Shun POV:

“Nothing yet, my liege. But there are several signs supporting your hypothesis. I have compiled a report which detai—“

“Just get to the point.”

I moved toward the parapet, away from the others. They wouldn’t know I was communicating telepathically with Talky, but caution was necessary.

“M-my liege, it’s rather difficult for me to explain it without seeing you face to face.”

A deep sigh left my mouth. The moment I left the 5th Floor, Talky reported every single insignificant piece of information. That continued all the way to the 57th Floor, and now she was wasting my time telling me what I wanted to know.

I’d kill her if she wasn’t so damn useful.

“Zinyul’s progress has tripled, my liege.”

“...What?”

The agitation warped into delight. My eyes arched the opposite way of my lips at this news.

“Go on.”

“He has created a new technique: Sentric Focal Point, my liege.”

It wasn’t what I expected. The corners of my mouth fell at Zinyul’s choice of method. I ignored Talky’s happy humming and sorted out several plausible explanations according to their likelihood.

Phoebe agreed to go on ahead since there were no monsters on this side of the castle. Once I was left alone, I took a seat and rested my arm over my knee.

Sentric Focus.

It was a technique that could be represented by parallel light rays travelling across an axis. These rays headed toward the same target, Zinyul, but they didn’t interact with one another. The quantity and quality of these light rays could then be changed to produce a different form of focus; this was the basis of Sentric Focus.

Focal Point.

By referencing Reaver’s usage of afterimages, Zinyul decided to converge those parallel light rays. This meant that his focus would not only meet a ‘Focal Point’ but would also reflect itself on the other side of the lens.

In other words, Focal Point assigned Zinyul as a ‘lens’ to direct the converging of Sentric Focus to his Ki Center. The focus would then be reflected toward his open palm, completing the connection.

It was plausible.

But there were several problems with this method. The most obvious one was the use of Sentric Focus. A high level of Low Concentration didn’t equal Medium Concentration. Zinyul understood this, so why did he create this stupid technique?

“Talk—“

“Yes, my liege!”

“...”

“F-forgive me, my liege...”

The slight tremors of battle reached my current location. By now, the party had arrived at the keep, so this Floor would be cleared soon. The Armoured Sentri Knights always left a strong unit behind before employing their strategies.

“How many Focal Points can Zinyul set?”

“Two at the moment, my liege.”

I turned my attention back toward the analogy of light rays and focus.

‘If the rays were inspired by Reaver, then the axis should be inspired by Talky.’

Talky must have explained how she developed Warlock Focus, inspiring Zinyul to incorporate a flexible reference line to guide his concentration. In other words, the axis determined the quality and quantity of the light rays. That meant Zinyul hadn’t abandoned Sentric Focus; he was aiming to elevate it to a level beyond its highest state.

‘Fishy represents the lens because of her flexibility.’

My lips curved upward before parting.

“Then he’s hit another wall.”

“Yes, my liege. Fishy is too uniqu—“

“I am... A SHADOW ULTIMATE FISHNIN!!”

“...”

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I sensed Reaver encourage Fishy, and her mouth shut right away. If I knew he could keep her in check, I would have told him to do that earlier. However, it seemed the prolonged sparring sessions made each of the shadows develop a closer bond with one another.

“Share the telepathic link with Zinyul.”

“That would require my forehead to press against his, my liege. Though I am fond of him, I don’t feel comfortable being that intimate with anyone. I would rather give you a massage again. I want to give you a massage again; it’s important that my liege’s body recovers properly to acquire the growth he seeks.”

“...”

I ruffled my hair and let out a frustrated sigh.

“Talky, why are you annoying me?”

“...Because I feel sad, my liege.”

“What do you think my reply is to that stupid statement of yours?”

“You feel sad too, my liege.”

The entire wall was blown out of existence from the flicker of my fist. I contemplated heading back down the Floors to kill all of these damn shadows myself.

“Tell Zinyul to work on the principles of a concave lens. Once he understands how to divert his focus in a controlled manner, he’ll find the answer he’s looking for.”

“Yes, my liege.”

The aim behind Focal Point was to use all three Concentration Levels at the same time. He couldn’t achieve that result through only one lens; he would need three.

Convex Lens: Zinyul would use the Medium Concentration level to converge that focus and empower it further. Compared to using Low Concentration, the effect would be greater but so would the Stamina Drain and Ki Cost.

Concave Lens: Zinyul would use the Low Concentration level to divert the focus across his body. This would set a stronger foundation than the constant active use of Sentric Focus at the same level due to the axis. An axis could be formed using any of the Concentration Levels, but the focus produced could only be lower or at the same level as it. By using a High Concentration axis, Zinyul could boost the effect of Low Concentration by an astronomical amount.

Focal Lens: Zinyul would use the High Concentration level to merge the diverging focus with the converging focus to enter what I call the ‘Sentri State.’ If my line of thinking was correct, then his base would be elevated by 3x. All his techniques would benefit from the same multiplier, but based on this being the true nature of the Sentri, he might experience something else.

The Armoured Sentri Knight reached a level where they could form a set of armour from their scales. Zinyul had gone beyond that as a Sentri Warrior, yet hadn’t performed any modifications to his body. All he had done was train hard enough to become one.

I explained my thought process to Talky. Despite her rhythmic humming, I knew she was paying attention.

“Talky, I’m giving you most of my remaining Ki Reserves.”

“M-my liege? I d-don’t unders—“

“Live well, Vealhar.”

I cut off my connection with the shadows. The higher I climbed, the weaker her voice had become. It was only a matter of time before the connection would cut by itself.

The Shadow Monsters could either draw Ki from my Ki Reserves, or I could assign them a fixed amount. The latter happened automatically once the link connecting me to the shadows was terminated.

It was another drawback of Rise since there was a chance it could kill me if my Ki Reserves weren’t enough to sustain the number of shadows I had summoned.

‘I’ve been improving, but... this party is too organised.’

I remained calm, not letting agitation and frustration take over.

“There are still the Guardians as well as the Boss. It’s more than enough.”

***

I leaned my back against the castle wall. It had been two days in Ayadell’s time since we entered the dungeon. The soldiers would only inform the guild once the Scout’s estimated clear time elapsed, or a Dungeon Break occurred.

In the event of the former, Adventurers, Monster Hunters, and Imperial Soldiers would be dispatched first. Once the perimeter was secure, they would wait on standby for further orders. The Scout’s estimation included the time difference if there was one, so its accuracy was reliable.

According to Minji, Sharir didn’t hire, promote or recognise the Mercenary profession. That explained Atwood’s displeasure with me not wanting to fill out any forms. If I hadn’t signed in the end, the likelihood of him reporting me to Central Guild or the Imperial Office was high. Blaire, knowing about ‘a young man underestimating dungeons’, supported this hypothesis.

That was one of the reasons why I made Minji my acquaintance. I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

‘...’

Phoebe’s head flopped onto my shoulder. She fell asleep the moment her eyes shut.

My hand stopped centimetres away from her face. It was meant to push Phoebe, but instead found itself examining her long eyelashes and soft facial features.

‘Just this once, Phoebe.’

She wouldn’t find my toned shoulder comfortable for long anyway. I turned my attention to Aiden and Gerard, bowing their heads to Katherine. She explained that she was just doing her part before wishing them a good night’s sleep.

‘Tch.’

Katherine returned to her silent meditation, leaving the two of them to discuss further strategies based on Byeol’s report. I stayed in my Shinobi form, now comfortable with the extended use of Original.

The previous limit was 8 hours. When that time passed, the Stamina Drain and Ki Cost would double. If another 8 hours passed, Original would be cancelled. The cause was due to the forms being regarded as ‘professions.’

No one worked 24/7.

In order to increase the usage limit, I had to build up those ‘working hours.’ As long as I took small breaks in between, it would be possible to use these forms for at least a month without incurring the penalty.

My current limit was already at 1 week.

“Shun... stay safe...”

I swivelled my eyes toward Phoebe’s soft lips, mouthing almost inaudible words of concern. She wrapped her arms around my own, adjusted her position, and stopped talking.

“I don’t care about my safety.”

Phoebe’s grip tightened, but she wasn’t awake. The rapid movements of her eyes from side to side, and the fast but slight irregularity to her breathing, indicated REM sleep. The first stage of REM occurs around 60 to 90 minutes after falling asleep, yet Phoebe experienced it after 5 minutes.

During REM sleep, the brain processes emotions, and dreams become more vivid. The amygdala: a part of the brain that handles emotional responses, activates. Memory consolidation also happens at this stage but is not exclusive to it.

Adults only needed an average of 2 hours of REM sleep every night, but Phoebe seemed to double that. This would lead to REM rebound, an increase in inflammation, and the risk of other health complications.

But Phoebe was always well-rested. She only stayed up late if she had to, and ate a healthy, balanced diet. It was likely those habits were developed as a result of her sword training.

Was this high level of REM sleep one of the reasons why Phoebe’s EQ was so high?

It seemed plausible.

I closed my eyes and continued my thoughts in silence.