Two days passed.
Which, for me, meant very little sleep, a lot of overthinking, and one extremely persistent mermaid who had apparently decided that sharing my bed was natural.
I woke up with warmth pressed against my chest.
Soft.
Light.
Breathing.
My eyes snapped open.
Arial.
Curled against me like this was the most natural thing in the world, one arm loosely draped across my torso, her forehead tucked just under my chin. Red hair spilled across the pillow, faintly damp, carrying the clean scent of water and herbs.
For half a second, my brain short-circuited.
"…This again," I whispered.
Then training kicked in.
Don't move.
Don't breathe weird.
Don't make this worse.
I froze, afraid that even breathing wrong would trigger something catastrophic—like Victoria bursting in with a knowing smile, or Nova deciding to comment for "observational purposes."
Carefully—painfully carefully—I shifted just enough not to wake her.
I exhaled.
Then I felt it.
A faint shift.
A subtle click in the back of my awareness.
The penalty.
Gone.
I froze again.
Then, slowly, I pulled up my interface.
---
SOUL POWER: 0 / 94 [Inactive: Activation Available]
---
I stared.
Then smiled.
Finally.
"…It's over," I whispered.
That alone was enough motivation to survive the morning ritual.
Extracting myself from Arial took another ten minutes, three near-heart attacks, and one whispered apology she murmured back half-asleep without understanding.
Once I was free, dressed, and mentally stable again, I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes.
"…Nova," I said quietly. "Penalty's gone."
[I am aware.]
Of course you are.
[But do not activate it here.]
I frowned. "Why not?"
[Because your mental state can be disturbed.]
"…Meaning?"
[Any disturbance will compromise the conversion process.]
I opened my mouth.
Closed it.
"…Okay. Fair."
Nova continued, calm and merciless.
[Initial Soulforce conversion requires absolute stability.]
[No interruptions. No emotional spikes. No external stimuli.]
"So… a secluded safe space," I summarized.
[Correct.]
I exhaled. "Alright. Let's do it properly."
Getting privacy in my estate was harder than clearing a dungeon.
I changed and stepped into the corridor.
"Victoria."
She appeared immediately, leaning against the wall like she'd been there the entire time. Which she probably had.
"Yes, Young Master?" she said lightly, eyes flicking toward my room. "Leaving already?"
"…Victoria."
She smiled. "Yes, Young Master?"
"I need to be alone. Completely. For a few hours."
She raised an eyebrow. "For what?"
"Training," I said. "Aura training."
Her smile widened. "Very well. Follow me."
She didn't lead me upward.
She led me down.
Past guarded stairwells.
Past sealed doors.
Past corridors humming faintly with old authority.
She stopped before a stone wall carved with layered sigils and pressed her palm against it.
The door appeared.
It opened.
I stared.
"…What is this place?"
"An underground training hall," Victoria replied casually. "This one belongs to your father. Completely isolated. No interruptions. No visitors."
The door slid open soundlessly.
The chamber beyond was enormous.
Reinforced walls layered with sigils.
The floor etched with impact-dispersal arrays.
The air itself felt… dense. Anchored.
"…Since when do we have this?" I asked.
"Since your father became a Great Elder," she replied.
That explained a lot.
"Every Great Elder has one," she continued. "Some have more. This one tolerates high-output skills, spatial fluctuation, and critical backlash."
"…Skills can be used here?"
"Of course," she said. "Where else would they practice?"
That was… logical.
I hesitated. "And my father just… allows me to use it?"
She shrugged. "It's empty. And you are behaving nicely. Relatively."
I decided not to ask further.
I stepped inside.
"I'll ensure no one disturbs you," she said.
"Thank you."
She paused at the door.
"Oh—and Augustus?"
"Yes?"
She smirked. "Try not to shatter yourself in the process. Reattaching you would be troublesome."
That sounded uncomfortably informed.
The door closed.
I sat.
Cross-legged.
Back straight.
Breathing slow.
"…Alright," I murmured. "Let's see what this really means."
I closed my eyes and activated it.
The world folded inward.
Not visually.
Existentially.
I was inside myself.
My soul space unfolded.
Three energies.
One source.
At the center—my Soul.
Soulforce: solid.
A crystal of blue-white ice. Dense. Perfect. Silent.
Encircling it—
Mana: liquid.
A luminous current flowing endlessly around the core. Responsive. Alive.
At the edges—
Aura: gaseous.
Mist. Thin. Ever-leaking.
I breathed out.
"…Beautiful."
Then—
A magic circle formed above the crystal.
Complex.
Precise.
Unforgiving.
The crystal vibrated.
Hairline fractures spread across its surface.
Slowly.
Painfully.
A single fragment cracked loose.
Sweat rolled down my spine.
Minutes passed.
The shard detached fully and began orbiting the crystal like a newborn moon.
---
SOUL POWER: 1 / 94
---
My jaw tightened.
"…At this rate, it'll take hours."
[Correct.]
"Can this run in the background?"
[No.]
"Why not?"
[Because any disturbance can destabilize your soulforce.]
My pulse spiked. "How bad?"
[Potentially fatal.]
"…Of course it is."
I cursed quietly, then shut up and focused.
Three hours later—
The final shard snapped free.
The orbit stabilized.
The crystal went still.
The magic circle shifted, locking the structure in place.
---
SOUL POWER: 94 / 94
---
I slumped forward, drenched in sweat, muscles trembling.
"…Never doing that casually again."
[You will.]
[Regular refinement increases efficiency.]
"That's a future-me problem."
I exited meditation and opened my interface.
Let's test the skills.
Echo of the Soul (A).
Nothing happened.
No drain.
No sensation.
[Passive detection.]
[Consumption depends on intensity and range.]
"Good. Something efficient."
Next—
Soul Veil (S).
I activated it.
A thin shroud wrapped around my presence.
I counted.
---
SOUL POWER: 93 / 94
---
"…One point for ten seconds?"
[Correct.]
"That's robbery."
[It is practical.]
I rubbed my face. "I'll have to be careful."
[Yes.]
[Assassins are not sustained combatants.]
I deactivated the skill.
Next—
Lethal Strike (S).
I picked up a training sword and activated it.
---
SOUL POWER: 88 / 94
---
"…Five points per strike."
[It directly interferes with mana pathways.]
"...Ah that's reassuring. In a terrifying way."
I released the skill.
The hall felt smaller now.
I stretched and stepped outside.
Victoria was waiting.
Naturally.
"You're done," she said.
"…How did you know?"
She smiled. "Good. Your father has scheduled your promotion assessment for the evening."
"…This evening?"
"Yes."
I frowned. "How did he know I recovered?"
Her smile turned sweet.
"I told him."
I stared.
"…Are you my personal maid or my father's?"
She tilted her head. "Yours."
"Then why—"
"Because," she said calmly, "he pays me."
That shut me up.
Completely.
She turned toward the exit.
"Prepare yourself, Young Master."