The shallow, bathtub-sized stone basin nestled near the riverbank should have been a picturesque find. Instead, it was filled with a bubbling, pitch-black sludge that looked entirely toxic.
"Ugh, Loki... that smells like rotten, long-abandoned underwear mixed with actual death," Thorin gagged, taking a sharp step back.
Loki wrinkled his nose, the pungent fumes watering his eyes. "I swear, looking at this shit just made me think of prehistoric Earth dinosaurs and mammoths drowning in tar pits. Yeah, it looks and smells rank as hell." He turned a mischievous grin toward his older brother. "But the recipe is correct. Serves you right for being the first Full Knight for humanity—the physical equivalent of a pure Mage. Stop whining, get naked, and jump in, brother."
As a Full Knight, Thorin was essentially a melee-focused Mage, granting him access to all three specialized Knight Path abilities at his level. The magical system was strict but diverse. While a Mage commanded an arsenal of twenty-seven distinct spells, a Summoner was allocated only nine of those spells, compensated by eighteen powerful support abilities tailored entirely to buffing their summons. Healers arguably faced the harshest limitations in versatility, though the trade-off—the literal power to mend fatal wounds and reverse death—made it a mixed bag.
Then there were the standard Fighters and Martial Artists, the most common paths. They were permanently capped at the 5th Circle and restricted only to the first five baseline abilities of a Knight. The reasoning was practical: their progression was far less resource-dependent, relying purely on rigorous training and raw talent rather than expensive, rare medicines. Furthermore, the 5th Circle represented the absolute biological threshold of the human body.
Loki watched with an amused smirk as Thorin stripped off his armor, transferring his gear into his spatial ring before handing it over. Every inch of skin needed to be exposed to maximize the absorption of the harsh medicinal brew.
"Big brother," Loki teased, giving him a playful thumbs-up. "You’re almost as big as your little brother. Standard genetics, huh?"
"Fuck you, I’m huge," Thorin shot back, rolling his eyes as he stepped toward the foul pool. "You're the one who somehow inherited Amazon Donkey blood, you asshole."
"Having Amazon blood really does make the anatomy perfect, even just a drop of it," Loki laughed. As Thorin began to sink into the dark cesspool, Loki’s tone shifted into a playfully malicious cackle. "Heh! Don’t forget to submerge your head, too! Got to get it everywhere, hehe!"
Once Thorin grudgingly dunked himself beneath the surface, Loki nodded to himself, turning away to find his own spot at the edge of the nearby waterfall. It was time for his own ascension to a 2nd Circle Vanguard.
As twilight bled into pitch-black darkness, the rushing waterfall masked the subtle sounds of the wilderness. Loki sat cross-legged on a flat stone, already stripped down to his undergarments. He knew from his studies that the Vanguard breakthrough forced a violent purification process; because a Vanguard’s aura originates deep within the marrow, the body would aggressively expel a black, oil-like sludge through the pores.
Uncorking a small white bottle, he rolled a dark, dense Foundation Building Pill into his palm and swallowed it without hesitation. The medicine would take roughly fifteen minutes to activate, and he braced himself—it was going to hurt like hell.
While the two brothers endured their respective trials of pain and growth, a lethal dance was playing out in the surrounding woods.
Swoosh—Thud!
A stealthy Ogre, creeping through the brush with its eyes locked on Loki's vulnerable position, never saw the flash of scales. A swift Snake Lamia materialized from the shadows, her strikes blurring with perfected Wing Chun Kung-Fu. She delivered a devastating, pinpoint <Vital Strike> directly to the beast's throat, crushing its windpipe instantly.
"No one may dissss~turb my Masssssster!" Shehuang hissed, her forked tongue flicking in agitation as her slit, golden eyes scanned the dark tree line for more intruders. "Hhhhisssss... his breakthrough musst go well."
A faint rustle announced an arrival. Taki Tsuki dropped into a kneeling position beside her. "The north side is clear as well, Concubine."
Shehuang held out a fist covered in dark Ogre blood, a look of distaste crossing her exotic features. "I cannot be dirty for our Massssster."
Taki raised a hand, her mana flaring. "Clean the Concubine, Greater Water Utility."
A soft, copper-colored light enveloped Shehuang. The blood vanished, and in a blink, her serpentine lower half shifted, reverting entirely into her human form. She looked down toward the running stream with a soft sigh.
"Our Master really prefers my human form, so I don't want to disappoint him," Shehuang murmured. "Just like last night, while he sleeps, protect him well for me."
The kneeling kunoichi tilted her head, confusion flickering in her closed eyes. "Why not just stay at Lord Loki’s side, Concubine? Why protect him only from the shadows?"
Shehuang narrowed her golden eyes, a flash of annoyance crossing her face. "Of course I want to be at his side... always! But if I distract him too much right now, he will stay weak. A man cannot grow stronger on top of a woman; he must go out into the world and fight. When he reaches the higher Circles, then we can finally start our family. But not now."
Taki bowed her head lower. "I understand, Concubine. You sacrifice your own joy to ensure his growth."
Shehuang smirked, a playful glint returning to her eyes as she looked at her loyal Dark Elf. "Oh, I said I won't have a child until he is strong. I never said you and Yin Meng shouldn't try your hardest for me in the meantime."
Taki’s skin instantly flushed a deep, vibrant purple, though she couldn't hide her underlying willingness. "Concubine... I am a 7th Circle Elf, it will likely take a long time for me to conceive. Perhaps Yin Meng should try the hardest? She is a 5th Circle human, after all."
Shehuang turned her gaze back toward the waterfall, where Loki’s form was enveloped in a sudden surge of dual energies. He had successfully completed his Vanguard breakthrough and was already shattering an Air Core and a Life Core, channeling the raw essence directly into his magical reservoir.
"Look at him. At the 2nd Circle, he can finally manifest my personal inner world to hide in," Shehuang noted softly. "That means you and Yin Meng will be the ones beside him at the capital for a while, at least until he is powerful enough that he no longer needs to hide my existence from the world. Yin Meng will do her duty when his other wives are too far away to warm his bed."
Taki's expression softened into fierce determination. "Concubine, I will redouble my efforts as well. I... I like the Lord very much."
"Sure, sure," Shehuang smirked smoothly. "Now, send me back to the estate. He is out of danger, and you can handle the rest of the night."
With a silent nod, Taki activated her <One-Way Portal>, enveloping the Lamia in a ripple of spatial magic and sending her back to safety.
By the time the two magic cores crumbled into worthless gray powder, the moon was high in the night sky. Loki opened his eyes, a deep, rejuvenated breath escaping his lungs. He looked down toward the riverbank, noting that Thorin’s pool had gone still, signaling the end of his process.
"I made it to 2nd Circle Vanguard Knight, and just pushed through to 2nd Circle Summoner," Loki muttered to himself, a proud grin breaking across his face. "I'm so damn pro."
He quickly slipped into the cold stream, scrubbing away the foul, oily residue the breakthrough had purged from his marrow before pulling his clothes back on. Clenching his fists, he decided to test his newly acquired Knight Path ability.
"<Harden Flesh>!"
A low hum resonated through his body. His skin instantly took on a rough, bark-like texture, and a dense, pressurized current of air began to flow outward over his body, deflecting the stray mist from the waterfall.
Perfect, Loki thought. This aura armor naturally cut all incoming physical damage in half. Stacking it with both of his elemental affinities, the mitigation reached a staggering three-quarters—and that wasn't even factoring in his passive <Toughness> skill. Sigh, I won't get a true offensive ability until the 3rd Circle, but as far as defensive skills go, this is top-tier.
Down by the shore, Thorin was already out of the pool and testing his own upgraded arsenal. Thanks to his Full Knight status, he had unlocked three skills simultaneously.
Loki watched as his brother executed a <Wide Arc Attack>, channeling his 1st Circle <Aura Blow> into a devastating, 180-degree frontal cleave that left deep gouges in the dirt. Along with <Fleet Movement>, Thorin's version of <Harden Flesh> crackled fiercely with a combination of gale-force winds and bright yellow electricity.
When Thorin finished bathing and testing his limits, he climbed up to the high ground where Loki had set up their new camp, carrying a heavy string of massive fish.
"Did you learn your <Harden Flesh> properly?" Thorin asked, grinning.
"Yeah, I look like a block of solid wood," Loki replied dryly. "But you looked like a walking bug-zapper down there."
Thorin held up the fish, laughing heartily. "Hey, it works! When I was running the skill, I saw these guys swimming by, so I just jumped into the water. They all started floating instantly!"
Loki shook his head, ignoring his brother's childish antics as he pulled out three new Summoner spellbooks. Tonight would be a sleepless one; etching 2nd Circle spells onto his magic core required immense precision, and he needed to build the mental muscle memory before attempting the final brand.
While Loki focused, Thorin quietly cleaned and grilled the fish over a low fire, making sure to set aside a generous portion for their shadow guardian.
Late into the evening, the camp grew quiet. Thorin was fast asleep, his steady breathing blending with the rush of the river. Loki let out a long, exhausted sigh as he finally etched the last intricate rune onto his core, solidifying the pocket dimension meant to house Shehuang.
A soft rustle of fabric sounded beside him. Taki Tsuki stepped out of the dark, her eyes wide with genuine awe. "Lord Loki... have you finally finished? So fast!"
Loki smiled. He reached down, plucking a small, withered wildflower from the dirt between his boots. "Let my flower power grow... Minor Life Utility."
A soft green glow pulsed from his fingertips. Instantly, the freshly picked wildflower bloomed into a vibrant, healthy purple, looking as though it were still rooted in the richest soil.
"Purple really suits you," Loki murmured. Wanting a seamless excuse to touch her delicate, pointed elf ear, he gently tucked the stem behind it.
Mwah.
Before he could pull his hand back, Taki leaned forward. Her lips pressed gently against his in a soft, sweet kiss. There was no tongue, but the intoxicating, familiar sweetness from that morning lingered on his lips.
"Thank you, Lord," she whispered, her cheeks dusting with a violet blush.
Loki smiled warmly, leaning back against a smooth boulder and patting his thigh. "The burbling river stream will cover my voice. Lay your head down, and I'll sing you to sleep."
It turned out that even elite kunoichis were entirely defenseless against the allure of a lap pillow. Without a word, Taki shifted and lowered her head onto his lap. As Loki began to softly croon classic English rock songs into the quiet night, Taki reached up, gently pulling one of his arms down to hold tight against her chest as she drifted into a peaceful sleep.
Loki looked down at the beautiful Dark Elf resting against him, letting out a faint, amused sigh. Man... I really feel like a Dating Sim Protagonist.
He didn't sleep a wink that night, content to simply hold her close beneath the stars.
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