The next day, Aella once again was chilling in a tree. This time she was in a deep meditation. Surprisingly, she got permission to go out on her own this time instead of needing to sneak out, so she had some extra time.
Suddenly, her mana pulsed outwards, which she quickly suppressed, but not before some eyes were pointed towards the beautiful lady sitting in a tree with a small blue dragon perched on her head.
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“Indeed, it’s still faster to collect mana while meditating. I was hoping that’d be different in this world.” She mused, letting out a defeated sigh.
Her Aetherstream, [Whirlwind Maestra], was distinct even among other peak-rank practices. Its uniqueness didn't stem from raw power; Aella’s wind was actually far weaker than it should be, and she could easily enhance the strength of the winds she commanded. Instead, its focus was on accelerating cultivation speed. A path typically avoided due to potential foundational instabilities.
This method allowed Aella to cultivate at a remarkably rapid pace, where even the simple act of breathing edged her closer to the next phase or rank. In her original life, swift cultivation was a necessity, relying on battles to solidify her foundation. It had become her norm, and changing it would only bring more short-term problems than she was willing to deal with.
Moreover, she hadn't yet encountered anyone in this world who necessitated stronger winds. Having already vanquished two Scorpious rank Dragon Tamers, despite sensing something amiss in their cultivation, she felt relatively unchallenged.
“Did it have to do with that ominous aura?” She asked herself while in that thought process. “I’ve never felt it despite exploring countless worlds, so it must be native to the world, so why was I repulsed by it?”
Another unique trait of Foxin was their attunement to the world. As a species of Spirits, the world would call upon them whenever it’s in danger, giving them a unique 6th sense for unnatural entities and objects. Anomalies, if you would.
Many things fall into this category. Aliens, Undead, Minor warps in reality; if it shouldn’t be there, the Foxin will know. Whatever that Aura she felt gave off that type of feeling. Not that it was all that surprising. Cults always delved into bizarre practices and pursuits for their goals, whatever those goals might be.
“I don’t wanna figure out what it is. It felt so gross, but I know I’m going to eventually anyway. Stormy, you should console me!”
“Krr?” Stormy chirped, not having the slightest idea what Aella was complaining about.
“Haah. Woe is me. Nobody will understand the difficulties that someone as beautiful and powerful as me faces every day~ Truly. My life is a difficult one filled with strife and- Blair, I know you’re there. Why have you been standing outside the park for the past 3 minutes?” Aella bluntly stated, using her wind to communicate with the woman.
Opening her eyes and dropping from the tree, Aella approached Blair only to realize that she was being watched by someone.
“My oh my~” Aella hummed to herself, pretending she didn’t notice the man in the distance.
“Aella, what? What are you saying?”
She snapped her fingers to cut off the sound around them, replacing what the stalker was hearing with fake mundane business talk. You know, stocks, investors, the most boring stuff imaginable.
“Your guess is as good as mine. I talk to myself when I’m bored and I don’t know what half the stuff I’m saying means. Anyway, before we get started, who’s the creep?” Aella asked, not bothering to glance at the man.
Blair could only shrug at Aella’s question. “He’s been following me for the hour. I figured if I brought him here, you’d deal with him.” She said bluntly.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“I… Yes, I will, but you are aware I’m probably going to kill him, right?” Aella responded, not exactly sure how to comprehend Blair’s words.
Naturally, Aella wasn’t going to let anything happen to Blair. Not yet, at least. Seraphina losing her this early would only destroy her mental state.
‘Although… If that’s the case, she might actually become a [Demon Lord], which would be pretty interesting.’ Aella chuckled inwardly.
“I don’t know the guy. His fate is of no consequence for me, I’m just not going down as an accomplice or covering for you if you’re caught.”
‘Oh, never mind, she can’t die.’
“Oh, I like you. That aside, did you decide on the offer I made you?” Aella questioned.
Getting an ominous feeling from the way Aella said that she liked her, Blair nodded.
“I do. Before that though, the fire last night. Was that you?”
“I didn’t do it!” Aella defended herself, putting her hands up. “It was some anonymous black-haired, black-eyed fox girl and her dragon. Absolute scoundrels, ain’t that right, Stormy!”
Stormy chirped in agreement, still unsure of what Aella was saying. He didn’t understand his partner, but she was fun, so it was fine.
“Ugh… You are aware they can track you with fingerprints, right? And if they saw your dragon, they’ll know it’s you.” Blair stated, almost instantly regretting all of her decisions.
“I’m not an amateur. My facial structure was changed slightly, I made sure to obscure the view of Stormy, and my fingerprints were different. They’ll lead to a person who doesn’t exist… Unless I accidentally copied someone who did… In which case, I might have gotten a random guy killed… Oopsies” Aella giggled, sticking her tongue out like she made a small, inconsequential mistake.
Seeing her not taking the situation seriously, Blair, at the very least, wasn’t worried anymore. She still regretted making the decision she did, though. Her head was hurting already, and they just met up.
In hopes of Aella sparing her remaining brain cells, Blair quickly got back to the important matter at hand. “Okay then… Who are you looking for anyway? People Who ‘Hate the Cult’ is a little too vague to look for.”
Aella nodded in agreement, “Firstly, I need someone well-versed in Magical Technology. Not only to develop our own equipment to make sure we know exactly what our enemies have. Also a thief or assassin, someone who is used to sneaking around security cameras. And lastly, a skilled accountant. The rest can be hands we simply hire without letting them know the full story. Those are the 3 that need to be in the know, though. Oh, and some companies that the cult owns! Almost forgot that last one.” She explained.
“An accountant? Are you planning to pose as a company to hide yourselves?”
“Basically, yup.”
Not really surprised at Aella’s simpleminded yet oddly well-thought-out plans, Blair just nodded and was about to move on to the next topic, only for Aella to continue speaking.
“I thought about it some more, and I realized that my original plan probably wouldn’t work. The cult definitely has some Naturalis in its ranks. Either they spew some nonsense about being pure as they were inducted before they were corrupted, OR they’re just outright slaves. Regardless, they most likely have the [Apprasial] skill. I wanted to pretend to be their [Child of Prophocy], but that seems unlikely, so I just need to keep attacking them both above ground and under to make sure they can only look at me.”
Going silent after finishing her small explanation, Aella smiled innocently, causing Blair to glare.
“Just how old are you? I cannot figure out how your mind works?”
“I am 8 years old! Or probably millions of years old. You are probably also millions of years old. Souls take a long time to die and be born so it’s unlikely that either of us are newly born souls.”
“That’s not what I… Ugh, whatever. Since we need to create your company first, shall we discuss the matter of selling those techniques of yours another time? I fear Seraphina and Aetherion are being too much for Indigo to handle alone.”
Once again, Aella nodded. This time, however, she raised an eyebrow when Seraphina was mentioned.
“What happened with Seraphina?”
Blair could only look at Aella with a wry smile while shaking her head.
“It’s Aetherion. Although it was a bit delayed, Seraphina hit level 25 in the Abyss Nest, and Aetherion eventually reached the next stage. Now he’s completely ignoring the requests of Indigo and me and only begrudgingly responding to them when Seraphina begs. It seems it has grown too strong.”
Aella understood what was happening instantly. It might be a bit different in this world as Dragons are so common, but in her last and just about every other she had been to, Dragons seldom listened to people weaker than them. The only time they did this was when they were an object of worship and were answering the prayers of their followers.
“If it’s just a problem of strength, I can sort that out for you. I’m not experienced in disciplining rebellious children, but I’m quite a fast learner. I’ll have you know… But while we’re on the topic of Seraphina. What do you wanna do with her?”