A few seconds later, another notification appeared.
[Reward Calculation Complete.]
[Reward Granted.]
[Legendary Reward Granted: Disintegration Spray.]
Reinhard raised an eyebrow as a small black bottle appeared in his Inventory. He brought it out and looked at the description.
[Disintegration Spray.]
[Effect: When sprayed onto a dead body, the target will rapidly decompose into dust.]
[Additional Effect: Effectiveness is increased by 100× when used on a dead body.]
He stared at it for a moment, then glanced at the four men lying around the building. "Convenient."
He sprayed it over the men and watched as their dead bodies began to break down. After a minute, nothing remained of them.
Another notification appeared.
[Additional Reward Granted.]
[Mana Recovery Enhancement.]
[Effect: The user’s natural Mana recovery speed has been increased.]
That’ll be useful.
Another notification appeared.
[Additional Reward Granted.]
[Combat Analysis.]
[Effect: Improves the user’s ability to read movement, posture, and changes in Mana, allowing him to anticipate attacks more effectively.]
Reinhard’s eyes narrowed slightly as subtle movements and changes in Mana became easier to read. So my body isn’t the only thing getting stronger.
Another notification appeared.
[Additional Reward Granted.]
[Mana Reinforcement Mastery.]
[Effect: Greatly improves the precision and efficiency of Mana Reinforcement.]
[Additional Effect: Allows Mana to be concentrated more effectively into specific parts of the body or weapons.]
Then another notification appeared.
[Additional Reward Granted.]
[Mana Reserve Enhancement.]
[Effect: Permanently expands one Gnosis container by 1.5x.]
Reinhard felt his Gnosis capacity increased before the next reward came.
[Additional Reward Granted.]
[Physical Enhancement.]
[Effect: The user’s physical strength, speed, durability, and recovery have been further enhanced beyond normal human limits.]
His body grew heavy for a moment before settling into something stronger than before. Earlier tonight, he had cracked the plaster. Now he was curious.
He walked over with his hands reinforced with mana and punched it.
BOOM!
The concrete exploded outward, leaving a hole big enough to climb through, and a chunk of the ceiling dropped and landed right beside his shoe.
Reinhard looked at the hole, then at the ceiling, then took one careful step to the side. "Okay."
[Additional Reward Granted.]
Reinhard raised an eyebrow as a pair of black metallic gloves appeared in his Inventory.
They were sleek rather than bulky, covering his hands and extending slightly past his wrists. Thin silver lines ran across the surface, forming a strange pattern that seemed to shift whenever he moved.
He equipped them and immediately felt their weight settle around his hands.
[Graviton Gloves.]
[Effect: Amplifies the user’s physical strength when worn.]
[Additional Effect: Increases the destructive power of weapons wielded by the user.]
Reinhard looked down at his hands.
Now these look good. He flexed his fingers, feeling the gloves adjust perfectly to his movements. He looked around to see an abandoned car and went over to grab the driver’s side door.
And pulled.
The metal screamed as it tore off its hinges, and he stood in the empty street holding an entire car door like a shopping bag.
He looked at it for a long moment. Then he leaned it neatly back against the car, dusted off his hands, and walked away as if it had been like that when he found it. "Guess I can do that now too."
Another notification appeared.
[Additional Reward Granted.]
[Enhanced Five Senses.]
[Effect: Even without magic, the user’s five senses reach a superhuman level.]
The world around him suddenly became clearer. He could hear electricity humming through the building and a car moving several streets away. He could even smell the meat skewer he’d eaten earlier.
"It’s his turn," Reinhard decided, listening to the argument for a few more seconds. "He’s clearly lying about Tuesday."
He opened the folder. The rewards were interesting, but this was why he’d come here. He needed to know what he’d just risked his life for. He skimmed through the pages. Most of the research was filled with technical information, but he quickly found the section he wanted.
Case 017.
He flipped through the records.
The patient’s Gnosis had been completely shattered, yet the records showed that it eventually began recovering. Reinhard already knew a shattered Gnosis could be rebuilt. What mattered was where the treatment had happened.
Treatment Location: Saint Aurelia Awakening Institute.
"Saint Aurelia."
He quickly searched the name and found a facility specializing in damaged Gnosis. Then he turned another page.
Primary Material Required for Treatment.
Reinhard froze. He had seen that material tonight. He picked up the small dark crystal wrapped in the handkerchief.
[Gnosis Recovery Investment Updated.]
[Restoration Compatibility: 0.05% → 0.12%.]
Reinhard stared at the number.
So you were part of the treatment.
He slipped it into a bag.
He had the location. Now he needed someone who knew what Vane had actually been doing there.
His phone rang, and the name on the screen was Emily. The smile appeared on his face before he even realized it, and he answered. "Hello, my wife."
"Where are you?"
"Out."
"You said you’d be home hours ago."
Reinhard looked at the hole in the wall, the broken table, and the four men scattered across the floor. "I got distracted."
"By what?"
"Architecture."
There was a brief silence on the other end, and then Emily asked, much more quietly, "Are you safe?"
His voice softened without him meaning it to. "I’m fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Completely."
Another pause. "Come home soon."
"I will."
"REINHARD!"
He pulled the phone away from his superhuman ear with a wince. "Lily stole the phone, didn’t she?"
"Correct."
"Give it back."
"No. I wanted to talk to you."
"You could have just asked Emily."
"She would’ve said no." Lily lowered her voice to a dramatic whisper. "Also, she’s been checking the door every five minutes."
"Lily!" came Emily’s voice from somewhere in the background.
"Every four minutes!" Lily corrected herself loudly. "Okay, I’ll give it back!"
Reinhard laughed. "You two are becoming troublesome."
"You started it."
"How?"
"You married my sister."
He paused. "That’s not how marriage works."
"I don’t care."
He smiled up at the broken ceiling. "Tell your sister I’ll be home soon. And Lily?"
"Yeah?"
"Don’t eat my dinner."
"Too late."
The call ended. Reinhard stared at his phone. "...That was fast." He shook his head, still smiling, and looked out through his hole in the wall toward the road.
Saint Aurelia was waiting.
...
It didn’t take long for Reinhard to reach the institute.
Saint Aurelia looked nothing like Aetheris. Instead of training grounds, its old stone halls were filled with examination rooms and medical equipment.
Aetheris was where Awakeners came to become stronger. Saint Aurelia was where they came when something had already gone wrong.
He approached the reception desk. "I’m looking for records concerning Dr. Elias Vane."
The receptionist searched the system, her expression changing. "I’m sorry. That research is restricted."
He didn’t argue. Instead, he reached into his coat and placed the photograph of Case 017 on the desk. "Then perhaps you can tell me about this."
She froze, her eyes moving from the photograph to him. "Where did you get that?"
"An auction."
Her expression grew more nervous. "I’ll need to get someone."
A few minutes later, an older researcher approached the desk. The moment he saw the photograph, he stopped, his eyes fixed on the handwriting across its edge.
"Elias..." He carefully picked it up. "I thought all of this was gone."
He looked up at Reinhard. "You came here because of Dr. Vane’s research?"
"That’s right."
The man held out his hand. "Then we should start properly. Cassian."
"Reinhard."
"I know."
Reinhard raised an eyebrow. "Because of my wife?"
"Because of the auction." Cassian’s expression didn’t change at all. "My granddaughter sent me a video last night of a man in sunglasses insulting an old man’s grocery budget."
Reinhard leaned forward with real interest. "Did I look good?"
Cassian studied him for a long moment. "You looked like a man who knew he looked good."
"So, yes."
"Sit down. Let’s talk about your wife."
Reinhard took the chair across from his desk. "I’m listening."
Cassian set the photograph down between them. "You know about Case 017?"
"I know the patient’s Gnosis was completely destroyed, and that the treatment worked."
"Against all expectations," Cassian agreed.
"How?"
"Vane discovered a material that reacted to damaged Gnosis. He processed it into a medicine that stimulated the fragments remaining inside the Gnosis."
Reinhard placed the crystal on the desk.
"And Case 017?"
"It worked. The patient regained the ability to sense Mana, and the Gnosis began reconstructing itself."
"And then?"
Cassian hesitated. "The records became incomplete."
Reinhard’s expression sharpened.
"The treatment was abandoned because the earlier patients suffered further Gnosis damage. Some experienced unbearable pain. Others died."
Cassian looked directly at him. "Case 017 was the only patient who showed meaningful improvement."
Reinhard leaned back. He’d heard enough to know the treatment wasn’t simple. But he wanted to know something else.
He activated Mind Glance. For the next twenty seconds, Cassian’s surface thoughts became clear.
How did he find this? I heard the Records were destroyed? Some of the people searching for the research were severely injured. Others were killed. Whoever did it wanted the information gone.
Reinhard eyes narrowed slightly. The facility... He remembered the files disappearing from his laptop, the corrupted screen, the explosion after he’d thrown it through the window. So that’s what happened.
Cassian’s thoughts continued. But how did this man find the trail? He shouldn’t know about the purge.
The connection disappeared. Reinhard didn’t react, simply looking back at Cassian, who continued speaking, unaware that Reinhard had just heard thoughts he’d never intended to share.
"The treatment was never developed further after Vane disappeared."
Cassian looked down at the crystal.
"You need to understand something. Even with all the materials, the treatment isn’t safe."
"How dangerous?"
"Dangerous enough that I wouldn’t recommend it without a very good reason."
Reinhard raised an eyebrow. "That’s not very reassuring."
"I’m being serious."
His expression hardened. "The patients who attempted it before Case 017 suffered further damage to their Gnosis. Some experienced pain so severe they begged the researchers to stop. Others were left more crippled than before."
He paused.
"Some died."
Reinhard’s expression remained calm.
"That’s why the treatment was abandoned. Case 017 was the only patient who showed meaningful improvement."
Cassian met his eyes.
"Even if you obtain the materials, there is no guarantee Emily will survive."
Reinhard was silent for a moment, then smiled. "My wife won’t fail."
Cassian blinked.
He leaned back in his chair, completely relaxed. "Because she isn’t that weak."
Cassian stared at him. "You’re taking this very lightly."
"I’m not." His smile widened. "I know exactly what you’re telling me."
Cassian studied him carefully. "You understand that she could die?"
"Of course."
"And you’re still willing to proceed?"
"Obviously." He looked toward the dark window. "She already survived the part where everyone else gave up on her." His voice remained light, but there was absolute certainty behind it. "So I’m not going to start doubting her now."
Cassian didn’t immediately respond.
Reinhard turned back toward him. "If the treatment works, great." His smile became almost mischievous. "If it doesn’t, we’ll figure out why and try again."
Cassian frowned. "That’s not how medicine works."
"Then I’ll make it work."
For the first time since he’d arrived, Cassian looked genuinely caught off guard. Reinhard simply shrugged. "She’s my wife."
Cassian was silent for several seconds, then finally shook his head. "You’re either incredibly confident or completely insane."
"Both can be true."
He almost smiled. "Perhaps." He turned back toward the terminal. "Regardless, you’ll need more than the crystal."
"What else?"
Cassian opened another file.
Primary Ingredient: Moonheart Fruit.
Current Supply: None.
Reinhard stared at the screen. "None?"
"The remaining supply was used years ago."
"And without it?"
"We can’t make the medicine."
Reinhard looked at the crystal, then at the treatment records. "Where can I find it?"
Cassian hesitated before bringing up an older record.
[Moonheart Fruit.]
[Availability: Extremely Rare.]
[Last Known Locations: 3.]
Three locations appeared on the screen.
Cassian sighed. "Those are simply the last places the fruit was recorded."
A blue window appeared in front of him.
[Investment Opportunity Available.]
His eyes shifted toward it.
[Target: Emily Ashcroft.]
[Objective: Obtain the Moonheart Fruit required for Gnosis restoration treatment.]
[Difficulty Grade: C.]
[Success Probability: 35%.]
He stared at the number and smiled.
He looked at the three locations displayed on Cassian’s screen, then back at the System. His grin widened. "Alright."