In the underground experiment lab, Charlotte was pouring a drop of a tiny liquid into a vial. The vial already contained a pink-colored liquid.
Slowly and carefully, she dropped the liquid, and as soon as the drop fell into the vial, a tiny smoke emerged.
Observing the process happening inside the vial, she slowly shook it, and the liquid inside gradually turned into a brown-gray color.
While holding the vial, she picked up another vial that contained a silver-colored liquid. Placing the two vials side by side, she compared them.
Tch!
"Something is missing again… What is it... What is it... What is it..."
While pondering, she suddenly paused and lifted her head as if she had just been enlightened.
"What am I doing? This is a mystical egg! I can't use cheap stuff for it. This needs high-quality ingredients."
Putting everything away, she started her experiment again.
Tip!
With a slight hit, the mystical beast's egg cracked again, and drops of its golden yolk fell into a container.
On the other hand, Charlotte placed several ingredients into a furnace and boiled them, creating a thick liquid. Taking a vial, she first put a drop of egg yolk into it, then added a tiny bit of the thick liquid.
Inside the vial, a pink-colored liquid instantly formed as the two substances mixed.
Charlotte carefully put away the other vial and picked up another one containing a different liquid.
Slowly and very carefully, with keen observation, she added a single drop into the pink liquid.
Pshhhh!
Smoke rose as the pink-colored liquid slowly turned into a silver color.
Taking the silver-colored vial she already had—something summoners used to boost their soul strength for a certain period—she compared its color to the one she had just created.
The newly created liquid in the vial had a much deeper and more vibrant silver shine.
"...."
Moments passed in silence as Charlotte gazed at the veil.
"fucking God, I did it."
...
When night fell, Charlotte arrived at the Arclore residence by herself. Without even knocking on his door, she barged into Mordred's room.
At that moment, Mordred was seated, focusing on a few of his works. Being disturbed—and in such a rude manner—was not something he liked at all.
His eyes held a piercing coldness as he looked at Charlotte.
"Sorry for my rudeness, Mordred, but... I did it. The soul-strengthening potion... I created it."
Holding the silver-colored vial in his hand, Mordred observed it. He turned it upside down, watching how the liquid inside moved.
"Ordinary summoners use soul-strengthening potions as a trump card. The potion gives them a sudden burst of soul strength, allowing them to summon a high-level being, but that effect disappears quickly. Yet you're telling me that you've finished creating a permanent soul-strengthening potion this fast? Impressive."
"I'm honored, boss. I was only able to do this thanks to the mystical creature's egg. If I didn't have it, there would be no possible way to achieve something like this."
"In truth, my expectations for this were a bit lower. I thought you would ask for more time. It seems I underestimated your ability. Is there anything you desire?"
Holding the vial in his hand, Mordred gazed at Charlotte.
"I desire nothing but to serve you, boss. But the ingredients for creating the soul-strengthening potion are hard to find. I only had enough ingredients for just one. If we need more potions..."
"Don't worry, use the factory staff as you wish to search for the ingredients. And use the funds however you like for now. Think of it as a... reward."
"As you wish, my lord."
With a bow, Charlotte respectfully stepped out of the room, making sure to close the door herself.
"I'm sure there isn't anything like poison in here."
"No, my lord. She has truly created the soul-strengthening potion and used no toxic substances."
The shadow assassin appeared in the room and answered.
"There are many things words cannot prove. But..."
Mordred stood up from his seat and walked to his balcony. He lifted the veil to the sky, observing it among the stars.
"...Only actions can prove such things."
Opening the vial, he drank the silver liquid in a single breath.
Ah!
A moment passed in silence, but then Mordred felt extreme pain throughout his body.
The empty vial in his hand cracked as he suffered.
"Aghhhhh..."
Like a madman, he fell to the ground, screaming as he crawled into the room.
"Agh... Aghhhh... Ahhhhh!"
. . . . . . .
When dawn came, the world began to wake up. A group of knights, clad in holy sanctuary armor, gathered together for a long journey.
"Captain, all of us are here."
"What about Charles?"
"He's okay, just sobering up a bit."
"Alright then. Tell everyone to get ready—we'll set off in about ten minutes."
After ten minutes, all the knights were on their horses and ready to set off. But just as they were about to start, they heard the cry of a horse from nearby.
Looking back, they saw another knight with a large body riding his horse toward them.
"Stranger, are you a holy knight? You don't appear to be." As the captain observed, he realized that the new knight didn't have the symbol of the holy knights carved into his armor.
"Oh... Aren't you—" Suddenly, among the group, one of the knights recognized the newcomer.
"Isn't that Sir Arthur?" His voice was heard by all.
"Sir Arthur, the lonely knight wandering the world with his subordinates. Ardentist told me about him... Are you actually Knight Arthur?"
"Whoa... I didn't expect so many people to know my name."
The knight finally arrived in front of the group and revealed his face. And indeed, it was Knight Arthur. At that moment, his sword, which was placed beside his horse, glowed with a holy color.
"It's indeed Knight Arthur! Just look at the holy glow of that sword. It's an honor to meet you," the captain among the group greeted him.
"I heard a Trinity Gathering has been called..." Returning the greeting with a nod, Knight Arthur asked.
"It's true, and we are heading to the Rising Light Land. If by chance, Knight Arthur is also heading that way, would you like to join us?"
"Recently, my subordinate got injured in battle, and since then, I have traveled alone. It felt a bit lonely—it would be better if I had someone to talk to at least."
Hearing him, all the knights felt joy. Rumours had it that Knight Arthur was very strong, and having someone like him among them meant their journey would be safer.
"Well then... to the Trinity Gathering!" With the captain's words, all urged their horses forward, and Knight Arthur journeyed alongside them.
. . . . . . . .
In Arclore Residence, Mordred stood straight in the middle of his room.
Phew!
With a deep breath, he extended his hand forward and slightly closed his eyes.
"With the authority granted by the will of the world and unity of God, I request a pathway to the realm of spirits."
In front of him, on the floor, a magical circle appeared, glowing and shining. It created a dark hole in the middle.
Taking a step back, Mordred observed the circle.
Unlike sacrificial summoning, where I could summon a specific creature to my liking, the ordinary spirit portal opening would summon a random creature fitting for my soul power. If the creature this time is a morph beast, that means in human power ranking, I am considered someone in the Adept stage.
Sssssssss!
Suddenly, he heard a sound coming from the deep hole in the circle. It came a few times. With the knowledge he gathered, Mordred had a guess about who was about to come out, and his gaze filled with expectation.
As Mordred observed, two eyes appeared out from the circle, then a body, similar to the appearance of a frog. It blinked a few times with its large eyes as it gazed directly at Mordred.
Then it moved and came out from the circle, revealing the lower half of its body, which was similar to a giant snake.
Sssssss!
With its head held high, the creature moved closer to Mordred, gazing directly into his eyes.
Mordred stayed unmoved and gazed back directly into the eyes of the creature without blinking once.
Time passed as the two individuals continued to gaze at each other. Than the toad-snake creature slowly began to lower its head.
Seeing he was about to succeed, Mordred stayed calm and confident.
Tok! Tok!
But suddenly, someone knocked on the door. The toad-snake creature, which was about to turn around, instantly looked back at Mordred. Fortunately, Mordred never moved from his position.
"Young master, may I come in?" The voice of Vanessa was heard from the other side of the door.
The tension between the toad-snake and Mordred rose. The toad-snake creature got extremely close to Mordred's face and eyes.
It had green eyeballs and dark pupils like deep holes in the earth. If any ordinary person gazed at them, they would fall into an endless darkness.
Mordred felt his mind becoming a little numb, and exhaustion began to take over. However, right at this moment, the dignity of a villain began to act. Mordred, who was about to lose his composure in front of the creature, suddenly became more like a proud lion before the toad-snake. And the creature definitely felt it.
Within a moment, the snake blinked its eyes. Then it moved around Mordred and rubbed its head against him, showing affection.
A smile appeared on Mordred's face.
"Well... that was easy."
. . . . . . . . .
Gulgulith, the Petranizor. With a toad's head and a snake's body, it's a Morph Beast with an interesting ability.
It's a commonly known fact in this world that one being cannot compare to another. No matter the rank, there is always someone stronger. And sometimes, someone in a lower rank could defeat someone in a higher rank because of their high origin or... just because they are stronger than other beings.
Gulgulith is also a creature like this. Its ability could affect beings stronger than him. In the Spirit stage, it's a Reaver Beast, which is one stage higher than a Morph Beast.
"Almost screwed up it's Right of Judgment."
Taking the bottle of wine from a nearby shelf, Mordred fell onto his seat.
The Right of Judgment is an event where a spirit creature tests the being it summons. It determines whether this being is worthy of commanding it or not. If the Right of Judgment is passed, then the spirit creature will obey, but if the result is a failure, the end is certain death.
"Come in, Vennesa."
Mordred hadn't forgotten about Vennesa. He knew she would wait at the door until Mordred came back from wherever he had gone or eventually called her in once he finished whatever he was doing inside.
Opening the door, Vennesa stepped in. Gulgulith slid its way under Mordred's desk, hiding from Vennesa's sight. After making a contract, Mordred didn't hurry to send it back to the Spirit Realm.
'Blaming her would be pointless. After all, she didn't know what was happening inside. And she should have a pretty good reason for coming here.'
Just as Mordred expected, Vennesa handed him a letter—or more like an invitation letter.
"It's written to my name. Now, who in the world would write an invitation letter to the second son of Arclore?"
With questions in his mind, Mordred unraveled the letter, and as he read, his face curled into a slight smirk.
"So it's them... How bold."