took a few more steps before stopping as well. Turning around, he couldn¡¯t help but raise an eyebrow.


    ¡°How dumb do you think I am? It hasn¡¯t even been 5 minutes since you promised Rambert I¡¯ll be tortured to death.¡±


    Jason shrugged.


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t take me wrong. That¡¯s still going to happen ¨C there¡¯s no avoiding that. But it doesn¡¯t have to start tonight. You can at least walk back to the Guild on your own two feet. It sure beats having to carry you.¡±


    Percy chuckled.


    ¡°Thanks for the generous offer. I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t reciprocate¡­¡±


    Suddenly, several black butterflies materialized in random spots around Jason, each of them flying rapidly towards him. Taken by surprise, he unleashed a wide burst of karma mana ¨C wider than any he¡¯d used against Percy¡¯s constructs ¨C to ensure he intercepted all of them.


    Having already been warned about Jason¡¯s affinity, Nesha destroyed her butterflies the moment they got corrupted. She was supposed to change spots too, to make it harder for Jason to track her, though Percy couldn¡¯t tell if she¡¯d done that.


    His body didn¡¯t produce as much mana without the potion, but Percy had gone out of his way to preserve as much of his shroud as possible. Pulling a hefty amount of it, he swiftly launched a wave of throwing stars against his opponent.


    ¡°Tsch. Did you honestly believe your girlfriend would be enough to make a difference?¡± Jason merely used his earlier trick to pull himself away from the attack¡¯s path.


    His features shifted to shock, however, as soon as he noticed the fireballs closing onto him from behind.


    ¡°The fuck are you doing?!¡± Jason swore, barely managing to avoid the attacks.


    Sadly for him, he never got a chance to catch his breath, however. Soon, a second round of butterflies materialized around him, followed by another wave of throwing stars. Finally, Rambert pitched in again with some more fireballs, as the three of them used everything they had to box Jason in.


    Panicking, the karma mage unleashed a tremendous wave of colourful mana from his body, freezing most of the spells to a halt. . A Green¡¯s willpower wasn¡¯t nearly as easy for him to override as Percy¡¯s or Nesha¡¯s, the fireballs still trudging through the air towards him, pushing against his control.


    Perhaps he could have won the tug-of-war, but it would have cost him more effort, mana and time. Either way, the projectiles were already dangerously close to him before he even made his mind up.


    Rambert detonated them all, Jason barely managing to pull himself away from their blast radius in time to avoid any serious injuries. Still, all these costly moves had already brought his reserves down to about a quarter of his capacity.


    ¡°Again!¡± Percy yelled, this time putting every last mote of mana into the shroud, sacrificing Synchronization to unleash the widest wave of throwing stars he was currently capable of. The others didn¡¯t shy away either, with Nesha manifesting a third round of butterflies, and Rambert sending more fireballs at Jason.


    Doing everything he could to survive, Jason zigged and zagged through the air, making full use of his rare affinity to dodge the storm of attacks, his core draining at a scary rate. By the time all the spells were dealt with, he didn¡¯t even have enough juice to seize control of the Soul Harvester spinning towards him.


    Leaping out of the scythe¡¯s path using his legs alone, he barely managed to lift his head up in time to see a near-skeletal hand close around his throat, before pressing him violently against the ground.


    ¡°Why¡­?¡± Jason gasped as his fellow Green tried to choke him.


    ¡°I him. Probably more than you do, I bet.¡± Rambert spat, before sighing. ¡°But I don¡¯t have a choice. He¡¯s my only chance to survive.¡±


    Jason¡¯s eyes widened at the sound of that, though he didn¡¯t bother replying. Grabbing Rambert¡¯s wrist, he tried to push it away. At first, it seemed to work too. Jason didn¡¯t have much trouble overpowering his peer, given the difference in their physical condition.


    However, there was one crucial difference between them that brute force alone couldn¡¯t bridge so easily. .


    Before the latter¡¯s hand moved even an inch back, a bright orange flash emerged from the decaying palm. A deafening boom soon followed, drowning the ever-present tunes of the surrounding trees for a few seconds.


    Yet, Percy¡¯s eyes had remained locked on Jason throughout the whole exchange. It wasn¡¯t until the man¡¯s headless corpse became visible through the smoke that he allowed himself to plop down weakly.

 Chapter 227: Rambert

    ¡°For a second there, I wasn¡¯t sure you¡¯d help us.¡± Percy said.


    ¡°What choice did I even have?¡± Rambert shrugged as he walked closer.


    The only reason he was alive was because Percy had turned him into a clone. Of course, Percy had been pretty banged up after their battle, but Micky had made things easier for him by eating Grian¡¯s soul.


    ¡°I¡¯ve upheld my end of the bargain. Betrayed my House for you. Even rushed here to save you from the fucking Divine Root. It¡¯s time to do your part.¡±


    Percy nodded. Naturally, Rambert wouldn¡¯t have helped the man who¡¯d killed him out of kindness. His hastily stitched-up soul wouldn¡¯t hold by itself. Percy had intentionally left the seals incomplete, as a fail-safe in case Rambert decided to betray him.


    And that wasn¡¯t even the biggest issue. Ironically, it was the Moirais¡¯ Decree that did the most harm, by sucking out any life mana Rambert tried to use to heal his body. This was why he was still in this decrepit state despite his bloodline. Even after slaughtering every single resident of Bogside town, it wouldn¡¯t have been enough to repair his second core. Not that Percy would have ever allowed him to commit such an atrocity ¨C of course.


    Currently, there was only one person in the entire province capable of fixing Rambert in time, and he couldn¡¯t even hope to set up a meeting with Archibald unless Percy talked to his grandpa first.


    ¡°I promised you a chance, not a certainty. And things have gotten even more complicated since then. Before we dive into the details, I¡¯ll need to confirm a few things with you.¡± Percy replied.


    Walking by his side, Nesha helped him up. She looked a little better than before, the potion having lifted the bulk of her exhaustion. Still, Percy wouldn¡¯t have involved her in this fight if he could¡¯ve helped it. While she¡¯d already proven herself, her mobility and defences were lacking. Had the fight lasted longer, or had Percy not already deciphered Jason¡¯s abilities, things could have gone badly. This was why he¡¯d hoped to take him down by himself. Sadly, things hadn¡¯t gone to plan¡­


    ¡°Just do what you must.¡± Rambert nodded.


    ¡°To start, I¡¯ll need your word that you¡¯ll never tell a soul about my secrets. In fact, you shouldn¡¯t even mention me or Nesha again.¡±


    Rambert grimaced upon hearing his first demand. Percy didn¡¯t press him either, waiting for him to come to terms. Of course, they both knew that Rambert hated him with a passion ¨C it wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d hidden it ¨C but he¡¯d have to make some concessions if he wanted to walk out of this forest alive.


    Even giving him this chance was merely out of principle. Now that Percy had gotten everything he needed from Rambert, it would be easier and safer to just dispose of him. Whether Rambert survived would all depend on his answers.


    ¡°Fine.¡± Rambert spat after a while. ¡°I won¡¯t pretend to like it, but I¡¯ve seen enough that I don¡¯t ever want to involve myself with you again. Besides, I¡¯m sure the Divine Root will get to you soon enough¡­¡±


    Percy listened to Rambert¡¯s answer while paying close attention to Nesha with his Mana Sense. Only after failing to get a reaction did he allow himself to relax.


    ¡°Next, swear you¡¯ll never lay a finger on any member of House Avalon.¡±


    ¡°Tsch. A bit much, isn¡¯t it?!¡± Rambert snarled.


    ¡°Rambert, I¡¯m not playing games with you. Do as I ask or our deal is off.¡± Percy stared at him coldly.


    ¡°Listen, pal¡­ I¡¯ve no intention of participating in this war a moment longer. Or even staying in this province for that matter. My family is bound to figure out I¡¯ve robbed them clean, if they haven¡¯t already. I want nothing more than to get healed and run halfway across Remior.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not what I asked.¡± Percy didn¡¯t relent.


    But Rambert gritted his teeth.


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    ¡°Look. I¡¯ve got no beef with your House. If I¡¯m willing to put down my feud with you, then why would I give a shit about anyone else? But those are hundreds of people we¡¯re talking about, all of whom hate me. I¡¯m going to defend myself if anybody attacks me.¡±


    Nesha¡¯s core remained still once more, confirming Rambert¡¯s sincerity. Of course, it wasn¡¯t exactly the answer Percy was looking for, but it was fair.


    ¡°Good enough. Last question. How many innocent people have you fed to your bloodline?¡±


    This time, Percy didn¡¯t even need to wait for Nesha to know he¡¯d struck a nerve. At least, he hadn¡¯t missed the cold shiver jolting through the man¡¯s soul.


    ¡°I¡¯ve¡­ had to do it a few times that I¡¯m not proud of¡­¡± Rambert replied, looking away in what appeared to be genuine shame.


    Still, Percy hadn¡¯t missed Nesha¡¯s core flaring up the moment the word ¡®few¡¯ popped up.


    ¡°Under thirty?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Any children among them?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    The poor guy had no idea he had a truth-seeker scrutinizing his every word. By now, Percy had already made his mind up, though he still wanted to know one more thing.


    ¡°Why did you do it?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know what Drain is like, ok? It¡¯s nothing like your bloodline, giving you everything you could have ever hoped for. For me, it¡¯s just a curse. It just erodes at my sanity and my self-control, until I give in.¡±


    Percy nodded. He knew it wasn¡¯t their fault, though none of the members of House Tantalus he¡¯d met had shown much regret in their actions. S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°I can¡¯t really say I understand, but that¡¯s beside the point. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll do it again, sooner or later. And your next victim will be on me. ¡±


    ¡°You bastard! ¡± Rambert yelled, his core lighting up in fury as he leapt towards Percy, his hand igniting.


    Sadly for him, he didn¡¯t even get to reach his target before his eyes glazed over. By the time the corpse landed on the ground, Percy¡¯s wisp had returned to him, conveniently flooding his mind with an influx of memories. Of course, his clone had kept him relatively informed during the past month, though some details were easier to comprehend this way.


    ¡°Micky! Two Green cores for you!¡± Percy yelled.


    Soon, the crow waddled over eagerly, having remained by Nesha¡¯s side throughout the fight. He hadn¡¯t been in a condition to intervene, though his involvement couldn¡¯t be understated, regardless. After all, it was through him that Percy had managed to coordinate with Nesha.


    In any case, the familiar started with Jason¡¯s body, apparently finding it a great deal more appetizing. Percy ignored him, searching Rambert¡¯s corpse instead. It didn¡¯t take him long to find the five spatial amulets the dead mage had stolen from his family¡¯s vault, stuffing them with elixirs.


    ¡°Wow! How many are there?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°According to our estimates, around 175 thousand doses. Their entire stash for the next three years.¡± Percy replied, checking the storage devices one after the other.


    ¡°That much?!¡± Nesha was taken aback.


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°It¡¯s a little more than the standard, but they¡¯ve also lost a lot of people during the war. It must¡¯ve massively cut their consumption down¡­¡±


    Each of the amulets was no larger than his own, containing about one cubic metre of space. Naturally, that was plenty to accommodate tens of thousands of the pinky-sized vials, though Rambert had still been forced to pack them quite tightly to make all of them fit.


    ¡°Percy¡­ with this much¡­¡± Nesha spoke again, apparently having done the math in her head.


    ¡°Indeed. They should last us for well over a decade. Enough for all of us to advance. And we can do that even faster, once we make it to the Thirsty Valley¡­¡±


    Next, he scratched his head upon thinking of a problem.


    ¡°I¡¯m almost out of rainbow grass. We¡¯ll need to get more within the next couple of months.¡±


    ¡°It won¡¯t be easy. Now that the Divine Root knows it¡¯s part of the recipe, they¡¯ll have their eyes out for any large movements.¡±


    Percy sighed. It was true, though he didn¡¯t regret telling Deimos about it. He still hoped they wouldn¡¯t give Orin much trouble. Besides, they¡¯d probably figured that part out already. At any rate, this meant they¡¯d have to be more careful when procuring it. That, or Percy would have to find a different deattunement ingredient to replace it ¨C neither of which was going to be easy.


    ¡°At least, Jason is dead. Hopefully, they don¡¯t have any other karma users.¡±


    Neither he nor Nesha said anything else. Instead, they took a seat by the base of a nearby tree, watching Micky as he disposed of the bodies. It was a rather disturbing scene, as always, but Percy was happy to see his familiar a lot more energetic than he¡¯d been in weeks. As good as Regulation was, it couldn¡¯t entirely replace a proper meal.


    he smiled.


    Next, he looked down in his hand, fiddling with a small box he¡¯d also looted from Rambert. An unexpected treasure.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Nesha asked, apparently only now noticing it.


    Percy¡¯s lips couldn¡¯t help but part upon hearing the question, revealing a bright, toothy grin. Opening the latch on the box, he lifted its lid, as both of their eyes landed on the aquamarine-coloured object shimmering within.


    It looked a little like a petal, though it was rather oblong. Furthermore, it had an oval hole in its middle, the rest of its surface looping around it. In fact, its glow seemed to travel in wave-like patterns around the petal, almost giving it the appearance of a river¡­


    ¡°Is that what I think it is?!¡± Nesha seemed to have put two and two together.


    ¡°Yeap¡­¡±


    [END OF BOOK 2: PHANTOM OF THE HAUNTED BOG]

 Chapter 228: Lotus of a Myriad Rivers

    The lotus¡­ a priceless treasure Percy had wanted since before he¡¯d even learned of its existence. The only object he¡¯d ever heard of capable of changing one¡¯s affinity. And he¡¯d gone through so much trouble to earn a petal from his family too, only for the opportunity to be ripped out of his hands at the very last moment.


    Of course, this so-called ¡®backup plan¡¯ had only really become available over the past month. Before turning Rambert into a clone, Percy hadn¡¯t known the man was due a petal from his family. Nor had he expected to need his help to take down Jason, for that matter. These had all been coincidences.


    The only thing he¡¯d wanted at the time, had been for Rambert to loot his family¡¯s warehouse for him, to replenish his dwindling stash of elixirs. This was why he¡¯d even settled in Bogside town in the first place. Suffice to say, getting this far had taken Percy a little longer than expected, since he¡¯d wanted to wait for a Green host to maximize his odds. Sure, he could have made the attempt with Broose, but he¡¯d needed the man¡¯s soul for a different project at the time. And the enemy House had really taken their sweet time sending the next batch of Greens after them since then.


    ¡°So, what are you going to do with it?¡± Nesha suddenly asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    A good question. Had Percy obtained a petal a couple years ago, he would have consumed it without a moment¡¯s hesitation. Even common elements were generally regarded as superior to the pure affinity, and Percy honestly needed any boost he could get. Then again, he hadn¡¯t stopped finding new uses for his second core since he got it, his pure affinity now being as integral to his arsenal as his soul affinity.


    ¡°Losing Crystallization would be inconvenient. Same with Synchronization. But those aren¡¯t dealbreakers by themselves.¡± he said, getting a nod back.


    In theory, he didn¡¯t need to personally produce the crystals for the Aurora Dew. Pure affinity users were all over the place, so it wouldn¡¯t be that difficult to outsource the job. Sure, he¡¯d have to look for somebody trustworthy, and to spend some time training them in the spell, but it would be dumber to ruin his future prospects just because of some minor inconvenience.


    As for Synchronization, he would be able to use it again as soon as he opened up his new channels. Elaine had already proven it was possible. Sure, it would leave him weaker for a few months, but that was ultimately a small price to pay.


    ¡°But I¡¯m not that keen on losing the Phantomscale Raiment, the Soul Harvester or the mana threads I¡¯ve been working towards.¡± he added after a minute.


    Percy had really struck gold with his affinity fusion ¨C or at least the uses he¡¯d found for it. And not because of the pure affinity itself, but rather all the external influences he¡¯d been able to weave into his kit. Namely, the Vault¡¯s runecrafting, and his spectral trait.


    Obviously, the water affinity should be compatible with his soul mana too, but there was no way to tell if it would synergize as well with his other assets. The truth was, Percy had already made his mind up for months now.


    ¡°Micky. Come over here. I¡¯ve got something for you.¡±


    The familiar was just about done devouring the corpses, the potent mana contained within their cores having done wonders for his situation. Listening to Percy, he walked over, curious to see what this was all about.


    ¡°Eat this. Direct the mana it releases towards your second core.¡± Percy said, handing him the glowing petal.


    ¡°Are you sure this is a good idea? Won¡¯t Micky lose access to his spells, same as you?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s not the same.¡± Percy shook his head.


    It was a well-known fact that composite affinity users could still access their component elements with some effort. After all, the two mana types would continue to coexist within Micky¡¯s core, as neither of them would be able to override the other ¨C unlike what would have happened to Percy.


    In fact, Percy knew a little more about the issue than most, as the Moirais¡¯ books had actually mentioned it. Apparently, the process of breaking a composite affinity into its components was known as . As the name implied, it was the polar opposite of affinity fusion, and it took about the same amount of effort.


    ¡°With some practice, Micky will be able to use his air magic again. Not to mention all the new doors it will open for him. In his case, there¡¯s no dilemma whatsoever. ¡±


    Nesha didn¡¯t say anything else. The two just watched as the oversized crow gulped the glowing petal down. Micky sent Percy his thoughts and feelings too, to let him oversee the process. The first thing Percy sensed, was the refreshing feeling trickling down the bird¡¯s throat. It was as if Micky had just drank a mouthful of the freshest, coolest water. The moment it splashed within the crow¡¯s stomach, the petal dissolved almost immediately ¨C as if it had never been solid to begin with.


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    Following his earlier instructions, Micky then used his air mana as a carrier, guiding the dissolved petal into his abdomen, in a process reminiscent of core purification. It was only once the petal arrived at its destination that it stopped behaving like an elixir entirely, doing something completely different. Latching on the core¡¯s walls, the substance soon began to seep through them, infecting the entire organ inside out. It wasn¡¯t like a physical substance either. It felt almost like Micky¡¯s core had been invaded by a brand-new .


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but wonder.


    While mortals like him often viewed magic in terms of elements and abilities, gods experienced the same things from a different perspective entirely. From what little he knew about them, the lofty deities standing at the pinnacle of magic didn¡¯t differentiate themselves based on grades, or the colours of their cores, but the sheer number of concepts they had mastered. The blessings some mortals were lucky to inherit from their divine parents, were nothing more than concepts themselves.


    Oblivious to Percy¡¯s thoughts, the two concepts continued to fight for control over Micky¡¯s core. His air affinity embodied excitement and freedom. It playfully jumped around the core, not particularly welcoming to its guest. Meanwhile, the water affinity moved more calmly, trying to chill the organ down, to make it more in line with its preferences.


    The air affinity seemed to dominate at first ¨C perhaps due to having the home advantage initially. Things appeared to turn around, however, once the rest of the dissolved petal was brought to the crow¡¯s abdomen. The water affinity soon gained ground, only stopping once the two forces were evenly matched. sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat at the sight.


    Logically, he knew this was how things were supposed to go, though he couldn¡¯t help but worry as he observed the two parties warring within his familiar¡¯s body. If they continued at this rate, they¡¯d rip the crow to shreds.


    Fortunately, that didn¡¯t happen. Unable to gain an advantage, the two affinities seemed to accept their fate a few minutes later, calming down. It appeared they would be sharing the core, after all.


    Percy realized.


    Had there been a rare affinity in there, he wasn¡¯t sure the two concepts would have reached an equilibrium as easily. And let¡¯s not even imagine what would have happened if Micky had already possessed a composite affinity. Throwing a third element into the mix would have easily been catastrophic.


    ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Nesha asked, apparently having also realized the process had come to an amicable conclusion.


    ¡°Like crap.¡± Micky spat. ¡°My second core feels different. I can¡¯t even pull any mana from it.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Percy said. ¡°This is supposed to happen. You won¡¯t be able to access it unless you open your new channels. Well, you can still pull the air mana through the old channels, but you¡¯ll need to separate it from the rest first.¡±


    ¡°Wait, what? How am I going to use Regulation then?¡± Micky panicked.


    ¡°Just use Hibernation for now, to reduce your expenditure. I¡¯ll feed you some of my fused mana until then.¡±


    Suffice to say, Micky wasn¡¯t very keen to lose access to his latest spell, though it couldn¡¯t be helped. This was ultimately a good thing. Even if they ignored the new affinity itself, Circulation would grow a great deal stronger once the crow mastered the new patterns. After all, his second core would be connected to a whopping three sets of mana channels, letting him store a lot more mana inside his body.


    In any case, Percy and Nesha had a lot more cleaning up to do before they left the area, but he couldn¡¯t help opening his Status first, curious to see all the changes to both his and Micky¡¯s pages.


    ___


    Percival Avalon


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Soul][Mana core 2 ¨C Orange ¨C Pure]


    Bloodline:


    [Clone] ¨C Create a copy of yourself. Effect varies by affinity.


    Mutations:


    [Sorcerer¡¯s Eye] ¨C Draws from the cumulative knowledge listed in the Status to enhance one¡¯s vision, allowing them to discern details previously unseen.


    Spectral trait:


    [Weaving] ¨C Boosts one¡¯s proclivity in manipulating one-dimensional structures.


    Spells:


    [Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude][Spectral Art: Soul Stitching ¨C Refined][Wild Art: Greater Foresight ¨C Refined][Wild Art: Grim Dance ¨C Refined][Phantomscale Raiment ¨C Refined][Soul Conversion ¨C Refined][Soul Harvester ¨C Refined][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Synchronization ¨C Refined][Shroud of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Alchemic principles:


    [Extraction] ¨C Separate and condense an ingredient¡¯s essence.[Pacification] ¨C Delay an ingredient¡¯s activation rate.[Redirection] ¨C Adjust an ingredient¡¯s effect.[Deattunement] ¨C Prevent multiple conflicting ingredients from reacting with one another.[Bonding] ¨C Enrich an ingredient with crystallized pure mana.


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[Iapetus¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants a bloodline.[Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.[Ea¡¯s Decree (Modified)] ¨C Augments and enhances your Status. Grants the Sorcerer¡¯s Eye.


    ___


    ___


    Mictlantecuhtli (Percival''s familiar)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Yellow ¨C Beast][Mana core 2 ¨C Orange ¨C Ice]


    Mutations:


    [Soul Predator] ¨C Allows one to more easily interact with the souls of others.[Wind Dancer] ¨C Allows one to augment their flight using air mana.


    Spells:


    [Wild Art: Regulation ¨C Refined][Wild Art: Rending Tornado ¨C Refined][Circulation ¨C Refined]


    Decrees:


    [Moirais¡¯ Decree] ¨C Grants a second mana core.


    ___

 Chapter 229: Future

    Interesting, but not that surprising. All the composite affinities were widely known, so Percy had a pretty good idea what they were getting ahead of time. He still had no clue what Micky could use the new affinity for, though he certainly hoped the bird would get another mutation or two the next time his beast core advanced.


    ¡°Percy, we need to get out of here.¡± Nesha reminded him.


    He nodded. It would be a while until Deimos figured out what had happened to Jason, but that didn¡¯t mean they could afford to waste their precious head-start. Of course, they still had some unfinished business in the Whistling Woods. Sighing, Percy walked over to Jason¡¯s mutilated corpse ¨C just the man¡¯s bloodied belongings, really, as Micky had already devoured anything even remotely edible. Percy doubted he''d get as much stuff as he¡¯d looted from Rambert, but a scion of the Divine Root ought to have valuables of his own.


    ¡°Such a pity we can¡¯t keep this.¡± he said, picking the communication device up.


    Percy would have liked to examine its enchantments a little longer. It was definitely one of the most advanced pieces of tech he¡¯d seen on Remior. Engraved with multiple interconnected runes, it could even be considered a nascent version of magiscript. Its scope still fell short of the Vault¡¯s standards, but he could learn a thing or two studying it.


    That said, he couldn¡¯t risk the possibility that Deimos could track it down. Besides, he couldn¡¯t even activate it without the correct affinities. Tossing it by Nesha¡¯s feet, Percy watched her tear it to shreds with a couple of butterflies, before stomping the fragments into dust and scattering them in the wind.


    ¡°Hmmm? Is this what I think it is?¡± Percy asked, picking a familiar-looking object from among the tattered robes.


    ¡°Wow, these assholes are filthy rich, aren¡¯t they?¡± Nesha echoed his feelings, also recognizing the spatial amulet.


    Generally, each of them cost over a million contribution points to commission. Most noble families kept a few in their warehouses, usually reserving them for their Blues. Anyone below that wasn¡¯t important enough to be carrying the equivalent of eight months of elixirs on their person. Then again, the Divine Root wasn¡¯t a regular House either. They probably had more money than they knew what to do with.


    ¡°What¡¯s inside it?¡± Nesha asked again.


    Shrugging, Percy opened the device before scanning its contents. Though he failed to suppress a grimace soon after.


    ¡°Tsch. I¡¯m sure he had more elixirs when he started his mission, but he¡¯s drank most of them by now. Only a few weeks left.¡±


    ¡°Is that everything?¡±


    ¡°Well, he does have a couple dozen healing potions. Other than that, it¡¯s mostly money, food and fancy clothes. The money and the food we can keep, I guess. But the clothes we¡¯ll have to get rid of¡­¡±


    There was also a dose of Aurora Dew in there, along with a few yellow Guild robes. Percy guessed these were the things Jason had relied on to locate them. Storing the consumables away, he poured all the garments into a pile on the ground. He and Nesha would have to get changed too. They hadn¡¯t had the chance earlier, given the urgency of their escape, but they couldn¡¯t afford to look like nobles from here on out. Luckily, they¡¯d had the foresight to pack a few clean linen outfits within their first couple of days at the mansion.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s that?¡± Nesha asked, pointing at a bronze badge glinting among the man¡¯s robes.


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    It depicted a series of roots emerging from the underside of a cloud ¨C the Divine Root¡¯s insignia.


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s like his identification or something.¡± Percy said. ¡°It¡¯s enchanted.¡±


    ¡°Should we destroy it too?¡±


    ¡°No. The enchantment is quite simple. It¡¯s not releasing much mana either. I doubt anybody can track it from afar. It¡¯s probably just there to verify the authenticity of the badge, and to tell it apart from others.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the point in keeping it, though?¡±


    ¡°Well, we trying to infiltrate the Thirsty Valley. Maybe it¡¯ll help.¡± he shrugged.


    Separating the man¡¯s belongings into two piles, Percy left Nesha and Micky in charge of destroying the first one, while taking his sweet time storing anything they wanted to keep within the spatial amulets. Percy¡¯s original amulet, as well as the five he had taken from House Tantalus were already full, but the new one had a lot more space.


    By the time they were done, the sun had already come out. Percy tossed his surroundings one last look ¨C he had no idea when he¡¯d next have a chance to visit home. The trio was about to head out, when they heard the sound of footsteps.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± Percy asked, drawing mana out of both cores. His companions prepared themselves too, though everyone relaxed once they caught sight of the newcomer.


    ¡°Elaine?! What are you doing here?!¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°Hey guys! I¡¯ve spent all night looking for you!¡± Elaine greeted; an apologetic smile plastered all over her face. ¡°Thank Phoebe you¡¯re all ok! I wanted to come with you from the beginning, but I couldn¡¯t leave without telling my parents goodbye. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll ever see them, or Owain again.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Percy asked, not liking where this was going.


    ¡°What else? I¡¯m coming along. To the Thirsty Valley. And wherever you end up going after that.¡±


    ¡°Have you lost your mind?!¡± Percy snapped. ¡°Go back to the mansion before anybody sees you with us! This isn¡¯t a game, Elaine! You can easily ruin your whole future!¡±


    Elaine rolled her eyes at his outburst.


    ¡°Percy, I¡¯m not an idiot. I know damn well what I¡¯m doing. I¡¯ve already discussed it with Grandpa and Uncle Galahad at length.¡±


    Percy was taken aback.


    ¡°You¡¯re telling me, Galahad agreed to let the family¡¯s most promising Green leave with a banished criminal?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ not exactly. He was against it.¡± Elaine reluctantly admitted. ¡°But Grandpa was ok with it. Look! He gave me this!¡± she replied, dangling yet another spatial amulet in front of Percy and Nesha.


    ¡°He even allowed me to bring three months of elixirs with me. FYI, that¡¯s the maximum anybody can take on a mission.¡± she added a moment later. ¡°Oh, but officially I¡¯m just going out to hunt scorpions again for a few months. No need to bust my cover if I can help it.¡±


    Percy¡¯s jaw would have hit the ground if it wasn¡¯t attached to his face. It took him a whole minute to find the words to reply.


    ¡°Why the hell would he do that?! I already feel like shit for all the trouble I¡¯ve caused. The last thing I want is to have this on my conscience too¡­¡± he muttered.


    Elaine shook her head, however.


    ¡°Percy¡­ do you know the difference between Galahad and Grandpa?¡± she asked.


    ¡°What sort of question is that? I guess Galahad is a bigger jerk?¡±


    Elaine chuckled.


    ¡°Yes, but that¡¯s not what I¡¯m talking about. It¡¯s true that both of them have warmed up to you after coming to terms with your potential, but Uncle Galahad is still a step behind. He only sees you as an asset. He would like to have you around, if possible, but not if the price is too high.¡±


    Percy nodded, though he still had no clue where Elaine was going with this.


    ¡°Well, Grandpa is different. By now, he understands the truth about you. As do I.¡±


    ¡°What truth?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the of House Avalon, Percy! You¡¯re more important than any of us will ever be. The things you have already achieved are more than our entire family has managed in 2000 years! One day, we will all be defined and remembered by the way lived! is too high to ensure your safety!¡±


    Percy didn¡¯t know what to say in response to that. That was quite the high praise. And he knew his cousin was sincere about it too. Still, it did little to curb his guilt.


    ¡°What if House Avalon comes to be hated by the rest of Remior because of me?¡± S~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Elaine pulled him into a tight embrace, before replying.


    ¡°As far as I¡¯m concerned, you¡¯re the future of too, Percy. Even if those idiots are blind to it¡­¡±


    Neither Percy nor Nesha said anything more to dissuade Elaine. She¡¯d already made it quite clear that she had no intention of turning back. Instead, they brought her up to speed on the events of the previous night, before the group of four finally set out.


    Percy still wasn¡¯t too happy about this, but there was no denying that Elaine was quite a powerful helper to bring along. Using Circulation, his cousin could probably beat even the likes of Jason. Just like that, their group¡¯s fighting strength had shot through the roof.


    And there was one more thing she was bringing to the table.

 Chapter 230: Noland

    By now, Percy¡¯s bloodline was more than just a fancy ability or a means of growing stronger. It was a way of life. A source of endless adventures. A window into the wider cosmos. Sadly, his circumstances had robbed him of this joy over the past few months.


    Atlantis had been a wakeup call. His intention at the time had been to keep the trips short and infrequent, to leave the connection available in case House Tantalus attacked. After all, he¡¯d needed to have an ethereal cord ready to possess the enemy Green. Suffice to say, things hadn¡¯t gone to plan. While there was no denying his time in the underwater world had been among his most fruitful adventures yet, it had also lasted several weeks, making the whole thing quite risky.


    Had his clone not returned by the time Rambert arrived in Bogside town, Percy would have forever missed his chance to infiltrate the enemy House. Not only would he have failed to procure the elixirs, he would have lost his only shot at a petal too. And that¡¯s without even considering that Jason might have captured him. Consequently, Percy had chosen to put his trips on hold until after the mission was over.


    The greatest improvement to his ability to maintain multiple connections had occurred once his second core reached Orange. Strengthening his presence, the promotion had allowed him to keep a familiar and a clone at the same time without losing himself in the process. Before then, he¡¯d had to deal with all sorts of problems whenever his soul was splintered. Alas, it would be a while before he could test out that theory.


    Turning his attention back to his latest host, Percy reached out, hoping to interact with them. They were at Orange this time. A sapient too. And a rather healthy one at that. Luckily, he didn¡¯t have to wait very long for a response.


    a distraught voice rang within Percy¡¯s mind.


    Percy asked.


    Percy would have frowned if he could.


    A wave of confusion soon seeped through their connection, however. It wasn¡¯t like his host hadn¡¯t understood the question. They just found it a little strange Percy would ask that.


    Percy spat back, already harbouring some guesses about his host.


    Without wasting a moment, he allowed his instincts to take over, using his stashed mana to patch the guy¡¯s soul up.


    he said a few minutes later, once he was nearly done.


    his host replied.


    Tying the final batch of strings into a preservation rune, Percy allowed his soul to slip into the remaining gaps, tapping into Noland¡¯s senses. An overwhelming amount of pressure surrounded him from every direction, reminding him a little of his time in Enki¡¯s body. It was dark too. Also, hot. And moving even an inch was almost impossible. As if Noland had been buried alive.


    he asked.


    Luckily, his host didn¡¯t appear particularly worried. He merely shrugged, before moving in a certain way. He brushed his arms against his torso, pushing the tips of his hands towards his head. Percy felt their clawed fingers stab through soil, as the dirt pressed against their nails. Once Noland had fully stretched his arms, he moved them aside, pushing the dirt away while propelling his body forward. With the ease befitting of a native, Nolan practically swam through the ground itself, making it a point to hold his breath throughout the process.


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    he said, completely oblivious to Percy¡¯s sheer awe.


    He didn¡¯t even get to the end of the sentence, when the ground in front of him collapsed, letting him spill out into a different tunnel. This one was wider, and already dug, allowing Noland to stand up without much effort. More importantly, it was filled with air. Opening his lips, Percy¡¯s host inhaled one mouthful after another, greedily filling his lungs as if his life depended on it.


    Percy asked.


    At the same time, he scanned Noland¡¯s body as best as he could. Unfortunately, the guy¡¯s eyesight wasn¡¯t the best. Luckily, a few glowing crystals illuminated the tunnel to an extent, allowing him to barely make out his host¡¯s features. Noland¡¯s body was humanoid ¨C for the most part. However, it was covered in dense fur from head to toe.


    This was one of those times Percy would have loved to have his Sorcerer¡¯s Eye at hand. Sadly, he had discovered soon after his return from Atlantis that his clones didn¡¯t inherit the mutation. He wasn¡¯t sure why ¨C perhaps it was because the Decree could only grant the mutation once, or because the part responsible for granting it had broken when it got modified. Either way, it meant he wouldn¡¯t be able to access his fancy eyes during his adventures, nor would he be able to pass them along to his companions. Then again, it wasn¡¯t all bad. At least, he wouldn¡¯t have to spend a few days in pain each time. And he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about giving Metatron more freebies either¡­


    Noland replied, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    Percy shrugged. He had a lot more questions. He would to know how there was even breathable air down here, for one. But he figured he¡¯d consult with his Status first.


    ___


    Noland (Percival¡¯s clone)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Orange ¨C Gravity][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spectral trait:


    [Weaving] ¨C Boosts one¡¯s proclivity in manipulating one-dimensional structures.


    Spells:


    [Spectral Art: Soul Stitching ¨C Refined][Phantomscale Raiment ¨C Refined][Soul Harvester ¨C Refined][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Shroud of Deceit ¨C Refined]


    Alchemic principles:


    [Extraction] ¨C Separate and condense an ingredient¡¯s essence.[Pacification] ¨C Delay an ingredient¡¯s activation rate.[Redirection] ¨C Adjust an ingredient¡¯s effect.[Deattunement] ¨C Prevent multiple conflicting ingredients from reacting with one another.[Bonding] ¨C Enrich an ingredient with crystallized pure mana.


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[Moirais¡¯ Decree (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.[Ea¡¯s Decree (Modified)] ¨C Augments and enhances your Status.


    ___


    Percy noted.


    If nothing else, he definitely wanted to see the rare mana type at work.


    Nolan exclaimed upon seeing the Status.


    Percy offered, getting a nod back.


    Over the next few minutes, host and guest chatted, bringing each other up to speed. Percy explained how his bloodline allowed him to possess dying bodies, and the kinds of things he hoped to get out of his travels. As for Noland, he shared a little more about his life and this world.


    Apparently, this place was called Subterra. Contrary to most places Percy had been to, the surface itself wasn¡¯t liveable, but the situation was better for a few dozen miles below that. The temperature was more bearable, so the natives had only had to adapt to the pressure so they could survive. A fairly widespread type of blue moss was singlehandedly responsible for pumping the underground tunnels full of breathable air, allowing the local wildlife to flourish.


    In terms of their magical progress, Noland¡¯s people had drawn the short end of the stick. Once again, Percy had found himself on a world lacking a means of advancement, limiting the indigenous population to the lower grades. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Percy suddenly asked.


    Noland raised an eyebrow at the unexpected question.


    he said, pretty much in line with Percy¡¯s expectations.


    Based on what his host had shared, Percy had seen this coming. After all, Noland was ¨C by his own admission ¨C a bit of a loner. He¡¯d run away from his family from a young age, preferring to wander Subterra by himself. Life here wasn¡¯t particularly easy either. Even moving around was tough and rife with dangers. Accidents like the one that had nearly claimed the man¡¯s life happened nearly every day.


    Percy suggested.

 Chapter 231: Ambitious projects

    The last thing Percy wanted was to mislead Noland into ruining his life. Suffice to say, he¡¯d made it abundantly clear that the Vault of Magic was a veritable dystopia, full of callous gods who treated their own children as trash. He emphasized that he didn¡¯t even have a clue what Metatron did to the test subjects. For all he knew, they all ended up dissected on an operating table somewhere.


    Still, as much as Percy had harped on the Vault¡¯s downsides, the advantages were also undeniable. For one, Noland would never have to dig another day in his life. He would likely never have to forage for food either. Sure, the Vault¡¯s deities might subject him to all kinds of torture, but starvation was unlikely to be on the list.


    Noland asked.


    Percy clarified.


    Percy asked.


    Noland shrugged.


    Percy raised an eyebrow, wondering why his host would be interested in that. Of all the things he¡¯d shared about the Vault, the challenges were among the few that might not even concern Noland. Still, he ultimately recapped everything, talking about both the combat and the magiscript challenges. The latter were the ones he was hoping to target this time, as there were a few new runes he needed to learn. That said, he want to give the others a chance too. Even if he failed to clear any waves, he could at least experience a gravity affinity first hand.


    Noland asked.


    ***


    Noland warned as Percy tried to pick the sacks off the metallic floor.


    Before entering the portal, Noland had spent the last three days procuring a few things for the trip. The first was his food ¨C just some tasteless grubs, really. He¡¯d harvested those from the slimy walls of a cavern located a few hours away from where Percy had met him. According to Noland, that place was something like a secret stash he generally left untouched, to use in case his daily forages didn¡¯t go that well. Suffice to say, Percy wasn¡¯t particularly thrilled by the idea of eating live bugs for the next month or so, but they were supposedly rather nutritious.


    In any case, the second bag Noland had brought along was a lot more interesting. It contained some glowing orange crystals he claimed would explode with quite a bit of force if they weren¡¯t handled with care. If Noland hadn¡¯t exaggerated their effect, they definitely sounded powerful enough to take a bunch of Orange golems out.


    he shrugged, before pressing his palm against the floor.


    ¡°User ID: WANDERER.¡±


    ¡°Authorization granted. Welcome back to the Vault, Percy.¡± the cube replied as soon as he had worn the translation device back on.


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    Noland asked.


    Percy rolled his eyes.


    Noland hadn¡¯t thought it necessary at the time. Percy was still unsure if it was just his host being an eccentric, or if all his people were nudists. Either way, he wasn¡¯t the one who¡¯d be staying in the Vault with this body. If Noland didn¡¯t care, why should he?


    Shaking the pointless thoughts out of his head, Percy then dragged the two bags to the challenge cubes ¨C this time employing a little more caution. It was only once they arrived there that he asked the system for his life mana. A process that didn¡¯t take more than a few minutes.


    Percy nodded. Next, he briefed him in on the logistics, asking him to spend the next few days clearing his channels. This was one of the perks of coming to the Vault with a sapient host. At least, he wouldn¡¯t have to do everything by himself this time.


    Noland asked.


    Admittedly, Percy¡¯s goals for this trip were rather ambitious. To get through the second wave of the Orange magiscript challenge, he¡¯d need to draw a total of ten runes. Currently, he could only use five: the concealment, preservation, control, hardness and absorption runes. Of course, he had also learned to draw the pocket and stability runes he¡¯d relayed to Nesha, but he couldn¡¯t activate either of those without space mana.


    Learning five more runes was already a lot. Not to mention that he also intended to delve into the basics of magiscript proper this time ¨C to finally start combining runes together into more interesting enchantments.


    Had this been a year ago, he wouldn¡¯t have stood a chance at this, but learning new runes got easier the more you practiced. And Percy had practiced , while maintaining his armour and scythes in preparation for the ambush. In addition to that, he was already a foot into magiscript, as he¡¯d spent some time learning to attach the control runes to his other enchantments, familiarizing himself with the process.


    Technically, he wasn¡¯t that pressed for time. His destination on Remior was easily over three months away. Furthermore, he¡¯d already discussed things with Nesha and Elaine. The group had decided to take their sweet time getting there, even if it meant running out of rainbow grass and having to downgrade to the regular elixirs for a few weeks. After all, the last thing they wanted was to rush, and leave a trail for the Divine Root to follow. Still, he¡¯d rather not stay in the Vault longer than he had to. Every second he spent here was a second he could be investing into a different clone. sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Entering the cube, he propped the two bags by a wall, before browsing through the system for the runes he wanted. Sadly, he still had to go about it via the tedious way. With over 200 credits, he could just about afford the rune index, but that would leave him broke.


    he sighed, listening to the cube recount the books he¡¯d picked.


    Without knowing exactly what each volume contained, he often had to buy a couple of them to ensure he ended up with a suitable variant.


    ¡°Evaluation complete. User has bookmarked a total of 14 items: ¡®Memory rune, Vol. 4, 11¡¯, ¡®Growth rune, Vol. 1, 3, 16¡¯, ¡®Heat rune, Vol. 7, 8¡¯, ¡®Pressure rune, Vol. 17, 21¡¯, ¡®Rotation rune, Vol. 2, 16, 18¡¯, ¡®Cascading control enchantment¡¯, ¡®Self-repair enchantment¡¯. Total cost: 180 credits. Current balance: 209.¡±


    Percy felt his heart clench upon hearing the price. A wave of curiosity soon seeped through the cord, but he just brushed it aside. Poor Noland still had no idea how stingy his new compatriots were¡­


    ¡°Just do it already. I¡¯ll have them as hard copies this time.¡± he sighed.


    ¡°Confirmed. Deducting credits. New balance: 29. Delivery in 12 rits.¡±


    It didn¡¯t take long for the cube to spit a towering stack of books out, each of them steaming hot. Percy didn¡¯t waste a moment before picking the first one up. In any case, there was no reason why he couldn¡¯t enjoy his time here. If he ignored the painful challenges, the steep costs when buying anything inside the Vault, and the strict schedule he was always under, studying runecrafting wasn¡¯t that bad in and of itself.


    Honestly, Percy liked delving into the topic, even from a purely academic perspective. Magiscript was, in many ways, superior to real-time spellcasting. Sure, it wasn¡¯t easy to draw a functioning rune in the midst of battle ¨C let alone a more complex enchantment. Still, with enough preparation, one could accomplish pretty much anything they set their minds to, as Dranold and Rambert had found out the hard way. Not to mention world-spanning marvels of magic like the Vault itself.


    Of course, Percy wasn¡¯t nearly ready for such a large-scale project just yet. He currently had two, slightly more modest goals in mind. One had to do with alchemy. The other with his Phantomscale Raiment.


    The thought made him grin.

 Chapter 232: Self-repair

    Percy¡¯s top priority during this trip was the self-repair enchantment. While his reinforced mana had proven an excellent material for his constructs, its greatest drawback was that it didn¡¯t last nearly as long as he would like. Even when he used his preservation runes to extend the lifetime of his spells, the sheer amount of time he had to spend maintaining them made many of his projects untenable.


    Of course, this applied just as much to his scythes, as well as anything else he might create, but the problem was most pronounced when it came to the Phantomscale Raiment. It simply involved way too many components, making its upkeep an absolute nightmare.


    All in all, it wasn¡¯t that complicated. As the name implied, the memory rune would essentially memorize the shape of an object as it was at the very moment when the enchantment was activated. From there, it would constantly feed this information into the growth rune ¨C much like a magical blueprint. In turn, the growth rune would restore the object to its intended shape whenever it deviated however slightly.


    That said, there were countless variants of these runes ¨C much like the rest Percy had come across during his studies. Usually, they differed depending on the materials the enchantment would consume to repair the item. After all, the lost materials couldn¡¯t be replenished out of thin air.


    Luckily, all of Percy¡¯s constructs were made purely out of his own mana, so he hadn¡¯t needed to look beyond the simplest variants. According to everything he¡¯d read, the final product would be extremely straightforward to use in his case. He¡¯d only need to pour some mana into the runes once per day, and they would take care of the rest, keeping his armour in top condition. By adding his preservation runes to the mix, he could extend that time even further.


    Then again, there were a couple more issues he¡¯d have to solve before he could apply this to his armour, but those were for after he returned to Remior. Right now, his priority was to actually master the enchantment.


    As Percy had learned pretty early on, combining runes required them to be linked together in some manner. Most runecrafting languages ¨C including the one they had on Remior ¨C only provided a single avenue of doing so. Usually, it involved drawing the runes side-by-side, taking advantage of some shared feature to fuse them together.


    The brilliance of Metatron¡¯s language was that it also allowed one to stack multiple runes on top of one another, thanks to the circular shape most of them had in common. This gave its users many more options when trying to enchant an object, allowing them to create far more interesting things.


    he exhaled in relief.


    Self-repair enchantments were extremely common, and the book Percy had bought contained countless examples. Of course, it wouldn¡¯t always be this easy. Once he started improvising his own enchantments, Percy would have to get better at figuring this out by himself. Luckily, this was a project for later. Besides, even just copying the enchantment down came with its own share of challenges.


    As always, when merging multiple runes, one had to keep both their individual effects in their mind, as well as their joint function. Consequently, the difficulty climbed exponentially with the number of involved runes.


    ¡°Cube, start the magiscript challenge, Orange level, wave 2. User ID: WANDERER.¡±


    Noland raised an eyebrow in surprise, but Percy reassured him that there was nothing to worry about.


    ¡°Authorization granted. Wave begins in 18 rits.¡±


    Obviously, he wasn¡¯t even close to meeting the requirements just yet. Then again, there was no penalty for failing the magiscript challenge, so there was no reason why he couldn¡¯t practice inside it. That way, he could keep track of his progress too. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Wave begins. May your challenge be successful!¡±


    ***


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    ¡°No. And please stop listing the variants I used. The messages are getting a little clustered.¡±


    ¡°Choice confirmed.¡±


    It had been over a week since Percy began practicing. As expected, getting the new runes down had been a piece of cake ¨C relatively speaking. It was just merging them together that was proving quite a pain in the ass. Not only was it much more time consuming, his success rate on the self-repair enchantment by itself was still below 20%. That said, he¡¯d discovered quite a few new interesting things while experimenting in the challenge.


    he couldn¡¯t help but grin.


    Apparently, the cube counted the self-repair enchantment and its components as different runes when drawn separately. For the second wave of the challenge, Percy needed to draw ten runes in total, which he had originally planned to achieve after learning the new batch of runes. However, he hadn¡¯t considered the possibility of cheating his way with combinations.


    Between the self-repair enchantment and 9 controlled variants, he would have access to 20 enchantments in total. He still didn¡¯t know what the requirements of the third wave involved, but that ought to be enough, right?


    And it got even better than that! The greatest downside when concatenating runes was the added difficulty. However, it seemed the system was more than willing to compensate him for that ¨C ¨C by adding a difficulty modifier and adjusting his final score.


    In any case, there was a reason why Percy had taken a break from runecrafting, and it had nothing to do with the challenge. Rather, it was his host that had prompted him to pause for a few minutes.


    Noland whistled.


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but roll his eyes. It hadn¡¯t been that long since the guy begged him to bring him here, sick of labouring all day in his underground hell.


    he asked, changing the topic.


    Noland nodded, eagerly drawing some ambient mana into his new core, revelling in the feeling of power rushing through his body. Percy didn¡¯t pay that much attention, however, having experienced this sort of thing a few too many times. Instead, he scrutinized the mana itself carefully, trying to discern its affinity.


    he said, instantly recognizing the unmistakable feeling of pure mana gushing out of his abdomen, forming a small cyan dagger in his hand.


    Though this was good for Drawing the runes with a familiar affinity would be much easier.


    Noland shrugged.


    Percy nodded, slightly jealous to see how much better his host had taken the news. Then again, Percy had been a teenager when this happened to him¡­


    Shaking the pointless thoughts out of his head, Percy gave Noland a few minutes to stretch a little and grab himself a snack, before walking back to the centre of the room.


    ¡°Cube. Start the challenge again. User ID: WANDERER.¡±


    This time, he intended to put the self-repair enchantment aside for a few hours, to earnestly tackle the wave. Between the new core and the cheat he had recently discovered, he already possessed all the tools he needed to clear it. This way, he¡¯d be able to learn the next wave¡¯s requirements early on, giving himself ample time to prepare.


    he took a seat, reading the prompt one last time.


    ***


    The most annoying part about the magiscript challenge was how long each attempt took. By Percy¡¯s estimates, 20000 rits were already nearly seven hours, and this was still a relatively low level.


    he sighed. This was actually his second attempt after having made his mind up. Suffice to say, it was with bated breath that his eyes landed on the prompt.


    It was mostly the controlled variants that had held him back. The score adjustment itself had made up for his lower success rate, but it hadn¡¯t given him any extra time, forcing him to just barely complete the wave by the skin of his teeth. And that was after filling the last 500 spots in his quota with the simple control runes. Alas¡­


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 2 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 200. Current balance: 229.¡±


    Noland pitched in.


    Percy would have hugged him if they weren¡¯t sharing a body.


    Of course, the exhilaration of beating a wave was only a small part of it. The real prize were the amazing spells he¡¯d be able to craft once he returned home.


    Percy hadn¡¯t forgotten about the explosives they had prepared for the combat challenges. The idea of blowing those annoying spider golems to shreds was honestly one of the things keeping him going.

 Chapter 233: Cascading control

    ¡°¡­100.¡± Percy muttered as he finished drawing the last instance of the self-repair enchantment.


    The growth rune was made of an inner circle, with multiple tendril-like features extending outwards in specific patterns, making it resemble a caricature of the sun. At any rate, this inner circle was rather easy to pair with the outermost circle of the memory rune, which was filled with a grid-like pattern in turn.


    Suffice to say, Percy began all his challenge attempts with the self-repair enchantments, as they were the hardest and most time-consuming ones to draw by far If he failed, he could just abort the wave and start over, saving himself some time. Luckily, he didn¡¯t need to do that right now, his current attempt being just about passable.


    By now, Percy had spent over six weeks in the Vault. He¡¯d already reached a satisfactory level with the self-repair enchantment. Even though he couldn¡¯t draw it successfully every single time, he didn¡¯t need to. As it so happened, was more forgiving than the damn challenge ¨C at least for what he intended to use it. He only had to succeed once for each piece of his armour and it would work forever. Naturally, he could afford to try a couple of times until he got it right.


    In addition to that, he¡¯d also studied the other runes he¡¯d bought. The heat, pressure and rotation runes hadn¡¯t been picked randomly. They were the bread and butter of any alchemic cauldron worth a damn, and Percy had already decided they would be handy to know. Not only would he be able to craft his own cauldrons with his clones in case he needed them ¨C much like what had happened on Atlantis ¨C but he would be able to repair his own back on Remior if it came to it.


    he nodded once he was done, wiping some sweat off his forehead. Only the simple runes were left.


    If it hadn¡¯t been for this project of his, Percy might have considered it a waste of time to learn how to attach control runes to all his other enchantments. However, it was honestly good practice for what he wanted to accomplish.


    After all, the enchantments applied to a cauldron couldn¡¯t be used in their raw state. Each of them had to be modified with control runes, and not just one of them. The first control rune allowed an enchantment to be switched on or off, but it was possible to take that further by adding more of them. The second gave the enchantment four possible states, the third one eight of them and so on.


    Any decent cauldron ¨C even the ones they had on Remior ¨C needed to have its enchantments affixed with at least four or five control runes each. This was necessary in order to more delicately control the temperature and pressure of a concoction. Which was exactly why Percy had even purchased the book on the ¡®cascading control enchantment¡¯. Sadly, he hadn¡¯t had the time to put its teachings to practice just yet. This would easily take a few more months. Still, he¡¯d made sure he understood the underlying concepts well enough to work on this when he returned home.


    he grinned once he finished drawing the final control rune. At least, he hadn¡¯t run out of time.


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 3 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 300. Current balance: 529.¡±


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    Noland pleaded.


    Percy nodded, leaving it at that.


    Doing his best to ignore his thumping headache, he dragged himself to their supplies, fancying himself a handful of bugs ¨C oddly enough. Or maybe he just wanted an excuse to move a little, his numb feet protesting every single step.


    To Noland¡¯s credit, he hadn¡¯t bothered him in the last 10 hours or so. A true achievement, considering how vocal the mole-person had grown over the past few weeks. And Percy didn¡¯t exactly blame him for it either. The poor guy was probably bored out of his mind.


    At least, they were done with runecrafting. . Ideally, Percy wanted to buy the index and skim through it once or twice, to give himself an idea of what was in there ¨C just so that he could plan his future trips to the Vault more efficiently. And maybe buy a rune for Nesha too. Sure, he could teach her some of the ones he knew, but he also wanted her to take another step towards crafting spatial amulets if possible. The darn things were becoming more and more important to them by the day. But neither of these tasks would take more than a couple of days.


    ***


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    He sighed, knowing this was the end of the road for now. Technically, he draw over 50 enchantments if he dug into the cascading control runes, but he wouldn¡¯t be reaching an acceptable quality with those anytime soon.


    Obviously, Percy had already ran into diminishing returns in both the Red and Orange levels. His recent progress in runecrafting should be enough to get him past the fourth wave of the Red magiscript challenge, but that was a whole lot of work for a measly 120 credits. It was best to move to the next level when possible.


    Percy shrugged.


    ***


    ¡°Wave begins. May your challenge be successful!¡±


    Noland¡¯s gaze was glued to the black tar pouring down the walls, rapidly filling the cube¡¯s floor. However, Percy didn¡¯t pay that much heed, having seen that a few too many times already. His attention was instead drawn to the spider-like golem speeding along the wall.


    he couldn¡¯t help but grin.


    Pulling some pure mana from his abdomen, he formed a short rod in his left hand, mostly to parry an attack or two with. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t reveal Crystallization inside the Vault, so there was only so much the new core could be used for. The rest, Noland would have to handle by himself.


    the mole-person spoke with confidence.


    Drawing some of his gravity mana, he wrapped it around the orange crystal in his hand. The mana itself was quite weird. Colourless and amorphous, yet pulsing with unquestionable might ¨C waiting to be commanded into shape by its owners will. Throwing his hand back, Noland tensed his muscles like a slingshot, as he focused even more mana in his palm.


    Of course, the golem wouldn¡¯t just let them do as they pleased. Detaching two of its legs, it sent them after them, trying to decapitate its challenger. Unfortunately for it, Percy had expected that, parrying the constructs away with the rod, giving his host a chance to complete his preparations.


    Not wasting another moment, Noland snapped back, pitching the bombstone at a speed he could have never managed with brute strength alone. In an instant, the crystal landed right beside the golem before it had the chance to move an inch. Shattering, it bathed the room in a bright flash, accompanied by a booming shockwave that sent the tar¡¯s surface in turmoil.


    he smiled wryly at the sight.


    However, Percy wasn¡¯t in a mood to chastise his host. He was a little busy trying to keep his jaw from dropping as he watched the golem¡¯s pieces slowly sinking into the dark liquid in several spots around the room.


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 1 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    ¡°Awarded credits: 100. Current balance: 629.¡±


    he couldn¡¯t help but ask.


    Noland¡¯s smile widened as he turned to look at the sack still propped against the wall. It was about as tall as he was, stuffed to the brim with crystals that threatened to spill out.

 Chapter 263: Alchemy 10

    ¡°What are you supposed to do if lumps start forming in the concoction?¡± the teacher asked.


    ¡°Generally, you break them either by increasing the cauldron¡¯s temperature or by stirring.¡± Percy replied, before elaborating. ¡°Usually, heating the mixture up is preferable, as it impacts the yield less. That said, novices are advised to stir instead, since they lack the experience to gauge the correct temperature by eye.¡±


    He was sure he¡¯d answered correctly, but the man showed no reaction, maintaining his cold expression.


    Suffice to say, Mr. Dugris who was in charge of the Alchemy 10 course was nothing like the easy-going Mrs. Kemdahlia from yesterday. He was a stern man with dark fur and sharp features. A bright Green core pulsed inside his sternum, a faint aroma of herbs and potions emanating from him.


    In any case, his piercing black eyes had lit up in recognition the moment he spotted Percy. He¡¯d probably identified him as the pesky student who wanted to jump ahead, due to being the youngest in the room. Regardless, he¡¯d then proceeded to fire all sorts of questions at him about brewing, seemingly to assess whether he was qualified to attend the class.


    Naturally, Percy hadn¡¯t had any trouble answering at first, though the questions grew more and more difficult as time went on, showing no signs of stopping. At this point, it would be hard to call this a simple test ¨C it was more like a goddamn interrogation!


    ¡°Does your answer change based on the type of alchemic step you¡¯re working on?¡± he asked again.


    ¡°For redirection and deattunement, no. But it¡¯s best to avoid heating the concoction up during pacification, even for experienced alchemists, as it can diminish the potency of the ice mana in the ingredients.¡±


    Dugris nodded, but he didn¡¯t give up.


    ¡°What do you do if the lumps decrease by themselves?¡± he asked, the corner of his lips curling into a smirk.


    Percy raised an eyebrow. He actually knew the answer for this too, but this was already outside the scope of what an Alchemy 10 student should know. At least, he hadn¡¯t found any mentions of this in the books he¡¯d read to prepare, and for good reason.


    This was a rather rare phenomenon that novices couldn¡¯t easily judge by eye. If it happened, they¡¯d typically just eat a loss to their yield and move on. Learning to deal with it would come naturally with experience ¨C not something to be taught in a class.


    Alas¡­


    ¡°If that happens, it means the lumps have coalesced together beneath the surface. At that point, you want to use both heat and stirring. If there are more bubbles by the walls of the cauldron, it means the lumps are even larger, so you need to increase the pressure too.¡±


    Hearing his response, the other students broke into hushed murmurs, giving each other uncertain looks. Percy doubted any of them could have answered this correctly, so if this was truly the standard for attending the class, they understood they ought to be packing their stuff right about now.


    Even the teacher was taken aback, his smug expression giving way to disbelief. Still, he hid it quickly, moving on to another question, once again pushing the boundary of what a student in Percy¡¯s shoes could be expected to know.


    Percy grimaced. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Truth be told, he¡¯d come into the class expecting resistance. Any teacher who genuinely cared about the subject they taught would be offended by Percy¡¯s attempt to skip years of classes. That said, he¡¯d already answered more than enough questions to prove his competence. A reasonable person in Dugris¡¯s position should have long accepted that he was qualified to stay¡­


    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    ***


    In the end, the man kept grilling him for hours, until way past noon.


    By now, Percy was certain that Dugris wanted him gone. Sadly for him, however, there were limits to what teachers were allowed to do. While it was up to Dugris how he chose to assess him, he couldn¡¯t just kick him out without proper justification. There were several witnesses present who would confirm that Percy had answered everything correctly, and the lectures were recorded too.


    Of course, Dugris had a few more cards up his sleeve.


    Teachers actually had the authority to extend the duration of the lectures if they wanted. They didn¡¯t do it often, as nobody liked working overtime. Not to mention that the students stopped functioning after a certain point.


    But that didn¡¯t stop him from holding them there until nightfall, ignoring their protests that they hadn¡¯t eaten anything for lunch. He reasoned that he¡¯d wasted all morning on Percy, so they still had to cover the day¡¯s material. Yet, everyone knew this was little more than an excuse.


    That much was clear. What wasn¡¯t as clear was why the man hated him so much. This obviously went beyond alchemy ¨C it was personal.


    Whatever the boy had done in the past, it had pissed a lot of people off. Both students and staff ¨C some more than others. Though very few showed such an intense disapproval of him as Dugris did. Was he more involved than the rest?


    ¡°Ok. That¡¯s it for today.¡± the teacher finally said, much to everyone¡¯s relief.


    The students didn¡¯t waste a second before washing the residue off their cauldrons, all of them in a rush to leave the lab before Dugris changed his mind.


    Percy sighed as he sealed the vial with a cork, giving the bright green liquid inside it a swirl. They hadn¡¯t worked on the restructuring principle yet, even though they¡¯d technically covered the theory for it in Alchemy 9.


    Dugris had asked them to brew a few simple potions today as a refresher, though Percy knew the man was probably worried about them wasting the ingredients given how tired everyone was. And sure enough, very few people had succeeded in their brews, Percy among them. In a world that made sense, that would have further proved that he belonged here¡­


    ¡°I suggest you study hard for next week. I have one more class to make my mind up about you and I¡¯ll prepare tougher questions¡­¡± Dugris muttered, patting his shoulder.


    Percy wanted to swear, but he held himself back.


    He had less than four days to get ready. Under 48 hours actually ¨C in Remior¡¯s time. He¡¯d have to skip the other lessons and pull a few all-nighters to raise his odds. It wasn¡¯t ideal since he¡¯d really enjoyed Mrs. Lia¡¯s lecture yesterday. Plus, he was already behind on Pre-casting.


    he sighed.


    After putting the ingredients and the equipment away, he headed back to his room. The corridors were already nearly empty, most of the kids having gone to sleep by now.


    Briefly stopping by the restroom, he relieved himself before taking a quick shower. Once he was done, he allowed the warm water to splash on his face for a couple minutes, letting it wash away some of his fatigue as he pondered his situation.


    Returning to his room, he emptied his satchel of anything unrelated to alchemy, replacing it with as many snacks as it could fit. He then grabbed a few more bags, placing a couple under his armpits, holding the rest in his hands. Only then did he leave for the library, planning to essentially live there for the rest of this week.


    The librarian ¨C a different one from last time ¨C gave him a funny look. He probably wasn¡¯t used to seeing students come here this late.


    ¡°Good evening, sir.¡± he greeted him with a smile, getting a nod back. ¡°Could you please point me to any books on uncommon alchemic ingredients and obscure recipes?¡±


    Dugris had already grilled him on all the standard stuff, so he¡¯d have to branch out as much as possible to handle the next session.


    The librarian raised an eyebrow at the unusual request, but he didn¡¯t voice his confusion, merely giving Percy what he¡¯d asked for.


    Percy thanked him, grabbing all the recommended books, along with the ones on Alchemy 11-15 ¨C just in case. Of course, he knew there was no way he could read that many books in a couple of days ¨C ¨C but he could at least skim through them and try to cram as much stuff into his brain as possible.

 Addressing a few things

    Hey everyone,


    I wasn¡¯t planning to write this post at this time, but some unforeseen circumstances prompted me to go ahead with it.


    First, a quick update: Due to a scheduling error, chapter 263 was accidentally posted early alongside chapter 233. I caught and removed it within 40 minutes, but my apologies to those who saw spoilers. I triple-check chapter numbers and dates when I schedule them, so I¡¯m genuinely unsure how this happened.


    With that aside, I wanted to address a few things. Not to argue with anyone, but to clarify my thought process in a bunch of areas.


    First of all, I want to thank everyone who has given this story a chance and who has stuck with it for over 200 chapters. I appreciate all the time you guys have invested in it, and I hope you¡¯ve enjoyed the journey as much as I have. Your support truly means a lot to me.


    I know some of you didn¡¯t like certain parts of the story, and this is what this post is largely about. I wanted to reply to your comments back when the Rambert chapter dropped, but I held myself back for a few reasons.


    It¡¯s not easy to reply to everyone like I used to at the start of the story. The comments go on for several pages, and mine would easily get lost in there. On top of that, I know most of you would prefer that I spend my time actually writing the story than talking about it.


    Finally, I feel that anything I say in the comment section is inevitably going to be a minor spoiler, no matter how carefully I phrase it. Even something as innocent-sounding as ¡°keep reading to see how this goes¡± can easily give clues away. Overall, I believe that the comment section is largely a reader space, and me participating in it can often take away more than it adds.


    But that¡¯s not to say I don¡¯t your comments.


    I take your feedback very seriously, and I use it to constantly improve myself. ????


    There are also things I to say, but which I consciously hold back. For example, I very much wanted to address some of the criticism around the Rambert plotline, but I didn¡¯t want to spoil the ending for people. Now that the book is over, I might as well talk about that, and a few other things that haven¡¯t landed very well.


    Let me make one thing clear. I know you guys don¡¯t like cockroach villains that come back after being defeated, so I understand why so many of you were upset. In fact, I very much share the sentiment. I read LitRPGs, and progression fantasy, and cultivation stories too, you know! This is how I ended up doing this in the first place!


    But this wasn¡¯t what this was. I just couldn¡¯t tell you that when you guys started lashing out, because I¡¯d be giving the plot away.


    The plan had always been to have Percy turn him into a clone. This was one of the main reasons why I had Percy experiment with local clones back in book 1. Percy his plan was to infiltrate House Tantalus since the beginning of book 2. This was why he and Nesha even settled in Bogside town. It¡¯s why they chose to stay after the residents snitched on them. Because Percy knew he hadn¡¯t achieved his main goal yet, and possessing a high-ranking member of House Tantalus was his best shot at that.


    This didn¡¯t come out of nowhere, and I¡¯d planted several clues throughout those chapters. I made it clear that Micky was starving, and yet I never mentioned him eating Rambert or Grian¡¯s souls in the aftermath. Percy can inflict more damage by turning his weapons incorporeal, but I specifically had him focus on physical attacks during the fight. I even specifically wrote Percy gazing at Rambert¡¯s crumbling soul at the end! When Rambert drained that frog, I made it clear that his situation wasn¡¯t improving.


    Rambert was still clearly mad at Percy and Nesha ¨C of course he was, since they ambushed him and killed him. That wouldn¡¯t just go away because Percy patched him up. But he understood his only shot as survival had been to play along.


    I took great care when writing all those chapters, to make sure everything was consistent with their character motivations, their goals, and the way their abilities worked.


    And here¡¯s the weirdest thing.


    Many of you notice all those clues and even pointed them out. But for some reason, many of you just assumed they were inconsistencies. Plotholes. That I¡¯d gone crazy overnight ¨C rather than just reaching the obvious conclusion that Rambert was a clone.


    Sure, I left out Percy and Rambert¡¯s explicit thoughts on this to leave some suspense hanging in the air, but nothing they said, thought or did contradicted the dynamic between them. I was super careful with that.


    I why some people didn¡¯t like it. They weren¡¯t sure this would end in a satisfying way. Waiting 2 weeks for the conclusion didn¡¯t help. I suppose the format of a web serial didn¡¯t do me any favours.


    But this isn¡¯t just a web serial. It¡¯s going to be released as a book too at some point. This story will be running for a couple years at least, and anyone who gets to that part from here on out will have access to the rest of the book too, so I have to think about that.


    I¡¯m not going to shy away from what I personally think is a good plot or a good twist, just because it won¡¯t make sense until the end, or because it¡¯s not immediately satisfying.


    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Your opinions are still your opinions, and I value them. And if I agree with your feedback, I¡¯m willing to go back and make even major changes to the book. In fact, I¡¯ve recently gone back and changed a couple of Patreon chapters after noticing a minor plot hole (you guys won¡¯t be affected by it because I fixed it before you got to that point).


    But the Rambert thing isn¡¯t like that.


    I¡¯m with how I wrote it and how it reads, and I¡¯m sticking with it. I make a bunch of minor changes to the chapter when I¡¯m editing it for the amazon release, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll delete or move the chapter entirely. I don¡¯t see any plot hole in it that needs to be closed.


    At the end of the day, I to put my own vision first and foremost.


    It¡¯s not about me being stubborn either. I¡¯m a reader of my book as much as I am a writer. I write what I want to read, and this is my passion project. It¡¯s what motivates me to keep writing 7 days a week and to keep going even when putting words on a page is tough.


    This all hinges on me writing what I like, so I won¡¯t change something I like into something I dislike, because that will instantly affect my ability to write.


    If some of you aren¡¯t happy with that and don¡¯t want to keep reading¡­ fair enough. I thank you again for staying with the story for so long. I appreciate it very much. But some people liked how the book ended, and they might be the ones disappointed if I went back and changed it.


    Writing to my own taste will ultimately allow me to put higher quality content out there.


    The Rambert thing was easily the most controversial thing to date, but there have been a few other notable recurring issues in the past 200 chapters, so I might as well explain why I wrote them the way I wrote them. Again, it doesn¡¯t mean my opinion is right and yours wrong. It just means that I had my reasons for making those decisions.


    This one is actually a bit funny, because I got a ton of backlash from opposite ends of the spectrum. Some people called him a murder hobo and wrote some scathing critique when he killed that guy in the Guild. Meanwhile, others complained that Percy was being too nice, quick to forgive his family and to help everyone he meets in his travels.


    I just wanted to write a person. Not a monster, but not a saint either. He cares about his own interests, but he won¡¯t just abandon a dying orphan he meets in his travels. He is pissed about his family withholding elixirs from him, but he understands why they did it and he won¡¯t just destroy their precious tree and throw them under the bus. He understands that guy in the Guild was just out hunting, but he also cares about Micky and he won¡¯t let his friend get killed.


    Imagine you walked out of your house and saw somebody chasing down your friend, shooting at him with a gun. Would you try and talk the assailant down? Would you bet both your friend¡¯s safety, and your own, on this random guy being reasonable? Or would you do whatever you could to save your friend?


    The guy in the Guild was at Yellow and much stronger than Percy at the time. Say what you will, but I think him choosing to attack him was a reasonable response, given the circumstances.


    Maybe it¡¯s not what would have done in his shoes. And maybe it¡¯s not what would have done either. But none of us grew up in this cutthroat world either, nor have we spent years living with Micky being our only family. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    I promised you a morally grey character, and I do my best to deliver exactly that, with every single chapter. Again, it¡¯s not everyone¡¯s cup of tea, but it¡¯s what I to write.


    Another pretty controversial chapter was when they hooked up a few weeks ago. Here¡¯s the thing. This isn¡¯t a romance story. I don¡¯t particularly like romance stories, and I have no interest in writing romance. Romance will never be front and centre in this story. It¡¯s not what I want to write, and it¡¯s not what of you want to read. There was never a chance of me doing an over-dramatized thing of them flirting back and forth and playing games with one another.


    Now, there are people who¡¯ll say ¡°if you don¡¯t want to focus on a relationship, then don¡¯t write it at all¡±. In fact, people said that, if you go and read the comments on that chapter.


    My response to that, is


    Percy and Nesha are people. people in their early twenties, living together in a small house for years, hidden in some corner of the world with nothing to lose. In my opinion, it would have been much stranger if they hadn¡¯t hooked up.


    As I see it, that¡¯s just part of life. I thought that was a realistic depiction of a relationship too. I don¡¯t think it has to be a flashy thing, with romantic dates, and constant flirting, and giving each other flowers. I think it could very well just happen, like it has. Just something on the side, adding flavour to the story.


    Again, I understand some people will be unhappy there was any romance at all. And there will be people who wanted more of it. But this was how much wanted to write, and again, this is how I have to operate here.


    Still. By all means, . I want to hear it. But don¡¯t expect me to go back and change everything you don¡¯t like. Frankly, I like how that chapter reads too.


    The petal was always intended to go to Micky. But I wanted it to start off as something useful for Percy. A direct upgrade of his pure affinity. Something to get people excited about. And for him to slowly outgrow the need for it, by learning to use his pure affinity better, until he decided to hand it to his familiar.


    This was the plan, and I feel the finished product accomplishes that, more or less.


    Granted, there are some people who didn¡¯t want him to get the petal from day 1. Though I¡¯m not sure that was warranted. Before he had Crystallization and his armour, I feel the water affinity had been a pretty clear winner.


    There are also those of you who wanted Percy to reflect on it before the end of the book, much like the Rambert thing. Personally, I feel the story reads better if I don¡¯t always give everything away instantly, and I leave some suspense hanging in the air.


    Once again, I¡¯m not trying to my decisions here. Opinions are subjective, and if you don¡¯t like something, I can¡¯t just convince you to like it with a few words. I¡¯m just trying to explain why I made those decisions, and why I¡¯ve stuck with them. Why it¡¯s so important for me to stay true to my creative vision, and why I think it¡¯s better for the story too. Even if the alternative was objectively better, I wouldn¡¯t be able to write it as well, if it didn¡¯t fit my taste.


    Anyway¡­


    The Lone Wanderer is intended to be a 10+ book series with over 1000 chapters. Maybe a lot more than that. At least, that has been my goal since the day I conceived it, and continues to be as such today. It¡¯s possible that things will change down the line, but this is where I¡¯m currently at.


    I¡¯m glad so many people have enjoyed it so far, but I¡¯d likely continue to write it regardless. I love Percy¡¯s story, and I¡¯m way too invested in it to give up. Even if there was nobody else reading it, I can¡¯t stomach the thought of leaving it unfinished.


    So, just keep that in mind if you¡¯re wondering why Percy is still at Orange 200 chapters in.


    I have a ton of things planned, and believe me, alchemy and runecrafting, and everything else he¡¯s spending his time on is no less important than the grade of his cores. You¡¯ll understand why, eventually¡­


    Thanks again for everyone who stuck around for so long! See you all tomorrow!

 Chapter 234: Bombstones

    Overall, Percy and Noland¡¯s setup was quite simple. That didn¡¯t make it any less effective, however. Using the pure mana to defend themselves, and the gravity mana solely to quickly deliver the explosive crystals to their opponents, they relied exclusively on the bombstones to take out the golems.


    Naturally, the constructs grew stronger with each wave. Getting slightly larger and sporting an extra pair of detachable legs each time, there was no doubt in Percy¡¯s mind that they would have made for tough opponents had they faced them normally. Luckily, none of them survived their opening blow, though the third one managed to leap out of the way in time.


    Not wanting to risk their life in the fourth wave, they decided to take a break from the ¡®gauntlet¡¯ challenge at that point, to give the ¡®swarm¡¯ challenge a try. Suffice to say, the golems were even weaker there, the explosions often taking several of them out at once. Still, their sheer numbers had made it a little difficult for Percy and Noland to hold their ground. Not to mention the strain they¡¯d put on their limited supplies. By the time they cleared the third wave, their sack was already empty, finally putting an end to their cheating spree.


    Of course, the results were more than worth it¡­


    ¡°Congratulations! Wave 3 has been cleared! Calculating rewards¡­¡±


    Percy¡¯s only regret was his inability to bring the bombstones back home. A couple of those would have made for an excellent trump card. Sadly, this was just the nature of his clones.


    ¡°Awarded credits: 300. Current balance: 1729.¡±


    ¡°Wow! Words cannot express how glorious this is!¡± Percy¡¯s mood instantly took a turn for the better, some tears welling up in his eyes.


    None of his previous visits to the Vault had gone nearly this smoothly. Not only had he accomplished all his goals with time to spare, he even managed it without getting his body battered in the process.


    Suffice to say, it was with great glee that he finally purchased the rune index he¡¯d been ogling for years, spending the next day studying it ¨C much to his host¡¯s dismay. And he didn¡¯t stop there, also buying a book on shape runes for Nesha. By themselves, these runes could force a material to take on a fixed shape ¨C in this case a cube. Combining them with the pocket, stability and control runes, his girlfriend would have everything she needed to craft her first prototype of a spatial amulet after some practice.


    At any rate, it only took him another couple of days to memorize the new rune. This one didn¡¯t space mana ¨C even though he¡¯d picked a variant that worked better with it. Percy could have easily learned to activate it too, using his pure mana, though he didn¡¯t bother to do that. He didn¡¯t personally have a use for it, so he only needed to relay the symbol and the instructions to Nesha, and let her take it from there.


    About halfway through Percy¡¯s last week in the Vault, he had already accomplished everything he¡¯d set out to do, even having a little over 1500 credits left to spend.


    he decided.


    Up until now, he hadn¡¯t really had the option of branching out much. Other than the time he¡¯d purchased the mana conversion spell, Percy had been forced to funnel all his funds into reading material to progress through the challenges. This was his first time having saved up a sizeable sum.


    Besides, there was another reason he couldn¡¯t stay here any longer. Noland¡¯s food was nearly exhausted, so Percy would have to start spending credits on that. His only option was to leave and dump the responsibility on Metatron.


    Noland asked.


    Percy shrugged.


    Either way, he had one final stop before bidding him farewell. While he wasn¡¯t particularly worried about all the beasts he¡¯d brought to the Vault, Noland was a sapient host. Even though their current arrangement was the result of a mutually beneficial transaction, Percy couldn¡¯t help but feel a little uneasy over leaving his new pal alone in this place.


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    Consequently, he¡¯d already decided to introduce him to Gabe. Not only would he catch up with his old pal in the process, but Gabe and Noland would have each other to discuss their shared circumstances.


    ***


    ¡°Percy? Is that you?¡± Gabe asked upon opening his door.


    ¡°How can you tell?¡±


    Gabe shrugged.


    ¡°Who else would visit me? Besides, you¡¯re the only one bringing random creatures here. Also, nobody else needs a translation device¡­ Need I go on?¡±


    ¡°Fair enough.¡± Percy replied, extending his hand. ¡°This is Noland. I found him stuck in an underground tunnel and offered to shine some light on his miserable existence.¡±


    Noland groaned internally over the joke, though he still took control of his body for long enough to shake Gabe¡¯s hand.


    ¡°I¡¯m actually on my way out of the Vault, but I figured I¡¯d bring him here first. I¡¯m hoping you could spend a couple of weeks teaching him the language, since he won¡¯t have the translation device after I¡¯m gone.¡± Percy added a second later.


    Gabe didn¡¯t seem particularly happy about it, though he ultimately agreed. At least, the system hadn¡¯t threatened them with a penalty this time. Apparently, the Vault¡¯s language wasn¡¯t considered a restricted resource. This was probably because all the kids here learned it for free before they were even old enough to be subjected to the Vault¡¯s brutal economy.


    Percy thought. He¡¯d slacked a little on it, preferring to focus on his other studies during the past couple of trips.


    Next, he proceeded to brief Gabe on Noland¡¯s details, getting some information back from him in return. Apparently, his former host had made some progress of his own on magiscript. In fact, he was a little further along than even Percy, largely due to devoting all of his free time on the subject. Sure, his missing eyes made it a little tougher, but Gabe had still made it work through Mana Sense alone.


    ¡°Are you going to try the challenge?¡± Percy asked.


    Unless Metatron woke up feeling particularly generous one day, Gabe¡¯s only option was to get to the sixth wave of the magiscript challenge and ask for life mana to restore his eyes. A rather ambitious project¡­


    ¡°Not yet. I think I could get through the first wave if I got lucky, but that¡¯s about it. The Green level is much tougher than the ones you¡¯ve tried, and it¡¯s not like I¡¯m in need of credits just yet.¡± he explained.


    Percy nodded in understanding. Logically, Gabe¡¯s current funds should last him long enough for his second core to reach Green, and then at least another decade past that. Hopefully, that would be enough for him to fix his eyes. He¡¯d need them before he could resume the combat challenges, and he¡¯d need those to make it to Blue.


    Admittedly, the idea of handing the callous titan something precious made him sick to his stomach, but he wouldn¡¯t allow his friend to starve to death if he could prevent it. Normally, the titan shouldn¡¯t let his most precious test subject to die like that, but he might be willing to do it if it meant putting more pressure on Percy to accept his terms.


    Either way, bringing another person here might have not been Percy¡¯s wisest move. His new buddy had grown on him, giving the powerful god another thing to blackmail him with.


    Noland said, Percy¡¯s thoughts having inadvertently spilled through their connection.


    Percy sighed. He knew his host was right, but he couldn¡¯t absolve himself of all the responsibility. Then again, he couldn¡¯t afford to let such valuable opportunities pass. Had he brought a different Orange host here, chances are he wouldn¡¯t have earned nearly as many credits this time.


    Percy replied, before elaborating.


    He doubted Metatron gave the beasts much of a choice in the matter, but perhaps he¡¯d make an exception for Noland. Rather than placing him in a cage and experimenting on him directly, the titan might be open to letting him live like Gabe, as a regular resident of the Vault, completing challenges and earning his own credits. Then again, it was debatable whether that would be better, considering the man¡¯s lower grade. Either way, this was for Noland and Metatron to discuss¡­


    Bidding both men farewell, Percy stored the device before removing his soul from his host¡¯s wounds, allowing them to resume their recovery unobstructed. The pull from his main body instantly yanked him out of the Vault in a familiar manner, having already grown rather powerful over the last couple of months.


    Drifting through the infinite darkness, Percy couldn¡¯t help but go over his latest gains, as well as the questionable price he¡¯d paid for them. Eventually, he would have to make this right. Frankly, he¡¯d already grown sick of having to tiptoe around the powerful, subjected to their whims ¨C whether that was Metatron, or the Divine Order.


    sea??h th§× NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

 Chapter 235: Trouble in Gentlebreeze town

    An overwhelming rush of memories flooded Percy¡¯s mind, bringing him to his knees. Noticing his soul wisp on the way back, he¡¯d just about managed to put his brewing equipment away in time, to avoid breaking or spilling anything by accident.


    A good shout, considering how troublesome this clone was to assimilate. He wasn¡¯t necessarily the longest-lived one he¡¯d ever sent out, but he¡¯d spent months training non-stop, bringing a mountain of runecrafting knowledge back. knowledge that Percy now had to digest in an accelerated pace.


    he sighed a few minutes later, once he was back on his feet.


    His brain still pounded like a drum, and it would take him a few more days to fully wrap his head around the new runes, but he should be good for now. Fortunately, he was alone in the room, so he hadn¡¯t needlessly worried his companions.


    Nesha was busy mingling with the town¡¯s residents, trying to procure any alchemic reagents she could find in the local marketplace, hoping to extend Percy¡¯s dwindling stash. It was important, as he wouldn¡¯t be able to replace his trollsfury potion, nor continue to brew Aurora Dew without them. Of course, they were more likely to find what they needed when they reached their destination, but that was still a few weeks away.


    At least, Gentlebreeze town was many times larger than Bogside town. More developed too, with taller buildings, cleaner streets and a bustling economy. Sure, commoners didn¡¯t live easy lives anywhere on Remior, but falling under the jurisdiction of a noble House that didn¡¯t treat them like cattle made a huge difference.


    Checking himself in the mirror, Percy couldn¡¯t help but frown as he rubbed his chin.


    He¡¯d grown a bit of a stubble over the past couple of months, hoping it would help hide his identity when combined with his glowing eyes. It must¡¯ve done to that effect, since nobody had pulled him aside just yet. A rather important place to be, as he¡¯d already spotted wanted posters of him and Nesha in multiple towns. Fortunately, the Divine Root¡¯s information was a little outdated, Baldy having done a great job keeping the news of his Sorcerer¡¯s Eye from spreading.


    Still, his disguise was incomplete. Ideally, he wanted to grow his hair longer too. Sadly, he¡¯d have to wait another year or two for that. Then again, he shouldn¡¯t complain. The girls had it much worse, having had no choice but to cut their own hair short for the benefit of the group¡­


    And that wasn¡¯t the only sacrifice the others had made. Micky had had a tough time travelling while skipping meals and conserving his stamina. They couldn¡¯t even bring him into the towns, so he was currently camping a few miles away. At least, his situation had improved a little. Pretty early on, they had discovered that the crow could use Regulation with Percy¡¯s fused mana too, by absorbing it through his other mutations ¨C his beak, talons and eyes.


    Since then, he¡¯d not only managed to clear his new channels, but he¡¯d even learned how to split his ice mana into its components, regaining access to his other spells. Of course, he still had to find a use for the new affinities, and to finish tempering his pathways. Elaine was currently keeping him company, partly to protect him, and partly to teach him her Circulation pattern.


    Technically, Percy was already pulling his weight in the group by providing everyone with Aurora Dew. But he wanted to do more for them if possible. Not necessarily for Nesha or Micky ¨C he¡¯d already done plenty for both of them over the years ¨C but certainly Elaine. After all, his cousin had risked everything to accompany them. Not to mention that she brought the most to the table merely by being with them, thanks to her high fighting strength.


    Naturally, he¡¯d offered to teach her runecrafting like Nesha, but she¡¯d declined. Her affinity wasn¡¯t particularly suited, and she didn¡¯t really have the patience for it either. The only other thing Percy could do for his companions was to grant them a second core.


    Strictly speaking, he¡¯d already promised to do it for Nesha. Ideally, he would have liked to extend the favour to everyone ¨C Baldy and Galahad included ¨C but it just hadn¡¯t been possible. First, he didn¡¯t feel confident repairing a Blue¡¯s damaged soul, let alone a Violet¡¯s. Even for Elaine, he wouldn¡¯t dare risk it unless they had a Green soul available for Micky to eat. Then, he¡¯d also had a clone active during his time back home, so possessing his relatives hadn¡¯t been an option.


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    Much of that was solved right now, but they¡¯d also need life mana to fix the Decree. There wasn¡¯t much of a point in giving anybody the seed if they couldn¡¯t germinate it. All it would do would be to rob them of the ability to use healing potions. Sadly, they wouldn¡¯t be able to return to his family for the foreseeable future. Their only alternative were the green mushrooms, but they¡¯d need way too many of them for this to work.


    The sheer number of corpses they¡¯d have to procure was mind-boggling, but it wasn¡¯t like they had a better option. Either way, this wasn¡¯t that big a problem. As long as the Divine Root failed to discover them, everything else they could deal with. And it didn¡¯t seem like their enemies had any more karma users to send after them.


    he smiled bitterly.


    Percy had no way to contact his grandpa. While he¡¯d done his best to draw Deimos¡¯s ire to himself, the guy didn¡¯t sound that reasonable. Percy could easily see him taking his anger out on House Avalon. Especially considering that Jason had gone missing in the vicinity of their estate. Anybody who was unfamiliar with Percy¡¯s combat prowess would assume he¡¯d had help taking down a Green. Sadly, there wasn¡¯t much he could do about it, other than hope his grandpa was wise enough to handle the situation.


    Sighing, he walked out of the inn, deciding to take the rest of the day off. His headache would make brewing annoying, and he could use some fresh air. He also had to talk to Nesha about the new runes as some of them concerned her.


    Strolling down the street, Percy ignored the stares he got from the townsfolk. He was used to them by now, owing most of the attention he received to his eyes. Sure, the default assumption was that they were the result of his bloodline, but not many bloodlines were nearly this eye-catching.


    Heading towards the market, he soon noticed something strange, however. The place was always busy, but there were many more people around right now than when they¡¯d first arrived in town. There seemed to be some kind of spectacle drawing everyone here...


    Hurrying along, Percy pushed through the growing crowd, soon reaching the source of all the commotion. Luckily, he spotted his girlfriend standing a few rows away, not involved in whatever this was. Still, that did little to stop his face from paling.


    Several officials stood there, holding the commoners back, each of them sporting an elegant attire that Percy recognized all too well. Most notably, they were all adorned with insignias depicting some roots emerging from the underside of a cloud. And there were five of them, .


    Instinctively, he wanted to run away. But he held himself back, knowing that would be beyond foolish. Not only would he draw their attention even faster, there was no way he could possibly outrun five Greens.


    Forcing himself to calm down, he realized something was off with the situation. Nesha hadn¡¯t tried to escape either, nor did she look very shaken. Besides, sending so many people after them was a bit much, wasn¡¯t it?


    Exhaling a breath he hadn¡¯t even noticed he was holding, Percy allowed himself to relax. Next, he scanned the scene more carefully, trying to piece together what was happening. Other than the men of the Divine Root, there were two others standing there. Or, well¡­ only one of them was the other being on the ground.The first was a young boy. He couldn¡¯t have been older than 13, or maybe even 12. Yet, he looked as if he owned the whole town, his gaze brimming with uncontained arrogance.


    As for the other person, he was clearly distraught, grovelling at the boy¡¯s feet, seemingly begging for something. He was much older too. A middle-aged man with a Green core pulsing in his chest. He was clearly ¡®only¡¯ an Orange-born, but this was still a strange way to treat a Green. At that level, one was already considered an elite, regardless of their birth-grade. Why was the man kowtowing to the boy? Was he trying to apologize for something?


    Either way, the kid had to be quite important, to have so many elites guarding him.


    ¡°Esteemed Holy Child! Please, show mercy! Let alone the discount, I would have given you the trinket for free had I realized who you were!¡± the man pleaded. S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    But the boy didn¡¯t respond, merely kicking the man¡¯s face as if he was nothing more than trash. Nobody moved to stop him. Even the victim didn¡¯t bother resisting, letting the kid do as he pleased.


    Percy¡¯s eyebrow shot up.


    He¡¯d never expected to meet one in such a random place. But that would certainly explain the mess. Instinctively, his eyes fell back on the boy, this time scrutinizing him more carefully than before. Percy had previously ignore the kid, thinking he was only treated like this for being the son of somebody important.


    On further investigation, however, it appeared his clothes were even finer than the ones worn by the Divine Root, They were adorned with all sorts of symbols Percy didn¡¯t recognize the meaning of. As for the boy¡¯s face, it wasn¡¯t anything special, his features as unassuming as his messy brown hair.


    It was only when he saw the brilliant Blue core shining in the kid¡¯s sternum that Percy¡¯s eyes widened, the truth slamming into him like a battering ram. And if that wasn¡¯t proof enough, the suffocating domain he unleashed upon the crowd the very next second was plenty¡­ Percy too, felt the wind knocked out of his lungs as he finally accepted the boy was.


    After all, there was only one sort of person who could possibly reach such a high grade this young. The very people the Divine Order recruited at any cost. The only ones who stood a chance of advancing past White. The ones who might one day become gods¡­

 Chapter 236: [Redacted]

    Percy quietly watched the scene unfold. His stomach churned as the boy practically tortured the poor guy, but he knew he couldn¡¯t get involved. Even if he banded together with all his companions, he¡¯d never get past the Holy Child¡¯s guards. Let alone the little monster himself.


    he struggled to keep his nose from wrinkling.


    The overwhelming majority of people on Remior were born in the bottom three grades.


    Around 60% were Red-borns, their lifespans capped in the low hundreds ¨C assuming wars didn¡¯t get to them first, of course. The highest grade they could hope to reach was Yellow. Technically, Percy belonged in this category too, though his second core coupled with the Aurora Dew had boosted his future prospects to Blue. As for his fighting strength¡­ Well, he was punching comfortably above his weight class, having already slain multiple Yellow-borns his age.


    Then came the Orange-borns, who made about 30% of the population. People like Nesha and Orin belonged in this category, and they could even live a few thousand years if all the stars aligned. The highest grade they could hit was Blue ¨C much like Percy¡¯s mentor already had. That said, Nesha could potentially aim a little higher now, all thanks to him.


    Finally, there were the Yellow-borns like Elaine, Galahad or Baldy. Only 10% of the population was lucky enough to fall in this category, and they were considered the most valuable assets a noble House could have. After all, they were the only ones who could reach Violet after half a millennium, often coming to lead their families at that point. Very few Houses had more than one Violet, and most of them were swiftly driven to extinction if they were unlucky enough to lose them all. Technically, they could reach White too, but only seven Yellow-borns were currently alive who had accomplished that.


    Yet in the eyes of the Divine Order, the likes of Archibald weren¡¯t much different from Percy at the end of the day. Whether at Red or White, all of them were destined to die as mortals, their candles snuffed in the blink of an eye. Even Theseus, the White core in charge of the Divine Root ¨C ¨C was nothing more than a failure in the gods¡¯ eyes. Somebody who wasn¡¯t deemed talented enough to join the Order¡¯s inner circle.


    That glory was reserved solely for the Green-born.


    They emerged at much lower rates. Less than one in ten thousand, in fact. The chosen ones, who could achieve immortality. All of the Order¡¯s gods and demigods had been born at Green. Their titans too, by extension. Hermes, Phoebe, Iapetus, Kronos¡­


    The ratios weren¡¯t exactly identical from one world to the next, but they usually fell within the same ballpark. It was no wonder that it was deemed impossible for a Red-born to reach godhood, considering how much lower their starting point was¡­


    But so few Green-borns existed, and only a fraction of them managed to ascend all the way. That was why each was considered a priceless asset. They could never be treated as regular nobles, nor could they be allowed to involve themselves in the pointless wars between Houses.


    The moment a child was identified as a Green-born, they were automatically sent to the Divine Order for training. As much as their families might have wanted to use them as weapons in their wars, there were few crimes on Remior more serious than secretly harbouring a Green-born.


    Rare as they were, many large, long-lived Houses would eventually birth a couple of them. Still, they all understood the importance of complying with the Order¡¯s demands. Historically, only a handful of families had dared to risk it, all of them bringing calamity to their Houses as a result.


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    At least, the Order was ¡®kind¡¯ enough to give each family a minor treasure in exchange, as a small compensation for robbing them of such a talented child. From what Percy knew, the jade tree Baldy used to hone his magic had been obtained in precisely this manner.


    Percy sighed.


    The miraculous elixirs held the potential of turning Yellow-borns into gods. Should that happen, the Order¡¯s ranks would climb steeply, changing Remior forever. After all, there were a thousand times as many Yellow-borns around as there were Holy Children. It would be harder for them to make it, of course, but it should still be enough to catapult their world to one of the leading factions in the universe given some time.


    That said, the first Yellow-borns would need tens of thousands of years to reach godhood, so Percy hadn¡¯t done much harm by withholding the recipe for a couple of decades.


    he smiled bitterly.


    It wasn¡¯t really that surprising the Order¡¯s leaders were such eccentrics. Each of them had been taken from their family as a child, growing up without parents. They were all spoiled, being raised by others like them, never taught a shred of empathy or compassion. They were essentially given a crown from a young age, and left to do as they pleased¡­


    Thinking of that, Percy¡¯s gaze mellowed a little as he watched the boy torture the merchant. It was still cruel and inexcusable, but it wasn¡¯t solely the kid¡¯s fault. The system that created people like this was more to blame.


    But he shook those concerns away for now. Either way, he didn¡¯t have the power to interfere just yet. Instead, he remained silent, clenching his fists as he observed the sickening scene before him. He might not be able to help the boy¡¯s victim, but he could at least try to learn a thing or two about his domain.


    he couldn¡¯t help but raise an eyebrow.


    While it had caught him by surprise at first, it wasn¡¯t that big a deal. Compared to Galahad¡¯s or the Starry Queen¡¯s, the boy¡¯s domain was gentle as a breeze, lacking any substance behind it. Not that strange, given his age. In fact, Percy would be surprised if the Holy Child had ever fought a real battle. Of course, this would change over time, as the boy progressed through his training as a candidate god. For now though, he was a Blue in name only.


    Percy wasn¡¯t sure if it was entirely due to the boy¡¯s inexperience, or if his training with Galahad had played a role, but he was confident he¡¯d be able to move even without Synchronization if he really tried. Still, the Holy Child would sense that, and things would only go downhill from there.


    Not that it was any of his business, of course. The only thing he wanted was for the boy to grow bored and leave of his own accord. Sadly, the place reeked of blood by the time that happened. The merchant was still alive, but he¡¯d need a damn good healer if he wanted to walk again. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    As soon as the spectacle ended, Percy walked through the dispersing crowd, discreetly grabbing Nesha before leaving cautiously. It was only once they¡¯d put some distance from the Holy Child¡¯s entourage that they hurried their steps, making their way back to the inn.


    ¡°What should we do?¡± Nesha asked as they entered their room.


    ¡°Originally, I wanted us to leave town tomorrow. We still have a lot of ground to cover. But I think we should lay low for a couple more days, until those people are long gone. I¡¯d rather not meet them on the road by accident.¡±


    The girl nodded back in agreement. The good news was that she¡¯d managed to buy a few crystal tulips from the merchants. Percy should be able to pacify the potion with those. Between alchemy and runecrafting, they¡¯d have plenty of things to keep themselves busy as they waited.


    Not right now though. His head was still killing him. He was about to lean for a quick nap, when his familiar called to him.


    At first, he panicked, his thoughts instantly wandering to the worst-case scenario. Had the Holy Child ran into Micky and Elaine?!


    But he calmed down once the crow explained this had nothing to do with that. Apparently, he¡¯d made some progress with his ice magic. Furthermore, Elaine wanted to speak with him too, saying she had something to give him. After bringing Nesha up to speed, the two left town from a different side, heading towards the others.


    ___________________________________


    A/N: The chapter¡¯s title was hidden to avoid spoiling people who haven¡¯t read the last one yet.


    Actual title:Chapter 236 ¨C Green-born

 Chapter 237: Ocarina

    ¡°Start by splitting them up.¡± Elaine said.


    Following her instructions, Micky spread his wings wide, channelling mana through them. Percy watched as two streams flowed from the crow¡¯s abdomen, each following a distinct set of channels. With a single flap, Micky sent a harmless spray of water over Percy and Nesha, the droplets dancing playfully in the soft breeze.


    ¡°He still needs a lot of practice if he wants to use magic the traditional way.¡± Elaine remarked.


    Micky had always used his second core in tandem with his mutation, taking advantage of his glowing feathers to enhance his air affinity. Unfortunately, he hadn¡¯t developed any mutations to complement his new mana types yet, meaning he¡¯d have to put in more effort to make them work effectively.


    ¡°What about the ice affinity? Is that any good?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°Better than the others, at least.¡± Elaine said, before elaborating. ¡°It doesn¡¯t need any preparation since it¡¯s technically his default affinity.¡±


    Right on cue, Micky gathered more mana into his wings, this time directing it through a third set of pathways. A thin layer of frost formed over his feathers. With a sharp flap, he sent a flurry of tiny ice shards toward Percy. They didn¡¯t carry much force, but the technique showed promise. S~ea??h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°What about Circulation?¡± he asked.


    Elaine shrugged.


    ¡°His channels will be tempered in a few weeks, but I can only teach him the water pattern. He¡¯ll have to figure the ice one on his own.¡±


    Percy nodded. That was about what he had expected. Neither he nor Micky were novices. Given some time, he was confident the crow would get there by himself.


    With that settled, he brought Elaine and Micky up to speed on the day¡¯s events, warning them to stay alert for any signs of the Divine Root. They were more likely to leave town via one of the roads than to stumble upon their remote lakeside camp, but there was no harm in being careful.


    ¡°There was something else I wanted to talk to you about.¡± Elaine said.


    Percy looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to continue.


    ¡°I have a little gift for you ¨C to make up for all the birthday presents you¡¯ve missed over the years. I was planning to give it to you before you left the mansion, but with everything that happened, I completely forgot. I only remembered it today when I accidentally saw it in my spatial amulet.¡±


    ¡°Elaine¡­ you didn¡¯t have to do that. Just having you here with us is more than enough.¡± Percy said, feeling a pang of guilt. ¡°Besides, I¡¯ve missed all your birthdays too, and I didn¡¯t prepare anything for you.¡±


    But his cousin just waved off his concern.


    ¡°Are you kidding? You¡¯ve been giving me free elixirs for months! I¡¯ve already shaved half a year off my next promotion! And then there¡¯s Circulation ¨C I never even repaid you for that! Compared to all those things, this is just a cheap trinket.¡±


    Percy sighed. He didn¡¯t agree with her assessment. As far as he was concerned, having somebody who genuinely cared for him throughout his childhood was worth more than anything. Everything else was just . But he let it slide, knowing how stubborn his cousin could be.


    Oblivious to his thoughts, Elaine rummaged through her belongings before pulling a small object out of her amulet. It looked a lot like the pinecones from the Whistling Woods, though it was among the largest Percy had ever seen. Its shape was almost perfect, free of deformities or scars ¨C at least, none that hadn¡¯t been placed there intentionally. Small holes dotted its surface in a careful pattern, one that looked strikingly familiar.


    ¡°Is this what I think it is?¡± he raised an eyebrow.


    Elaine grinned.


    ¡°I noticed you never got around to replacing your ocarina after gifting it to Owain. While I was staying with Micky in the Whistling Woods, I had some free time and thought the cones would make a perfect material for one.¡±


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    Percy brought the instrument to his lips and blew a gentle note, listening carefully. The sound was remarkably similar to his old ocarina, though it also carried the nostalgic undertone of the woods. He spent the next couple of minutes experimenting, testing each hole one by one.


    ¡°Wow! How did you get it to sound right?!¡± he asked, genuinely impressed. ¡°And all the holes are exactly where I¡¯m used to!¡±


    Elaine¡¯s smile widened.


    ¡°I took note of the pattern from Owain¡¯s ocarina and made sure to punch the holes in the same spots.¡±


    Percy remained sceptical.


    ¡°And that was enough to make it sound right?¡±


    ¡°Of course not!¡± Elaine exclaimed. ¡°The first one was awful. I went through hundreds of cones, experimenting with different hole sizes, until I got the sound just right!¡±


    Percy felt a warmth spread through his chest. The ocarina itself wasn¡¯t anything flashy, but the sheer amount of effort Elaine had put into making it was staggering. She hadn¡¯t just made him a replacement; she had gone above and beyond, crafting something even better than the original. She¡¯d clearly avoided many of the little girl¡¯s mistakes too. Every note was crisp, every hole perfectly placed. He turned the ocarina over in his hands, his fingers tracing the careful craftsmanship.


    ¡°Thank you, Elaine. This means a lot.¡±


    She shrugged, but there was a pleased glint in her eyes.


    ¡°Just don¡¯t go gifting this one to the next toddler you meet, alright? I¡¯m not making another one.¡±


    Percy chuckled, but didn¡¯t say anything else. Calling everyone over, he sat by the lake¡¯s shore with his companions, dipping his feet in the water. Falling back, he relaxed on the cool grass, his eyes scanning the starlit sky above their heads. Placing the ocarina on his lips once more, he began playing, having missed the feeling a lot. The last time he¡¯d had the chance to do this had been before Rambert¡¯s attack in the Grisly Bog.


    At first, the tune was a little clunky as he was a bit rusty. However, he soon improved, recalling all the practice he¡¯d put into the art. It was oddly soothing. The only skill he¡¯d ever invested time into, that didn¡¯t have anything to do with his magic or his combat prowess. But he¡¯d stuck with it regardless, still trying to grasp the beautiful melody Micky ¨C ¨C had played for him all those years ago.


    he couldn¡¯t help but think.


    His friend had practiced for decades to get there. Not to mention that the kik¡¯lit was a vastly different instrument to his shoddy ocarina. Sporting two shafts and handled with four hands, it could play tunes no human was even capable of. But Percy didn¡¯t aim to recreate the whole thing. His goal was much more modest than that.


    Skipping the first part at the forefront of Micky¡¯s performance ¨C the uplifting melody a mother might play to cheer her child up ¨C he instead focused on the other part. The deeper, more beautiful tune. It was a sad one, but the sound had touched his soul that day, remaining with him for years. This was what he¡¯d tried so hard to recreate back in the swamp ¨C with limited success.


    Still, his companions didn¡¯t complain, enjoying his music as he gave it another shot with his newly upgraded instrument¡­


    This hidden layer spoke of struggles against adversity, and of the fight for one¡¯s place in the world. Like a people cursed without an affinity, trying to protect their home. Or a boy born with a Red core, looked down by all.


    Percy continued to play, getting closer and closer to that day¡¯s tune. Suddenly, he felt some emotions seep through the bond, Micky¡¯s thoughts inadvertently spilling over. At first, it was just the cone¡¯s whistles reminding him of his time as a chick. But soon, the feelings grew deeper still. .


    Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat as he realized what was happening. But he didn¡¯t allow himself to stop, sinking deeper into the music.


    Micky¡¯s emotions intensified, as vivid memories began to accompany them. It started with flashes of the damp cell. The bloodstained arena. Those could have just as easily come from Percy.


    But more kept flowing through the cord, as the crow started to lose control of his mana. Ice spilled forth from his abdomen, drawing the girls¡¯ attention. Percy nodded at them to calm them down, his focus returning to his familiar.


    A cold feeling spread through Percy¡¯s chest. Initially, he thought it was due to what Micky was currently experiencing ¨C the mana flooding his body. But the cold felt stronger than it should be, given Micky¡¯s resistance to his own affinity. It was as if he was standing amidst a blizzard, hellbent on freezing his very soul.


    Percy¡¯s fingers trembled, nearly missing a note or two, as the ethereal cord shook, clearly disturbed by something. The memories kept ramming into his mind, too fast for him to even retain, as a wave of worry began to sprout within him.


    But he didn¡¯t even get to the end of that thought, when he suddenly lost control of his body. Everything around him turned dark, as a frigid wind blew against him, almost strong enough to lift him to the air. Instinctively, he dug his heels deeper in the¡­


    So unsettled was he, that he hadn¡¯t even registered he wasn¡¯t alone. That only changed when he felt something clench around his hand. . It was warm. Comforting. .


    Percy glanced at them ¨C ¨C trying to piece together her identity. It was a little difficult, given how dark their surroundings were, but he just about managed to make her face out ¨C probably thanks to his Yellow core. He recognized her too! Well, didn¡¯t. But did. Sporting a long beak, shoulder-length black hair and two pairs of arms, she stood a couple heads taller than he was.

 Chapter 238: Crimson dawn

    Percy realized.


    It wasn¡¯t that strange. This was probably a fixed memory ¨C nothing like the clones he was used to creating. Everything Micky was experiencing right now had already happened a time ago. Giving up resistance, Percy allowed his body to move as it wanted to, focusing on gathering as much information as possible instead of fighting it.


    Obviously, this to be Huehue, but not as he remembered it. The complete absence of sunlight was odd, considering that the local star¡¯s location was supposedly fixed in place.


    Micky was doing relatively ok. He was still a child in this memory, but he was better dressed than Percy remembered him from their time together. His clothes were worn and full of holes, of course, but at least he did have a few layers on. More importantly, Micky was a Yellow-born, his body better suited to weather the elements.


    His mother was alright too. Sure, she was pale and haggard ¨C probably due to hunger more than the cold ¨C but she didn¡¯t seem to be in any immediate danger. Her Orange core wasn¡¯t doing her any favours, but her adult body helped.


    It was the third person in their company that had it the worst. Percy only registered her presence when Micky turned her way. His must¡¯ve been a couple years older than him, but she was also an Orange-born like their mother. Her face wasn¡¯t as thin as theirs ¨C she was probably given more food than them, to better her odds. Still, she wasn¡¯t handling the cold as well. She was shivering, her forehead adorned with frozen droplets of sweat. Her breath was rugged, wisps of silver escaping with each exhausted heave.


    ¡°I think we should take a break.¡± Micky¡¯s mother said in a foreign language, looking at her daughter with concern.


    The good news was that Percy understood her, likely because he was experiencing this through Micky¡¯s perspective. Soon, everything around him faded, the splintered memory coming to an abrupt end.


    ***


    The next thing he saw was the snowy wall of an artificial cave, illuminated by a cyan orb floating in front of Micky¡¯s mother. The three of them were huddled together inside the tight space, trying to keep each other warm.


    His sister ¨C whose name neither he nor Micky seemed capable of recalling ¨C was munching on some frozen rations. As for the others, they were just watching her, probably having to fast due to the scarcity of their supplies.


    That was when Micky¡¯s mother picked up an object from within her clothes. An object Percy identified.


    Placing her beak inside the wide end, the woman blew a tired breath in it, as all twenty of her fingers brushed over the holes along its twin shafts. The familiar melody soon filled the small cave, bouncing off the cold walls.


    Percy hadn¡¯t thought it possible, but the melody flowed more smoothly than the last time he¡¯d heard it, the two tunes blending together seamlessly.


    Finally having a moment to think, countless questions swirled within Percy¡¯s mind. Why was this happening? Was Micky about to regain his memories?


    But he shoved all of them aside, losing himself in the beautiful music. He didn¡¯t even register the passage of time until the memory broke off again, everyone skipping to the next scene.


    ***


    Micky was walking with his family again, trudging through the darkness. The howling winds were loud enough to mask both the crunches of their steps and their rhythmic breaths. The good news was that the girl was doing a little better than before, the short break having helped.


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    ¡°Mother¡­ how much longer until we reach the bright side?¡± Percy asked, surprising himself.


    ¡°We¡¯re nearly there¡­¡± the woman said, before sighing. ¡°But don¡¯t get too excited. You know we can¡¯t stay there too long. As soon as your sister is better, we¡¯ll have to leave.¡±


    The boy nodded as Percy pondered his mother¡¯s cryptic words. She hadn¡¯t said much, but he could piece a couple of things together thanks to what he already knew about Huehue. According to his understanding of this place, the bright side was entirely under their enemies¡¯ control. As for the dark side, it was scantly liveable. Especially for people at the lower grades.


    ***


    Percy couldn¡¯t tell if this was the same memory, or if he¡¯d skipped ahead again. Micky¡¯s sister was back to doing worse, and even his mother looked more gaunt. Micky himself had grown tired, the cold seeping through his clothes, biting at his skin.


    Still, it was something else that captured his attention. A crimson glint pierced through the horizon, casting its dim light upon them. The light instantly illuminated their surroundings a little, allowing Percy to make them out. A plain of red snow stretched as far as his vision did.


    They weren¡¯t close enough for him to feel any warmth yet. The sunlight Huehue received wasn¡¯t that intense to begin with ¨C even the places directly underneath the star weren¡¯t very hot. But the tiniest difference might just be enough to save the girl¡¯s life.


    Percy would have sighed if he could.


    Micky had already told him what had become of his family. Only, he wasn¡¯t sure if it was days or years from now...


    Either way, the others hadn¡¯t a clue about that, so they just pressed onward with renewed vigour, their gazes locked on the eerie star. Suffice to say, Percy was more unsettled than they were, this being his first time watching such a strange sunrise.


    Yet, its sheer beauty was undeniable. It was as if somebody had buried an enchanted ruby in the distance, the colossal gemstone slowly emerging from the snow with every step they took.


    ¡­


    ***


    When the memory next broke off, he found himself farther along the plain, the dim star having climbed a little higher. It was almost entirely above the horizon by now. The wind wasn¡¯t quite as cold as it had been, though the difference was barely noticeable.


    It wasn¡¯t just the three of them anymore. Standing a few paces ahead, a group of men looked at Micky¡¯s family with unconcealed disdain. His mother was on her knees, seemingly pleading with them to spare her children. One of them stepped forth. Percy recognized him too! After all, he was the very person who¡¯d ended this man¡¯s life!


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    It was decades before they would meet, but ¨C as a Yellow-cored adult ¨C his appearance wouldn¡¯t change that much.


    Percy wanted nothing more than to stop it. To spare his friend from reliving the tragedy. But there was nothing he could do. Everything was already set in stone¡­


    Oblivious to his thoughts, and unconcerned about the distraught mother¡¯s cries, Mixcoatl took one deep breath after another, flooding his body with mana. He manifested a couple of javelins in two of his hands, crossing the other pair of arms in front of his chest. By the time he reached them, the cyan lines had already lit up all over his body.


    Micky followed suit, unwilling to take this without a fight. Percy noticed the boosting art helped a little with the cold enveloping them from outside, though Circulation probably did more harm than good, all things considered. Their lungs protested as Micky kept filling them with cold air, a wave of numbness spreading out of their chest.


    Still, the boy ignored the discomfort, rushing at the older man with a couple rods of his own, fully intent to lay his life down if he had to ¨C to protect his loved ones.


    Mixcoatl merely cackled at the sight, however. He shattered Micky¡¯s weapons with ease, the constructs not nearly as firm as they would eventually grow to be...


    ¡°Leave this one alive. He¡¯ll make a fine gladiator.¡± he said, kicking Micky back to his companions.


    The men held him down, but Micky didn¡¯t pay them any heed, struggling to lift his head up as he clawed against the snow. He raised his eyes just in time to watch the javelin pierce through both women with a sickening squelch, a splash of blood painting the snow an even deeper red.


    Neither of them let a sound out, sobbing quietly in each other¡¯s arms, tears rolling down their cheeks as more blood dripped from their beaks.


    ¡°NOOOOOOOOOO!!!¡± Micky screamed, but noone cared.


    Noone but Percy. Percy wanted to console his friend. To promise him they¡¯d chase Mixcoatl to the ends of the universe if they had to. That they wouldn¡¯t rest until he was dead. .


    He felt the emptiness in Micky¡¯s chest, as the boy¡¯s heart was torn out. The sting in his eyes, as they welled with tears. The bitter lump nesting in his throat. The cold winds, lashing against his skin, uncaring about his sorrow. The memory was just as vivid as the day it happened.


    And then¡­ it was over.

 Chapter 239: Resonance

    ¡°Percy! Are you ok?!¡± Nesha¡¯s distraught voice was the first thing he caught.


    Prying his eyes open, he found himself back at the lakeside, resting on the same spot as before. Both girls were by his side, holding him in place. The patch he lay on was now covered in more mud than grass, likely thanks to all his thrashing. His clothes were stuck to his back, caked in a layer of dirt and sweat.


    He nodded at his companions to calm them down, before turning his attention inwards.


    The next thing he noticed was that his mana was out of control, flowing randomly around his body. A lot of it was swirling aimlessly through his channels, in patterns vaguely reminiscent of Synchronization. Yet the boosting art hadn¡¯t properly activated, due to a lack of mana and conscious control. Instead, much of it just spilled through his pores, slowly leaking out of his body.


    Reigning it in took a couple of seconds. Well, most of it at least. Some got sucked by the ethereal cord in his chest. Stopping that seemed like too much trouble to be worth it at the moment¡­


    ¡°Wait¡­ the cord! Micky!!¡±


    Only then did he remember he wasn¡¯t in this alone. His familiar had been affected as much as he had. Gazing around, he soon spotted the crow a few metres away. Unlike him, however, Micky didn¡¯t even twitch. He was encased in a thin layer of ice, reminiscent of a frozen statue.


    Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat at the sight. Over the next minute or so, he repeatedly called to his familiar, trying to shake him awake. Whatever the bird was experiencing had left him completely closed off to external stimuli.


    They could try breaking the ice forcefully, of course, but that was dangerous. It covered the bird¡¯s organs as much as it did its plumage. If they made a mistake, they could easily injure Micky. The only safe option was to get him to thaw himself.


    Easier said than done. The darn thing still oscillated like crazy, as if it was attached to a tsunami. Percy was hesitant to describe the cord in physical terms ¨C for the most part it was just a carrier for thoughts and memories. Still, he as if its width had more than doubled, stretched beyond its limits.


    Percy frowned. This wasn¡¯t the first time the cord was acting up in some manner, but it had never been bad before. Usually, it happened whenever his clones encountered some trouble during their return trip.


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    Was it because of his proximity to Micky? Or the fact that the disturbance had affected both ends of the connection, rather than just the one? He had to do something fast, lest the crow suffocated within its own construct.


    Instead of trying to stop the mana flow, Percy embraced it. He pushed more soul mana through the cord, sending his thoughts alongside it, hoping to jolt his familiar awake.


    The first pulse yielded nothing. But Percy didn¡¯t give up, trying it a second and a third time. This to work, somehow! If it failed, he didn¡¯t know what else to do!


    The response came strained and weak. Micky clearly wasn¡¯t in the mental space to articulate his thoughts properly. Still, this was a good sign!


    Percy said, sending another pulse through the cord.


    The ice mana in the crow¡¯s abdomen was out of control, much like Percy¡¯s had been a few minutes ago. Though the bird clearly had it even worse.


    Percy waited a few moments, watching his familiar with bated breath. . The mana was still running rampant, showing no sign of stopping. He didn¡¯t know if the crow was having difficulty controlling it, or if he¡¯d lost consciousness entirely again. Whatever the case was, they were swiftly running out of time.


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    Pulling more mana out of his core, he pushed it through their connection, trying to reach his familiar. Before his second core advanced to Orange, his mind had inadvertently slipped into the crow¡¯s body multiple times. Maybe he could recreate that?


    A sound plan ¨C in theory ¨C but it wasn¡¯t working. No matter what he did, he appeared stuck in his own flesh, merely wasting his mana and his time for nothing.


    Almost out of options, Percy took a step back. Rather than sending his mind through the cord, he focused on the ice mana on the other side, trying to yank control of it from afar. . Neither he nor Micky had ever accomplished anything of the sort. Their mana was generally their own, unless they volunteered it through their connection first. And that only worked with soul mana or its fused variant.


    They couldn¡¯t just reach out and forcefully grab the other¡¯s mana without their consent¡­


    Well, it was going to have to work, as Percy couldn¡¯t think of anything else.


    Soon, a bunch of new complications arose. The fact that he¡¯d never personally experienced the ice affinity wasn¡¯t helping. At least, he¡¯d used water and air mana separately in the past. Percy focused on those memories. The times he had experienced intense cold might also make this easier. Like the memories he¡¯d just watched with Micky. Or the time he possessed that alien lizard, all those years ago.


    For a while, nothing happened. But he didn¡¯t let that discourage him, pushing harder. Rather than his mana or his thoughts, Percy was trying to send his through the cord! To forcefully attach it to Micky¡¯s mana!


    Eventually, he got a reaction. It was faint at first, but he the flow change course inside Micky¡¯s body ever so slightly. Perhaps it wasn¡¯t Percy¡¯s doing, but he had to believe it was. Anything else would spell Micky¡¯s doom.


    Doubling down, he intensified his efforts, trying to think of Micky¡¯s cores as his own. The crow¡¯s mana as nothing more than an instrument to his will. A soft cracking sound emerged, as a surface shard fell off Micky¡¯s plumage.


    Percy kept disturbing the mana flow, drawing it back to Micky¡¯s abdomen. Whatever he failed to grab, he pushed outwards instead, expelling it from the bird¡¯s body. . Before long, the bird was able to breathe again, its emotions spilling over to Percy as it regained consciousness.


    Percy thought.


    His own relief was instantly suppressed by the crow¡¯s sorrow and confusion. A strange thing, considering that they¡¯d long learned to keep their thoughts to themselves. Not that he blamed his friend for feeling this way, of course. Micky had just watched his family getting butchered. A family that, until earlier that day, he hadn¡¯t even remembered.


    In any case, Percy was glad that the danger had passed, but they still had to do something about the cord. It kept shaking, drawing his mana against his will. It was also the reason for their emotions leaking through.


    While they couldn¡¯t have it continue its rampage, the upsides of the transformation were undeniable. Percy hadn¡¯t thought about it much earlier, but his mana had flowed more easily, and in greater amounts than ever before. In fact, he was confident he wouldn¡¯t have managed to commandeer Micky¡¯s ice mana if not for this.


    The song had been the trigger for more than the crow¡¯s memory. Whatever this power was, they couldn¡¯t afford to let it slip through their fingers.


    Percy sent another pulse, this time paying closer attention to the cord. The mana passed through it like a wave, briefly calming the connection down.


    Reaching out to Micky, he navigated through the sea of tangled thoughts and raging emotions plaguing the both of them, explaining the situation. They had to work together to regain ownership of their bond.


    ¡°Percy! Can you take a moment to explain what¡¯s going on?!¡± Elaine asked, having lost her patience.


    ¡°The gist of it is that we¡¯re trying to turn the accident into something beneficial for us.¡± he replied succinctly.


    A longer explanation would have to wait.


    Activating Synchronization properly this time, Percy gathered a lot of mana before sending it along in a dense packet. As soon as Micky received it, he bounced it right back, in accordance to his earlier instructions.


    They kept going back and forth for over an hour, the cord calming down a little every time the mana passed through it. The influx of emotions also died down, as Percy and Micky slowly managed to force the connection back under their control.


    ¡°Finally¡­ it¡¯s done.¡± he exhaled, allowing his boosting art to come undone.


    That said, there were plenty of things still begging for his attention. While Micky had survived the ordeal, the crow¡¯s heart was still in turmoil. Percy had never really explained to him where he had come from, nor had the crow ever thought to ask. But there was no avoiding it any longer. A big conversation was clearly overdue¡­


    And then, there was the new power they had unlocked. The cord had calmed down, but it was still stronger than ever. Their thoughts and mana alike passed through it with no hindrance whatsoever. Not to mention the new ability of controlling each other¡¯s mana that they¡¯d have to explore more carefully.


    For now, however, Percy was content just reading the notification.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Secret Art: Familiar ¨C Crude -> Secret Art: Soul Resonance ¨C Refined!]

 Chapter 240: Micky’s choice

    ¡°So¡­ that four-armed boy in the vision¡­ you¡¯re saying that was ?¡± Micky asked once everything had calmed down.


    Percy nodded. Evidently, his familiar hadn¡¯t truly regained his memories just yet. Not in any complete sense, at least. He¡¯d merely experienced those scenes as an outside observer ¨C much like Percy had. Still, the crow¡¯s time with his old family had inevitably sparked several questions.


    Percy proceeded to recount his experience on Huehue, to help Micky understand his origin. Elaine and Nesha also listened in, sitting quietly at the side. The former¡¯s expression remained unperturbed ¨C it wasn¡¯t her first time hearing the story. Nesha, on the other hand, was a lot more curious. Percy had briefly explained how his familiar had been created, but not in detail.


    ¡°Now that we know it¡¯s possible for you to regain your memories, we can work on it together.¡± Percy said upon concluding the explanation. ¡°But only if you want to.¡±


    The earlier development was undeniable proof that the old Micky was still buried in there somewhere, waiting to be dug out. After all, the flashback couldn¡¯t have popped out of thin air.


    But Percy¡¯s feelings on the matter were rather mixed. Had this been years ago, he¡¯d have been ecstatic. This had all started with a ¨C ¨C attempt to save his friend¡¯s life. At the time, he hadn¡¯t expected Micky would lose all his memories, starting over from a blank slate. The guilt over that still gnawed at him to this day. Suffice to say, helping his friend regain his identity was something he¡¯d wanted the whole time.


    Yet, there was so much more to consider. The new Micky wasn¡¯t just a young, oblivious bird anymore. He was essentially his own person by now. Smart, energetic and fully capable of communication. Somebody he¡¯d spent the better part of the last decade with.


    As much as he owed the old Micky, he¡¯d only spent a couple days with him by comparison. And he had no idea how the lost memories might affect his familiar. Percy had no intention of doing anything drastic without hearing the crow¡¯s opinion first.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it. I want to remember.¡± the bird replied after deliberating for a few minutes. S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Are you sure? I don¡¯t know how long it¡¯ll take, but there¡¯s no going back.¡±


    The bird remained silent, its eyes glinting with determination. Percy sighed. He didn¡¯t know if this was the correct choice, but he understood where Micky was coming from.


    His soul was made of three components ¨C the stillborn bird¡¯s, Percy¡¯s and the original Micky¡¯s. The last one was arguably the most important part of his identity. After all, the bird had no memories or intelligence of its own, and Percy¡¯s soul would have only produced another clone if left by itself. Instead, it was the gladiator he owed his individuality to. Or even the very reason for his existence. Naturally, Micky wanted to know more about that person.


    ¡°Ok then. In addition to our other projects, we¡¯ll make some time for the ocarina. If we¡¯re lucky, it might jog another memory or two¡­¡±


    And just like that, Percy¡¯s schedule got filled to the brim again. He hadn¡¯t even had a full day to digest his gains from the Vault when all of this happened. Now, he had a newly evolved Secret Art to explore, and to help his friend recover his memories. Not to mention that they were still travelling to the Thirsty Valley.


    ¡°Anyway, it¡¯s getting late. Why don¡¯t you guys head back to town? I¡¯ll stay with Micky.¡± he said.


    ¡°Is that wise?¡± Elaine asked. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t one of us stay with each of you, in case your connection acts up again?¡±


    Percy shook his head.


    ¡°The cord is currently under control, and we won¡¯t be doing any more dumb experiments tonight. We¡¯ll just sleep and take turns on guard duty.¡±


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    Elaine was about to protest, but Nesha grabbed her hand, dragging her along.


    ¡°Come on. He¡¯s right. When was the last time you slept on a proper bed? Take advantage until we hit the road again¡­¡±


    ***


    Percy felt a lot better come morning. His head still hurt a little, though not as much as yesterday. He could have used a few more hours of sleep, but he¡¯d survive. At least, nothing else had happened. The cord had reverted to its original state at some point while he was asleep. Still, he felt they could expand it again if they wanted, without much effort¡­


    Looking at the empty space stretching between him and Micky ¨C who was currently perched on a nearby tree ¨C he noticed something peculiar. A faint thin line was there, linking his chest to the crow¡¯s.


    ¡°Since when is the ethereal cord visible to the naked eye?¡± he asked, though it didn¡¯t take a genius to guess the answer.


    On second thought, it shouldn¡¯t be visible to the per se. It was probably his mutation doing the heavy lifting, drawing from his Status to make this possible. As for why he hadn¡¯t noticed it the night before? Well, the darkness likely hadn¡¯t helped. His mind had also been occupied by other things too.


    At any rate, Percy was tempted to send some soul mana to Micky, to observe how the connection worked with his eyes. Sadly, he¡¯d already promised Elaine not to do any experiments in her absence.


    Sighing, he resisted the urge. Calling Micky over, he handed him some Aurora Dew, the two of them drinking their morning dose together.


    It wasn¡¯t ideal, but Nesha hadn¡¯t found any suitable deattunement ingredients.


    The good news was that Nesha had bought crystal tulips for him. He had more than enough to experiment to his heart¡¯s content, brewing multiple doses of trollsfury potion. He¡¯d feel a lot safer with it too, the potion having already proven its worth against Jason.


    Over the next few minutes, Percy used the Moirais¡¯ technique to cleanse both of his cores, while setting his alchemy tools up.


    ***


    The sun was already at its apex when Elaine and Nesha came back, carrying some freshly baked bread with them. By now, Percy had finished brewing, a newly bought leather flask strapped to his waist. He¡¯d filled it up with even more potion than he¡¯d used the last time. And there was some leftover too, which he¡¯d stored in his amulet for a rainy day.


    ¡°You seem to be in a good mood.¡± Nesha noted, handing him his lunch.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be in an even better one if you tell me the brat is gone.¡± Percy replied, biting a steaming chunk off the bread.


    ¡°Afraid not.¡± Elaine pitched in. ¡°Though we did hear a few rumours about him. We still have no idea how long they¡¯re staying here, but we know where they¡¯re going. Same place as us.¡±


    Percy nearly spat his food out, his face twisting into a grimace. This was exactly what he¡¯d been afraid of. Not that it was strange for a Holy Child to travel to the Thirsty Valley ¨C that was precisely why that place even existed.


    But it was quite inconvenient for them. In theory, they could try rushing out today and hope the Green-born¡¯s entourage never caught up. Though he¡¯d rather not risk it. Those people all had higher grades, so they probably travelled much faster than they did.


    ¡°Do you want to take a detour? It¡¯ll add a few weeks to our journey, but it might still be worth it if we leave now.¡± Nesha suggested.


    Percy considered it. It wasn¡¯t a bad idea. Now that they knew where the kid was headed, leaving via a different route should be fine.


    ¡°Alright. But we¡¯ll leave at night. Micky should spend the rest of the afternoon using Regulation to preserve his stamina for the trip.¡±


    The crow didn¡¯t need to be told twice. Or even once for that matter. He¡¯d already activated his Wild Art the moment he saw Elaine and Nesha walking over.


    ¡°What should we do until then?¡± Nesha asked.


    Percy handed her a piece of paper. He¡¯d drawn her an example of the shape rune to practice on. Of course, the symbol itself wouldn¡¯t be enough to activate the enchantment ¨C he¡¯d have to share some additional insight with her over the coming days. Still, learning to draw the rune was a necessary step. It should keep her busy for a few hours.


    ¡°If you finish early, continue working on Circulation. Meanwhile, I¡¯ll be sending out another clone. Now that I¡¯m done with Rambert and the Vault, I need to go back to spamming them every couple of days. As for Elaine¡­¡±


    He flashed his cousin an apologetic expression. He didn¡¯t really have anything for her. She didn¡¯t seem to mind, however, waving his concern off with a chuckle.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. I¡¯ve been working on a couple new spells of my own over the last couple of years. I guess it¡¯s as good a time as any to get back to that.¡±


    And with that, everyone got started on their tasks. The Holy Child¡¯s presence had really messed their plans up, but hopefully they wouldn¡¯t have to worry about him after tonight¡­

 Chapter 241: Collateral damage

    Countless footfalls broke the oppressive silence of the night, as dozens of men marched through the fields. They moved as quietly as they could, but there was only so much such a large group could do to mask their presence.


    Most of them were doomed to die tonight, though they didn¡¯t seem to care about that, continuing their journey as if it was any other day. Only their leader had his brow creased, various thoughts swirling within his tired mind. Every now and then, he glanced at the letter in his hands, examining the order that had led him to such a risky move.


    He sighed. At least, the fact that they wanted him to turn himself in, coupled with Percy¡¯s wanted posters circulating around Remior were good signs that his grandson had evaded capture.


    But he had to show up at the Guild. That much was unavoidable. And his odds of walking out of there a free man weren¡¯t that great. This was why he¡¯d decided to do one last thing for his family, to place House Avalon in a better spot in the years to come.


    he thought, glancing at the enemy¡¯s headquarters.


    Strictly speaking, this was something he¡¯d considered doing many times before. But a family¡¯s patriarch couldn¡¯t easily leave their territory, lest they left their House open to attack.


    Luckily, their circumstances had changed a little over the past few months. Galahad not only had Circulation now, but even a brand-new acid affinity. And he had already opened the new channels, even though he¡¯d yet to extend the boosting art to all of them. Archibald was more confident leaving his son in charge of the family, trusting in his ability to hold his own even against a Violet if it came to it.


    This was why he¡¯d even dared to leave the mansion, but he couldn¡¯t possibly leave the Camelot province entirely. Not without dealing with House Tantalus once and for all.


    ¡°Go.¡± he muttered softly.


    The others in his company spread out, circling the enemy headquarters from every direction. Naturally, these weren¡¯t real people ¨C each of them sporting an appearance identical to his own. They were his clones!


    Watching them move, he took a deep breath after another, a series of verdant lines lighting up on his skin, swirling around like vines.


    he sighed, his expression grim.


    His objectives were set in stone. He had to exterminate House Tantalus tonight, forever purging this cancer from his family¡¯s territory. And he couldn¡¯t leave any witnesses behind, or news of Circulation would spread around like wildfire, drawing even more trouble to their province.


    A couple of scouts spotted his clones ¨C there were too many of them to hide. Sadly for the nobles, however, Archibald had spotted them much earlier. And the speed of his troops wasn¡¯t a joke, covering dozens of metres with each stride. Expertly positioning the clones like chess pieces, he swiftly took out the younger mages before they even got a chance to signal back to their family.


    Soon enough, his army invaded through every door and every window in the building, dispatching anyone they encountered in the process. Controlling so many bodies at once was a monumental task, but he¡¯d had centuries to master his bloodline.


    The first few seconds went by without a hitch, most of the enemies being fast asleep this late at night. Yet, it was inevitable that something would go wrong eventually.


    A single clone sported the physique of a Violet, but it couldn¡¯t use magic. Even a Green should be able to hold their own against them. Especially given how many he had to control. Once the first person survived the ambush, everything went downhill.


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    ¡°ENEMY ATTACK!¡± a panicked scream pierced through the bloodshed, alerting the rest of the nobles.


    It didn¡¯t take long for the mansion to light up in all sorts of colours, the family¡¯s Greens and Blues engaging his clones in battle. Archibald clicked his tongue, but he maintained his focus, having expected this.


    At first, he held the upper hand. Carried by their momentum, his clones continued to advance deeper into the building, laying waste to its unfortunate residents.


    But his opponents eventually regained their bearing. Eventually, the first clone fell, and then the second. The fifth. The twentieth. Broteas himself ¨C a fellow Violet ¨C slaughtered a dozen of them with ease, his lieutenants not falling far behind.


    Gritting his teeth, Archibald poured more mana into his troops, activating a spell. The clones¡¯ heartbeats sped up, as veins and arteries bulged like roots all over their skin. Their movements grew faster, their attacks more forceful, as they stared at their opponents with bloodshot eyes.


    Archibald would have used this from the start if he could, but he didn¡¯t want to waste it until they were deep inside the mansion. After all, the clones wouldn¡¯t last more than a few minutes under this boost.


    The high-ranking nobles were instantly on the back-foot again. The first Blue died not long after the spell took effect, a second joining him a couple minutes later. The Yellows who had grouped up to keep the clones at bay were instantly outmatched. Soon, only Greens or higher remained alive. Before long, a thick crimson mist spilled out of the mansion, the stench of iron reaching Archibald who stood a hundred metres away.


    But it wasn¡¯t his clones walking out alive a few minutes later. It was the enemy nobles¡­


    ¡°I didn¡¯t think you had it in you, to be honest.¡± Broteas said, his face grim. ¡°But I suppose this is the world we live in, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    Archibald didn¡¯t reply. His gut churned at the atrocity he¡¯d just committed. And he knew he wasn¡¯t even done yet. But he didn¡¯t regret it. It was either them, or his family. And House Tantalus had already proven themselves more than willing to do the same.


    By now, only 15 people stood in the enemy ranks. Broteas, two Blues and twelve Greens. All the weaklings had already perished. After the severe losses they¡¯d suffered over the last couple of years, catching them by surprise in the middle of the night had been the final nail in the coffin.


    ¡°It¡¯s over now.¡± Broteas said. ¡°At the end of the day, it¡¯s still our victory, isn¡¯t it? You¡¯ll die tonight, Archibald. You¡¯ll die screaming, after you spill the beans on that weird spell boosting your magic. Then, I¡¯ll wait for the Divine Root to crush your family, before rebuilding my own from the ashes.¡±


    Archibald sighed, allowing Circulation to fizzle out, plopping down weakly.


    ¡°If you wanted to do any of that, you should have held your breath¡­¡±


    Broteas raised an eyebrow, though his confusion didn¡¯t last long. A loud, wet cough drew his attention, as he jerked his head towards one of the surviving Greens. The man was on his knees, blood pouring like a waterfall from every orifice on his face.


    ¡°What the¨C?!¡±


    He barely got to ask the question, when a second man met the same fate, followed by a third. By the time he turned back to Archibald, one of the Blues had collapsed too, the Greens already spasming in agony. sea??h th§× novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Violent streams of mana gushed out of Broteas¡¯s pores like rivers, blending into a raging lake around him. It grew and stabilized as it mixed with his domain, threatening to cover the entire battlefield. However, he never got the chance to use it, as a wave of vertigo slammed into his head too, causing him to lose control of his mana, the water splashing out harmlessly.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you think it a little strange that I sent over half my clones after you?¡± Archibald asked.


    The man¡¯s eyes widened in realization. Had Archibald wanted to maximize his odds of victory, he should have kept the clones as far from him as possible, shouldn¡¯t he? Only after taking out all his underlings should he have tried to outnumber a fellow Violet.


    Getting up, Archibald walked towards Broteas, reading the notification flashing before his eyes.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Secret Art: Vector of Disease ¨C Masterful -> Secret Art: Plaguebringer ¨C Masterful!]


    Naturally, he¡¯d had his Secret Art for centuries already, though this was the first time he got to use it at such a large scale. Not to mention how much stronger it had grown, thanks to Circulation and the vastly increased number of clones.


    Broteas¡¯s spell crumbled, as he started bleeding too. He seemed to have accepted his fate, after seeing the last of his men die.


    ¡°Mind answering a question before you finish me?¡± Broteas asked. ¡°Just where the hell did you learn this spell? I¡¯ve never even heard of anything like it.¡±


    Archibald shrugged.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you if you answer a few questions of my own.¡± he replied, getting a nod back. ¡°Remember that massacre you ordered a couple decades ago?¡±


    Broteas frowned.


    ¡°Are you seriously ¨C ¨C trying to claim the moral high ground after what you¡¯ve just done tonight?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not it.¡± Archibald said, not bothering to explain.


    ¡°¡­sure.¡± the man spat. ¡°There was an opportunity to deal a blow to your family, and I took it. I didn¡¯t think much of it. What¡¯s even the big deal? If I¡¯m not mistaken, we only managed to take a few Red-borns out that time, didn¡¯t we? Just collateral damage.¡± he said, visibly holding back another coughing fit.


    Archibald nodded.


    ¡°Well, my grandson is the one who taught me the spell. The same grandson the Divine Root is after.¡±


    Broteas laughed, but it came out gurgled.


    ¡°You¡¯re kidding right? Isn¡¯t he just a Red-born runt?¡±


    Reaching Broteas, Archibald looked down at him. He stared into his eyes, his expression cold as an iceberg.


    ¡°He is. He was lucky enough to escape that massacre, but his parents weren¡¯t. I¡¯m sure he¡¯d be glad to know I used Circulation to take down your family. But that wasn¡¯t what he was thinking about when he taught me the spell.¡±


    The man¡¯s smile soured at the sound of that, but Archibald continued, right as the light finally left Broteas¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°¡­you were just collateral damage.¡±

 Chapter 242: Infinite powder cheat

    ¡°What are you even doing?¡± Elaine asked after Percy nearly stumbled on a pebble.


    He shrugged.


    ¡°If this works, I¡¯ll never have to condense another crystal in my life.¡±


    It was still dark, the trio walking towards the next town, the crow flying nearby. But Percy didn¡¯t pay much attention to where he stepped, busy with something more important. He held a small teal rod in his hand. It looked like his scythe¡¯s shaft, but it was only the length of his finger. And he was currently carving an enchantment on the middle section. A rather intricate one at that.


    ¡°Behold, ladies and gentlecrow. I present you, the infinite powder cheat!¡± he exclaimed once he was done, pouring some fused mana into the runes.


    Sadly, by the time his companions turned to look at him, a wisp of smoke had come out of the enchantment, the darn thing having barely blinked once before getting fried.


    ¡°Not seeing it.¡± Nesha joked, a smug grin plastered all over her face.


    ¡°Whatever. Just give me another hour or so.¡± Percy rolled his eyes, crushing the construct into powder before beginning the process anew.


    Originally, he¡¯d bought the self-repair enchantment mainly for his armour¡¯s maintenance. However, he¡¯d drawn some inspiration while reading the book, thinking of another potential application. He wasn¡¯t sure it would work, but he couldn¡¯t see a reason for it not to either. it did, it would save him several hours of manual labour per day.


    The girls didn¡¯t say anything else, allowing him to work in silence. It wasn¡¯t until about an hour later that he held a new rod, engraved with a ¨C hopefully functional ¨C self-repair enchantment this time. To avoid embarrassing himself again, he made sure the runes worked before speaking up.


    ¡°Ahem. After some technical difficulties, I¡¯m pleased to present you with the infinite powder cheat.¡± he said again, this time with more confidence.


    ¡°Eh¡­ I get the lack of smoke is supposed to be a good thing, but it still looks like a rod to me.¡± Elaine said.


    Percy grinned. Pinching one end of the construct between his thumb and index finger, he used his willpower to chip a fragment off, shattering it into powder. He didn¡¯t get that much ¨C barely enough to fill a teaspoon ¨C but this could easily be scaled up.


    Next, he fused some more of his mana, pouring it into the enchantment again. Unlike before, the runes guzzled down the teal mana even more eagerly, the rod shining a little brighter. At first, nothing happened. Nesha was about to open her mouth again, but she swallowed whatever she was about to say when the broken section of the rod started growing back. A few seconds later, the construct was as good as new.


    ¡°This is definitely impressive, though isn¡¯t it a little slow?¡± Elaine asked.


    Nesha was the one to come to his rescue this time, however.


    ¡°It¡¯s better than his old approach.¡±


    In the past, each marble took Percy around seven minutes. Seven minutes of focus. And he needed one of those marbles for each dose of elixir he wanted to convert into Aurora Dew. In other words, while each brewing session only took about 15 minutes in and of itself, he needed to spend 28 minutes condensing crystals beforehand. All in all, nearly of his daily chores were wasted on Crystallization!


    ¡°This is several times faster already. And that¡¯s without optimizing the shape of the construct, or the size of the enchantment. I haven¡¯t used Synchronization either. Not to mention that this is downright effortless. After I fine-tune everything, I¡¯ll be able to pour my mana into it as we travel and get all the powder I want.¡±


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    Elaine whistled, finally realizing how massive this was. Just like that, Percy had removed over two hours of gruelling work from his daily schedule. Or, well¡­ he , once they found the rainbow grass equivalent he needed.


    ***


    ¡°What do you guys think?¡± he asked, holding a strange contraption up for all to see.


    It was a teal bust of a crow, about as large as Percy¡¯s fist. A self-repair enchantment had been engraved on the base of its neck, this one over thrice as wide as the one he¡¯d drawn on the rod. A glowing gemstone was held in its beak, attached on both sides. It was as large as the marbles Percy usually made.


    Nesha squinted to shield her eyes from the sunlight as she examined the object. It was already late in the morning.


    ¡°Looks tacky.¡±


    ¡°I like it. It¡¯s cute.¡± Elaine disagreed.


    Either way, the aesthetics didn¡¯t matter much, as long as it did its job. Percy grabbed the gemstone, snapping it out of the beak. Next, he poured his mana into the enchantment, watching a new gemstone grow in real time, several times faster than before.


    ¡°23 seconds!¡± he exclaimed once the new gemstone was complete, more than satisfied with the result.


    And he wasn¡¯t the only one satisfied, apparently.


    [Congratulations! You have mastered a new spell: Spiritforged Effigy ¨C Refined!]


    Registering his eleventh Refined spell was no small feat, though he was a bit too tired to enjoy it. Keeping up with the others on foot was tougher on him due to his lower grade, and he¡¯d spent the whole night experimenting with the enchantment.


    ¡°Do you want to take a break?¡± Elaine asked, noticing he was out of breath.


    ¡°Nah. We¡¯ve already lost too much time. I¡¯d rather get to the next town as soon as possible.¡±


    She didn¡¯t seem very convinced, still looking at him with concern. But she kept her thoughts to herself, respecting his wishes.


    He sighed. It wasn¡¯t like he didn¡¯t to rest, but he couldn¡¯t afford to. This whole Divine Root fiasco was bound to blow in their faces sooner or later, and he needed to progress as much as possible until then. His spells aside, he to reach Yellow too.


    Shifting his attention elsewhere, his eyes landed on the ethereal cord in his abdomen. This one was connected to his most recent clone, yet he could still perceive it via his mutation. It appeared the evolution of his Secret Art affected his cords, not just the one linking him to his familiar.


    If he could communicate or even exchange mana with them from farther away, it would open many new doors... His clones would all have access to an endless supply of teal mana, in addition to whatever their hosts¡¯ affinities were. He could use that as a trump card in the Vault, and who knew where else¡­


    Then again, he wasn¡¯t sure if it was possible. Strictly speaking, he didn¡¯t even know how far his connection could reach, let alone if he could extend that.


    Gathering as much fused mana as he could, he forcefully pushed it through the cord, trying to widen it. The connection did expand slightly as the packet of mana coursed through it, though it snapped back to its previous size a moment later. Not that strange, given how Percy¡¯s new spell worked.


    Sadly, it was a little late to discuss that with¡­ well, . He¡¯d have to wait a couple days for the clone to return before planning ahead for the next one. In the meantime, he could experiment with his familiar.


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    the response was a little lethargic.


    The crow wasn¡¯t doing much better than he was, having to fly while keeping Regulation up.


    the bird groaned.


    Percy repeated his earlier actions, this time sending an orb of mana to his familiar. The cord expanded for a moment, before trying to shrink again. Micky didn¡¯t allow it, however, bouncing the mana back. The two kept at it for a while, soon managing to return their connection to its empowered state. The resistance seemed to vanish entirely, as the mana began to flow more smoothly through it, their thoughts threatening to spill out against their will.


    ¡°Awesome.¡± Percy muttered, having watched the entire process with his eyes this time.


    The mana wasn¡¯t detectible with Mana Sense while passing through the cord. Percy was confident the connection wasn¡¯t located in the physical plane. Perhaps it used the soul plane. Or maybe something even more esoteric.


    Still, it was nice to confirm they could indeed tap into this ability at will. He was tempted to play around with Micky¡¯s ice mana, but he figured he¡¯d bugged the poor bird enough for today.


    With nothing better to do, he grabbed the Effigy from his pocket. He might as well switch his brain off and work on his powder stash as they travelled¡­

 Chapter 243: Unforeseen developments

    It took them an entire week to reach the next town. The good news was that bandits never bothered them anymore, probably thanks to Elaine being in the group. Nothing like a Green to ward lowlifes off. Then again, Micky might have preferred to have a snack or two step forward of their own volition¡­


    Either way, it had been a fruitful few days, despite the detour. Percy gradually filled his jar up with powder, one gemstone at a time. He now had more than enough to reforge his armour ¨C after getting some well-deserved rest of course.


    He even convinced the crow to let him play around with his ice mana for a couple hours, offering him a chance to do the same with his own affinities in return. Accessing each other¡¯s cores from afar presented an additional layer of difficulty, on top of just familiarizing themselves with the new mana types. It was still a work in progress, but Percy hoped they could eventually learn a couple of combination spells.


    The clone also returned about two days in. Percy sent three more clones since, this time ¡®instructing¡¯ each of them to help him practice his Soul Resonance spell. Sadly, the first was a complete dud in that regard. Trying to establish a connection with the main body caused him to return to Remior ahead of time by accident. It was a tricky business, as the clones had to strengthen the cord before wandering too far. Unfortunately, doing so also strengthened the force pulling them home.


    Luckily, the next clone did a little better. He managed to reinforce the connection without getting dragged back in the process. He even possessed a horse-like beast on some alien world while communicating with Percy. Admittedly, it required a lot of effort from both of them to maintain the link ¨C probably due to the extreme distances involved. Neither of them could do much else, or the cord would shrink back to its original shape without any way for them to restore it.


    It wouldn¡¯t be his first spell that started off difficult to use, only to get easier with training. Either way, this was proof of concept that Soul Resonance would help him in the long run. His bloodline was the source of all his strength, so any improvements to his clones¡¯ abilities were by far the most important.


    At any rate, Percy tried something special with the third and final clone. They did manage to empower their connection at first, and he tried to take advantage of that to direct the clone to a specific place. Sadly, the connection got severed soon afterwards, probably because the clone wandered a bit too far. Percy had no idea if he¡¯d reached his intended destination, but the clone was still out three days later, so he was confident he¡¯d found interesting, at least.


    Suffice to say, the whole group was completely exhausted as they reached the town ¨C Percy even more so than the others. He and Nesha were the first to enter the inn as they were in dire need of some shut eye. Once again, Elaine volunteered to stay in the outskirts with Micky. Percy hated that his cousin always drew the short end of the stick, but it couldn¡¯t be helped. Her higher grade meant she could handle a lot more than them before reaching her breaking point.


    ***


    Micky cawed through the cord.


    Percy groaned, but he didn¡¯t let his complaints leak back to his familiar. He was the one who¡¯d asked the bird to wake him up after sleeping for a few hours, so that he could take over Elaine¡¯s post. He knew he would have slept for over a day if left alone.


    Gently lifting Nesha¡¯s arm from his chest, he got up as slowly as he could, trying not to disturb her. His brain still throbbed rather painfully, his feet feeling like mush. He ignored all that, tossing his clothes back on. He was about to leave the room, when his girlfriend spoke.


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    ¡°Ugh¡­ how long have we slept?¡± she asked in a raspy voice. S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    He sighed. Apparently, he¡¯d woken her up, despite his efforts not to.


    ¡°Three hours? Maybe four?¡± he guessed, looking out of the window.


    She remained silent for a second, letting the words sink in.


    ¡°¡­alright. I¡¯ll go check out the marketplace before it closes for the night. Maybe we¡¯ll get luckier this time.¡±


    Percy nodded. They were already cutting it close. It had been early in the afternoon when they arrived, so she¡¯d have to go now. That said, he didn¡¯t really expect her to find any deattunement ingredients, as those were much rarer outside the Guild. And there was a good reason for that too.


    Pacification reagents like pale carrots, moonflower petals and crystal tulips typically contained ice mana. This was how they delayed the activation rate of other ingredients. It also meant they had several uses outside alchemy, making for excellent coolants to preserve food with, or to alleviate heat during the summer. This was why Percy had found a few in his family¡¯s warehouse and why they¡¯d been able to buy some from the last town too.


    When it came to deattunement, however, their odds weren¡¯t great. Especially considering the sheer volume of ingredients that they required to consistently meet their elixir needs.


    The two left the inn, walking to the town square together. The idea was for him to accompany Nesha there before leaving the town. Fate had other plans for them, however¡­


    Once more, they encountered a lot of atypical commotion, much like the last town. Unlike before, they didn¡¯t catch sight of the Divine Root¡¯s men directly, though they did hear some curious whispers.


    ¡°Is there really a Holy Child in our town?¡± one of the townsfolk asked.


    ¡°He just got here, about an hour ago.¡± another replied.


    ¡°Are you sure you didn¡¯t mistake a regular noble?¡±


    ¡°No way man! Do you think I¡¯m an idiot? He¡¯s a young boy ¨C younger than your son. And he has five guards from the Divine Root with him.¡±


    ¡°Again?! Seriously?!¡± Nesha asked, her features twisting into a grimace.


    Percy turned to Nesha, giving her an odd look.


    ¡°I thought you said they are headed to the Thirsty Valley!¡±


    ¡°¡± she insisted. ¡°We¡¯ve heard it from multiple sources! Most of them heard it directly from them!¡±


    Percy frowned. This made no sense whatsoever. They¡¯d deliberately strayed off-course to avoid them. Why would anyone travelling to the Thirsty Valley pass through here? It was objectively a horrible route, adding multiple weeks to the journey.


    Nesha appeared just as perplexed as him, not having a good explanation. Thinking of something, she gasped.


    ¡°Do you think they¡¯re here for us? Maybe somebody recognized us from the posters.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t impossible. There was only so much a beard and a pair of glowing eyes could do to mask one¡¯s appearance. Then again, there were several problems with this idea too.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not jump to conclusions. We stood right in front of them in the previous town, but nobody moved to arrest us. One of them even glanced at me. And why would they send a Holy Child after us? Has the Divine Root run out of people?¡±


    ¡°Maybe the Holy Child is the only karma user they could find?¡± Nesha offered an explanation.


    But Percy shook his head.


    ¡°I checked all their cores. He has a mud affinity. The others are all common.¡±


    Nesha raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Either way, this can¡¯t be a coincidence. We intentionally steered clear of them, and here they are.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± he nodded. ¡°There¡¯s definitely something fishy going on. Here¡¯s what we¡¯ll do¡­¡±


    ***


    After explaining his plan to Nesha, he reached out to Micky and Elaine, bringing them up to speed. The idea was for them to leave quietly during the night, much like before. However, they¡¯d do a couple of things differently this time.


    They would head the opposite way to their destination. If the Holy Child chased them again, they would know for certain they were being followed. Furthermore, they wouldn¡¯t travel together this time. The plan was to split up into two groups. They¡¯d still meet up in Goldenfield town, but they¡¯d approach from different directions.


    Micky and Elaine would do so from the west, while Percy and Nesha would enter from the east. This way, the groups would still be able to communicate via the ethereal cord, and they could also narrow down the Holy Child¡¯s target, depending on which group they ended up chasing.


    ¡°I could have used some sleep¡­¡± Elaine smiled wryly. In the end, she never got to rest.


    Sighing, Percy handed her half a dozen healing potions from his amulet. He generally avoided wasting them unless it was an emergency, but they might help a little given the circumstances. It wasn¡¯t perfect ¨C her grade would greatly mute the potions¡¯ effects. Not to mention that life mana alone couldn¡¯t do much about her mental fatigue. Still, it might keep her going for a couple more days.


    The two groups bid each other farewell, leaving in opposite directions. Perhaps this really was just one big coincidence and Percy was being paranoid.


    But his gut told him they wouldn¡¯t be this lucky¡­

 Chapter 244: Acton

    Acton picked a branch off the ground, sniffing the broken end a couple of times before tossing it aside. The scent there, but it was faint. More so than usual.


    ¡°Gone again¡­¡± he muttered, a grimace marring his face.


    There was no doubt his target had spent some time here. But Acton was a few days late. The trail was already rather obscure, vaguely pointing south. ¡­


    ¡°Pack your stuff. We¡¯re leaving for Goldenfield town in an hour.¡± he said, turning to his guards.


    Their expressions soured at the sound of that, as they gave him ¨C and each other ¨C uncertain looks. They had no idea what he was even doing, but they clearly weren¡¯t happy with his command. Eventually, the most senior of them summoned the courage to step forward. He bowed politely, before speaking.


    ¡°Your Radiance, we cannot do that. Our orders were to escort you to the Thirsty Valley. We¡¯ve already wasted too much time. Goldenfield town is located exactly opposite to our destination.¡±


    Acton clicked his tongue.


    ¡°You¡¯ll go exactly where I tell you to go! This is as important to me as my core¡¯s advancement!¡± he spat, unleashing his domain on the man.


    The guard ¨C ¨C instantly fell to his knees. Acton knew his domain wasn¡¯t nearly strong enough to subjugate a Green. The fool was faking it to placate him. He thought he wouldn¡¯t notice.


    Lifting the pressure, Acton turned away. Such trash the Root had sent to accompany him. All of them showering him with praise, treating him like the holiest existence to his face. . But behind his back, they constantly plotted to manipulate him, treating him like a child.


    Then again, he didn¡¯t really care about the opinions of these ants. His gaze was locked elsewhere ¨C on the people residing in place. Compared to the rest of Remior, the Order¡¯s numbers were just a drop in the bucket. A few thousand people, standing above everyone else. Each of them a priceless treasure to this world.


    But gathered in one place, that was still a lot of them. And Acton was at the bottom of the barrel there. Compared to his peers, at least. The only people who mattered. After all, so many of them had powerful bloodlines or rare affinities. A few of the older ones had even inherited blessings from the gods themselves.


    Meanwhile, what did he have? Just a shitty mud affinity and a weak bloodline. At least, he¡¯d been able to upgrade the useless earth affinity he¡¯d been born with, thanks to the petal. Though he couldn¡¯t use it properly just yet ¨C the best he could do was to split it up to use his old earth spells.


    Regardless, it wasn¡¯t enough. He¡¯d never be important in place. Not unless he grew stronger. This was why he¡¯d even asked to be escorted to the Thirsty Valley. The sooner he reached Violet, the better.


    Sighing, he opened his Status again.


    ___


    Acton Parnassus


    Mana core:


    [Mana core ¨C Blue ¨C Mud]


    Bloodline:


    [Beastmaster] ¨C Sense and subjugate beasts.


    Spells:


    [Stone Palace ¨C Refined][Earthen Grasp ¨C Refined]


    ___


    On paper, the ability to control beasts was among the most powerful a mage could ask for. After all, they grew faster than any human could. With sufficient preparation and proper guidance, one should be able to cultivate an entire army of creatures stronger than themselves. .


    This was precisely why House Parnassus had received so much attention back when they first manifested the bloodline, tens of thousands of years ago. Even the gods had taken notice, pouring resources into their family, placing them under their protection.


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    Consequently, Acton¡¯s House was one of the oldest ones still standing. At one point, they¡¯d even been a Great House, propped to that level artificially rather than by their own merits.


    It was the ability¡¯s potential that had brought on all this interest ¨C not its true power. Every registered permutation had been riddled with drawbacks, making it completely impractical. The most serious problem was that it could only be used on beasts weaker than oneself. What good was a Green beast to a Blue? It would barely help in a fight.


    Perhaps things would have been different if multiple beasts could be subjugated at once. Sadly, only one could be controlled at a time. Adding the sheer cost and effort required to feed and train the beasts, and the bloodline just wasn¡¯t worth the trouble in its current state.


    Still, the gods had kept their support up ¨C . Century after century, they had waited, hoping for a mutation to occur. For a version of the bloodline devoid of such restrictions to emerge.


    Once, a promising scion had been born with the ability to tame multiple beasts. Not that many, but still worth exploring further. Unfortunately, that had come at the cost of lowering the subjugated beasts¡¯ grade by another step, making this version of the bloodline even weaker than the rest. Efforts had been made to breed that individual with others, to mutate the strain again.


    By now, the House was deemed as a lost cause, left alone to wither. Other families still avoided touching them, afraid of the Order¡¯s retaliation. But the members of House Parnassus understood the truth. Their bloodline would never evolve, and it just wasn¡¯t good enough for them to thrive with it. Not in their barren lands. Not without the gods¡¯ support. Nowadays, they weren¡¯t even considered a Great House anymore, lacking a White to lead.


    Of course, Acton didn¡¯t care about any of that. Not his family¡¯s status, nor their history. He belonged elsewhere. But he care that he was stuck with such a useless bloodline.


    Such a stroke of luck, to pass through the Whistling Woods on the way to the Thirsty Valley!


    The sensory side of his bloodline wasn¡¯t particularly powerful either. It relied on lingering scents and other subtle hints to grant him a subconscious understanding of his target, pointing him towards it. It wasn¡¯t very informative, nor very accurate, though the few things he did learn had been more than enough to pique his interest.


    The beast he¡¯d caught wind of was unique in all the best ways. It was only at Yellow, but it left behind an atypical presence. Acton couldn¡¯t tell how or why, but it was far stronger than it had any right to be.


    At first, this had confused him. It had left him in doubt, uncertain of whether this was even a beast at all. Maybe it was just a person with a weird bloodline? But the broken branches didn¡¯t lie. It a beast. A bird, specifically. A little inconvenient, as it spent a lot of time airborne, leaving fewer traces for him to track.


    In any case, he to capture it! It might not be enough to elevate his status in the Order, but it was the best lead he had. Sure, its low grade was annoying. He¡¯d have to raise it to Green, and later to Blue once he advanced himself. Then again, it was a small price to pay ¨C it would only take some time. Hell, Acton would raze a province to the ground to feed it, if that¡¯s what it took.


    It made no sense. The darn thing had already done it twice. Acton had stayed in Gentlebreeze town for days, spending every morning and every afternoon scouring the surroundings in search of the creature. By the time he homed into that lake, the beast had been gone for a while. The first time could have been a coincidence, but it happened again. It must¡¯ve left this place half a week ago.


    Was it working with humans? He¡¯d never heard of another bloodline like his. There shouldn¡¯t be anyone on Remior capable of taming a Yellow beast.


    he wondered, creasing his brow. S§×ar?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    It was quite a stretch. His family¡¯s province was located very far from here. But this was the only explanation he could think of. It would explain everything. His relatives would have recognized him in the town. Then, they¡¯d leave, afraid he would snatch their treasured minion from them.


    He shrugged. It was annoying, but they couldn¡¯t outrun him forever. His bloodline¡¯s tracking ability grew stronger the more information he gathered about his target. It was only a matter of time until he caught up.


    How dare they defy him?! Those ungrateful relics should be grovelling at his feet, offering him the beast of their own volition. After all, Acton was the best thing to have happened to their rotting family in centuries!


    It was thanks to him that the Order had rewarded them so handsomely, despite their countless failures. That trinket they got could level a whole town once detonated!


    Shaking his head, he headed off, his guards hurrying behind him. Some of them still voiced their protests but he ignored them. If they kept yapping, he might have to kill one of them to remind them of their place. He¡¯d get reprimanded for it later, but it wouldn¡¯t be more than a slap on the wrist. A small price to pay, to make sure these fools stopped arguing with him.


    This was what it meant to be one of the chosen few.


    A Holy Child.

 Chapter 245: Under pressure

    Percy¡¯s hands shook as he tried to mould his mana into the correct shape. This was already his third attempt, but the construct crumbled into powder about half-way through, the fine dust spilling between his trembling fingers.


    ¡°Come on¡­ not again!¡± he groaned, nearly slamming his fist on the table.


    Nesha placed her hand on his wrist, giving it a gentle squeeze.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t helping. You need to calm down.¡±


    He looked at her in a daze for a couple seconds, letting the words sink in. Eventually, he placed his other hand on top of hers, nodding. S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    They had no idea if the Holy Child would follow them to Goldenfield town. It was just speculation on their part. Perhaps they were wrong about the whole thing. Maybe the last couple of towns had been a coincidence. Or maybe, the boy just wouldn¡¯t bother venturing even farther from his destination for their sake, whatever it was he wanted.


    Regardless, Percy couldn¡¯t leave it up to chance. This was why he¡¯d kept Circulation active throughout the journey ¨C ¨C just to reach the town a couple days sooner. To give himself some extra time to prepare.


    ¡°If he does follow us, I need to have this done.¡±


    ¡°I know. But you should try taking a deep breath first.¡±


    Healing potions were a poor substitute for sleep, but the group had still been forced to guzzle them down one after the other like crazy to keep going. By now, they¡¯d already wasted about a third of Percy¡¯s stash, and they didn¡¯t have much to show for it.


    Still, he had to make the most of his time. To reforge his armour. It might not protect him much from the Holy Child but, at least, he wouldn¡¯t be as defenceless when it came to his guards. Of course, he¡¯d much rather avoid fighting altogether. Sadly, he had no idea if that would even be possible.


    Listening to Nesha¡¯s advice, Percy inhaled deeply, forcing himself to relax. She was right. He couldn¡¯t do this with his hands trembling. Whether it was due to the exhaustion or the stress, he had to rein himself in first.


    A few minutes later, he grabbed another handful of powder from his jar. The good news was that he had plenty ¨C courtesy of his new spell. But the actual process of crafting the Phantomscale Raiment was very time-consuming in and of itself. He¡¯d had a lot of practice over the last year, but he still wasn¡¯t sure whether he could rebuild all the pieces in the next two days.


    Clearing his mind, he began fusing the soft mana with the powder, forming the intermediate materials he needed for the armour.


    Once he had all the materials ready, he blended them together into the toughest alloy he¡¯d discovered through his experiments, before shaping it into a fingerguard. Or, well¡­ a piece of one.


    he exhaled in relief, flicking the glowing construct twice for good measure.


    Next, he set his eyes on its interior, carving the growth and memory runes on top of one another. This was one of the hardest parts, as a single mistake would force him to start over. Only once the enchantment had been drawn without errors did he fill the empty space with some more reinforced mana, visualizing the intended effect in his mind.


    ¡°Did it work?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°Let¡¯s find out.¡± he shrugged.


    Chipping a piece off the corner of the construct, he fed some more of his fused mana into the enchantment, watching the fingerguard repair itself soon enough. Nodding in satisfaction, he then began to engrave the second enchantment on the outer side of the object.


    This piece was supposed to go in the innermost layer of his armour. In the past, he¡¯d engraved the absorption runes on it, using the hardness runes for the middle layer and the concealment runes for the outer layer. This time, he was planning to do things a little differently, however. He wanted to use his newfound knowledge of magiscript to stack more than one enchantment on each piece.


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    he thought, trying to overlap the symbols.


    A true composite enchantment ¨C ¨C required one to simultaneously visualize both the joint effect and the effects of its components. Unfortunately, Percy didn¡¯t know of any enchantments involving this specific pair of runes.


    Still, based on the things he¡¯d read, it should be possible to consolidate the two symbols into one pseudo-enchantment. It wouldn¡¯t do anything extra ¨C just whatever the runes did separately. That said, it would take less space to draw, allowing Percy to shoehorn both onto the piece.


    About half an hour later, he was done, marvelling at the completed construct. Against all odds, the patchwork of runes had worked on the first try too, saving him some precious time.


    ¡°One piece down¡­¡± he said, though he instinctively slapped his forehead the very next moment, realizing he¡¯d messed up. ¡°Shit.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Nesha asked.


    Percy sighed. It was easier to show her. Picking the construct up again, he poured more of his fused mana into the self-repair enchantment. Soon, the material lodged into the other runes got pushed out, the engraved symbols slowly closing, like a wound in the process of healing.


    ¡°The other runes have to be engraved first, or the self-repair enchantment will erase them automatically¡­ Damn, and I kept reminding myself to be careful about this. I guess the lack of sleep is getting to me.¡±


    With a heavy heart, Percy destroyed the object again, starting over for the fifth time.


    ***


    Unfortunately, the self-repair enchantment failed to activate during his next attempt, the hardness rune messing up the one after. By the time Percy managed to craft the construct perfectly, it had already been around two hours.


    ¡°Not good enough.¡± he spat, his features twisting into a grimace. ¡°I¡¯ve still got dozens of pieces. At this rate, it¡¯ll take me a full week.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll pick up the pace. Just concentrate.¡± Nesha said, handing him two more potions.


    Percy didn¡¯t argue, gulping down the green liquid. On any other day, he might have found the minty flavour refreshing. Right now, it only served as a bitter reminder that he was pouring the potions down the drain. At least, the life mana relieved the tension in his eyelids, lifting the sting off his eyes. Still, his brain felt just as fried as it had five minutes ago.


    Sighing, he grabbed another handful of powder, starting work on the second piece.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get this one done in under an hour. No room for mistakes.¡±


    ***


    Minutes became hours, and hours became days, as Percy continued rebuilding his armour one piece at a time. He ignored the light seeping through the curtains ¨C sometimes the bright rays of the sun, others the soft glimmer of the moon ¨C his mind focused on the crafting process alone.


    At first, he made several mistakes. Most of them when drawing the self-repair enchantment, but occasionally the forging process went wrong too. Still, he got better with each piece, handing them to Nesha one after the other.


    Stacking them onto a pile, she never stopped encouraging him and giving him more potions whenever she felt like he needed them. At the same time, their hearts kept racing, constantly afraid that Micky would reach out, informing them the Divine Root was here.


    Luckily, that never happened. In the end, Percy managed to complete the entire armour, confirming that every single enchantment worked as it was meant to.


    ¡°One last thing I need to do.¡± he said, gathering some more of the teal powder.


    This time, he allowed his spectral trait to take over, spinning the mana into a thread. It wasn¡¯t nearly thin enough to weave a fabric out of ¨C Percy estimated that goal was still years away ¨C but that didn¡¯t mean it was useless.


    It was good enough to fasten the armour pieces together, replacing the need for the soft mana. That way, Percy wouldn¡¯t have to constantly exert himself to hold everything together, which would allow him to better focus on the fight at hand. Even better, the threads would be stronger, making it much harder for the spell to come apart.


    ¡°But how are you going to add the self-repair enchantment on the strings?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°I won¡¯t. I¡¯ll have to replace them every few days. Still better than reforging the whole armour or having to manually hold it in place.¡± he explained.


    As soon as he was done, he tossed the new strings atop the pile of his armour, before climbing onto the bed. Overall, he¡¯d made several changes to the spell ¨C whether it was the shape of the armour, the reinforced strings, or the upgraded runes. There was no doubt in his mind it was a great deal stronger all-around, but he wasn¡¯t in a rush to put it on. Right now, the best thing he could do would be to get some rest.


    he asked through the cord.


    The response came promptly.


    Percy nodded, feeling a little better. ¡­ Of course, he wouldn¡¯t be able to relax completely for a few more days.


    he sent back, before relaying the news to Nesha.


    The two then shut their eyes, their sheer exhaustion putting them to sleep mere moments later. It still wasn¡¯t clear whether the Holy Child was after them, but one thing was certain:


    Whatever ended up happening, Percy was ready for it.

 Chapter 246: Frantic escape

    Micky yelled through the cord.


    Startled, Percy nearly messed up the rune he was carving on his scythe. It had already been a few hours since he and Nesha woke up, and he¡¯d decided to take advantage of that to reforge his weapons too.


    ¡°Wait, you mean you can see them approaching? From the west side?¡± he asked out loud, for Nesha¡¯s benefit.


    Micky sent a mental nod back, causing him to raise an eyebrow. . While they¡¯d split up on purpose, to determine whether the Holy Child was after him and Nesha or something else, he¡¯d always thought the former was more likely.


    ¡°Evidently not¡­¡± he muttered.


    Guessing what he was thinking, Nesha pitched in.


    ¡°Do you think he¡¯s chasing after Elaine? She¡¯s pretty, and he¡¯s a teenage boy. Maybe she piqued his fancy?¡±


    Percy couldn¡¯t help but wrinkle his nose at the sound of that.


    ¡°Doubt it. If he saw her, he would have made a move right then and there. No point in chasing her across Remior. Besides, how would he track her?¡±


    Nesha shrugged.


    ¡°If he¡¯s not after us, and he¡¯s not after Elaine, that only leaves one possibility.¡±


    Both their eyes widened simultaneously, realizing what this meant. sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Micky, you need to get out of there ¡± he yelled, forgetting he was still in the inn. Nesha had to cover his mouth.


    the crow replied.


    Percy¡¯s heart skipped a beat. This was bad! Usually, they didn¡¯t think twice about having Micky act as a scout. Nobody would pay much attention to a bird flying several miles away, spying secretly from afar.


    But he couldn¡¯t afford to panic. His familiar¡¯s life depended on him maintaining his composure. Biting his tongue, Percy forced himself to calm down, countless thoughts swirling within his mind. There to be a way out of this.


    ¡°Listen to me very carefully.¡± he said a moment later, this time keeping his voice down. ¡°Your priority is to put some distance from Elaine. Whatever happens, you can¡¯t let them see her with you. Understand?¡±


    Between his two cores and Acceleration, Micky was a great deal faster than Elaine. He should be able to outrun the Holy Child ¨C for a while at least. But the same couldn¡¯t be said about her. If she got spotted, .


    Percy rubbed the bridge of his nose, trying to come up with a viable plan.


    ¡°For now, I want you to circle around the town and lead them back to the same spot.¡±


    Some confusion seeped through the cord, though Micky didn¡¯t question his judgement, eventually sending a mental nod back.


    ¡°What¡¯s that going to accomplish?¡± Nesha asked.


    ¡°It¡¯ll buy us time to intercept them. I just hope Elaine realizes she has to meet up with us here.¡±


    Their greatest problem right now was that he had no way to get in touch with his cousin. Not without Micky relaying their messages. Hopefully, she¡¯d understand she wasn¡¯t supposed to follow Micky after seeing him fly away from her. Either way, there was nothing Percy could do about that, other than to trust her.


    Not wasting a moment, he grabbed the largest piece of his armour from the pile ¨C the chestguard ¨C putting it on. Catching his drift, Nesha passed him the next piece, along with some reinforced string, helping him fasten it in place.


    Overall, the Phantomscale Raiment looked very different than it had against Rambert. Percy had learned a lot from their fight, modifying the spell extensively. To start, many pieces had been reshaped, to give him greater freedom of movement. Some of the surfaces had been made flatter and wider, to let him draw larger runes on them. He''d also moved the holes around a little, to better accommodate the network of strings holding them together, so that his armour would be better at absorbing impacts. Furthermore, he¡¯d added more vents throughout his body, to account for the additional mana leaking out while he used the trollsfury potion.


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    Finally, there were the new runes. Other than the self-repair enchantment that had replaced all the preservation runes in the interior of the armour, he had added a lot to the exterior too. The innermost two layers were now engraved with both the hardness and absorption runes. As for the armour¡¯s shell, it now had hardness runes fused together with the concealment runes, making the whole thing far sturdier than ever before.


    ¡°Percy¡­ I know you are at your strongest, but I still doubt we can beat a Blue.¡± Nesha said once they were done, her voice tinged with concern.


    ¡°Of course not. And we won¡¯t even try to do that.¡±


    She tilted her head.


    ¡°At the end of the day, there¡¯s nothing we can do to stop the Holy Child. Our only option is to have Micky lure him away and ditch him somewhere. But we can make things easier for him, at least.¡± he elaborated.


    ¡°The guards?¡±


    He nodded.


    ¡°Powerful as he is, he¡¯s just an impulsive kid. Now that he¡¯s caught sight of his target, I bet he¡¯ll rush ahead, leaving his guards behind. I don¡¯t think they can keep up with him. We¡¯ll wait for him to leave, before ambushing the others outside the town. If we can kill them all, it¡¯ll take some pressure off Micky.¡±


    ¡°That definitely sounds more manageable, but that¡¯s still five Greens we¡¯re talking about. Are you sure we can beat them?¡± she asked, unconvinced.


    ¡°won¡¯t. Me and Elaine will.¡± Percy replied, grabbing his scythes.


    He¡¯d made four of them, though the last one was still missing a few concealment runes. Walking towards the door, he turned all his constructs invisible. He¡¯d rather not draw any attention before leaving the town.


    ¡°I want to help.¡± Nesha said, biting her lip.


    ¡°Sorry.¡± he shook his head, closing the door behind him.


    He knew it was frustrating for her, but he couldn¡¯t let her join. She was very close to mastering Circulation ¨C she¡¯d already started tempering her channels ¨C but she wasn¡¯t there just yet. Nor did she have any of her traps at hand. As useful as her spell was, she wouldn¡¯t last a minute surrounded by so many powerful opponents.


    Not that Percy and Elaine had it much better, of course. Percy estimated he¡¯d have to take two of the guards on, leaving the other three for his cousin.


    Rushing out of the inn, he headed west, hoping to run into Elaine. Luckily, he did find her right as he neared the gate.


    he exhaled in relief.


    ¡°Percy!¡± she exclaimed upon seeing him, running towards him. ¡°They¡¯re chasing Mic¨C¡± she tried to whisper once she got closer, but he raised his hand to stop her.


    ¡°I know. How confident are you in taking three Greens on by yourself?¡± he asked.


    Suffice to say, attacking the Divine Root ¨C ¨C was a grave crime. He and Nesha were too far gone already, but Elaine hadn¡¯t done anything too incriminating until now. Whatever happened, they couldn¡¯t leave any survivors behind.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± she replied, not a hint of hesitation in her voice.


    Percy nodded, gesturing at her to follow. As much as he hated himself for involving her, he knew he didn¡¯t stand a shadow of a chance without her help. Plus, she cared about Micky as much as he did. He had no idea what that bastard wanted from his familiar, but they couldn¡¯t leave him alone.


    he asked through the cord.


    At the same time, he scanned the scenery outside the gate, looking for a good spot to lay in wait. It was where Micky and Elaine had camped over the past few days.


    Bringing Elaine up to speed, the two then rushed to the ambush spot, his heart racing in his chest.


    ¡°Elaine, do you know of any good hunting spots in the vicinity?¡± he asked.


    Taking the guards out was only half the plan. Micky would have to lose the Holy Child too, or it would have all been for nothing. Unfortunately, the crow couldn¡¯t possibly outrun the boy without going all out, which meant he¡¯d eat through his stamina in no time.


    Consequently, he¡¯d need to consume a few Yellow cores to recharge once he reached his destination. Then, he¡¯d have to find a river or some other body of water to hopefully erase his scent, before circling around and meeting with them.


    ¡°There is a small patch of desert a couple weeks southwest from here. I¡¯ve hunted scorpions there before.¡± she said, giving him some more detailed directions.


    Percy relayed her words to Micky, explaining the plan.


    Soon, Micky informed him that he and the Holy Child were almost there. Percy moved in front of Elaine, to hopefully hide her mana signature with his armour¡¯s concealment runes. Both of them crouched to make themselves look smaller, holding their breaths.


    A second later, they saw the boy running in the distance at an insane speed, the ground cracking wherever he stepped. Luckily, he didn¡¯t as much as glance their way, too busy chasing after his prey. Only once he was gone did they start pumping mana into their channels, activating their boosting arts.


    Percy thought, catching sight of the Greens rapidly approaching them.


    It was time to deal the Divine Root another slap.

 Chapter 247: Elaine vs Divine Root

    Elaine swallowed hard as the Greens approached. Common affinities or not, these people were from the Divine Root. Even with Circulation, taking on three of them wouldn¡¯t be easy. Still, it wasn¡¯t herself she was worried about¡­


    she stole a glance at her cousin.


    She he¡¯d beaten Greens before, but always one at a time and with ample preparations. Plus, she¡¯d never seen it in person. The last time she watched Percy fight; he barely managed to stun a goblin. And, technically, his grade hadn¡¯t even changed since then. Could he really handle this?


    Besides the upcoming fight, his current condition also worried her a little. Percy had already downed the potion, an overwhelming surge of mana spilling out of his pores, shrouding his body in a swirling teal fog. Soon, it faded from her eyes like the rest of his constructs, only visible through Mana Sense. His skin was flushed red, blood bubbling from countless expanding cuts as his muscles swelled more than they were ever meant to. Yet, he seemed unfazed by the pain ¨C probably used to putting himself through hell by now.


    His glowing eyes stayed locked on their opponents instead, like a predator observing his prey. His fingers tightened around the invisible scythes in his grasp. One of them rested propped against a boulder for now ¨C the one not fully cloaked. He clearly wanted to keep the element of surprise as long as possible, though they both knew it wouldn¡¯t last beyond the first attack, . His armour was invisible too, though it wasn¡¯t hard for her to make its shape out ¨C partly because she already knew about it, and partly due to the way it displaced the mist.


    There was no turning back now. Their opponents would notice their presence in mere moments, if they hadn¡¯t already. And Percy¡¯s potion wouldn¡¯t last long. She had to wrap her own fight up quickly; in case he needed backup.


    One of the incoming Greens suddenly snapped his head in their direction, sensing something was off. As if on cue, Percy lunged from his hiding spot, hurling two scythes toward him before following up with a flurry of throwing stars.


    Elaine didn¡¯t wait to see the outcome. Her focus shifted to the leftmost trio. She shot forward, channelling mana to her feet and skidding across the grassy terrain. At the same time, she raised her palms and unleashed a barrage of small, azure projectiles at the startled mages.


    Both and were Crude spells, but she could feel they were close to an upgrade. She hadn¡¯t learned them at random either. The same fight that forced her to reveal Circulation to her father had also exposed her biggest weaknesses ¨C limited range and poor mobility. She had no intention of letting those shortcomings hold her back again.


    The Greens dodged her attack, quickly regaining their composure. Their eyes flickered between her and Percy, weighing their options, as if considering whether to gang up on her cousin first.


    ¡°Like hell I¡¯ll let you!¡± she snarled, stepping between them and Percy, mana coiling around her fingers as she manifested a set of glowing whips.


    Undeterred, they unleashed a barrage of spells at her. A few large fireballs, some water arrows ¨C faster and more condensed than her own shots ¨C and a wave of earth mana rippling towards her feet. She clicked her tongue ¨C this was going to be rather annoying.


    Shredding the projectiles into harmless motes, she slid away from the earth mana right as it pierced towards her in the shape of a spear. Despite avoiding all of their attacks, she couldn¡¯t help but raise an eyebrow at the sight, however. She¡¯d seen earth users use similar attacks before, but this was different. It was faster and smoother than she was used to. It didn¡¯t look like regular stone either. It glistened in a dark colour, resembling obsidian.


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    Not that strange, considering where her opponents had come from¡­


    Outwardly, Elaine didn¡¯t divert her gaze from the trio in front of her for a second. Still, she couldn¡¯t help but scan the area behind her with Mana Sense, worried about Percy. Not that he had it easy ¨C his fight was just as tough as hers. But he wasn¡¯t at a clear disadvantage either.


    she nodded.


    Without wasting another moment, she went on the offensive, rushing towards the earth mage. Water splashed wherever she stepped, mixed with torn blades of grass. And she kept picking up speed as she dashed in a straight line, determined to cut the enemy ranks short.


    The mages responded in kind, raining more spells at her.


    But she didn¡¯t pay them any heed, forming more whips in her hands, turning them thinner and longer. Whatever attack neared her, she sliced and diced, not giving her opponents the chance to touch even a single hair on her head.


    The only spells she had to be careful of were the ones coming from below. Not that it was impossible to uproot the earth mana before it caused harm, but it would cost a lot of mana. Even with her boosting art active, she knew she had to pace herself for her reserves to last.


    Like demonic fangs, the obsidian constructs bit upwards, Elaine weaving and bobbing as they forced her to vary her path. Still, she persisted, closing into the earth mage with every step.


    Realizing the danger he was in, he ran backwards, sending more and more spells to block her way with every passing second. His teammates pitched in too, spreading out in opposite directions, trying to pincer her in with their own spells.


    Elaine never stopped parrying them, but each impact put a drain on her core. Her mana was running out faster than she could breathe it in. Even worse, the earth mage kept his distance from her, doing an admirable job filling her path with obstacles.


    her lip curled upwards.


    After fighting for years in the war against House Tantalus, she wasn¡¯t the inexperienced girl she¡¯d once been. Taking a sharp turn, she ignored the earth mage entirely, closing into the fire mage instead.


    Taken by surprise and without his buddies to help him, the guy panicked, stumbling backwards as she spun, activating the Kraken¡¯s Gambit. She didn¡¯t even care about the airborne projectiles anymore, all of them shattered into nothing by her spell.


    The sickening sound of torn flesh and shredded bones never came, however. Blinking once, Elaine saw the figure in front of her fade away. The fire mage stood a few dozen metres further back, still hurling fireballs at her. She didn¡¯t care about the weak attacks too much, blocking them with her Refined spell as she racked her brain to understand what had just happened.


    This was bad. These people clearly had all sorts of trump cards up their sleeves. Even worse, her core was already halfway empty, thanks to her costly move just now. And that was just the start of her trouble.


    The fire mage and the earth mage fired more spells at her, but the water mage had turned towards Percy instead, shooting a flurry of water arrows at him. Her cousin had already put his own opponents on the backfoot, but the sneak attack caught him by surprise.


    The pressurised blasts knocked him off his feet, violently slamming him into the ground as teal fragments splintered off his armour. The outer layer was half broken, even the one beneath it taking serious damage as the invisible spell regained its colour.


    Gritting her teeth, she allowed her whips to disperse before pelting the man¡¯s location with a barrage of her own blasts, stopping him in his tracks. Still, the damage was done, as Percy rolled on the grass, struggling to dodge his own opponents¡¯ attacks. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    As much as she wanted to berate herself further, she knew this wasn¡¯t the time, however. The trio had launched more spells at her, and she didn¡¯t even have her whips this time to block them. Instead, she dodged them as best as she could, trying to think of a way out.


    she grimaced.


    She¡¯d already tried that, but they clearly had way too many tricks to deal with her. At least, she didn¡¯t think she could kill them fast enough, and trying would only give them a chance to go after Percy again. Besides, the Kraken¡¯s Gambit was way too expensive. She had to rely on her Slippery Step for defence and the Pressure Blast for offense.


    Either way, it appeared she had no choice but to try¡­

 Chapter 248: Sniping

    Forcing her racing heartbeat to calm down, she scanned the battlefield with Mana Sense, observing her opponents carefully. Whenever they attacked, she dodged with minimal movement, doing her best to conserve her mana. At the same time, she took one deep breath after another, slowly refilling her core.


    she wondered, thinking back to the water mage¡¯s arrows.


    The only silver lining about this messy battle was that she had a perfect example in front of her, to help her improve her magic. And it didn¡¯t take her very long to come up with a hypothesis.


    By shaping his attacks into arrows, he could propel them through the air much faster than hers. Still, that couldn¡¯t be everything. A huge factor was the caster¡¯s ability to compress the water, as well as the force they shot it with. And she really had no excuse for losing in that department. Not with Circulation filling her body with strength.


    As soon as she recovered some more of her mana, Elaine began her counterattack, aiming at the water mage. He was the only one who hadn¡¯t shown a blessing nor a bloodline just yet. He might have one anyway but, for now, he seemed to be the easiest target. That said, she didn¡¯t allow herself to lose sight of the others, constantly tracking their movements via Mana Sense.


    Sidestepping all the hostile attacks, she focused on him as she reshaped her projectiles into arrows no different than his. It didn¡¯t take long for her to see an improvement either. Her arrows could still use a lot of work, but they were already a little faster than before. The water mage noticed that too, raising an eyebrow as he realized she was copying him. Still, the distance separating them gave him plenty of time to dodge.


    she smirked.


    Taking full advantage of her boosting art, she compressed each of her arrows even further before loosing it. Not only that, but she put more power behind them too, making each more lethal than the last. Over the next few minutes, her constructs changed shape again, now resembling crossbow bolts more than they did arrows, letting out a shrill cry as they pierced through the air.


    Before long, the water mage couldn¡¯t even fight back, too busy dodging her attacks by the skin of his teeth. Still, his teammates didn¡¯t let him suffer much, pressuring Elaine into slowing down her onslaught.


    At some point, the fire mage turned towards Percy again, aiming a fireball at him, thinking she hadn¡¯t noticed.


    ¡°Not this time.¡± she spat, intercepting the spell midair, before shifting her focus to him. S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The guy appeared genuinely taken aback as an aquamarine bolt pierced through his chest. But she didn¡¯t let herself celebrate, knowing it wouldn¡¯t be this easy. Sure enough, the fire mage faded again, appearing a few metres away unharmed.


    she realized.


    It was a good thing to know, and her own spell was developing nicely too, though a new problem had presented itself. The obsidian spears weren¡¯t that difficult to dodge individually, but the earth mage had already filled the battlefield with them, blocking her line of sight. That much wasn¡¯t an issue by itself, as she could still spot everyone through Mana Sense. Still, it was harder to get a clean shot at her opponents, and her mobility was starting to be impacted too.


    In theory, it wouldn¡¯t be difficult to clear out her surroundings using her whips, but that was probably what the bastard wanted. To get her to empty her core again¡­


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    Elaine clicked her tongue, but she wasn¡¯t deterred. Annoying as they were, they made for excellent whetstones to hone her magic. And she was improving rapidly, now that she had a perfect case study to observe.


    Of course, she didn¡¯t know how long it had been. Nor how her cousin was doing. Perhaps, his potion was about to run out. Or maybe, it already had. But she couldn¡¯t afford to lift her attention from her opponents again. In any case, she had yet to be stabbed in the back, so the worst-case scenario probably hadn¡¯t come to pass.


    She¡¯d been way too arrogant to think she could kill three members of the Divine Root quickly and still have the strength to assist Percy. Not only that, but she should have shown more trust towards her cousin. At the very least, he¡¯d handled his end of the fight just fine. He certainly wasn¡¯t the one who¡¯d messed up.


    Turning back towards the water mage, she fired another bolt at him, this time trying to pierce through an obsidian construct. The water mana did drill a hole through it, but it had slowed down greatly by the time it emerged out of the other side, splashing harmlessly on the next obstacle it encountered.


    she grimaced.


    While she¡¯d developed her new spells to eliminate her weaknesses, she never thought she¡¯d be relying on them exclusively. Certainly not in such a difficult fight. Her whips, she¡¯d honed her whole life. First through her father¡¯s tutelage, and then through years of combat. The Kraken¡¯s Gambit was the spell she was proudest of. Her specialization. Her expertise.


    But she quickly shook her head, realizing how stupid these thoughts were.


    Did Percy ever complain over having to learn something new? When he suddenly had to master an entirely new affinity all of a sudden? Or when he found himself with a familiar he had to take care of? Or when he had to pick alchemy up and learn to brew his own elixirs, because there was simply no other way for him to advance? Or when he bargained with a titan to master runecrafting, because it would be a waste not to? Or every time he ripped his soul up, to use his bloodline, or Circulation, or get his spectral trait?


    Of course not. . He was for all these opportunities. Always making the most of them, because he knew he didn¡¯t have the luxury of letting them slip by. And he excelled in everything in the end, not through talent, but sheer effort.


    Meanwhile, what did Elaine do? She¡¯d turned him down when he offered to teach her runecrafting. She stuck with what she was comfortable with. Drank the elixirs brewed for . And she still had the gall to look down on him.


    Gritting her teeth, she pointed her palm against her opponent again.


    A spear punched up at her.


    She sidestepped it.


    Three fireballs were coming her way. She ignored those. Sadly for their caster, the earth constructs inhibited him as much as they did her. Instead, she focused on the water mage and him alone.


    A blob of water gathered in her hand. She compressed it into a marble. But she didn¡¯t stop, pressing it more and more, as it vibrated, threatening to explode right then and there, shredding her own hand into minced meat.


    Another black pillar was about to emerge beneath her feet. This time, she merely flung her free arm, using a rough whip to dig the earth mana out before it coalesced.


    Her focus was still on her opponent, who was watching her carefully, unsure what she was up to.


    She let go.


    Unlike before, she didn¡¯t fire many bolts. That would only be a waste of mana. And focus. No. She only needed one. A good one. One fast enough that he couldn¡¯t dodge it. One sharp enough, to pierce through everything in its path.


    An azure flash shone through the battlefield, the cool light reflecting off the smooth pillars. It was accompanied by a deafening boom, rattling them, as Elaine felt her very bones shake, a wave of pain spreading up her arm.


    But her gaze never wavered. It followed her attack, through the hole in the construct. And the one behind it. And the one behind that. All the way to the hole in the guy¡¯s torso, a lake of blood soaking his robes as he collapsed.


    [Congratulations! Your spell has evolved: Pressure Blast ¨C Crude -> Demersal Sniping ¨C Refined!]


    Elaine didn¡¯t care much about the notification right now. Part of her wanted to look away from the carnage. But she was no longer a kid, nor was this a war she¡¯d been thrust into out of her control. . Her involvement was the result of her own choices. Averting her gaze would be hypocritical of her.


    She scanned the corpse, taking the gruesome sight in for a few seconds. Only then did she allow her senses to brush over the battlefield, settling on the other two. Their expressions were still marred by shock, their attacks having long stopped.


    They weren¡¯t stupid. They could tell it was over. Sure, the spell had eaten quite a chunk of her mana, and her hand still hurt like a bitch.


    But she could keep going, and the others knew that they were screwed without their teammate. Slaughtering them both wouldn¡¯t take more than a minute¡­

 Chapter 249: Regalia

    A few minutes earlier


    The Green twisted his body into the space between the two scythes, narrowly evading the spinning blades. Still, the last-second manoeuvre left him in an awkward orientation, forcing him to eat several throwing stars right to his soul. He landed on the grass with a muted thud, spasming in pain.


    As much as Percy wanted to follow up with a finisher, the guy¡¯s teammate had already launched a few wind blades at him, each cutting shrilly through the air.


    Percy barely managed to avoid most of them, though one still hooked around his leg, making a crisp ting against his armour. The good news was that the reinforced construct held, the hardness runes ensuring the attack left little more than a shallow scratch on the legguard. A scratch that was already closing as the self-repair enchantment devoured part of the Shroud.


    He hadn¡¯t really planned for this. The Shroud enveloped his body out of necessity, as the mana gushed out of his pores faster than he could use it. It tightly wrapped around his armour like a strip of cloth, since that was simply the best way to keep it from dissipating until he shaped it into an attack. Luckily, the runes seemed to benefit from the abundance of mana in the meantime. Overall, it did give his armour an almost regal appearance. Percy currently looked like a magical knight cloaked in an eerie fog. Or, well¡­ he would have ¨C if his mana was visible.


    That said, the force on his leg still tripped him, bringing him down to one knee. By then, the first mage had stood up again, supporting his teammate with some wind crescents of his own.


    Percy realised, rolling out of the way.


    It wasn¡¯t the best possible matchup for him ¨C their high mobility would make landing his spells a pain. Not the worst either though. At least, their attacks didn¡¯t pack as much of a punch as fire or lightning magic might. Getting through his armour wouldn¡¯t be that easy for them either.


    Percy ignored the crescents, not even glancing at them as they dug deep grooves through the soil where he previously stood. Instead, he hurled his third scythe at the first opponent. The guy struggled to conceal his pained expression, still suffering from soul damage. At the same time, Percy called the other pair of scythes back, trying to catch him from behind.


    More attacks flew towards Percy in the meantime, though their shadows preceded them. His eyes had already adjusted to his enemies¡¯ common affinity. The fact that they fought in the same manner didn¡¯t work in their favour either. Sure enough, Percy didn¡¯t have much trouble evading the attacks, though his target wasn¡¯t as lucky.


    One of the scythes nicked his thigh, eliciting a pained cry. He clearly hadn¡¯t expected three to surround him at once. Percy called the fourth one to his hand too, estimating he¡¯d already exhausted the element of surprise by now.


    Letting the Grim Dance run rampant, Percy allowed the shadows of his opponents¡¯ attacks to blend with his own, taking control of the battle¡¯s flow. He showered the first guy with a rain of scythes, knives and throwing stars, instantly putting him on the backfoot.


    That said, inflicting more wounds didn¡¯t prove nearly as easy. The guy did an admirable job propelling himself out of the attacks¡¯ paths with some expertly placed bursts of wind. Still, Percy did land a few here and there, the man¡¯s injuries noticeably gnawing at his reaction speed.


    Of course, several air spells hit Percy too ¨C he couldn¡¯t dodge them all. Fortunately, he didn¡¯t need to, his armour allowing him to shrug most of the damage off, his Shroud helping him undo the rest.


    Suffice to say, he was still in a lot of pain, though that was mostly self-inflicted. It was his own potion breaking his body down from within. It tore his tendons apart with every step he took, nearly ripping his arms out of their sockets every time he swung them. Yet, he gritted his teeth, knowing he needed the boost to win. And that it wouldn¡¯t last for much longer.


    Percy was keenly aware of how lucky he was. Not that he was afraid of losing a rematch against the karma user ¨C certainly not now that he had his armour. But he doubted he could handle two opponents at that level. Fortunately, it appeared that not all the Root¡¯s Greens were nearly as strong.


    He was about to redouble his attacks on the injured guy, when something unexpected happened. A powerful blast splashed into him from the side, slamming him into the ground a few metres away. His armour cracked ¨C the spell clearly had a lot more concentrated force behind it than what his own opponents had demonstrated.


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    And this was just the start. A second projectile followed, and then a third. Teal fragments flew off him as his armour¡¯s outer layer got peeled off, his bones creaking in protest.


    Ignoring the pain, Percy gathered the teal fog in front of him to serve as a cushion. It barely helped, sapping some strength from the blasts ¨C though they still pierced through the soft mana without much difficulty. He focused on the network of threads holding his armour together, trying to keep the reinforced strings from snapping. The whole spell would come undone should that happen.


    The self-repair enchantments all over his body greedily drank his mana, doing what they could to restore the construct. Still, the runes couldn¡¯t fix , so any component damaged beyond a certain threshold was lost for good. This was one of the few drawbacks of his armour¡¯s modularity. An issue he couldn¡¯t solve quite yet¡­


    Either way, he gritted his teeth, absorbing the attacks as best as he could, trying to minimize the damage. His only option was to trust his cousin to stop the assailant.


    Unfortunately, it wasn¡¯t until after the fifth blow that the barrage came to a halt. And the damage was already done.


    His opponents didn¡¯t waste their chance, taking advantage of the interference to pile more spells onto him. Even worse, he wasn¡¯t sure he could endure them all given the current state of his armour.


    Percy clumsily evaded whatever he could, grimacing as the rest caused the cracks to expand. The self-repair runes fought like crazy to restore whatever was still salvageable, though teal shards kept falling rapidly as the spell crumbled faster than he could mend it.


    he realized, pulling two of his scythes from behind the first mage.


    Of course, the man wouldn¡¯t fall for this trick again. That said, the distraction did cause the barrage to slow a little, giving Percy a chance to extricate himself.


    Admittedly, things weren¡¯t going very well. Percy¡¯s body was as banged up as his armour at this point, if not more. Still, he could win this as long as his cousin didn¡¯t let her opponents sneak up on him again.


    Shifting his focus back to his enemies, he thought hard as to how he could turn this around. The first of them was already injured rather severely, but it would take Percy a while to kill him. Percy estimated he only had a couple minutes at best.


    The situation was rather bleak, though a spark of hope lit up in his eyes as he glanced at the crater he¡¯d formed on the ground during the attack.


    Oblivious to his thoughts, his opponents never stopped pressuring him, launching one spell at him after another. Percy allowed himself to fall in their tempo, slowly backtracking as they advanced towards him.


    It wasn¡¯t until half a minute later that everything was in place. If this didn¡¯t work, he¡¯d die not long after. And Elaine would soon follow.


    Dodging a wave of attacks, he hurled both of his scythes at the injured mage, pulling the last two from behind him. At the same time, he tore off over 80% of his Shroud, turning it into a wave of throwing stars to supplement his main weapons.


    His opponent didn¡¯t panic, however, despite being surrounded by spells in every direction. He was already moving to avoid the constructs, well accustomed to the routine by now. Sadly for him, Percy had forced him to step right where he wanted him. And he¡¯d planned a small surprise there.


    With a wave of his hand, Percy called some more mana back to him. This time, it wasn¡¯t his scythes, nor the throwing stars, however. He was looking at the crater behind the air mage. The very crater that he¡¯d dug into just minutes ago. Or, more specifically, the invisible shards of his broken armour that lay there.


    Just like that, a wave of shrapnel sank into the man¡¯s back, a shocked expression painting his face.


    The shards might have not been as sharp as the throwing stars, but they were made of reinforced mana, packing quite a punch. And dozens of fragments landed into the guy¡¯s soul, leaving it full of holes.


    Percy knew this was more than enough to kill him, so he didn¡¯t even bother looking at him for a second longer, his focus already shifting to the remaining opponent.


    Grabbing the pair of scythes that had just returned to him, he took advantage of the second guy¡¯s surprise as he hurled them towards him, following up with more projectiles from his Shroud.


    To his credit, the man recovered quickly enough to dodge most of them, though Percy had anticipated it to an extent, having spread the throwing stars as widely as possible. A few found their mark, stabbing into the guy¡¯s lower body. His knees buckled as he finally got to experience the agonizing soul pain his late comrade had suffered repeatedly.


    Percy clicked his tongue.


    He was already out of spare scythes and out of mana. Even worse, his opponent would regain his wits within moments. If he failed to finish him now, he might never get a second chance.


    Thinking on his feet, he willed the remaining layers of his armour to shatter, grabbing as many shards as his hands could hold, before hurling them at the mage. S§×arch* The n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The guy tried to leap out of the way, but he failed to summon enough strength in his legs. He barely managed to sway to the side, several shards still finding their mark, lodging themselves in his torso.


    Unsure whether this was enough, Percy called upon the rest of the fragments he¡¯d just shed off his spell, drawing them to his hands. A few actually stabbed into his flesh, but he didn¡¯t care. He launched them at his opponent too, pinning him into the ground with another wave.


    And he didn¡¯t stop there either, doing it a third time, and a fourth.


    By the time he saw his opponent¡¯s soul fizz away into nothing, blood was pouring out of Percy¡¯s hands ¨C even more so than the rest of his body. But it didn¡¯t matter. It was done.


    [Congratulations! Your spells have merged: Shroud of Deceit ¨C Refined + Phantomscale Raiment ¨C Refined -> Spectral Art: Phantomscale Regalia ¨C Masterful!]

 Chapter 250: Masterful

    Normally, Percy would have just ignored the notification. It wasn¡¯t the first spell he¡¯d upgraded, nor would it be the last. Plus, he had plenty of things on his plate right now. Whether it was the potion¡¯s backlash, Elaine¡¯s fight, or his familiar getting chased by a Blue, everything took precedence. Still, his heart skipped a beat upon reading the spell¡¯s tier.


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    Suffice to say, he hadn¡¯t expected to reach that level at this time. He¡¯d long accepted that his first Masterful spell would register once he figured out the mana threads his spectral trait had commissioned. A project that might not be completed until years from now.


    Then again, it wasn¡¯t that strange his new spell qualified. Both his armour and his Shroud had already evolved multiple times while remaining in the Refined tier ¨C . That ought to have brought them both on the verge of an upgrade, and that was without considering the most recent round of improvements to the Phantomscale Raiment.


    And, in hindsight, the emergent spell involved way too many moving parts ¨C too many requirements ¨C to have stayed Refined. It made use of Crystallization, Reinforcement, his spectral trait, affinity fusion, runecrafting and magiscript¡­ Hell, he needed two cores, Synchronization and a specialized potion just to produce enough mana to keep it active!


    Not to mention how well the two spells synergized with one another. The Shroud acted as both a fourth layer for his armour, but also as the perfect fuel for its enchantments. Beyond that, his latest trick of discarding the Raiment and turning its fragments into projectiles was quite similar to how he normally used the Shroud in the first place.


    In the end, he allowed himself a momentary grin before shifting his attention to his other problems. By now, the potion¡¯s effect had already expired, a wave of weakness spreading over his shredded body. Plopping down on the grass, he struggled to lift his arms. They felt heavy, as if they¡¯d just turned to stone. Even grabbing the healing potions in his pockets was a monumental task, as was uncorking them and chugging them down.


    It wasn¡¯t until a few seconds later that the life mana did its job, finally pushing back against his exhaustion a little, closing his wounds just enough to minimize his blood loss. Yet, it took a total of eight doses before he could move around normally. Only then did he allow his gaze to brush over the rest of the battlefield.


    he exhaled in relief.


    Truth be told, Elaine appeared to be at a disadvantage. This was partly because she was relying solely on her Crude spells to keep her opponents at bay, and partly because her surroundings were littered with obsidian pillars inhibiting her mobility and line of sight.


    Still, this perceived weakness was just an illusion. The only reason she was on the backfoot was because she was being careful not to let her enemies sneak past her again. Had she been allowed to fight freely, she would have probably won by now.


    Percy acknowledged.


    They could tell they were outmatched, but they were experienced enough to take advantage of their numbers and of the other battle happening in parallel to their own. Like that, they prevented Elaine from focusing on any one of them for too long, allowing them to keep her busy.


    Originally, they had aimed to buy time for their comrades to kill him and come to their aid. By now, they¡¯d already noticed this wasn¡¯t going to happen. At least, Percy didn¡¯t miss the despair marring their expressions.


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    Calling the scythes back to his hands, he reactivated his boosting art, preparing to intervene should his cousin need any help, or should her opponents try anything funny. He was much weaker without the armour, of course, and he¡¯d rather not drink another dose of the potion so soon if he could avoid it. Still, he was confident in keeping one of the Greens busy for a while if he had to.


    Percy wasn¡¯t in a hurry to butt in. As worried as he was about Micky, he knew there was nothing more they could do to help him, besides maybe sending him some mana.


    On the other hand, he could tell his cousin was on the cusp of a breakthrough. She was obviously working on upgrading her spell, her water arrows growing sharper and faster with every second. As tough as her fight was, it was also a precious opportunity he didn¡¯t want to rob her of.


    Over the next several minutes, he carefully observed her battle, while sending all his excess mana to Micky. From what the crow said, the Holy Child was still hot on his tail, but the bird was able to keep him at a safe distance. Adding in the teal mana keeping his stamina up, and he shouldn¡¯t have much trouble reaching his destination in time.


    Soon, a change occurred in the battlefield, drawing Percy¡¯s attention. Elaine focused a lot of mana in her palm, compressing it to a small marble at first, and then a glowing azure dot, before unleashing it towards the other water mage with a deafening boom.


    A bright flash filled the scene as a shockwave rippled outwards, all the way to Percy¡¯s feet. Still, his eyes were glued on the devastation his cousin had just unleashed. Several obsidian spears had been pierced cleanly, in a straight line to the man¡¯s chest. The poor guy¡¯s blood was already pooling on the ground, his eyes glazed over.


    Moments later, the other two ran away, sprinting in different directions. Elaine shouldn¡¯t have much trouble killing the first one and catching up to the second by herself.


    Still, to avoid any accidents, Percy hurled his scythes in front of the fire mage, blocking his path as his cousin went after the other one. The guy shot a few fireballs at him in a panic, though it wasn¡¯t very difficult for him to avoid them.


    Percy kept him occupied for a few more seconds from a safe distance, buying time for his cousin to deal with the other one before coming over.


    ¡°Do you have any idea what you¡¯ve done?! Ambushing the Divine Root?! A Holy Child¡¯s entourage?! You¡¯ll be hunted to the ends of Remior for this!¡± the guy said, resorting to threats upon realizing he couldn¡¯t escape.


    Percy sighed.


    ¡°A little late to worry about that¡­¡±


    The guy raised an eyebrow at first, seemingly puzzled by his response. It wasn¡¯t until a moment later that his pupils dilated, the realization dawning on him.


    ¡°It¡¯s you, isn¡¯t it?! The Ghost Alchemist! The one on the posters!¡±


    Percy shrugged, but he didn¡¯t deny it. They had to kill this guy either way.


    ¡°Huh, then you¡¯re even more screwed than I thought!¡± the man chuckled. ¡°You might think it¡¯s not a big deal since you¡¯re already fugitives, but people will come to investigate what happened. You¡¯ve just brought more trouble to yourselves. Why would you even do such a thing?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t have a choice. Your boss is currently chasing after my friend.¡± Percy said.


    The man frowned.


    ¡°The crow? It did seem a little too smart for a lone beast. Still, is it worth messing with a Holy Child for a bird?¡±


    ¡°Let me flip the question.¡± Percy replied. ¡°Is it worth for everyone to lose their shit over that brat? To spoil him rotten? To let him do whatever he wants ¨C harm whomever he wants ¨C with no consequences? How long have you even travelled with him? I bet he hasn¡¯t treated you guys very nicely either.¡±


    The mage didn¡¯t reply immediately, seemingly pondering Percy¡¯s words.


    ¡°What choice do we even have? Our world can only exist as long as people like him are there to hold the sky up. Does it even matter how they treat us? We¡¯d all be dead without them. Not just me, but my family too. Same goes for you, and those you love. It is what it is.¡±


    Percy remained silent. He didn¡¯t really have a good response for that. As much as he hated it, he knew the man wasn¡¯t wrong. He could try spouting some grandstanding nonsense all day long about not wanting to be protected by scum like that Holy Child, but it would be nothing more than hollow bullshit.


    The truth was that everyone depend on the Divine Order. For all their flaws, Remior was better off for them. The only thing he could do, was to further his resolve in changing the status quo one day.


    Not saying anything else, he hurled his scythe at the fire mage. The guy didn¡¯t even resist, knowing he couldn¡¯t escape. Soon, the weapon cleanly bisected his soul, as the fifth and final member of the Divine Root¡¯s squad dropped dead.


    Percy glanced around. The place was a complete mess. They had to clean everything up before anybody saw it.


    His expression fell as his eyes landed on some teal fragments littering the grass some distance away.

 Chapter 251: Reaching the desert

    Micky felt his hunger return with a vengeance.


    Rapidly consuming his stamina, he kept both instances of his boosting art active at all times. Most prominent was a set of glowing amber lines branching out of his heart, reaching every corner of his body. A second set spread from his abdomen, swirling like green gales of wind, lighting his feathers up.


    Had he done that, he could have relied more on his second core, lifting some pressure off his beast mana. Alas, the Holy Child had found him a few weeks too soon¡­ As things stood, Micky had to expel the excess water mana from his body, leaving an azure trail in his wake.


    Glancing back, Micky saw the boy was still chasing after him, showing no signs of giving up. Asshole or not, he had to admit the kid was persistent. That said, he¡¯d no intention of falling into the Green-born¡¯s clutches.


    Just as he contemplated whether it was worth accelerating, a sudden influx of teal mana flooded his body.


    Percy asked.


    But Percy metaphorically shook his head.


    Micky did as he was told, knowing his friend was right. As uneasy as he felt flying in the boy¡¯s sight, he understood his priority was to reach his next meal, otherwise he was screwed. Even if he managed to escape from the Holy Child, he¡¯d starve long before anybody could help him.


    Gathering the fused mana to his beak and talons, he took advantage of the raging flow of beast mana in his bloodstream to feed his first core. Of course, it still wasn¡¯t enough to offset his expenditure ¨C Percy¡¯s two Orange cores falling a little short of his Yellow one. Not to mention that his conversion efficiency had yet to surpass 25%.


    Still, that should buy him a little more time.


    ***


    A few more days passed, Micky¡¯s condition continuing to deteriorate. His body was already shrivelled and weak, many of his feathers falling off or losing their lustre. If his rampant hunger wasn¡¯t enough, sleep deprivation was also starting to gnaw at him. Though it wasn¡¯t all bad.


    Percy was still pumping teal mana through the cord, taking very few breaks if any. He was doing an even better job supporting him than when they were in the Camelot province, probably realizing he needed every last mote to survive.


    Even better, the Holy Child had actually fallen behind! Not because of anything Micky had done ¨C he was still flying no faster than before. Rather, it was the boy himself that had stopped at some point, probably not used to exerting himself for days on end.


    Micky wondered.


    Though he shook his head the very next moment. Tempting as it was, it wouldn¡¯t help with his starvation. He was better off reaching the desert sooner rather than later. Plus, it might be easier to ditch the kid if he didn¡¯t waste the head start.


    Having made his mind up, Micky pressed on, determined to get through this.


    ***


    It wasn¡¯t until the following day that the grassland gave way to a sandy terrain. The shift was gradual at first, but Micky was surrounded by tall dunes soon enough. The ground beneath him looked like a light brown sheet stretching as far as his vision did, its folds and creases glistening under the scorching sunlight.


    Micky ignored all that ¨C not in the mood for sightseeing. Instead, he scanned the scenery in search of his targets. It didn¡¯t take him long to spot a few scorpions, though they were all at Orange. The Yellow variants were supposedly farther in, according to the information Elaine had shared.


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    he decided.


    Swooping down for a quick snack wouldn¡¯t take more than a couple of minutes, but he¡¯d rather not waste a second more than necessary. After all, he had no idea how close his pursuer was.


    Luckily, he ran into the first of the human-sized variants soon enough. It was actually in the middle of cannibalizing one of its smaller brethren. Not that strange, given the relative scarcity of food in the area. Micky understood well enough the pressure beasts his grade were under on a daily basis.


    Strong prey probably didn¡¯t pass through here often, so the scorpions had to eat each other regularly to survive. It meant the survivors were the strongest among their kin. Still¡­


    Micky descended at a ridiculous speed, pumping all his air mana into his feathers. Rending Tornado took effect as he spun through the last stretch. The scorpion tried to stab at him, but its stinger shattered harmlessly against his beak as its venom got scattered by the violent gusts of wind.


    The creature didn¡¯t even suffer much, Micky drilling through its tough carapace with ease, as if it was made of paper. Strong or not, there was no Yellow beast on Remior half as powerful as him. And he wasn¡¯t in the mood to play around with his food right now.


    Searching through the scorpion¡¯s remains, Micky swallowed its core whole before pecking the other pieces in a rush. Whether it was the hard shards of chitin from the beast¡¯s exoskeleton, or the soft chunks of meat contained within, it all tasted heavenly to the starving bird. His only regret was that he couldn¡¯t slow down to savour it. In fact, he even kept Circulation up with his second core, to replenish the air mana he¡¯d just consumed by the time he finished his lunch.


    A wave of relief gushed through the cord. Suffice to say, Percy had been worried sick about him over the past week.


    Micky nodded.


    he asked.


    Technically, they still didn¡¯t know how the Holy Child was tracking him. The most likely culprit was a bloodline, though they had no idea how it worked. That said, escaping from the boy¡¯s sight and erasing his scent ought to be enough. If not, there wasn¡¯t much else he could do.


    Micky asked again.


    Percy said, though he failed to mask the worry in his tone.


    Micky knew his friend didn¡¯t like him travelling alone. Even though he¡¯d proven strong and fast enough to take care of himself, Percy was a bit overprotective. It could be annoying at times, though Micky still felt some warmth in his chest, happy to have somebody looking out for him.


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    The next few hours went by quite smoothly. Micky ate two more Yellow scorpions until he felt as stuffed as he¡¯d been after Jason and Rambert. Making his way to the lake, he bathed there for a couple of minutes before taking off towards the others.


    The Holy Child was nowhere to be seen.


    Micky flew slower than before, conserving his beast mana while relying exclusively on his second core to boost his speed. Percy never stopped providing him with mana, which helped a lot more now that he wasn¡¯t eating through his stamina in a rush.


    Micky exhaled in relief.


    Still, he didn¡¯t relax until well past nightfall, to ensure he put some more distance from the lake ¨C so that the kid didn¡¯t stumble into him by accident. Only when he was certain he was safe did he allow himself to land at a relatively concealed spot behind a hill, to finally get some proper rest.


    Sleeping alone in the wilderness without anybody to watch over him was inherently risky, of course, but he didn¡¯t have a choice. He¡¯d have to do it sooner or later, and it was already long overdue. In any case, Micky had done everything he could to eliminate the danger. The rest would be up to his luck¡­


    ***


    A rumbling sound woke him up, as the very ground beneath him shook.


    Jumping to his talons, he saw tall walls of stone erect all around him. He tried to fly away, but he was a moment too late, as a ceiling of the same material formed above him, blotting out the sky.


    Everything instantly went dark, save for a rectangular hole allowing some light to enter from one side. It was as tall as a person. Micky tried to waddle over to the only exit, though a figure soon stepped in front of him, blocking his path.


    He was shorter than Percy or Nesha. . Micky struggled to make out the features of the dark silhouette, though there was no question in his mind as to his captor¡¯s identity. Any lingering doubts evaporated soon enough, as he saw the Blue core thrumming in the boy¡¯s chest, a suffocating domain sapping his will to resist.


    Micky could do nothing but watch, as the figure grinned, an ominous glint forming in his eyes¡­

 Chapter 252: Bow your head

    The domain sapped the strength from his muscles, as Micky felt the stone walls closing in on him. It was over. The only way out was through the Holy Child. Suffice to say, taking on a Blue just wasn¡¯t realistic. In fact, Micky found it difficult to even move an inch right now¡­


    He¡¯d truly thought he¡¯d lost him. He was sure he¡¯d done everything right, yet the kid had still caught up, somehow. sea??h th§× n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°You look confused.¡± the boy¡¯s grin widened. ¡°I admit, washing away your scent was a smart move. As was pacing yourself and varying your path. Did you come up with that by yourself, or is there someone helping you?¡±


    Micky just stared at him, pretending he couldn¡¯t understand him. The boy clicked his tongue, seemingly disappointed by his lack of a reaction.


    ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter. Unfortunately for you, I had you in my sight for way too long. By now, there¡¯s very little you can do to mask your trail from me. I can sense even the slightest trace of your mana. The faintest ruffle of your feathers¡­ Your fate was sealed days ago.¡±


    Hearing that, Micky felt crushed. Outwardly he didn¡¯t show it, however, doing his best to keep a stoic expression. Out of options, he reached out to the only person who could help him.


    he sent through the cord.


    A jolt of shock and horror soon reached him, followed by stunned silence.


    But it didn¡¯t last more than a couple of seconds before shifting to cold determination.


    Percy said.


    Oblivious to their discussion, the Holy Child raised his hand, an eerie red glow radiating from his palm. Instantly, Micky felt a suffocating grasp intruding in his body. It was even worse than the domain, violating his very essence, exerting dominion over his soul.


    In some ways, it resembled the connection he shared with Percy. It was intangible. Ethereal. Closer to an idea than a physical object. But in other ways, the two couldn¡¯t be further apart. Whereas his bond with Percy was one of equals, this one was the exact opposite. A cold chain, grinding painfully against his mind, robbing him of his freedom.


    The glow faded, the Holy Child slowly lowering his hand.


    ¡°Bow your head.¡± he commanded.


    How ridiculous was that? But Micky found himself unable to resist. The moment the words reached his ears, his body acted against his will, his gaze lowering in submission. He fought back, of course, but the only thing he achieved was to hurt his neck.


    he noticed.


    It was his only solace. The chain the kid had inflicted on him seemed to lack many of the ethereal cord¡¯s features. He doubted they could share mana either. Apparently, the boy had to voice his orders for the bloodline to take effect. Still, the situation was grim, to say the least. His mind was trapped in a body that refused to obey him, like a puppet subject to the Holy Child¡¯s whims.


    Confirming he had achieved his vile objective, the boy exhaled in relief.


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    ¡°You know, I wasn¡¯t sure this would even work on you. I¡¯ve never met a Yellow beast as smart as you¡­ Can you even be considered that, actually? Having two cores and everything?¡±


    Micky didn¡¯t reply. One advantage he had was that the boy didn¡¯t know he could speak. And he¡¯d rather keep it that way. If he found out, he might order him to spill all of Percy¡¯s secrets. As things stood, he doubted he¡¯d be able to resist.


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t look so gloomy!¡± the boy spoke again. ¡°You should be honoured to serve me. I¡¯ll reach godhood one day, and you might just be able to follow me.¡±


    Then, he scratched his head.


    ¡°Well, I think so... The truth is, nobody with my bloodline has made it that far before. No beast has reached godhood either. But hey! There¡¯s a first for everything!¡±


    Waving his hand, the boy caused the construct to shatter, a cloud of dust filling the area. That, too, settled forcefully on the ground, forming multiple mounds of dirt and sand all around them.


    The boy ignored all that, already walking away. He was heading a few degrees east of Percy¡¯s group. Micky guessed he was probably planning to return to Goldenfield town first.


    ¡°Come on. We have to pick those idiots up. They¡¯re annoying, but I need them. Preparing my own food is a pain.¡± he said, gesturing at him to follow.


    Micky waddled along, physically incapable of doing otherwise.


    ¡°I¡¯m Acton, by the way.¡±


    ***


    The tension in the air was palpable as the trio walked along the dirt path. The chirping crickets and the bright rays of the morning sun did little to improve everyone¡¯s mood, as they all scrambled to think of a solution. Naturally, Percy had already relayed Micky¡¯s predicament to his companions.


    ¡°Should we return to the town? We still have a few days until they get there. We can try ambushing the kid too.¡± Elaine suggested.


    Percy shook his head.


    ¡°I don¡¯t feel confident against a Blue, ambush or not. Do you?¡±


    Elaine¡¯s head drooped, but she didn¡¯t give up.


    ¡°We can¡¯t just leave Micky behind though! Who knows what that brat will do to him?!¡±


    ¡°Of course not¡­¡± Percy muttered, before sighing. ¡°We know where the kid is headed. As soon as he fails to find his underlings, he¡¯ll either wait for the Root to assign him a new group, or, most likely, he¡¯ll just go to the Thirsty Valley on his own. Do you understand what that means?¡±


    Nesha drew a sharp breath, being the first to realize the implications.


    ¡°We need to get there first!¡± she exclaimed.


    Percy nodded.


    ¡°Currently, the only way to grow strong enough to beat the Holy Child is to advance. It still might not be enough, mind you. Our gap will shrink, but his domain is still going to be a problem. That said, this is our only hope to free Micky¡­¡±


    As things stood, everyone in Percy¡¯s group was closer to their next promotion than the kid. Not only were they a decade older than him, they¡¯d also used a lot of Aurora Dew in the past. And they¡¯d continue to do so as soon as they got some more ingredients. They were a week closer to the Thirsty Valley too, as Micky had lured the boy quite far over the past few days.


    Unfortunately, all their advantages were fleeting. The boy travelled faster than them, and he wouldn¡¯t have to sneak into the Thirsty Valley either. He could just introduce himself and enter directly, probably saving a lot of time there as well.


    Elaine gasped as she realized what he meant.


    ¡°If he gets to Violet first, it¡¯s over¡­¡±


    Percy nodded.


    Should that happen, they¡¯d never catch up. Even with Aurora Dew, their next promotion would be over a century away. Needless to say, that was way too long ¨C even inside the Thirsty Valley. Not to mention all the elixir they would need to get there. Currently, all their supplies had come from House Tantalus. Percy had no intention of taking down another ten Houses anytime soon¡­


    he transmitted, getting a mental nod back.


    ¡°It¡¯s not so bad, everything considered.¡± Nesha said, trying to lift the mood.


    ¡°How so?¡± Elaine asked.


    ¡°Well¡­ think about it. The kid will keep Micky fed, at least. Nobody will dare touch either of them, nor ask any inconvenient questions. In some ways, it¡¯s easier for Micky to travel this way. We won¡¯t have to worry about him starving, or getting discovered.¡±


    Percy shook his head, however.


    ¡°That¡¯s the part that worries me the most.¡±


    The others gave him a questioning look, prompting him to elaborate.


    ¡°Sure, the kid can easily locate and kill beasts for Micky to eat if he wants. But, would he bother to go through all that trouble?¡±


    Elaine tilted her head.


    ¡°What¡¯s the alternative? He can¡¯t just let him starve, after everything he did to capture him.¡±


    ¡°No. He can¡¯t.¡± Percy said. ¡°But there¡¯s an easier way to feed him¡­¡±


    Elaine¡¯s eyes widened in shock as she realized what he meant.


    ¡°He wouldn¡¯t!¡±


    The colour drained from Percy¡¯s fist, some blood dripping from his knuckles as his nails dug into his palm.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope not¡­¡±

 Chapter 253: Return to Huehue?

    A couple of weeks ago


    The group was still en route to the next town when Percy¡¯s second experimental clone returned. In the end, he hadn¡¯t found anything of interest in the alien horse¡¯s world, which was a bit of a bummer.


    That said, Percy and his clone had managed to keep the cord in its empowered state throughout the journey, indicating that the upgraded Secret Art indeed held the potential to revolutionize his adventures.


    In any case, his soul injuries had already healed thanks to Synchronization, so the group had paused for a while to give him the chance to send another one out. However, he wanted to try something a little more interesting than merely testing out the Soul Resonance spell this time¡­


    ¡°Are you confident you can return to Huehue?¡± Micky asked, some emotion seeping into his voice.


    Percy shrugged.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say I¡¯m ¡®confident¡¯, no. But I think there¡¯s a chance.¡±


    One of the biggest issues with his bloodline had always been the lack of navigation. For years, Percy had only been able to send his clones in random directions, hoping they stumbled upon something of value. And sure, it had worked to an extent, though he was constantly on the lookout for ways to plan his adventures better.


    Currently, his only option was to use Metatron¡¯s Decree to return to the Vault at will. There was also a possibility that he could somehow return to the mysterious girl. At least, he vaguely remembered promising to do so, though he couldn¡¯t recall how exactly it was supposed to work, nor had he heard from her since. At any rate, his latest spell did potentially open a new door for him.


    ¡°Here goes nothing¡­¡±


    Severing the orb thrumming in front of his stomach, he watched it shoot away into the distance like a teal comet.


    ***


    the clone thought, suppressing a chuckle.


    Whenever he activated his bloodline, it was a fifty-fifty chance that determined which side of the cord he ended up on. Of course, whether he was truly better off than the main body would be decided during the next few days ¨C depending on how enjoyable this trip turned out to be.


    Soon, a packet of soul mana slammed into him.


    Instinctively, he bounced it right back. Not that difficult, since he was already too saturated to contain any more mana. Plus, they¡¯d already been doing this sort of thing for the past week.


    An interesting thing he¡¯d discovered was that it helped for the main body to initiate the communication. That lessened the risk of the clone focusing on Remior too hard and returning prematurely.


    Some time later, the packet arrived once more, the clone repeating his earlier action. It took a few more round trips for the connection to widen. Even so, they¡¯d have to keep sending their thoughts and mana through it periodically, to prevent it from closing.


    the clone asked.


    Obviously, Percy hadn¡¯t the slightest clue where Huehue was. But he did have somebody with him who might. . The idea was simple. Whenever Percy left Remior, there was always a powerful pull trying to drag him back. A huge part of it was due to his connection to his physical body and the rest of his soul, but he knew that couldn¡¯t be everything.


    After all, when Micky died, Percy had struggled to pry him out of Huehue. At first, it hadn¡¯t made sense, as there hadn¡¯t been any trace of Micky¡¯s soul left to anchor him there, and his body had already turned into a corpse by then. The only logical explanation was that souls had an innate connection to their world of origin itself, outside of Percy¡¯s shenanigans. And it was precisely this connection that he was hoping to harness right now.


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    the main body replied.


    Their plan made sense, on paper, though there were a few potential complications. To start, only a fraction of Micky¡¯s soul was actually from there. Even then, it had been nearly a decade since he started over on Remior. If there really was any lingering connection to the gladiator¡¯s home, it had to be extremely faint, considering that the crow had never even noticed it in the past.


    The clone waited patiently for news. Admittedly, it was quite annoying, as he was literally floating in the middle of nowhere, with nothing to do. Hell, he didn¡¯t even have any thumbs to twiddle!


    That said, he didn¡¯t envy his main body much. The poor guy had cords to maintain. And all of that while still walking towards the next town.


    the original transmitted at some point, breaking him out of his thoughts.


    the clone was startled.


    If he could really return there, it would be great news for everyone. Now that Micky had started recalling his past, a trip to Huehue might help jog his memories. But there was so much more to it than that.


    Of all the places Percy had visited, Huehue was among those he wanted to return to the most. The final step of the Dance, of course. Other than his second core, Percy¡¯s boosting art was arguably his greatest trump card. And if merely half of the spell had had such a huge impact on his life, he could hardly fathom what he could achieve with the rest.


    the main body admitted.


    The clone acquiesced, listening carefully. Though they both knew it was still a long shot. Even if Micky¡¯s unknown connection truly pointed towards Huehue, there was no guarantee the clone would make it.


    For starters, he wasn¡¯t even directly linked to the crow, so the main body had to act as the intermediary between the clone and the familiar, coordinating the whole process. Even if the clone followed the instructions perfectly, he understood the way space and time got distorted inside the soul plane wouldn¡¯t help.


    It took some back and forth, but the clone eventually turned his gaze towards a certain direction, almost certain that was where Micky said he felt Huehue. Letting his senses expand, he soon spotted countless souls in the region. Scanning them carefully, he looked for a suitable target to possess.


    Sadly, he didn¡¯t find one at first. There were a couple injured souls tugging at his attention by the corner of his ¡®vision¡¯, but he didn¡¯t allow himself to even glance at them. It had taken him ages to narrow down Huehue¡¯s suspected direction ¨C the last thing he needed was to get himself pulled elsewhere.


    he transmitted back.


    The clone nodded internally. His priority right now was to do his best to reach Huehue. If he returned empty-handed, so be it. It wasn¡¯t like the attempt had cost them much.


    More time passed. If the clone was guessing, he¡¯d say it had been around five hours since his creation. Still, he didn¡¯t need to guess anything, as he could just ask the original. According to him, it had been closer to ten hours on Remior.


    Regardless, a couple of souls did get injured as he waited, though Percy hesitated to make a move. One of them was a Blue. He had no idea if he¡¯d even be able to possess them. He was tempted, of course. Whether or not they were on Huehue, he wouldn¡¯t mind a chance to play around with a domain. But the guy died a little too fast for his liking. The others did too. It wasn¡¯t until a few dead people later that he finally settled on one that was promising.


    he asked.


    Conscious of the soul plane¡¯s distorted nature, he was aware his senses might have drifted off during the past few hours. It took a while longer for his support team to help him confirm that his target was still in the acceptable region.


    he said, allowing his mind to sink into the damaged soul, a powerful force pulling him towards it.


    Soon, his connection to Remior shrank back to its regular width, the distance probably too much for Soul Resonance to hold this time. But it didn¡¯t matter. Now that he¡¯d locked onto a host, he no longer needed it. Huehue or not, his path was set in stone.


    Patching the soul up went smoothly. There was no rejection from his host, nor did he seem to need anybody¡¯s permission.


    Either way, he wasn¡¯t one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Tapping into the body¡¯s senses, he opened his eyes. Glancing down at his body, and then at his surroundings, one thing immediately became clear. S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Whatever this place was, it wasn¡¯t Huehue¡­

 Chapter 254: Leo

    Stitching the fragmented soul up, Percy was a little worried. The shards felt dull and inactive, his host¡¯s will absent ¨C save for a few scattered memories he figured he could tap into if he really needed them.


    At first, he thought this person had taken more damage than expected, though it soon became apparent that wasn¡¯t the case. The pieces of his soul weren¡¯t really in bad a shape. A good thing too, since Percy wasn¡¯t sure he could fix a Yellow soul with his limited stash of mana if it was too far gone.


    Coming to his senses, Percy found himself on a bed. A rather soft one at that. The mattress smelled of all sorts of aromatic herbs ¨C probably an indication that it had been washed recently. He had a ton of questions already, though he shoved them all aside for now, examining his body.


    he frowned.


    Technically, it was still possible this was Huehue, even if his host wasn¡¯t one of Micky¡¯s people. However, that ship sailed for good once he spotted the two yellow suns shining outside the window.


    he shrugged.


    Either way, he wasn¡¯t too disappointed. He¡¯d known it was a long shot from the start, but it didn¡¯t mean the trip was a waste. Far from it. His host was sapient and at a decent grade. The body was in good shape too. At least, Percy failed to find any serious injuries after a quick examination. He still had no idea what had killed the poor guy, but it hadn¡¯t left any physical marks as far as he could tell.


    The place itself seemed quite promising too. He wasn¡¯t underwater, nor underground. He hadn¡¯t died in the wilderness either, nor in some deadly challenge or a damp cell. Just a regular bedroom.


    It was larger than even Elaine¡¯s room on Remior, full of fancy furniture and enchanted appliances, each adorned with all sorts of intricate runes. Not quite on the Vault¡¯s level, nor at the Moirais¡¯, but more advanced than anywhere else he¡¯d been to.


    Getting up, he winced in pain, the shift having shaken his brain a touch. He hadn¡¯t even noticed the headache until just now, used to experiencing such things. This was the first sign of damage other than his host¡¯s curious absence. On closer inspection, he was drenched in sweat, as were his clothes and his bedsheets.


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    Shrugging, he walked up to a mirror, scrutinizing his appearance. He was dressed in silken robes no less dazzling than what the Divine Root wore, though the style was a little different. A vertical line of buttons adorned his chest, his collar jutting upwards in a funny manner. Slightly over the top for Percy¡¯s taste, but the locals¡¯ fashion was the last thing on his mind right now.


    His host was a bipedal humanoid, closely resembling a human. His proportions were off, being a little shorter than he¡¯d expect. Either way, the boy was way hairier than a teenager should be. Or even a grown man, for that matter. His skin was covered in what he could only describe as ¨C a light brown colour. Same shade as his hair, though that was longer, flaring outwards like a lion¡¯s mane, splashing down on his shoulders. His ears were large and pointy, barely sticking out. He had some facial hair too, though it was quite strange. A bunch of long hairs scarcely adorned the space between his nose and upper lip. Not really a moustache. More like¡­ His golden eyes were split down the middle by sharp, vertical pupils. Four long canines jutted out of the boy¡¯s mouth too, giving him an almost feral appearance. As for his digits¡­ They ended in sharp fingernails, curving a little like claws.


    Turning his senses inwards, Percy stirred the mana in his sternum a little, cracking a smile as he recognized the familiar affinity. . Not the best, but not far off either. He¡¯d used it enough to feel comfortable with it.


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    There was something else too, though he couldn¡¯t quite put his finger on it. This clone felt different than all the others, . Not that there was anything per se¡­ Just¡­ out of place. But he couldn¡¯t tell exactly what it was. Perhaps his Status would hold the answer¡­


    ___


    Leo (Percival¡¯s clone)


    Mana cores:


    [Mana core 1 ¨C Yellow ¨C Air][Mana core 2 ¨C Seed ¨C ???]


    Spectral trait:


    [Weaving] ¨C Boosts one¡¯s proclivity in manipulating one-dimensional structures.


    Spells:


    [Secret Art: Soul Resonance ¨C Refined][Spectral Art: Soul Stitching ¨C Refined][Soul Harvester ¨C Refined][Reinforcement ¨C Refined][Spiritforged Effigy ¨C Refined][Spectral Art: Phantomscale Regalia ¨C Masterful]


    Alchemic principles:


    [Extraction] ¨C Separate and condense an ingredient¡¯s essence.[Pacification] ¨C Delay an ingredient¡¯s activation rate.[Redirection] ¨C Adjust an ingredient¡¯s effect.[Deattunement] ¨C Prevent multiple conflicting ingredients from reacting with one another.[Bonding] ¨C Enrich an ingredient with crystallized pure mana.


    Decrees:


    [Phoebe¡¯s Decree] ¨C Grants access to your Status.[Moirais¡¯ Decree (Incomplete)] ¨C Grants the seed of a second mana core. Requires potent life mana to germinate.[Metatron¡¯s Decree] ¨C Open a one-way portal to the Vault of Magic at will.[Ea¡¯s Decree (Modified)] ¨C Augments and enhances your Status.


    ___


    Well¡­ whatever it was, he¡¯d figure it out at some point. What concerned him more was the situation here. There didn¡¯t seem to be any global Decree in place, but a civilization this advanced ought to have at least worthwhile.


    Over the next few minutes, Percy took his sweet time searching around the room, looking for anything of interest. Though he did take lots of small breaks too, to fiddle around with the appliances. Neither the heater nor the night lamps were anything special, but he wanted to examine their enchantments, to see if they were any good.


    Overall, the boy had lots of useless possessions for him to sift through. Clothes, shoes and even sealed satchels filled with snacks. Not that strange, in hindsight. This just a teenager¡¯s room after all ¨C not a king¡¯s treasury¡­


    But he did find a few things of note, gathering them into a pile on his host¡¯s desk. Most of them were books. Or well¡­ On closer inspection, the majority were notebooks filled with scribbles. He¡¯d check them out later, if he got a chance. The good news was that there seemed to be enough of Leo¡¯s mind left to let him understand the language.


    An excellent development! Whether this was Leo¡¯s home or some other facility, people would seek the boy out sooner or later. Going through the kid¡¯s diary was a priority. Coupled with the lingering memories, it might teach Percy enough about his host to avoid exposing himself.


    Placing the diary on the top of the stack, his gaze shifted to the other two noteworthy objects he¡¯d found. Both were medium-sized jars made of glass. They were sealed, but opening them was as simple as twisting the lids.


    Still, Percy couldn¡¯t help but furrow his brow as he looked at their contents. Both jars were filled with pills, each containing a different type. The first, a vibrant amber colour. The other a deep red. He could already harbour a guess as to the mana types involved, but he was still grateful for the ¨C rather informative ¨C labels confirming his suspicions.


    No huge surprises there. Though the labels did contain some additional information ¨C mostly warnings and recommended dosage. The amber ones were supposed to be consumed once every two days, lest one caused permanent damage to their core. Pretty much on par with the elixirs they had on Remior. Percy fully intended to consume one later ¨C as soon as he figured out how long a day was in this place ¨C though he wasn¡¯t in a rush. The boy¡¯s core still burned a little, so it couldn¡¯t have been long since his last dose. Not that he expected to advance in any reasonable timeframe, but there might be some insight to be gained from the local brews.


    Next, Percy¡¯s eyes landed on the other jar, this time some surprise finding its way into his expression.


    ¡®


    he frowned.


    He wouldn¡¯t be certain until he dove into the diary, but it appeared he¡¯d just found the culprit behind the boy¡¯s untimely demise. Anyway, he¡¯d better get on that, before somebody came looking.


    Grabbing the notebook from the stack, he plopped down on the bed, flipping through the first couple of pages for some answers.


    There was a lot he wanted to understand, both about his host and this world, but one thing took precedence: He needed to know what was. Luckily, it didn¡¯t take him long to stumble upon the answer.

 Chapter 255: Academy

    Somebody knocked.


    Percy lazily stood up, making his way to the door. Internally, he was a lot more anxious than he showed, of course. His heart raced at a hundred miles an hour, as did his mind. But he forced himself to walk as casually as he could, trying to appear normal.


    he frowned, taking a little longer than he¡¯d like to figure out how he was meant to unlatch the mechanism.


    If his visitor found the delay strange, he didn¡¯t show it. It was another boy, slightly taller than Leo. His hair was a couple shades darker too.


    ¡°Hey man¡­ Just thought I¡¯d check up on you, since you missed today¡¯s Affinities class. Everything alright?¡±


    Luckily, Percy had just about read enough of the diary to get a handle on his host¡¯s life. His scattered memories also helped put a name to the face. This guy was Klatz, one of Leo¡¯s closest friends.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine. I felt a little off earlier, but I¡¯m better.¡±


    The other boy creased his brow, seemingly unconvinced.


    ¡°You sure? You¡¯re not still taking those pills, are you?¡± he asked, trying to peer into the room.


    Percy stood on his tiptoes to block the guy¡¯s sight. Not that he cared if the pills got discovered. From what he¡¯d learned, their use was perfectly legal. Besides, it wasn¡¯t like he had any intention of taking them. But he knew his host would have acted defensively under these circumstances.


    ¡°That¡¯s none of your business.¡± he snapped. ¡°I said I¡¯m fine.¡±


    Klatz sighed.


    ¡°Look¡­ I¡¯m just worried about you. You¡¯ve been missing more and more classes lately. Those things can be dangerous.¡±


    Percy relaxed a little, not wanting to come off as too . Leo was technically on good terms with this guy. It was a fine line he was currently treading, trying to protect his privacy without alienating one of his closest friends in the process.


    Part of him felt guilty lying to the kid about his dead friend. But he figured it wouldn¡¯t change much if ¡®Leo¡¯ overdosed a few weeks later than he was meant to. At any rate, the opportunities here were too precious to waste.


    ¡°I appreciate the concern, but I can take care of myself. Thanks for dropping by.¡± he said, softly closing the door. Hopefully that was the correct blend of politeness and rudeness.


    Truthfully, he knew he¡¯d have to minimize his contact with others. They were unlikely to suspect their buddy was possessed by an alien ghost just because of an awkward interaction or two, but he¡¯d rather not take any more risks than necessary. Besides, there was nothing for either party to gain by keeping the charade up.


    Returning to his bed, he opened the diary again, picking up right where he¡¯d left off.


    The concept itself wasn¡¯t foreign to Percy, though such institutions weren¡¯t exactly common on Remior. Nobody cared about educating commoners, and each noble House typically took care of their own children, teaching them the language and a few basics before leaving them to themselves. Even House Avalon, which was larger than the average noble House, didn¡¯t have enough kids to justify any type of formal schooling. Anyone who wanted to study more could just dig into the family¡¯s library, much like Percy himself had done.


    The only exceptions to the rule were the Great Houses, as they had enough people to warrant organized teaching. The most notable example was House Etna, which had built a kind of runecrafting academy for their convenience. Over 90% of their students came from House Etna itself, though they often offered a few spots to some of the other Great Houses, usually as bargaining chips in various deals.


    From what Percy had heard, the Alchemists¡¯ Guild had also considered building an academy in the settlement. More than once, in fact. But the talks never led anywhere ¨C mostly because Remior already had enough elixirs for all the people who mattered.


    Either way, Percy could study all sorts of things during his time here.


    His main body was still possibly on the run, so any benefits he obtained might need to be delivered in a timely manner. Even if that hadn¡¯t been the case, Percy always tried to manage his time efficiently.


    ¡®


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    Returning to his host¡¯s desk, his eyes landed on a small piece of parchment ¨C ¨C scrutinizing it carefully.


    Percy scratched his head, trying to make sense of the timetable. From what he could tell, days on Felmara passed about twice as fast as they did on Remior. It actually hadn¡¯t been that long since he arrived here, but it was already dark outside.


    Suffice to say, the natives couldn¡¯t get nearly as much done in a day. Students only had enough time to attend a single class for a few hours each morning. They then had the afternoon to themselves for studying, followed by a short nap at night.


    Their weeks consisted of only four days, which the natives could tell apart based on the orientation of Felmara¡¯s twin suns in the sky. Due to the way the world rotated, this changed with every passing day. If the suns lined up vertically, it was a Sword Day, whereas if they lined up horizontally, it was considered a Resting Day. The two diagonal orientations in-between were the Rising Day and Falling Day, accordingly.


    As for the academy¡¯s courses, they were designed to last a term each ¨C about 15 weeks, or a month in Remior¡¯s time. Every student picked three topics to focus on during each term. Percy still had no idea how long each student was allowed to stay in the academy, or what the requirements were for graduating.


    Luckily, the current term was due to end in a couple of days. There would be one week without lessons, before the next one began. While Percy was interested in all sorts of topics, he knew he had to carefully pick the subjects he wanted to concentrate on during the coming term.


    Grabbing a thin booklet from the stack, he blew the dust off, before reading its title.


    From its state, Percy knew it had been ages since Leo had last needed to consult the booklet. It didn¡¯t take students long to familiarize themselves with what the academy offered, and to choose whatever subjects they were interested in. But Percy would have to read this more carefully before making his mind up.


    Not that he wasn¡¯t a little curious about this place, but none of these things would matter to him much once he was gone. Well, Natural Resources might hold something interesting, but he didn¡¯t think he¡¯d be able to get his hands on anything particularly precious in the limited time that he had. And even if he somehow did, he¡¯d have no way to bring it back home.


    It wouldn¡¯t be the worst topic to study ¨C he might learn about a rare affinity he¡¯d never encountered before or get some ideas about his own magic. Still, this stuff wasn¡¯t unique to Felmara. Spending his limited time on it sounded like a waste.


    There were plenty of courses diving deeper into specific affinities too. Each of the common ones had a bunch. Sadly, this wasn¡¯t the case for rare or composite affinities. The academy probably didn¡¯t have enough students interested in those at any given time to justify employing teachers to run those classes. Besides, Leo had an air affinity. He wouldn¡¯t be able to explain a sudden interest in a different one¡­


    In any case, there were still a bunch of topics he was interested in. The only thing that annoyed him was that he¡¯d only have the time for a couple courses in each subject, at most.


    he realized.


    According to the booklet, they¡¯d teach him about the universe and the various factions operating in it. Hopefully more than what Remior¡¯s gods were willing to share with the populace back home. Granted, he might be able to learn this stuff in the Vault too, but it would cost an arm and a leg.


    he decided.


    As far as he could tell, pre-casting was a rather useful technique which everyone could master, regardless of their affinity. It didn¡¯t sound like the most ground-breaking invention, but it was something unique to Felmara, which instantly bumped its priority by several spots in Percy¡¯s mind. The only issue was that his host was already taking the third part of the course, and Percy couldn¡¯t remember anything about the previous ones.


    If that wasn¡¯t enough, he could try the library. At any rate, he had a whole month to figure out the fundamentals. Afterwards, he could slowly develop the rest back home.


    Both held the potential of teaching him new, but he figured any runes he learned here would be a downgrade from the Vault¡¯s. Not to mention that they simply wouldn¡¯t be compatible with his own, and he¡¯d have to learn a brand-new language.


    That said, he didn¡¯t think that the local branch of alchemy was much better than what he knew either, but he figured the odds of gaining some valuable insight in this field were slightly higher.


    Having come up with a preliminary plan, Percy turned the lights off, trying to get some rest. He knew he didn¡¯t have long before the suns rose again. He was fairly happy with the subjects he¡¯d picked, and there was something else to look forward to.


    There was another course that was handled a little differently than the rest. It was mandatory for all the students of the academy, and it was gradually taught throughout their stay ¨C not during a single term. Percy hadn¡¯t found many details about this in either the diary or his host¡¯s memories, but it certainly sounded like something he should look into.


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 Chapter 256: Library

    Percy¡¯s eyes snapped open as the first rays of sunlight streamed into the room. He was still exhausted, but he forced himself to sit up, knowing that if he didn¡¯t, he might end up sleeping through the entire day.


    Stretching, he made his way to the window, curious to take in more of Felmara. He hadn¡¯t had a chance to appreciate the scenery yesterday ¨C too busy catching up on Leo¡¯s life.


    Leo¡¯s room was situated high up, likely on the fourth or fifth floor, and faced outward. Before him stretched a sprawling garden, reaching all the way to the horizon. It was meticulously maintained, with grass that had an unusual bluish tint. Colourful flowers were arranged in intricate geometric patterns, each centred around a tree. Cobblestone paths wove through the garden in a loose grid, with a few benches scattered throughout. Most remained empty, as only a handful of people were up this early.


    Percy lamented.


    Leaving the room, he headed down the corridor to a restroom at the corner. Fortunately, Leo¡¯s remaining memories had firmly ingrained its location in his mind, likely due to the boy''s frequent visits. Truth be told, he didn¡¯t urgently need to go, but he preferred to handle it before the other students woke up. The fewer people he ran into, the better.


    Figuring out how the facilities worked took a few minutes longer than he would have liked, but he managed to return to his room before anyone else emerged. He tossed on a fresh set of robes and gathered a few notebooks he thought he might need later, placing them in a leather satchel slung over his shoulder. He shoved a few of the sealed snacks in there too. . Then, he set off for the library.


    By now, a few students were already up and about. Fortunately, most only greeted him in passing, while some ignored him altogether. He did get more than a couple odd looks from both groups though. Had Leo done something to offend his peers, or was it simply too early for socializing? Either way, it worked in his favour.


    As he walked, he began to realize the academy was even larger than he¡¯d initially thought. The dormitories alone spanned multiple buildings, each towering at least six stories high. And every student had their own room!


    Percy still didn¡¯t know much about this world, but everything he¡¯d seen so far left a good impression ¨C a high standard of living, relatively advanced technology, and a well-structured educational system.


    Running some numbers in his head, he estimated that the academy housed over a thousand students! That meant it either belonged to a powerful faction, or that Felmara was a relatively peaceful world, allowing multiple smaller factions to send their children here without worrying about their safety.


    By now, Percy had noticed the pattern. Worlds with bloodlines ¨C like Remior or the Vault ¨C tended to be far harsher on their mortals. It made a twisted kind of sense ¨C eliminating the weak freed up space and resources, accelerating the mutation of new and stronger bloodlines.


    Of course, every place had its own share of problems, and he was sure Felmara wasn¡¯t an exception. Still, compared to everywhere else he¡¯d been, it seemed to be on the better end of the spectrum. .


    Finding the library proved a little harder than expected. Unlike the restroom, its location wasn¡¯t as firmly embedded in Leo¡¯s mind.


    Making a mental note to do that later, he decided to ask somebody for directions for now. The only issue was that Leo wasn¡¯t a freshman at this place ¨C Percy had already seen plenty of kids younger than him. Not knowing where to find something as basic as this was bound to raise an eyebrow.


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    It would still sound odd, but he figured they were less likely to know him personally, and thus less likely to make a big deal out of it.


    Looking around, he ignored all the people his age, walking up to a girl half a head taller than him. She had short, blue hair. A bit of a trend that he¡¯d noticed actually ¨C the girls here all had shorter hair than the guys. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was physiological or cultural


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    The girl instinctively wrinkled her nose as her eyes lit up in recognition. . It seemed the older students knew him too ¨C and they didn¡¯t seem to have a good impression of him either.


    To her credit, she masked her irritation not long after, however, creasing her brow as her thoughts shifted to his question. . Seeing her reaction, Percy was already scrambling to come up with a good excuse¡­


    ¡°Stuck with a crappy teacher?¡± she asked back.


    ¡°Huh?¡± he tilted his head. This was the question he was expecting. ¡°What does that have to do with anything?¡±


    She shrugged.


    ¡°Well, why else would you need to go to the library? Just go to your classes. It¡¯s easier to learn that way.¡±


    Percy was too stunned to speak. Why would he go there? He could list a dozen reasons off the top of his head! Brushing up on stuff he¡¯d forgotten, building up the foundation to pick a new subject, studying a topic he didn¡¯t have a slot for¡­


    He was a little offended. She seemed to have no idea how precious of an opportunity this academy was.


    Then again, he couldn¡¯t help but recall how few people ever bothered using the libraries on Remior. Perhaps laziness and complacency were universal traits. No wonder Metatron had to threaten his people with starvation to get them to study.


    Oblivious to his scathing critique, the girl spoke again, probably in a rush to brush him off.


    ¡°Anyway, it¡¯s been years since the last time I went there. I think it¡¯s somewhere way ¨C a few corridors down. Close to the cafeteria. Or wait¡­ was it the auditorium?¡±


    Suppressing the urge to lecture her, Percy thanked her before following her ¨C ¨C instructions. She hadn¡¯t given him much, but it was still better than wandering blindly. He did ask another kid later, hoping to get some better directions. But no, the response was more-or-less the same. These so-called students took the academy for granted!


    In the end, he did reach the place ¨C after having to backtrack once or twice. His irritation all but evaporated as soon as his eyes landed upon the countless towering bookcases, each dozens of metres tall.


    At least the library wasn¡¯t completely empty. It seemed the academy did have a few hard-working students. But he ignored them for now, making his way to the clerk.


    ¡°May I help you with something?¡± the man asked.


    He was the first adult Percy had seen, and he was quite old too. His mane was a dull grey colour, his face sporting more than a couple of wrinkles. A Yellow core pulsed in his chest.


    Percy guessed.


    Landing what looked like a somewhat relaxing job in a prestigious academy seemed like a good deal, given the guy¡¯s birth grade.


    Outwardly, he smiled before replying.


    ¡°I¡¯m thinking of changing courses next term. Is there any kind of overview of the available subjects? Something a little more detailed than the booklet?¡± he asked, holding the curriculum up.


    The clerk fiddled with his whiskers for a couple of seconds.


    ¡°What courses are you leaning towards?¡±


    ¡°I was thinking Alchemy, Pre-casting and Cosmic Studies. Though I¡¯d like to see what¡¯s in Runecrafting and Affinities too. Also, maybe a reminder on what to expect from Mana Flow, just so that I can better prepare for future lessons.¡±


    The man struggled to stand up, his knees making all sorts of creaking sounds. He had to be old to be in this bad a shape at Yellow. Probably in his 400s. Percy hurried to his side, helping him up.


    ¡°Sir, just point me to the right shelves. I¡¯ll find the books on my own.¡± he offered.


    The man didn¡¯t stand on ceremony, nodding before guiding him to the requested resources. A couple were higher up on the bookcases, so Percy had to use some of the sliding ladders attached to them to get to the books. He was tempted to use his air magic to pull the books out, but he knew he¡¯d make a mess in the process. And he respected this place way too much to risk it.


    It took a while, but he eventually found what he needed. Walking to a free table at a corner of the room, he set the books in front of him before taking a seat. Next, he picked the first one from the stack, flipping to the first page.


    He knew he didn¡¯t have much time. Days on Felmara were already short to begin with, and he¡¯d wasted a lot of time getting here.

 Chapter 257: Restructuring

    It wasn¡¯t until most other students had left the library that Percy registered how late it was. Getting used to Felmara¡¯s short days would take a while. Normally, his body¡¯s internal clock would have helped a little, but his host was the kind of guy who¡¯d literally overdosed on sleeping pills, so¡­ no luck there.


    he groaned.


    He still wanted to research his choices a little better before submitting them. Sure, he had two more weeks until the next term started, but he also had lectures to attend. Sighing, he closed the book he was reading, getting up. Whatever the case, he couldn¡¯t miss the Pre-casting class tomorrow. It would help him make his mind up.


    Technically, the academy monitor attendance. Apparently, each academic year consisted of seven terms ¨C a total of twenty-one courses of the students¡¯ choosing. The kids were assessed at the end of the year, selecting eighteen of those courses to sit exams for. And they only needed a passing grade on fifteen of them to move up to the next year.


    A student¡¯s seniority simply denoted the number of subjects they had studied. That said, most courses weren¡¯t locked to specific years. For example, one was free to pick Affinities 1 on their first or fifth year if they wanted. Of course, courses with a lot of pre-requisites would often be picked later out of necessity.


    Admittedly, it was a rather generous and flexible system, but missing too many classes incurred a penalty on one¡¯s grades, making their life harder. Still, Percy wasn¡¯t very concerned about that. The second term hadn¡¯t even ended yet, and he intended to be gone before the fifth at the latest ¨C depending on how fruitful his time here proved to be.


    ¡°Excuse me, sir. Can I borrow these for a couple of days?¡± he asked the clerk.


    ¡°Up to three at a time.¡± the man replied, passing him a check-out slip to fill in.


    Percy nodded, storing the ones he had yet to read in his satchel before returning the rest to their shelves. Then, he waved the clerk farewell as he left.


    The corridors were much emptier than they¡¯d been in the morning, most of the students having gone to bed to prepare for tomorrow¡¯s classes. Finding his way back took some head scratching, thanks to the contrived path he¡¯d taken to the library in the first place.


    But he didn¡¯t care much. He had a few more things to take care of before calling it a day. Grabbing one of the food bags from his satchel, he opened it, tossing the first of the orange flakes into his mouth as he leisurely strolled through the dormitories.


    ¡°This stuff tastes awesome!¡±he blurted out as the exotic snack crumbled between his teeth with a satisfying crunch.


    It was really crispy! Salty too, though it left some lingering sweetness in his mouth as soon as he swallowed it. They were called ¨C according to the label ¨C but he wasn¡¯t sure if they¡¯d come from an actual tree. Either way, this journey was turning better and better by the hour!


    Returning to his room took him around fifteen minutes in total ¨C more than twice what it should have taken. In that time, he finished three packs. He was tempted to open another one, but he figured he should probably ration them a little until he figured out how to get more food.


    Luckily, he made it to the correct door on the first try, saving himself from a potentially awkward situation. Dropping off his stuff on his desk, he then stopped by the restroom for a quick shower, his mind still pondering over the things he¡¯d read earlier.


    As he had expected, alchemy on Felmara wasn¡¯t that different to what they had back home. Their core-cleansing pills were made from the goo of some caterpillar-like beasts. Having consumed one earlier, he realized it wasn¡¯t any more potent than the elixirs he was used to.


    Their other products a little more varied than the potions they had on Remior, however. Part of that was due to having a greater variety of useful ingredients, but another part was due to something else. The locals referred to it as , and he was confident it was the kind of thing that his Status would register as an alchemic principle once mastered.


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    Apparently, the natives brewed their products in all sorts of different states. Potions, pills, soluble tablets, gels, lotions, and even inhalables. Suffice to say, this had initially struck him as odd, as he hadn¡¯t encountered this elsewhere.


    Alchemy on Remior had been developed entirely around the purification of nectar into elixirs, and so everything they crafted usually took liquid form, largely thanks to the underlying techniques used.


    Meanwhile, alchemy was a lot more developed on Atlantis than either Remior or Felmara, but the fact that it was underwater placed a lot of restrictions on what was possible. People there had to condense their brews into dense, water-proof pills, so as to store and handle them without worrying that they would disperse.


    Evidently, Felmara¡¯s alchemists had gone down a different route, learning how to customize their brews into a phase tailored for their intended application. And it was easy to see the benefits of doing so. Some products could be more effective when applied directly to one¡¯s skin, whereas others might be best delivered into one¡¯s lungs or stomach.


    Percy already had an idea as to how this could benefit him. The mushrooms his potions were extracted from worked better when injected directly into one¡¯s body. Unfortunately, he¡¯d been forced to use the potions somewhat suboptimally, as he had no intention of planting mushrooms inside his skin, and no idea how to brew them into something other than drinkable potions. But this new principle could potentially open a new door for him.


    The Divine Order was currently on the lookout for the Aurora Dew. Specifically, the old version of the Aurora Dew ¨C vials containing a turquoise liquid. But Percy had brewed the most recent batches using his teal powder instead ¨C because he¡¯d stashed a lot of it for his constructs. Using the fused mana instead of regular pure mana didn¡¯t change the effects of the elixir in any way, but it change its colour slightly, giving it a silver tint.


    These two applications aside, he wouldn¡¯t say no to mastering a new alchemic principle. Even on a purely theoretical level, it would deepen his understanding of the field and help him boost his yield a little faster. Not to mention that his eyes would benefit from it too, possibly allowing him to see things he might otherwise miss.


    he grimaced.


    Naturally, one couldn¡¯t learn alchemy without getting their hands dirty. Consequently, the relevant courses were split into theoretical and practical, typically alternating between the two for any given topic. Alchemy 1, 3, 5 and 7 introduced the fundamentals from a theoretical perspective, whereas 2, 4, 6 and 8 gave the students a chance to put that knowledge to the test. Sadly, it wasn¡¯t until the ninth part of the course that the restructuring principle was taught, and Percy would need four terms in total to master it if he went solely through the official route.


    It wasn¡¯t going to be easy, but Percy was already a veteran alchemist. At any rate, this should be enough to wrap his mind around the topic. If not, he could practice more at home. Yet, there was one more issue¡­


    He¡¯d have to ask. If they didn¡¯t let him, he¡¯d have to study the topic on his own and pick Runecrafting or Affinities instead. Of course, he¡¯d rather not, as neither of those seemed very useful for him, based on what he¡¯d read.


    He sighed.


    At least, he didn¡¯t intend to study for Cosmic Studies outside of the classes. He didn¡¯t need to memorize anything for it either. Just learn some useful information that might come in handy in his future travels. That meant he only really had to split his time between Alchemy and Pre-casting for now. Well, Mana Flow too, but he¡¯d yet to figure out how that one worked.


    he thought.


    Sifting through Leo¡¯s notebooks, he familiarized himself a little better with the list of topics his host had studied in the past. Sadly, most of them didn¡¯t interest him much.


    Picking out the notes on Pre-casting 1 through 3, he placed them in his satchel for tomorrow. At the same time, he looked through the boy¡¯s stuff for any map or other reference he could use to actually find the place.


    Luckily, he did stumble upon a map of the building listing where each course took place. It also included other places of interest like the library or the cafeteria ¨C where he hoped to get some more food tomorrow.


    Based on what he¡¯d read in his host¡¯s diary, all students received some annual allowance from the academy, so he figured he should be able to buy food that way. Though he¡¯d have to observe the other students to understand how it all worked to avoid making a fool out of himself.


    Satisfied with his preparations, he switched off the lights, going to bed. As tough as the next few weeks promised to be, he was just as excited about Pre-casting as he was about Alchemy.


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 Chapter 258: Pre-casting

    Aided by the map and his eagerness to begin his studies, Percy made it to the classroom early. By now, the first of the twin suns had fully emerged from its slumber, the other still bathing the sky in all sorts of vibrant hues as it slowly rose through the horizon.


    The room itself wasn¡¯t very large. It only contained twelve wooden desks, neatly arranged in four rows of three. It reminded him a little of the place where he and Nesha had had their orientation, back during their first day in the Guild. Though the desks all faced a yellowish board, smooth as glass. He¡¯d no idea what people wrote on it with.


    Sighing, he sat in one of the least conspicuous locations near the back of the room, right next to a window. Hopefully, the students weren¡¯t assigned specific seats, or he was about to piss somebody off. Propping his satchel against the wall, he took out the Pre-casting 1 notebook, along with a food bag, placing them both on the desk.


    Opening the snack, he grabbed a handful of small, brown seeds, tossing them in his mouth. Unlike the krimbian leaves he¡¯d eaten the day before, he¡¯d seen several mentions of these in Leo¡¯s diary. Apparently, the boy had often had them for breakfast.


    ¡°They¡¯re bitter!¡± he blurted out, his features scrunching. ¡°But¡­ I can see the appeal¡­¡±


    The flavour would take some getting used to, but his half-closed eyes jolted wide open, the exotic snack instantly knocking the last traces of sleep out of his system. For a minute or two, he just sat in silence, watching the rest of the sunrise as he finished his meal.


    Only once he was done did he finally flip the notebook open, intending to do some last-minute reading before the other students arrived. Supposedly, he still had some time left.


    The concept itself was relatively straightforward. An air user like Leo could potentially begin swirling their mana in advance, preparing to unleash a tornado from their hands. Or a fire user might raise the temperature of the mana inside their body, to save time later when they shaped it into an attack. It also made it harder for one¡¯s opponent to realize what was going on, potentially catching them off-guard.


    Following one of the training exercises in Leo¡¯s notebook, Percy tried to split the air mana in his core into three parts. When a mage wanted to shoot multiple projectiles, they¡¯d normally separate the mana after it had already left their body. Splitting it from the core and drawing it out through different channels would lead to slightly faster spellcasting. Granted, the difference wasn¡¯t huge ¨C just fractions of a second, really. Still, a valuable advantage to have.


    Sadly, things didn¡¯t go smoothly.


    he creased his brow.


    Even the slightest perturbation had sent his mana into turmoil, making it difficult to grab a hold of. No wonder he¡¯d never encountered this technique elsewhere. It sure seemed like an absolute pain to master¡­


    Not that it was difficult to exert his will on the mana. In fact, the exact opposite was true. The problem was precisely that the mana was responsive while in his core. Getting it to do as he wanted would need a delicate touch.


    And there was another issue.


    Percy was keenly aware that pre-casting wasn¡¯t very compatible with his current arsenal. Most of his spells involved either his mutated eyes, his bloodline, or constructs that took ages to craft. He currently lacked any spells that would immediately benefit from the technique, making it a little useless at the moment.


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    Obviously, he wasn¡¯t sure if that was even possible. Nothing he¡¯d read had mentioned anything of the sort, but that just might be due to Felmara¡¯s runes not being suitable for the task. Or, perhaps, the difficulty involved was simply too staggering. After all, Percy already had his hands full with the basics. Let alone shaping the mana into something as intricate as a rune and maintaining that for a long time.


    For instance, he could draw concealment runes to hide his second core from within, eliminating the need for an enchanted bandage or his armour. And who knew what else he¡¯d come up with?


    ¡°Leo!¡± a chirpy voiced called out, snapping him out of his thoughts. So absorbed had he been in the exercise that he hadn¡¯t even noticed the newcomer.


    ¡°Eh¡­ good morning¡­¡± he replied by instinct, trying to put a name to the girl¡¯s face.


    Olive-coloured eyes, light brown hair, dimples when she smiled¡­ he vaguely recalled his host calling her , though he wasn¡¯t certain that was her. If it was, she¡¯d been mentioned several times in the diary too. Another close friend of his, no less so than Klatz.


    Then again, talking to somebody who knew him so well was just as risky as getting her name wrong. His best course of action would be to keep his distance from her entirely. Sadly, that instantly became a great deal harder, as she opted to sit right next to him.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re taking classes again!¡± she spoke again, oblivious to his thoughts. ¡°Do you still have trouble sleeping?¡±


    Percy raised an eyebrow. Apparently, Leo¡¯s was a bit of an open secret. Telling her he was fine would alleviate her worries for now, but they were still supposed to find him dead in his room a few weeks later.


    ¡°It was a little better last night.¡± he said, carefully measuring his words.


    She looked like she wanted to say something else but, fortunately, two more kids entered the room, cutting the conversation short. They both greeted them before taking their seats. One of them was even kind enough to say Lyn¡¯s name, verifying it was her.


    More people walked in shortly after, the classroom rapidly filling up with students. Some of them gave him the side-eye again, others ignoring him entirely, just like yesterday. One of them appeared even more annoyed than the rest, glaring at him for a couple of seconds as he grumbled something illegible. Luckily, he didn¡¯t make a scene, sitting at one of the remaining spots instead.


    The teacher arrived too. A middle-aged man. His fur was pitch black, a Green core thrumming in his chest. He wore similar robes to the students, though his were embroidered with a few intricate symbols, indicating his higher status. sea??h th§× NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ¡°Wanna grab lunch later?¡± Lyn whispered while the man unpacked his stuff on the desk.


    Percy deliberately ignored her, taking advantage of the fact the class was about to start. Internally, his mind was racing, however. He knew she¡¯d ask him again later, and he had to think of a good excuse by then.


    ¡°Ahem.¡± the teacher cleared his throat, gathering everyone¡¯s attention. ¡°As you all know, today¡¯s our last class this term. I¡¯ve no idea how many of you intend to sit the exam at the end of the year, but here¡¯s a list of things you need to be proficient in, should you choose to do so.¡±


    Turning around, he wrote on the yellowboard with some kind of enchanted stick. Each stroke made a squeaky sound as it brushed against the smooth material, leaving a deep blue line in its wake. Every now and then, the man made a mistake ¨C scrubbing the words out with the back of the stick.


    The students were silent, their eyes glued on the list of topics they¡¯d have to revise by the end of the year. Clearly, most of them planned to sit the exam. Percy himself didn¡¯t care about that, but he still paid close attention, trying to get a clearer picture of the things he needed to catch up on.


    As soon as he was done, the teacher spoke again.


    ¡°By now, you should all feel very comfortable with the training exercises taught in the first three courses. I¡¯m actually in charge of the next part too, and I hope to see all of you there in the next term. Obviously, you¡¯re not obligated to stick with the subject if you don¡¯t want to. Still, in my humble opinion, it would be a waste to drop it now that you¡¯ve finally reached the best part. In Pre-casting 4, you¡¯ll have the opportunity to put everything you¡¯ve learned into practice. The objective is to incorporate the technique into an actual spell. That is also the basis on which you will be examined at the end of the year, should you choose to take that exam too.¡±


    Percy swallowed hard at the sound of that. The prospect of developing a new spell was exciting, but he didn¡¯t look forward to cramming three months of Pre-casting exercises along with two months of Alchemy theory.


    He sighed.

 Chapter 259: Mana Flow

    The next few hours were quite a slog. The lesson itself had been illuminating, cementing the idea in Percy¡¯s mind that pre-casting was a valuable technique to master. Even though it wasn¡¯t immediately applicable to his spells, he knew it was only a matter of time until he found a use for it.


    Sadly, he¡¯d also made a complete fool of himself in front of the others. His classmates ran circles around him, practicing far more advanced exercises with ease. Meanwhile, he struggled with even the simplest tasks.


    he grimaced.


    Currently, he was trying to stabilize the mana in his core. Normally, the air mana flitted about playfully ¨C a key feature of this affinity. Suffice to say, forcing it to stand still went directly against its nature. Once mastered, it could potentially allow Percy to add a slightly different flavour to his wind spells than what air magic was traditionally known for.


    Passing the knowledge to Micky might benefit him, but this wasn¡¯t why Percy had chosen this avenue to pursue. Rather, he figured that reining in the wild aspects of air mana was good training for his eventual goal of forming stable runes inside his cores.


    ¡°Son, I¡¯ll be blunt.¡± the teacher said, watching his fumbling attempts with a disappointed frown. ¡°Your current level won¡¯t cut it in Pre-casting 4. I suggest you drop the subject for now. If you¡¯re still interested, I¡¯d recommend practicing on your own for a few terms and taking the course next year.¡±


    Percy smiled bitterly, not disagreeing with the instructor¡¯s assessment. But this wasn¡¯t an option ¨C he couldn¡¯t stay here that long.


    ¡°Thanks for the honesty, sir. I¡¯ll do my best to make up for my deficiencies.¡±


    The teacher sighed, moving to the next student. He offered him some words of encouragement, clearly more pleased with him. Though Percy couldn¡¯t shake the feeling there was more to the man¡¯s disapproval of him than merely his subpar performance.


    It was around noon when the instructor ended the lesson, after reiterating the key points one last time.


    Percy ignored the pitying looks of his classmates, not letting his blunders weigh on him too heavily. He had expected nothing less out of his first day, given how abruptly he¡¯d found himself thrust in the middle of the academic year. Besides, it wouldn¡¯t be his first time overcoming stacked odds¡­


    he reminded himself.


    He hurriedly packed up his belongings, stuffing everything into his satchel before slipping out the door. Fortunately, Lyn was busy chatting with a friend.


    Just as he thought he¡¯d made a clean escape, however, someone intercepted him in the hallway.


    ¡°Leo! Are you free right now?¡± Klatz called.


    Percy frowned. These kids just wouldn¡¯t leave him alone.


    ¡°Are you stalking me?¡± he asked dryly.


    Klatz flashed him a sheepish grin, rubbing the back of his head.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t call it ¡­ Look, I¡¯m sorry if I came on too strong the other night. We¡¯re just worried about you. Me and Lyn both. You shouldn¡¯t let what happened last year ruin your whole life¡­¡±


    Percy nodded, outwardly accepting the explanation while internally dissecting the boy¡¯s words. Truth be told, he knew something major had happened to his host at some point. From what he¡¯d pieced together, Leo had once been a model student ¨C smart, hardworking, and well-liked. Then, everything changed.


    As far as he could tell, it had something to do with Mana Flow. Unlike most other things the academy taught, the technique required years to master. They had the students work on it throughout their studies, in parallel to the other courses. Occasionally, they brought in guest lecturers to demonstrate key parts of the technique, to allow the students to move on to the next step.


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    Percy had realized.


    Leo hadn¡¯t explicitly mentioned this in his diary, so it was largely speculation on Percy¡¯s part. Still, the signs were clear. Leo never wrote what happened on that day, but all the diary entries had noticeably shifted in tone since then.


    For one, he never even Mana Flow again. He withdrew from his friends, developed severe insomnia and ignored his plummeting grades. Whatever had happened, it had chipped away at him emotionally, leading him down the spiral of addiction, ultimately causing his untimely death.


    ¡°Thanks for caring.¡± he said. ¡°I guess I just haven¡¯t been feeling like myself lately, but the past few days have been different. You really don¡¯t have to worry about me.¡±


    Before Klatz could respond, Percy was already moving past him. Unfortunately, the delay had given Lyn enough time to catch up.


    ¡°Leo! Are you running off again? Let¡¯s grab lunch and take a stroll through the garden. I really think some fresh air would do you good!¡± she called out.


    Glancing back, he saw her giving him a pleading, puppy-eyed look. Klatz appeared no less concerned.


    Percy sighed.


    ¡°Fine. But only for an hour. You heard the teacher ¨C I have lots of work to do before next term starts.¡±


    he thought to himself.


    It should be fine, right? This was an opportunity to learn how to get more food. And, if nothing else, he¡¯d wanted to check the garden out since he first saw it. S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    ***


    Percy followed Klatz and Lyn in silence as they led him to the cafeteria. Apparently, every student was entitled to at least one free meal per day. He wasn¡¯t sure about dinner, but at least he wouldn¡¯t have to rely solely on his host¡¯s dwindling stash of snacks.


    Even better, he figured out how to restock those too. The cafeteria had something called a vending machine where students scanned an enchanted card and selected items from a panel.


    he realized, recalling a card like that among Leo¡¯s belongings.


    He hadn¡¯t brought it with him, so he¡¯d have to return here later. He should check his remaining balance too. Hopefully, Leo had enough money to last through the term.


    Once they got their meals in paper boxes, Lyn practically dragged him outside, eager to make the most of their limited time. To his surprise, hanging out with them wasn¡¯t the worst thing. The kids were genuinely kind, as was everyone else he¡¯d met so far. ¡­


    The garden was even prettier up close too. The flowers swayed softly under a gentle breeze, their fragrance filling the air. Percy inhaled deeply, committing the scent to memory. It wasn¡¯t often that his clones ended up somewhere .


    Walking along the cobblestone path, the trio quietly dug into their meals. Some pink noodles that tasted like cabbage, dipped in some spicy sauce and sprinkled with pieces of mincemeat.


    He just couldn¡¯t make sense of it. The academy seemed like the perfect place. Well-run and well-funded. Everyone was polite, and the curriculum was both accessible and rich in valuable knowledge. Leo had clearly been thriving here until that moment.


    ¡°¡­is it true they¡¯re bringing in another guest lecturer at the end of next term?¡± a nearby student asked.


    The words sent a ripple of tension through the group. Lyn and Klatz exchanged worried glances, knowing this was a sour topic. They softly guided Percy away, careful not to let him overhear too much.


    Of course, Percy wanted to roll his eyes. He wasn¡¯t Leo, nor was he bound by his host¡¯s trauma. If anything, he was curious to find out more about this. Had he been alone, he would have stayed to listen. Instead, he had to let himself be pulled along, playing his role.


    This wasn¡¯t empty speculation on his part either. He hadn¡¯t been able to find much on the topic, as the academy seemed to prefer that the students learned about it exclusively during the guest lectures. However, what little he¡¯d learned had been plenty to pique his interest.


    Mana Flow appeared to be another boosting art, bearing striking similarities to Circulation. This was the first time Percy ever stumbled upon another spell like it, in fact. The reason it took students so long to master it, was precisely because they had to train their bodies and clear their channels before they could even begin to practice it.


    With that in mind, Percy had finally pinpointed what had bugged him since he examined Leo¡¯s body. Apparently, the boy¡¯s mana channels were all tempered already!


    Suffice to say, he was used to having a complete mana network with his real body. But not his clones. That was why he¡¯d subconsciously felt something out of place, though it hadn¡¯t really clicked until he made the connection.


    It wouldn¡¯t be hard, as he already had everything he needed. His body was ready for it, and he even knew the correct pattern for the air affinity, having helped Micky discover it. Obviously, he¡¯d need a few days to adapt it to Leo¡¯s physiology, and to familiarize himself with it, but it shouldn¡¯t take as long as his other studies.