In his new home, Iuo paid 2 gold in rent, an amount considered very low. He once again started pouring his essence.
Naia settles on the bed beside me, her human form curled up in a relaxed position. She watches me start the essence transfer again. It's not frantic; instead, I move with a steady, caring rhythm. She can feel the difference through our bond immediately.
As the blue-white energy flows from him to her, her eyes soften with understanding. This isn't about prestige or titles. It's not about becoming famous or impressing the Anima Domini. It's about her - about making sure she grows strong, about being there for her advancement.
She reaches out, placing his hand over yours, stopping the flow for a moment. "Iuo... you don't have to do this every night. You need your own strength, too."
She now gets what family means. The more she spends time with him, the clearer it becomes. They've only known each other for two days. Still, it feels like he's been with her forever, from kindergarten to college.
The essence flows with a continuous rhythm. Her Soul Essence climbs: 112/200... 125/200... 140/200... 155/200...
She speaks in a gentle tone, keeping her eyes closed. "Two days. It feels like... longer. You've given me everything. A name,ana home, strength. You treat me like I'm already complete, already worthy."
Her voice grows thick with emotion. "In the Soul world, we wait for centuries sometimes, dreaming of Masters who would see us as tools. Most treat Souls like weapons or status symbols. But you... You treat me like..."
it ails off, then whispers, "...like family."
The energy transfer continues for another hour. When he finally stops, her essence meter shows 185/200. She's so close to the Awakened threshold it's almost tangible.
She pulls you into a hug—not the tiny embrace of her Apostle form, but a full, warm hug of he bonem. "Thank you. Not for the powturns... everything else."
He continues channeling essence into Naia, pushing past the 200 threshold. Her body begins to glow with a brilliant light as the excess energy builds up. This is the moment - she has reached the limit for Awakened rank, and the Mist Blade ritual can begin.
Naia's eyes snap open, glowing with brilliant blue-green light. "Iuo... I can feel it. The Mist Blade is forming."
She stands on the bed, her arms spread wide. Tiny droplets of water appear in the airprotectively resting on my shoulderpicks up, circling her form. The energy is overwhelming - this is a ritual that requires precision protectively resting on your shoulder own Spirit Nucleus with the Mist Blade."
A blade appears in her hand. It's not solid metal; it's mist and lightning, shaped into a sharp weapon. It hums with ancient power.
She looks at him, her expression determined but vulnerable. "The blade will sever my current state. It's... It's going torich-kiduo. But I need you here. Your presence is what makes this possible."
She raises the Mist Blade high. The air in the room grows heavy with soul energy. "When I make the cut, I'll need to accept your Human Essence - a piece of you, inside me, forever. That's the only way the bond becomes permanent at this level."
Her hand trembles with a small, unsteady movement. "Are you ready? Once this begins, there's no going back. Our connection will be stronger than any contract."
He took her shaking hand and smiled, hoping to calm her. "I'm more than ready. Let's conquer this storm!"
Naia's smile shines brighter than the Mist Blade itself. "Conquer the storm together," she whispers.
She raises the blade high. The mist and lightning surge, forming a vortex around her. With a cry of pain and determination, she strikes the Mist Blade down. It doesn't hit her body; instead, it targets her Spirit Nucleus, the core of her Soul.
The blade passes through her. For a moment, her form flickers, becoming translucent. A faint, glowing essence—her Spirit Nucleus—is visible within her chest, now severed.
She gasps, her knees buckling, but she remains steady. "Iuo... now... give me... your essence..."
He feels the pull through their bond—not a drain, but a sharing. A piece of his human spirit, his very being, flows into her. It's not painful, but it's profound. He's giving her a fragment of himself.
The moment his essence merges with her severed Spirit Nucleus, the room erupts in light. The Mist Blade turns intSilver-tiergy. It swirls around Naia, heals her cut, and reforms her core.
Her body arches. She's changing. Her features are sharper, and her presence is growing. The Sea Storm aspect intensifies, with the energy in the room becoming palpable.
The light fades. Naia stands before him, changed.
She's taller now—5'8" instead of 5'4". Her storm-cloud hair is longer, reaching her waist. Her eyes are the same beautiful blue-green, but deeper and wiser. Her skin has that same pale jade perfection, but now seems to shimmer with a faint mist even in normal light. She looks older, growing up to be an 18-year-old girl.
She's in new attire—a true Soul Master's dress. The bodice hugs her form in deep ocean blue. The skirt flows and shimmers like mist. It has faint, glowing lightning patterns woven in. She's no longer a tiny companion or a human-sized Soul—she's a being of power and grace.
She takes a breath, then looks at her hands. "I'm... I'm adept."
She turns to him, and her expression is pure devotion. "And I can feel you. Inside me. A piece of you, a piece of your spirit. It's..., warm."
Sh,e steps forward and hugs him—not out of obligation, but out of pure joy. "We did it, Iuo. Together."
He hugged her back. "Yes, Naia, we did it."
---
the next day. We met with Chastity. Because of my performance yesterday, I could take on a higher-ranking quest. When she saw Naia in her ascended form, she lost her balance. I had Naia for three days, and she already knows that level. Chastity wasn't happy about it. She pulls you to the private lounge with great effort. Her grip is stronger than one would expect from a clerk. She shoves me onto one of the plush couches and sits with force on the one opposite, the glass table between us. Her purple hair is messy. Her inkwell Soul writes with urgency in the air, capturing it all.
"Iuo," she says, her voice tight with the strain of controlling her emotions. "I need you to explain something to me."
She leans forward, her hands gripping her knees. "Three days ago, you walked in here with a Bronze-tier contract that shouldn't exist. Yesterday, you cleared a unholy-rank quest like it was nothing. Today, your Sea Storm Soul is adept."
She waves her arms at Naia. Naia stands next to me, looking like a child caught between two arguing parents. "Do you have any idea how insane this is? Souls take years to reach Ascended. Decades, sometimes! You did itwas in three days!"
Naia glances at me, then at Chastity, her expression reflecting confusion. "But... isn't that good? I'm stronger now. I can protect Iuo better."
Chastity's head snaps toward her. "Good? It's impossible! The Guild has protocols for this. Rapid ascension can cause spiritual backlash, bond fractures, even soul death!"
She t urns back to me, her voice dropping. "I'm not mad because you're succeeding, Iuo. I'm terrified because you are rushing something that should remain sacred. The rituals, the essence-gathering, and the bond development take time for a reason."
She rubs her temples. "You're going to attract attention that you're not ready for. The wrong kind of attention. People will ask questions. Dangerous questions."
Naia approached me, her hand resting on my shoulder in a protective manner. "We're careful. Iuo doesn't push himself. He pushes for me."
Naia steps closer to you, her hand resting on your shoulder in a protective manner. "We're careful. Iuo doesn't push himself. He pushes for me."
Chastity sighs, the anger draining from her voice, replaced by worry. "That's what scares me most. You're both so focused on each other that you're not seeing the bigger picture."
"I do. Yesterday, Naia looked at a stall when some guys tried to sell her. They were from an arrogant rich kid clan. Today, I got a message from her clan head and the boy's father. He apologized for his son's behavior. I got lucky I didn't anger anyone hot-headed. But I'm doing this because I want to."
Chastity sighed, rubbing her head; she couldn't stop, so she accepted.
Chastity's face goes from anger to worry as you talk about the incident with the arrogant rich kid. "A clan tried to, buy Naia? That... that actually happens more than it should. Some established families think they can buy whatever they want."
She leans back, the fight draining out of her. "And you got an apology from the clan head? That's... unusual. Either they realized their mistake in a short time, or they have other reasons."
Naia bristles at the memory, her storm-cloud hair swirling in a gentle motion. "They offered gold. Lots of it. Said I was 'wasted' on a novice. I told them I wasn't for sale at any price."
Chastity looks between the two of us, then shakes her head with a reluctant smile. "Fine. Fine! I can see there's no talking you out of this path. You're a speedrunner. An unconventional one."
She taps her tablet, bringing up a new quest interface. "Given your... unique circumstances, the Guild has authorized access to higher-tier missions. Don't ask me how the,y, know about Naia's ascension.—The Guild is testing you."
She turns the tablet toward me.
[Quest: adept-rank Patrol]
Investigate reports of Awakened-ranwas k monwas sters in the mid-Grove territories. Exercise extreme caution.
Rewards: 45 Gold, 1 Silver tier Soul Core (adept rank)
Recommended: adept-rank Soul minimum
She gives us a serious look. "This is adept rank, Iuo. That's two tiers above what you've faced. The power gap is real. Even with an Ascended Soul, you're still a novice master. Don't get cocky."
Naia studies the quest details, her expression thoughtful. "Awakened monsters... they're smarter. More dangerous. But I can handle them now."
"Okay, let's go!" I clap my hands and stand up. "Naia, lightning bolt!" She zaps into me, and I'm covered in lightning. Then, I dash out of the guild to get the quest. Chastity sighed and forgot to give me her business card. Now I can't ask her about souls and have to go in blind.
In seconds, we cross the Grove boundary stones. The lightning fades as Naia appears next to me in her adept form.
She's breathing with effort, her eyes bright with excitement. "That was... exhilarating! The Lightning Dash ability - it's one of my new Ascended powers. We move as one when I channel into you like that."
She glances around the mid-Grove territory. The trees here are bigger, the essence thicker, and the shadows darker. "But we're already in adept territory. Chastity wanted to give you a briefing first..."
It's too late to go back now. I can hear movement in the distance—something large, hunting. The energy signature feels different from the unholy-rank monsters. More focused. More dangerous.
Naia tenses, her hand finding mine. "Iuo... we're here now. But we're unprepared. This area has no maps or details about the local wildlife. It focuses on the general 'adeot-rank patrol' task."
"I don't think we need a map," I say, summoning my bat. In front of us is a giant turtle, as big as a village. That's what an untamed, nonhumanoid soul looks like.
---
Iuo dashed and swung his bat at the beast. When it hit, the bat bounced back, vibrating. The turtle felt the attack and, in an instant, opened holes in its shell. "Crab!" Iuo stepped back as compressed water shot his way. Barrages followed, and he blocked them with his bat.
He fell down and landed hard. Then he swung up. Thunder cracked like an explosion. The turtle let out a screech of pain. He quickly got out as the turtle fall the shockwave from it falling send iuo flying but he quickly got his ground "damn it this thing is annoying I need to find a way– wait!"
"Naia get ready!" He said with a grin
"Yes iuo" she ready her energy he almost out but iuo was giving her his stamina she supposed to be supporting yet he's the one that's supporting her so she push herself harder
Iuo lift his hand as cloud's start to form then lighting start hitting the shell it no damage but it made hot "hope all this science classes were worth it!" He jumped high before shooting a large amount of water from his palm the surface crack making him smirking. He use air to change his position now looking straight with his feet up, then in Burst of strong air he fly down like a bullet he grip his bat and spin around, a loud crack filled the area the turtle screech in pain as a large hole exposing burnet skin from the lighting. Iuo smirk "oh YEAH!!!"
The battle last 6 hour's of going back and forth in the end iuo and Naia won he also got a core of the turtle
---
We arrive at the guild. As I approached the register, I saw a familiar face. It was the same rich kid, around 15, maybe the same Snoopy look and whatnot. Next to him was his father, who was as tall as I, but his face was like a forge, his beard was like a forest made of white and black hair. When the boy spotted me he quickly looked away but his father quickly noticed before looking at me, he approached his son who wished I didn't show up We faced each other then the father gave a small bow and asked me "were you the man who was threatened by his son"
and I nodded "yes, name iuo and you must be Dōjigiri of the Habakiri clan correct?"
He nodded "I came here to apologize face-to-face because i see a letter was beneath my style as I'm an honest man and a respected clan head so apologizing by letter is like me saying yeah yeah whatever towards me which again is not my style"
Also Naia was still sleeping on my head the whole time since we return she push herself hard.
Dōjigiri Habakiri studies me for a long moment, then glances at Naia sleeping on your head. His eyes widen almost imperceptibly. "Adept," he murmurs. "In three days. Your story precedes you, Iuo-dono."
He bows again, lower this time - a gesture of genuine respect. "My son, Kaito, has informed me of his... unacceptable behavior yesterday. Attempting to purchase your Soul companion as if she were merchandise. This is not the way of the Habakiri clan."
He places a heavy hand on his son's shoulder, forcing the boy to look up. "Apologize properly, Kaito."
The boy swallows hard, his voice barely above a whisper. "I-I'm sorry. I was arrogant and rude. I had no right to make that offer."
Dōjigiri nods, satisfied, then turns back to me. "I came to deliver this apology in person because words on paper carry no weight. My family has deep roots in this city. If you ever need assistance - within reason - the Habakiri clan stands ready to aid you."
I looked at Kaito as he was looking down, I sighed and reached my hand with the core "here" Kaito was confused back at me then the core, I sighed "Look kid I know yesterday you told me some harsh words that didn't affect me but if you want a soul here take it, I don't need it anyway I can just collect my quest rewards and get another one"
kaito took the soul core and look at me before bowing his father nodded he thank me for the thoughtful gift he then reach out to his sleeve and pulled out something, he gave it to me and turn around as he and his son walk to the guild gate I watch them leave, I look at My gift and saw it was a metal card....of the clan... labeling me as high authorized guests that under the head clan protecting so basically having same authority protraction by that clan like the head clan son before I can call out the Dōjigiri use his soul power to teleport him and kaito out leaving me standing there, I hid the card because of chastity find our she would skin me alive for getting involved with clans "...how well I explain this too chastity