Monster Paradise welcomed him back the way it always did, warm and loud and entirely unbothered by whatever mask he'd been wearing an hour earlier.
He found Ythera exactly where he'd left her, sleeves rolled up in her tower on the second island, rows of small, dense pills cooling on fresh trays behind her, each one a deep, resonant red that pulsed slow and steady like a heartbeat.
"Calamity-rank," she said, not looking up, "seven batches, all stable. The Hollow's resources turned out to be even richer than I expected once I stopped rationing them."
[Pill: Verdant Ember Core]
[Rank: Calamity]
[Effect: Grants a substantial boost toward breaking Calamity-rank barrier, provided the body has already stabilized at peak Mythical-rank.]
"Seven batches," John repeated, impressed despite himself. "How many pills in each?"
"Enough," Ythera said, allowing herself a small, satisfied smile. "You'll see soon enough."
