Chapter 9 – Divine Ring Holding of Beasts
The night was deep, the air sharp with the damp scent of moss and stone. In the workshop beneath Goldbear Manor, Glic sat cross-legged before a table of reagents, his mind racing with calculations.
The frogs were ready. His spell-fused beasts croaked with restless hunger, their new powers thrumming in the air. But there was one fatal problem.
He had no way to carry them.
Carts and cages would be far too obvious. To march into battle with wagons of croaking beasts would invite suspicion, questions—and, eventually, exposure. Worse, a single nosy wizard from the Tower could confiscate them under some fabricated law.
"No," Glic whispered, his hand curling into a fist. "I need a container. A space… a sanctuary."
The System stirred.
> [Host Thought Detected: Storage Capability Request.]
Warning: No 0 Ring spell meets requirement.
Possible Workaround: External Anchors – Scrolls, Stones, and Rings may serve as temporary matrices for recording spells above host level.
Glic's eyes snapped open. "You mean… I can cheat?"
> [Affirmative. External media allows bypassing stage restrictions. Efficiency reduced by 60%. Instability risk: moderate.]
A slow grin spread across his face. So even the path of wizardry has loopholes. And I am the one who found them.
---
The next day, under the guise of a merchant errand, Glic's steward procured several precious items from hidden channels:
A Space Ring, small and unadorned, but humming with a sliver of dimensional magic.
A Beast Taming Scroll, ancient ink etched with runes for binding and controlling creatures.
A Divine Sanctuary Scroll, a forbidden relic said to create protective domains that even Adept Wizards would hesitate to breach.
When they were placed before him, Glic's hands trembled—not with fear, but anticipation.
He activated the System.
"System. Record temporary spell matrices."
> [Recording…]
Scroll Essence Absorbed: Beast Taming (4th Ring Equivalent)
Scroll Essence Absorbed: Divine Sanctuary (7th Ring Equivalent)
Artifact Essence Absorbed: Space Ring (3rd Ring Equivalent)
Compatibility: 42%
Fusion Path Suggested.
The System pulsed with alien light.
> [Proposal: Divine Ring Holding of Beasts]
Description: A space-type artifact capable of storing living creatures in stasis. Maintains spiritual tether through Beast Taming essence. Sanctuary overlay prevents external probing.
Capacity: 20 medium beasts (expandable).
Risk: High (Divine Sanctuary essence unstable).
Proceed?
Glic's chest tightened. This was madness. A mere apprentice tampering with Divine-level magic. If any tower wizard sensed even a fragment of the Sanctuary essence… the Goldbear family would be erased overnight.
But his heart thundered with excitement. "Proceed."
---
The ritual began.
Twelve mana stones flared, forming a pentagonal array. The scrolls unraveled, their runes dissolving into streams of light. The Space Ring floated in the center, trembling as the two spells forced themselves into its silver frame.
Cracks splintered across the table. Air warped, vibrating with the pull of another dimension. The Beast Taming glyphs latched onto the ring, weaving chains of luminous script. Then, the Divine Sanctuary essence bled into the metal, a golden aura trying to swallow everything.
Glic's veins burned. His Spiritual Sea howled under the pressure. He nearly collapsed, but the System's voice cut through the chaos.
> [Stabilizing Host Soul Link.]
[Redirecting 20% instability into Merge Stone Residue.]
[Containment Achieved.]
The light dimmed. The ring clattered onto the table, perfectly whole.
> [Fusion Complete.]
Item Created: Divine Ring Holding of Beasts
Functions:
– Beast Storage (Stasis, max capacity 20 medium units).
– Spiritual Tether (Direct control through Beast Taming essence).
– Sanctuary Cloak (Item masked from standard divination).
Warning: Using Divine-tier essence may attract attention if overexposed. Limit usage.
Glic stared at the simple silver band, now glowing faintly with a golden shimmer. His reflection in its surface looked strange—half exhausted, half exhilarated.
He slipped it onto his finger. At once, he felt the croaking chorus in the Sub-Magic Pen shift. With a thought, eight frogs shimmered and vanished from their cages, drawn into the ring.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Inside his mind, he could still feel them: eight distinct presences, calm, dormant, waiting for his command.
His lips curved upward.
"A hidden army… on my finger."
The weight of his creation hit him all at once. Not only had he broken wizardry's rules—he had shattered them. He had taken Divine essence and bent it into obedience, all while wearing the mask of a simple viscount.
The bandits would never know what devoured them.
And the wizards? They would never suspect until it was far too late.