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Years passed in Hueco Mundo.
Since the day Wayne reincarnated and arrived in this world, he had led his subordinates in relentless hunting, dutifully making good on the promise he’d made, to help every one of them advance.
Now, with Wayne’s help, his subordinates had evolved into Gillians one by one.
The bad news was that every single one of them, except for Jekain, who had been the first, had lost consciousness during the transition without exception.
The situation left Wayne uneasy.
Of all his subordinates, only Inola and Fiselina still remained by his side, and right now, Fiselina had already dropped into the pit below, waiting for her advancement to begin.
“My King, you seem displeased.” Sensing the faint ripple in Wayne’s Reiatsu, Inola spoke up quietly.
“Yeah.” Wayne didn’t bother hiding it.
“For this last advancement, we burned through nearly every resource this forest had.
If Fiselina loses consciousness too, then getting you through yours may require a completely different approach.” “Thank you for your concern, My King.” Inola bowed her head, visibly unsettled.
“Once Fiselina has completed her advancement, there is something I wish to say to you.” “Oh?” Wayne’s expression shifted slightly.
“About what?” “About the matter that has been weighing on you.” Inola said, her voice low.
Wayne paused.
Then, in an instant, he understood.
“Then we’ll wait until Fiselina is done first.” “Yes.” Another half-day passed.
From deep within the battered, pockmarked pit came the shriek that only a Gillian could produce.
Moments later, an enormous head pushed up through the mouth of the pit and into view, and that jester-like Hollow Mask sent a sharp flicker of anger through Wayne’s Reiatsu.
“Lost consciousness again.” Wayne lashed out with his claw.
A withered tree nearby, as thick as a bowl, snapped clean in two.
“My King, let us leave.” Sensing his anger, Inola spoke immediately, her tone perfectly deferential.
“…Alas.” Wayne exhaled, turned, and led Inola away from the pit.
It seemed this time, they would be leaving this lifeless forest behind as well.
They reached safe ground and neither of them said a word.
A long silence stretched between them.
Eventually, Fiselina’s distant roars faded beyond the forest’s edge, and only then did Inola give Wayne a quiet nod.
Knowing Fiselina had gone, Wayne let out a long breath.
“Inola.
It’s just the two of us now.
Say whatever you have to say.” “Yes, My King.
Then please forgive me for speaking plainly.” Inola inclined her head with great care.
“First — please do not feel disheartened that Fales, Fiselina, and the others lost consciousness during their advancements.
Whether a High Hollow retains awareness when advancing to Gillian is almost entirely a matter of their own constitution.
You need not blame yourself for it.” Those opening words cut directly at Wayne’s self-reproach.
Inola paused, then continued.
“As for your concern about whether you yourself might lose consciousness during your own advancement, please allow me to share a few personal observations.” Wayne’s brow lifted.
Mildly surprised, yet not entirely, it felt within the realm of reason.
He gave a small nod.
“Go ahead.” “My King, please forgive me first for keeping this from you.
My ability is Reiatsu Perception, but it does not only detect the surface.
After I advanced to High Hollow, I gained a second perception skill.
I simply never mentioned it.
I named it Reiryoku Detection.” “Is that so?” Wayne’s eyes sharpened with interest rather than anger.
“Tell me.” “Yes.” Inola’s voice came slowly, measured.
“My King, if Reiatsu Perception is the ability to sense enemies in the outside world, then Reiryoku Detection is the ability to peer inward, into the Reiatsu within an individual’s own body.
To be frank with you, My King.
Under my observation, I have seen your Reiatsu, vast, and immense.
A quantity like that should have long since broken through the limits of a High Hollow, reaching, or even exceeding, the level of an early-stage Gillian.
If not for your deliberate suppression, you might have been able to advance even before Fales did.” “That is correct.” Wayne nodded.
“But…” “But you have been worried, if you lose consciousness during your advancement, what then.
So you had us reach the threshold first.
You hoped to pick out some pattern from watching us, to give yourself a greater degree of certainty when your own time came.
Am I right?” A silence.
The moment Inola’s words landed, an almost imperceptible tremor passed through Wayne’s Reiatsu.
Sensing it, Inola dropped immediately into a full prostration and went completely still.
“My King, please forgive my impertinent words.” Wayne looked at her.
He said nothing for a moment.
In the end, he let out a quiet, helpless sigh.
“…You’re not wrong.
I did want to help all of you advance, that’s true.
But I was also hoping to learn something from watching each of you go through it.
After all, losing consciousness is no small thing.
Heh.” He paused.
“Go ahead.
Say the rest.” The truth was, Wayne genuinely valued the alliance they had built and the bond it represented.
Helping them advance was the duty he owed them as their leader.
But after missing his chance with Jekain, and then watching Fales’s advancement, a quiet uncertainty had taken root in him.
One question that wouldn’t go away: exactly how was he supposed to guarantee that he would keep his mind when the time came, and not become someone else’s pawn?
So Wayne had begun quietly cutting down the amount of Reishi he consumed, compressing his Reiatsu with careful effort, and watching.
Waiting.
One by one, his subordinates advanced.
One by one, they failed to hold on.
And with each failure, Wayne’s heart sank a little lower.
He felt powerless against it.
It was only after everyone had advanced that Inola finally chose to speak, precisely because she hadn’t wanted to add to his burden before then.
And this act, stepping forward to offer honest counsel at her own risk, said more about her loyalty than any sworn oath could have.
“My King, to be truthful with you, every time someone advanced, I observed their Reiatsu closely.
That includes Jekain, who kept his consciousness.” Inola raised her head and continued.
“And what I noticed was this.
After they advanced to Gillian, Jekain’s Reiatsu was distinctly dense and solid.
The others’ Reiatsu met the standard for Gillian, but within those enormous bodies, it felt scattered and thin.
I believe whether or not one retains consciousness may have everything to do with this.” “So you’re saying…
the higher the Reiatsu at the time of advancement, the greater the chance of keeping consciousness?” Wayne frowned.
“More than that.
I also believe it’s tied to each Hollow’s individual constitution.” Inola went on.
“Jekain retained his consciousness.
Before his advancement, he already possessed the ability to compress and solidify the Reishi within his body, and his ability in that regard was far beyond that of an ordinary Hollow Beast.
So after he advanced, the Reiryoku within his body was considerably greater than the others’.
I believe this is the key to retaining consciousness.” “Reiryoku Compression.
That’s the method?” Wayne shook his head slightly.
“But every Hollow has that ability.” “That is true, My King.
But not every Hollow is willing to stay at the High Hollow stage and keep compressing, keep building.” “Advancing is every Hollow’s goal, their reason to keep going.
The low-Sentience Hollow Beasts are one thing, but even most Hollows who possess Sentience want to advance quickly.
They won’t choose to linger at the High Hollow stage stockpiling strength.
After all, a Gillian’s Cero can wipe out High Hollows wholesale.
They are driven to advance.
As for those who retained their consciousness, some were simply fortunate, and happened to hold on through the transition.
Others had innately exceptional constitutions, having accumulated enough Reiryoku that their awareness survived.
In short, I believe there are two factors that raise the odds.
First, innately superior talent and constitution.
That is, strong Soul Density.
Second, an understanding of Reiryoku Compression, and the ability to compress and accumulate Reiryoku to a sufficient degree.
Only a Hollow with both qualities will have a meaningfully better chance of holding on.
Of course, this is all my own speculation.
It has not been proven in practice.
But I believe that the only Hollow who possesses both qualities, My King, is you.” “Reiryoku Compression.” Wayne turned his attention inward, taking stock of the dense, abundant Reiryoku filling his body.
He had to admit, when it came to Reiryoku Compression, his ability there had always outpaced every other Hollow around him.
It was all just Inola’s theory.
But even so, Wayne meant to try it.
Even if it raised his odds by one percent, it was worth it.
“Inola, thank you.” A faint, relieved smile touched the corners of Wayne’s mouth.
There was no denying it.
What she’d said had meant a great deal to him.
“There is no need for that, My King.” Inola replied with a respectful bow.
“It is my honor to serve you.” “Heh.
Honestly, if not for all of you, I’d probably have already blown myself apart from too much Reiatsu building up inside me.” Wayne said it lightly, but there was a dry edge to it.
“Come.
Let’s leave this place too.
We’ll find a smaller territory and get you ready to advance.” “My King, I don’t believe that will be necessary.” Inola declined quietly.
“I know my own constitution.
I’ve been compressing my Reiryoku as well, and I don’t think it will be long before I reach my limit.
There’s no need for My King to take risks on my behalf.” “Hmm?” Wayne paused.
“You’re saying you no longer need to hunt?” “Yes, My King.
If we stay in this forest — two days at the least, five at most — my Reiatsu will reach the maximum my body can currently hold.
As long as we linger here briefly and hunt whatever prey has survived, that should be enough.” “The limit of compression.” Wayne pressed her.
“What does that feel like?” “The power inside you feels completely full.
As though you might burst apart at any moment.” Inola considered carefully before answering.
“Something like that.” “My King, your constitution is unlike anything I have seen in the others, whether in Reiryoku capacity or Reiryoku Compression, you surpass all of us by a wide margin.
I believe that if you were to face a single Gillian-level Menos Grande alone right now, you should be able to win outright.
Am I right?” “I can’t say for certain how much I’m actually capable of.” Wayne measured the gap honestly.
“Against a single Gillian without consciousness, I couldn’t guarantee a win, but walking away wouldn’t be a problem.
If the terrain is favorable, killing it isn’t out of the question either.” “My King, then at this point I can tell you with confidence: under my observation, your body has room for at least one-third more Reiryoku than it currently holds.
If you were to compress with even greater intensity, you might be able to hold twice that again.
Measured in Gillians, even consuming two or three Gillian-level Menos Grande, your body would not burst.” “Really?” Wayne couldn’t quite believe it.
But he couldn’t find a single reason why Inola would lie to him.
“My King, perhaps you truly don’t know your own limits.
But please trust me.
As long as you are willing to bear the risk — remain at the High Hollow level, and compress your Reiryoku with everything you have — the probability of retaining your consciousness will be far greater than it is for any ordinary Hollow Beast.
And even if you were unlucky, and lost consciousness during the advancement, your Reiatsu would still be several times that of an ordinary Gillian.” “Ha.” Wayne smiled.
“Then I’ll take those words as a good omen.
If you really think you’re close to advancing, let’s head back to that pit.
I’ll go find your provisions.” “I’m grateful for the trouble, My King.” Inola bowed her head.
“There is one more thing.
Please, I need you to promise me.” “Hmm?
What is it, go ahead.” “If…” The word came out steady.
Resolved.
“If I also lose consciousness during my advancement, please do not let me go free.
I ask that you cut me down.
Consume me.” “…What?” ➤ Next: The Way of the Sovereign and the Minister [FULL STORY ACCESS] Unlock (100+ Chapters) ahead of the public release!