Kai leaned against the stone wall, his ragged breaths blending into his environment. The marketplace was buzzing with the energy of the aftermath of his fight with the hybrid Actra turned to.

But his mind wasn’t on the destruction of the chaos.

It was on a fundamental lesson from his childhood— a foundational truth about mana, the lifeblood of magic. Different types of mana, like volatile chemicals, could have a dangerous result when mixed.

Actra's veins were blocked due to the venom in the tea and even if he had managed to dispel the venom, it was still in his body. Despite that, he went ahead and drank the potent potion that made him turn into the monster he was.

The mana in the venom and the dead mana from the vial already made him unstable.

The final stroke was Kai’s healing draught he carried with him and never used, hoping for an opportunity like this.

It had been the spark for a reaction. The potion's simmering energy and the dark mana coursing through his veins turned Actra into a bomb. Both of them had clashed together.

And then… He had turned into nothing. Just a plume of dust settling over a scene of devastation.

Relief washed over Kai, a wave so potent it almost eclipsed the throbbing pain radiating from his side.

Actra was gone, reduced to a crimson mist scattered on the wind.

He looked down at his own blood-stained clothes. He was cut and bruised in different places and almost lost his limbs due to that bastard’s claws.

He sighed, trying his best to ignore the pain that came from different places in his body. Even breathing at the moment was hard.

A flicker of movement caught his eye. Killian, his feet hasty was rushing towards him with guards and Enforcers behind him.

Even Francis, his usual stoicism replaced by a furrowed brow, was perched awkwardly on the back of a large white draft horse.

Beyond them, curious townsfolk peeked from behind shattered windows and doorways, their expressions a mix of fear and morbid curiosity.

Kai forced a smile, a grimace that pulled at his already stinging wounds. "Looks like things got a little out of control," he rasped, his voice hoarse.

The words felt hollow on his tongue, a poor attempt at levity in the face of the devastation.

Killian reached his side, kneeling on the cobblestones. "Lord Arzan, are you alright?” He extended his hand and saw Francis rushing forward with a potion.

Kai looked around at the ruined marketplace, the injured civilians, and the faces etched with fear and confusion. He knew a simple explanation wouldn't suffice.

He didn’t say anything, but grabbed the vial and chugged it down. The cool liquid soothed the raw scrape on his throat. He winced as he felt the potion seeking the ache inside his body.

“Was that a monster? Was it Actra?” Killian’s questions came next.

Kai sighed, the memory of the monster coming back at him like a storm.

He nodded at his questions, exhaustion dragging at his eyelids. "Clean up the city," he murmured, his voice barely a whisper. "Help the injured… and for now… I just want to rest." He closed his eyes, the world fading into a welcome oblivion.

***

Twelve hours later, consciousness returned to Kai in slow increments.

The throbbing pain in his side had dulled to a manageable ache, replaced by a comforting warmth that spoke of healing draughts at work.

His body ached, but it was a familiar ache, the kind that came with pushing himself to the limit and not the agonizing pain of Actra’s attacks.

After he woke up, Francis gave him the whole account of what had happened when he was unconscious.

News of the explosion had spread like wildfire through the city.

Rumours swirled like smoke, people talking about the monstrous creature terrorising the marketplace before being vanquished by Lord Arzan.

Francis had swiftly moved to quell the more outlandish rumours, assuring the public that the threat had been neutralized.

They had searched the area where the battle had taken place, but other than blood and body matter, nothing had survived.

The first order of business, once Kai was deemed well enough, was a thorough examination of Actra's room.

Kai himself, though still a little weak, participated in the search.

They found everything one would expect from a Mage's quarters— shelves laden with spellbooks, a meticulously tended herb garden, and a few artefacts and certificates with the insignia of the Archine Tower attached to them.

Actra, it seemed, had been an orphan with no known family ties. At least it seemed to be since there was no proof of him sending anything to anyone.

Knowing his personality, Kai wasn't opposed to the idea that he had simply broken off contact with his family after becoming a Mage or had just forgotten them.

Even his communication with the Duke, Kai's father, amounted to a single introductory letter and a formal confirmation of his role as Kai's retainer.

There were some items of interest— a hefty pouch of gold coins, a collection of expensive garments. But it was on the second day, amidst a pile of discarded robes, that Kai found something truly unexpected— a card. Tucked into a hidden pocket, it was almost overlooked.

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He flipped it over.

On the front, a simple inscription greeted him: "Thank you for your business." Below it, an image of a skeletal dragon was drawn. The craftsmanship was at a high level, meaning whatever organisation it belonged to, it wasn't poor.

He called for Killian and Francis once the whole room was checked twice and the only thing of interest they found was the card.

Entering the meeting room, they looked at him with concern in their eyes, but before they could ask about his health, he cut to the chase.

"Have either of you ever seen this?" he asked, holding out the card. “Or know where it is from?”

They examined it in turn, their brows furrowing in confusion. “No, I have not," Killian said, shaking his head.

“Same with me. It seems to be some organisation's card, but I haven't seen anything like it before.” Francis gave the card back to Kai who leaned against his seat and sighed.

“It was the only thing worthy of note in Actra's room. It might be the key to finding out how he turned into that creature,” Kai said, giving the card another look.

The skeleton dragon stared back at him.

“It’s certainly strange. I thought I had seen a lot when we fought against the necromancer, but I never imagined there would be weavers with wings in the world. And M— I mean Actra would be one of them,” Killian muttered, looking a bit shaken.

He had fought Actra briefly and hadn't been able to hold on for five minutes against him. It seemed to have hurt his pride since he had been making great progress as an Enforcer.

“He wasn't a weaver,” Kai corrected him. “It was more of a hybrid. If I had to give him a name, he was more like a bloodsucker. They normally have wings and red eyes, but they look way more heinous than he did.”

“Bloodsucker?” Francis' voice echoed in the room. “Can they shapeshift into humans?”

“Yes, some can. They can look very convincing even, but Actra wasn't one. He used some potion to shift into one. It was a temporary transformation, but I don't know how. It shouldn't be possible in my opinion, but I guess it is now. We won't know anything until we investigate further.”

He felt depressed that he hadn't managed to salvage the body or part of the potion he had used. He had searched the room, hoping for a sample, but was disappointed.

For now, his only clue was the card.

“Francis,” Kai said, forcing himself to focus. “Talk to Malden and see if he can get any information on this card.”

Another thing he had realised lately was that he had very limited ways to access information about the current world. He had been holed up in Veralt and the rest of his territory since he had become Arzan.

Even if he had solved a few problems, he hadn't gotten time to gather together an information network.

Till he did that, Malden was his best bet. The merchant was greedy, but he doubted he was the type to not follow his orders, at least until he believed that Kai could lead him to more profits.

“Yes, Lord Arzan, I will notify Malden about it right away,” Francis said, nodding his head. Then, with a hint of hesitation, he spoke up. "Lord Arzan, there's the matter of… Actra's demise. Since he was affiliated with the Archine Tower, we need to send an official report detailing the incident and the cause of death as per protocol."

Kai grimaced. The Archine Tower was a big mystery for him though he had heard about the name and a few things.

From his research about them, he knew they were the premier institution for magic in the whole Lancephil Kingdom, situated in the centre of the capital. Alongside being the most powerful organisation in the country, it was also a big political force.

Like every Mage in the kingdom, Actra also had ties with them and was only serving his father due to the kingdom policy of a Mage serving one noble for at least two years as a retainer.

Actra's letter with them hinted that they were aware of his awakening as a Mage and someone in the Tower had called for his death. But for what reason? He had no idea.

Originally, he suspected that Actra worked for his brother, but that was clearly a wrong line of thinking.

Why someone in the Archine Tower is after Arzan? He doesn't seem to have any secrets. Or am I just wrong?

He wondered but got nowhere.

Raising his head, he looked at Francis. “Do we have to do that?”

“Yes, Lord Arzan. Every Mage is a resource and Archine Tower takes the death of each of them very seriously.”

“I wonder how they would take the death of a Mage who attacked a noble and turned into a monstrous abomination,” Kai said and shook his head.

“Okay, send the report. Let's see what comes out of it.”

He forced a smile, but it felt hollow. The reason why someone wanted to kill Arzan, the Archine Tower, the card— they were all pieces of a puzzle he didn't understand.

He knew until he solved these mysteries, they were going to bother him at the back of his mind.

For now, he could simply wait until the right time came for him to know more about the person whose body he was inhabiting.

***

Later that night, after ensuring that everything else was on track, Kai retreated to his room.

He settled into a meditative pose, focusing his remaining mana. He could feel it, a tremor at the edge of his perception, the barrier between his current circle and the next.

The fight with Actra had taken a lot out of him, but after almost a day of rest, he had recovered. His body's recovering ability had gotten even better in this era since there was abundant mana for his mana heart to absorb.

His battle had also made him realise the need to break into the next circle as soon as possible. He had somehow managed to deal with the larvae queen and Actra, but if there was a whole Mage Tower after him, then he would need all the strength he could gather.

That's why, he took in all the mana from his surroundings, focusing on building up the next circle.

He knew he was close to progressing. Slowly, the mana circulation in his heart grew in power and got brighter and brighter as he sucked more and more mana, making it his own and trying to grow his reserves.

It was working and it was extremely close. Few more circulation and stabilising and he would break through.

He felt a surge of power, and...

A dull ache throbbed behind his eyes, and Kai reluctantly opened them. He hadn't broken through. Frustration gnawed at him, but he pushed it away.

After the recent events, he was better off focusing on the bright sides. A small smile tugged at the edges of his lips.

The barrier was thinner, and with a little more focus, and a little more time, he would surely break through.

The speed boost he'd receive would be invaluable, especially considering the unknown threats he now faced.

Maybe just a week more.

Needing a distraction, Kai turned his attention to the book retrieved from the larvae nest.

It was a worn leather-bound tome, filled with spidery handwriting and crude sketches of grotesque creatures. As he delved deeper, he felt his limbs go cold at what he read.

My experiments with the larvae resulted in me getting Sonia, but she's not the one I'm looking for. She's cute and would be very strong, but what I need is something else. Her ability of mana control would make her a good leader, but she's still an ordinary monster. With a stone in my heart, I had to get her a new home, like my other babies.

“So, are there more creatures like the larvae queen?” Kai muttered, hoping the man hadn't put more such creatures in his territory.

He flipped a page and kept reading.

Aside from the larvae, the spiders, orcs, goblins and similar land creatures have simply died in my experiments. Those who survived, I have grown as my babies, but I'm not getting what I'm looking for. Maybe I should move towards sea creatures? They have their own secrets and the merfolks might be of help. Or I should search for the lost city of the sky? I might be able to find extinct creatures there. Someone, someone who can survive and become the “perfect being” I'm looking for.

Aside from descriptions about monsters, there were also detailed methods of cultivating them as well as the small experiments the man had done with them.

But Kai skimmed through those parts.

His sole focus was on the main goal of the man which was apparently to build a “perfect creature”. He had no idea what it entailed. Was it about unparalleled strength or just the most balanced monster? One thing was clear— the man he was reading about was crazy.

As he read more, his eyes suddenly stopped at a page.

Even a wyvern hasn't survived dead mana. I thought due to their strong cores, a bit of dead mana wouldn't do anything, but it has started corrupting John. Its screams and painful cries are making me hurt and there's no way to continue the experiment. Maybe only dragons could survive dead mana, but even I, Hendricks Klandel, the legendary beast tamer only regard them as myths. Where would I even find them?

More and more questions erupted in Kai's mind as he read. Hendricks Klandel? He hadn't heard of him before and he was a legendary beast tamer. The thing that attracted his attention the most was the part about dead mana.

He was experimenting with it, trying to see what creatures could survive the corruption.

His fingers trailed through those lines and as he turned the page, they stopped in their tracks.

If I didn't do anything fast, the prophecy would come to be. The world would succumb to dead mana and it would be the rise ---

The page was incomplete, torn in half by someone and Kai's eyes widened as he finished reading it.

“Prophecy?” He muttered, but no one answered him in his room.