The floor beneath Captain Farrow transformed into sand, and a torrential river of sand surged toward the masked man. It appeared as though the sand would swallow the enemy leader whole.

However, the black tendrils of shadow coiling around the man solidified into a protective barrier. Some tendrils extended and shaped themselves into the image of a dark beast behind him.

It was similar to Captain Farrow’s manifestation. However, where the guard captain’s energy radiated rock-solid stability and immense strength, the masked man’s aura felt cold and sinister.

The colossal river of sand collided with the shadowy tendrils shielding the masked man, and it looked like all hell broke loose. The entire mansion quaked violently, and it seemed as though it might crumble to the ground.

Alaric scrunched his brows as he witnessed the damage. The count won’t be pleased with the destruction.

He couldn’t help but imagine the count’s face twisted into a sour expression as he surveyed the damage when he returned and inspected the damage. However, it was likely the servants would restore the mansion before his return—if they survived, of course.

Rowan tugged at Alaric’s arms. “Come, we need to leave,” he urged. Alaric nodded, and both of them crept toward an exit to the side. They dodged chunks of debris hurtling through the air.

Some shards of rock grazed them, leaving shallow cuts, but they pressed on toward the exit. Unfortunately, it looked like their escape wasn’t meant to be.

A stone golem pulled itself up from the ground and locked its unfeeling gaze on them. Alaric shoved Rowan aside as the golem’s massive arm slammed down on the spot he had occupied moments before. Rowan scrambled to his feet, narrowly avoiding another crushing strike.

“Alaric...escape. It’s too dangerous.” Rowan held his steel sword in a defensive stance, bracing himself to protect Alaric while he made his escape. Alaric was overwhelmed with conflicting emotions.

On one hand, he felt proud of the boy who was willing to risk his life to save a friend. On the other hand, he was deeply frustrated by his own helplessness. Never in my life would I have imagined such a scenario.

“Rowan, come back here!” he shouted after his friend, who dashed toward the stone golem and slashed at its massive body. However, the force of the strike nearly wrenched the sword from Rowan’s hand, leaving nothing more than a shallow scratch on the creature’s stone surface.

Rowan didn’t give up. He roared and attacked again, but this time, the golem wasn’t having it. It shielded itself with one massive arm.

The sword rebounded off its hardened body and clattered to the ground. Rowan leaped sideways, narrowly dodging another crushing blow. But he was exhausted. Alaric lunged forward, snatching up the fallen sword.

He burned every ounce of subtle energy from his root chakra and focused it into his arm holding the sword.

With a ferocious yell, he drove the sword into the golem’s hip joint, managing to crack it slightly. Not enough.

The force of the strike sent shockwaves through his hands, nearly numbing them. Only the protective energy from his chakra kept his arms from giving out entirely.

But that one strike had drained half of the energy he had painstakingly stored for weeks. Alaric gritted his teeth and swung again, targeting the weakened joint with every ounce of strength he had left.

The sword struck true, chipping away at the stone. The crack splintered through the hip joint, and the structure gave way. The stone golem toppled, unable to support its immense weight on a single intact leg.

Alaric dropped to the floor, utterly spent, his limbs trembling uncontrollably.

Alaric’s blurred vision settled on Rowan, who stared at him with wide, panicked eyes. “Alaric, watch out!” Rowan bolted forward, desperate to reach his friend. Alaric could already sense the golem’s shattered limb knitting itself back together, its fist preparing to launch a crushing blow.

But his body refused to respond. He couldn’t turn, couldn’t rise, couldn’t flee. Rowan wouldn’t make it in time. Alaric simply smiled faintly and whispered, “Run…”

Just when Alaric accepted his fate, an oppressive aura crashed over the corridor like a tidal wave. The stone golem froze mid-attack, its fist suspended mere inches from Alaric’s face.

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Alaric scanned the area and saw every stone golem in the area had come to a dead stop as if whatever energy was fueling them was utterly suppressed. Theon and Fenrir were crouched on the floor, their enhanced forms reverted to normal. They gasped for breath.

Even Captain Farrow and the masked enemy leader stood locked in place. The faint sound of heavy footsteps echoed from the far end of the hall. A lean man with grey-streaked hair emerged from the shadows.

His sharp eyes glinted with quiet authority, and his mere presence commanded absolute obedience.

With a simple flick of his hand, the oppressive aura intensified for an instant. Every golem in the hall disintegrated into fine dust, their forms unable to regenerate.

“I take my eyes off things for a moment, and rats start scurrying where they don’t belong. How…tiresome.”

Alaric noted that even though the aura was not directed at him, it still felt suffocating. But just as quickly as it had appeared, the intense aura dissipated. It was then he realized that the aura signature felt familiar.

It is the same man who had been spying on me for the count.

His name was Edgar Greyford, the head butler of the mansion. Frankly, Alaric had barely registered the man more than a few times. And, his presence hadn’t felt this formidable during those brief encounters.

That was a mistake. This man is as powerful as Captain Farrow. Perhaps…even stronger.

The enemy leader flicked his eyes between Captain Farrow and Edgar. His face twisted into a scowl. Clearly, he was scheming to escape now that he faced two formidable opponents.

The shadows engulfed the masked figure, and it propelled itself towards the exit at tremendous speed. However, the cocoon of darkness faltered after a few meters, and the darkness shrouding the man dissipated.

Alaric spotted a thin thread of mana attached to the back of the enemy leader, extending to Edgar’s fingers. “Oh no… you’re not escaping, rat,” Edgar hissed. “You’ll answer for the damage you’ve caused to this property.”

Suddenly, something glowed brightly within the masked leader’s cloak. The energy radiating from it was immense. It’s a bomb!

Fortunately, both Captain Farrow and Edgar detected it just as quickly. A wall of sand crystallized in front of Alaric and Rowan, shielding them from the impending blast.

However, before the explosion could detonate, Edgar vanished in a blur of motion, ripped the suicidal artifact from the masked leader’s clothing, and hurled it out of a nearby window.

The bomb erupted violently outside, shaking the ground, but leaving the estate intact.

The enemy leader’s last-ditch effort to escape and kill his enemies in a single blow had been foiled. As the dust settled, Alaric observed the masked leader bound by some type of magical restraint. He had been subdued by Edgar.

Fenrir and Theon moved swiftly to neutralize the remaining intruders alongside the other guards.

Captain Farrow approached Edgar and clasped his hand firmly. For the first time, Alaric noticed the guard captain offering a faint smile. He was clearly reassured by the head butler’s presence.

The guard force dragged the intruders to the underground interrogation chambers. After a while, Captain Farrow shifted his gaze towards Alaric and Rowan and approached them.

***

It was morning. Alaric woke up at his usual time and began meditating on his root chakra. Restoring the subtle energy of the root chakra was a priority since he had drained it entirely the previous night.

Yet, depleting all that energy, which he had carefully cultivated over weeks of practice, didn’t feel like a setback to him.

In that moment, it had been necessary to save his friend — Rowan — and he would make the same choice again. Sure, it had left him weak and exhausted, but such consequences never bothered him.

If he let something so minor upset him, he wouldn’t have become such a formidable Chakra cultivator in his previous life.

Besides, depleting and replenishing this subtle energy could also be viewed as a form of training. It would acclimate his body to the cycle and teach it to regenerate the subtle energy of the chakras more efficiently.

As he focused on his slow, deep breaths and visualized the throbbing crimson root chakra, he settled down into the familiar process that had become almost second nature to him. At this stage, at least.

So, he could divert a tiny section of his attention to another part of his mind. The events of the previous night still lay fresh in Alaric’s mind. How the intruders infiltrated the mansion and almost killed him and Rowan.

It was not even a direct attack, just a simple infiltration to gather intelligence on the count. At least that is what Alaric concluded.

Whatever interrogation the guard captain and the head butler conducted, Alaric and Rowan were not privy to it.

We are kids after all. Which adult would disclose such privileged information to a child? Alaric didn’t dwell on it much. He was sure the guards and the count would handle everything.

However, he was upset at his powerlessness. He had grown so accustomed to the normal routine of his new life, that he began to relax.

Alaric deduced that the masked leader belonged to some kind of criminal organization. They were professionals. The way they effortlessly subdued the guards without killing them demonstrated their skills.

It was only thanks to Captain Farrow, Fenrir, Theon, and Edgar that they were all safe.

The masked leader was formidable but he shouldn’t be anybody beyond middle management. Upper-echelon members don’t sneak in like rats. That was the thought that worried Alaric.

Sure, Captain Farrow and Edgar handled the problem. However, such criminal organizations didn’t give up that easily. At least, as long as they were paid and harbored a personal grudge against somebody.

On the other hand, they could simply decide that the cost of revenge would be too high and leave the matter alone. Alaric opened his eyes and released a sigh. Meditation time always flew by fast.

Outside, he could hear the grunts of the guards training intensely. Many of them assisted the servants in clearing the wreckage of the fight and together, they had already initiated repairs. Those who were uninjured and not occupied with the repair work simply followed their regular routine.

I suppose I should head out too. It’s time to ramp up the effort.