[Title Acquired]
[Fang of the Hunt]
+10% Essence gained from beasts. Beasts hesitate briefly before attacking.
I blinked as the notification faded. The air still stank of crushed bark and blood. Veyren had gone wild—his tail flicking with excitement—because scattered across the forest floor were several monsters lying dead, mangled, or burned.
Another notification chimed:
[Essence Acquired From Your Bond]
[10% of Total Essence Earned by Veyren]
[+78 Essence Gained]
My eyebrows rose.
That meant he'd earned 780 Essence by himself.
Most beasts fled once the boss died, but Veyren had hunted them down regardless. Impressive… especially considering he was still injured.
He even helped with the Verdant Alpha, which meant:
The boss normally gave 500 Essence, but I'd only received 450 because Veyren took 10%.
That was fine—I wouldn't have survived that fight without him.
He deserved a name.
Something fitting.
I knelt and placed a hand on his head. "Veyren," I said softly. "Spirit of Fire."
His tails flared with faint firelight.
[Spirit Fox Named]
Name: Veyren
Race: Spirit Fox (2 Tails)
Rank: E — [2155 / 10000 Essence]
Affinities: Shadow / Light
Skills:
– Shadow Movement
– Illusion
– Shadow Cloak
– Illumination (Lightburst)
Condition: Injured / Recovering
Bond Level: 42 / 100
Our bond really was growing.
Or maybe I was just starting to trust him.
He had thrown himself into danger to save me.
I exhaled slowly and scanned the carnage around us. The ground was littered with corpses, blood feeding the soil, steam rising from still-warm bodies.
"Predation."
My shadow stretched out—longer, darker—until it touched every corpse in the clearing, including the ones Veyren had killed. I wasn't sure it would work on kills that weren't mine, but Veyren was bonded to me… maybe that changed things.
It did.
[Corpses Devoured]
[+1150 Essence]
My Essence jumped to 1953.
But something didn't add up.
500 from the Alpha,
780 from Veyren's kills…
That should have been 1280, not 1150.
So the system reduced the Essence because I didn't kill them myself.
Good to know.
Either way, it was enough to level up.
LV 13 → 400 Essence
LV 14 → 400 Essence
LV 15 → 400 Essence
LV 15
[1200 Essence required for LV 16]
1200 Essence, I expected an increase although high it was expected.
I distributed the stat points immediately—two into Vitality and one into Constitution.
My Essence dropped to 753.
The next ordeals would involve spirits—enemies with no physical form. I couldn't damage them through normal means. Coating my weapon in mana was possible… but inefficient.
I'd burn out my entire pool instantly.
I needed something better.
A weapon designed for mana conduction.
Something like a—
[Aura White Rapier] (Injector-Powered)
A lightweight rapier forged from White Steel with high mana conductivity. Its built-in Injector channels Essence or mana to generate a concentrated Aura coating, enhancing piercing power and speed.
Cost: 700 Essence
It increased Strength and Stamina by +1 each.
Saw it as I was browsing the shop and it was perfect for me
Stats
HP: 90
MP: 60
Strength: 8 (+1)
Agility: 10 (+1)
Stamina: 9 (+1)
Constitution: 7 (+1)
Vitality: 7 (+2)
Mana: 6
I lifted the hilt and rested a finger beneath the injector nozzle.
[Injector Connected]
[Fuel Type: Mana / Essence]
I selected Essence.
[Amount?]
"…50."
Warmth surged from my chest, flowing through my arm. My breath caught as my body chilled for a moment—Essence leaving me always felt wrong somehow—then the sensation vanished.
The injector cylinder glowed, about three-quarters full.
Good enough.
I was ready.
The 21st Ordeal began.
The forest dissolved into motes of light, reshaping itself. Trees faded.
Stone replaced soil.
I stood inside an ancient open-air hall, braziers lining the perimeter—unlit, waiting.
Then flames erupted before me.
A massive shape coiled out from the fire: a Fire Salamander, its molten scales hissing. Two Lesser Fire Sprites hovered beside it—small blazing orbs barely fifteen centimeters in size.
The Salamander—over three meters long—stared at us with ember-red eyes.
Veyren bristled, ready to pounce.
"Focus on the Sprites," I ordered.
He hesitated… then obeyed.
The two Sprites shot toward us. I dashed forward—leaving them to Veyren—and lunged at the Salamander with the rapier.
It didn't move.
Of course it didn't. Most physical attacks meant nothing to spirits. It was confident.
Bad mistake.
The rapier's tip touched its scales—and I pressed the injector.
White steel ignited with golden Essence.
The Salamander recoiled, the light burning through its spiritual form. Its radiant scales dimmed as it thundered back.
Veyren slammed into it like a comet, pinning it down despite its thrashing flame-wreath. He tore through it with brutal efficiency until—
[400 Essence Gained]
[Distributed: 40% Master / 60% Bond]
+160 Essence
+8 Essence (Lesser Sprites)
I exhaled.
As the Salamander died, its body dissolved into motes of crimson flame.
The Sprites vanished into ash-like shimmer.
I tried Predation anyway.
[No Corpses Detected]
Right. Spirit bodies didn't leave corpses—only motes.
Some of which drifted into Veyren's fur… probably nourishing his spirit.
My current Essence: 171.
A long way to 1200.
But the ordeal had begun.
And I was ready for the next ordeal.