"And beyond the ethical horrors, the ritual also puts the caster at risk. If the target’s soul proves too resilient, possesses some kind of counterattack powers, or if any unexpected interference disrupts the process, they might end up the slave themselves."
Malakor’s situation was a living example.
"...What are we going to do then?" Soren asked, his eyes narrowing at Malakor. "Do I need to take him with me, or should he still stay at the bureau?"
"...Well, we don’t own him, and you are his master now, so you should be free to take him away. However, you should still discuss it with the president and get his permission," Elenaria replied after pondering for a moment.
"I see. Then we will take our leave for now." Soren nodded before reaching the wheelchair’s handles and turning Ethea toward the exit. He paused briefly, glancing back over his shoulder at the bowing panther. "As for you... Stay here until I return."
"...Understood, Master."
Soren’s jaw tightened at the title, but he said nothing more. He pushed Ethea out of the chamber with Director Elenaria following closely behind them.
The heavy door groaned shut, and the locks clicked into place.
Malakor remained motionless, his violet eyes lingering on the door until their footsteps faded. Only then did he raise his head, the mask of submission slipping from his features like a discarded cloak.
’...I did my best, Master. The rest is up to him.’
───────
After leaving the sanctuary, Soren returned to the president’s office to discuss what had happened with Malakor, and they decided to leave the panther in the Bureau’s custody for the time being.
With the matter settled, Soren thanked the president and guided Ethea back toward the bureau’s entrance. The morning had stretched far longer than he had anticipated, and there were still other tasks waiting for him.
His first stop was the central hospital, where all the injured hunters were undergoing treatment.
He left Ethea with Aunt Clara and headed to the kitchen, where he was warmly welcomed this time. The head chef had already been notified, so there was no problem with using the facilities and tools. In fact, the head chef was more than delighted to have him there, having heard what Soren was going to do.
Soren didn’t stand on ceremony either and got into work quickly.
He spent more than four hours cooking non-stop and finally finished preparing meals for all the injured hunters he intended to help. Of course, he didn’t forget about Ethea or Aunt Clara and her husband. He prepared something special for them too.
The only troublesome thing was delivering them. Fortunately, the hospital had already assigned a few staff members to assist him, and with their help, the meals were distributed to the respective patients without much delay.
The work also gave Soren a chance to cool down and sort through everything that had happened. The more he replayed the conversation in his head, the more certain he became that Malakor had held something back, likely because Elenaria had been watching and the panther did not wish to speak freely in front of her. As for Raine’s death, he could not bring himself to accept it. Not without seeing proof with his own eyes.
By the time he finished cleaning up and stepped out of the hospital, a message had arrived on his phone. Ryan was on his way. Soren quickly replied, then picked up Ethea and headed back toward the bureau.
Roughly half an hour later, they reunited at the premium cultivation facility, standing before the same chamber that housed the Monolith of the Primal Axis. Finding Ryan had not been difficult; he was surrounded by a small crowd of teenagers, his schoolmates to be more exact, who were chattering excitedly among themselves as they waited.
After exchanging greetings, Soren led the group inside. It did not take long to divide the students into the cultivation rooms Soren and Ryan owned. And while they settled in, Soren took the opportunity to discreetly inspect each one with Advanced Appraisal. Most were unremarkable, their potential average at best, though a handful stood out with high investment values thanks to their unique traits and abilities.
Once the arrangements were complete, Soren guided Ethea into the closest room to the Monolith. He had a hypothesis he wanted to test, one that had lingered in the back of his mind since he planned all this.
"I will cultivate for a bit; you can take a nap instead of waiting."
’Ethea, let’s try and see if it increases mental cultivation speed too.’ He added mentally as he sat down opposite her. ’Our bond ability already doubles it, and if the Monolith’s effect stacks on top of that, we could potentially reach six times the normal rate.’
"Alright." Ethea nodded and closed her eyes, sinking into her soul space. Soren followed suit a moment later.
It did not take him long to reach a conclusion. The mana around him was dense, almost intoxicating in its richness, but when he turned his focus inward to his soul space, the flow of spiritual energy remained stubbornly unchanged. The Monolith’s influence did not reach there.
’Ethea. Do you feel any difference?’
’...No,’ she replied after a pause. ’The speed is almost the same as before.’
Soren frowned, but before he could voice his disappointment, Ethea continued.
’However... it feels easier to concentrate. The environment here is far more stable than outside.’
Soren blinked, then shifted his attention back to his own cultivation. She was right. While the Monolith did not directly amplify spiritual energy, the sheer density of refined mana in the air created a more conducive environment. His thoughts felt clearer, the usual mental noise quieter, allowing him to slip into a focused state with less effort.
’...At least there is some benefit, no matter how small,’ he thought to himself before suggesting. ’Then let’s cultivate for a few hours before leaving.’
’Mm.’ Ethea agreed.
With that settled, Soren withdrew from his soul space and switched to normal cultivation, drawing in the Monolith’s refined mana to make better use of the time. He had been slacking off on it for the past few days, so this was the perfect opportunity to catch up.
’I should create a better schedule as well...’
’...’