The training grounds were busy with activity, the scent of frost lingering in the air as the camp prepared for the impending mission. Vastarael stood at the edge of the clearing, his eyes fixed on his character profile, though his attention occasionally wandered to Phaenora.
She was in the center of the field, surrounded by a small group of archers, both men and women, who were volunteering for her Memory Extraction.
She was dressed simply, though nothing about her seemed simple. The white leggings Farrynelle had given her clung to her form, accentuating her long, shapely legs and drawing subtle glances from the men around her.
Paired with the oversized gray t-shirt, which rested just above her mid-thigh, she looked completely out of place in the cold weather.
Yet she appeared utterly unbothered.
Phaenora's hand gently touched the forehead of the first archer, her expression serene and focused. As her fingertips glowed faintly, the soldier's eyes widened for a brief moment, as though they were caught in a flash of insight. Then, she let go, the glow fading instantly.
"Next," she said with a soft smile, stepping aside to motion the next volunteer forward.
Vastarael's gaze flicked from his profile back to the scene before him. He noted how quickly Phaenora worked, limiting her extraction time to mere seconds. Any longer and the process would cause irreparable damage, frying their brains and leaving them incapable of even holding a bow.
The second archer, a younger man with a nervous smile, stepped up eagerly. Phaenora gave him the same serene expression as she placed her hand on his forehead. His knees almost buckled under the light pressure, though whether it was from the memory extraction or her touch was anyone's guess.
By the time she was done, his face was flushed and he stumbled back into the crowd, mumbling incoherently about needing to sit down.
Vastarael raised an eyebrow but said nothing. It wasn't surprising though. Phaenora had a presence that seemed to unnerve and entrance everyone around her, regardless of gender.
The third archer, a seasoned woman with a sharp gaze, approached next. Unlike the men, she didn't seem as fazed by Phaenora's aura-at least, not at first.
But as Phaenora moved closer, the archer's eyes instinctively dropped to her chest, her focus lingering there for just a fraction too long.
Phaenora tilted her head slightly, her lips curving into an amused smile.
"You're next," she said softly, as though she hadn't noticed-or perhaps she had, and chose not to comment.
The woman nodded quickly, standing still as Phaenora touched her forehead. This time, the glow seemed to pulse faintly before dissipating, and the archer let out a slow breath, stepping back with a slight shake of her head.
"She's tall," one of the female archers murmured to her companion as they watched from the side. "Taller than most of us. And those legs..."
"Not just the legs," another added, her voice low. "She's... well, everything."
Despite their attempts at discretion, Vastarael caught fragments of their conversation. He glanced at Phaenora again, noting her height compared to the others. In fact, she was slightly less taller than him by a few centimeters.
She was undeniably taller than Farrynelle and even Xander himself.
Yet, for all her allure, she was efficient. She moved quickly from one archer to the next, extracting what she needed without hesitation or error.
"Another one," she called out, waving the next archer forward.
The line of volunteers shuffled nervously, each one trying to appear nonchalant but clearly eager for their turn. For most, the idea of being touched by someone as captivating as Phaenora seemed like an honor.
Vastarael sighed softly, his attention returning to his profile. As much as Phaenora's antics amused him, he couldn't afford to let himself be distracted.
He was an Ascender now.
It seemed that killing tens of thousands of souls together with the first Peccavi made him skip two phases with extreme ease. There are subtle differences with ranks.
Normals only have the capabilities of their race. Essentia can be able to use energy on their bodies while Normals can't, not until they're six of course. Others get to that age and still don't use it until they mature, but that's extremely rare.
For immortals like elves, dragons, children of gods, vampires, any other race that has an immortal lifespan, they are born as Essentia rank. Even if they are six, they'll still be at the same rank, only stronger.
For Vastarael, he was born as a First Phase Essentia and was stuck at that phase his entire life. Why?
Because he's the son of Nexuses.
The more powerful your bloodline, the longer the time you need to increase your power. This works for most immortals and descendants of gods. Vastarael learned a lot from his mother and father for his entire childhood and still didn't rise up past First Phase Essentia.
This didn't mean he was weak though. His energy and body is divine, even though it's just essence. His body and soul are stronger in quality, perhaps even stronger than most mortals and immortals because of his bloodline.
It's the same as saying a newborn baby dragon is stronger and more powerful than a baby elf or human just because of genes and bloodlines.
So, the stronger they get, the more powerful than they become. And, Vastarael was now a First Phase Ascender.
Back to the rankings...
When a being becomes an Essentia, they gain a Pinnacle Tether. Based on their origin and bloodline, they might get Base Tethers to use. For those on the divine bloodlines, they get divinities in addition.
When they become an Ascender, they gain an extra section of their Pinnacle Tether, like a second part. For instance, if your Pinnacle Tether was fire and you could only summon fireballs, then as as Ascended, you can shoot fire beams as well.
As for the skills, they get stronger. For those with divinities, they unlock themselves. Well, some of them.
And as for Divine...
That's for another time.
Anyways, Vastarael realized just how powerful he was now.
_____
Name: [Vastarael Richinaria.]
Alias: [Veneri]
Age: [17.]
Title: [Prince of Anqerise], [Heir of Dynasty Richinaria], [Prince of Beauty].
Species: Aeterium (Nexus Bloodline)
Affiliation: [Dynasty Richinaria], [Dynasty Vazakiel (By Marriage)]
Status: [First Phase Ascender, 37/1000]
Pinnacle Tethers: [Sapphire Materialization], [Omniphage.]
Skills:Circlecraft], [Rune Drawing], [Sapphire Bond], [Mystic Eyes (Locked)], [Inventory], [Soul and Body Regeneration], [Massive Essence Supply], [Soul Vision], [Memory Implantation and Extraction.]
Major Divinities (Inactive): [Protection, (Unlocked)], [Love], [Justice].
Minor Divinities: [Water]
Codex: [Prince of Anqerise], [Handsome Prince of Freedom]
Artifacts: [Calimostria], [Peccavi's Shard], [Divine Mystic Book of Altherion], [Volcano's Resonance], [Orchestral Vialex.]
Boon: [Ethereal Beauty]
Bane: [Trouble in Paradise]
Destiny: [Suffering Before Reward]
Fate: [A Death In The Embrace Of Love]
_____
On the general scale of things, the only thing that changed was the status. However, all his Pinnacle Tethers were upgraded.
He started with the one that made him extremely happy.
[Circlecraft: Second Star.]
[You can now use Second Star Mystic Circles. All your First Star Creations have been converted to Second Star Mystic Circles.]
This was extremely helpful.
Mages who use Circlemancy can use all mystic circles below their rank. For instance, a Seventh Star mage can use all mystic circles from First to Seventh Stars.
However, when it came to Circlecraft Mages, once they get to a higher circle rank, they can NEVER use a mystic circle below their rank.
For example, a Seventh Star Circlecraft mage can only use Seventh Star Circles they created. They cannot create a Sixth, Fifth or even a First or Second Mystic Circle. This is a very good boon for being a Circlecraft mage, even though the process is extremely slow.
Now, Vastarael can only create Second Star Mystic Circles and if he increases in star ranks, all his circles will be elevated to a higher rank. However, after a Circlecraft mage reaches the Second Star, they can only move higher by researching and creating more Circles.
Even if he was a god, unless he improved his Circlecraft skills, he would stay stagnant at the same place. Its similar to learning how to do embroidery from scratch. You have to learn over and over for you to fully make a masterpiece.
And Circlecraft mages are self taught. Each of them are unique like fingerprints so they don't follow the same process of increasing star ranks, making it even harder for them to level up.
Despite being a broken ability, it has a lot of disadvantages. But Vastarael wasn't that discouraged though. In fact, having to improve to a new star rank just by getting to another phase was already a blessing.
Then, he looked at the second main ability that gained a massive boon.