Jon ended his conversation with Jugen shortly after, returning back home without disturbing either Lydia or Ariel’s slumber. His extended discussion with the Wordsmith Of Time And Wind was ‘interesting’ to say the least, one that he had found himself enjoying more than what he originally expected.

  Jugen handled himself different, in comparison to other vermitons that Jon had previously encountered. Amadeus, whom Jon considered to be something quite close to a ‘friend’ was someone who strived to pursue martial excellence and hone his physical capabilities through the art of war and continuous refinement through battle.

  A few other vermitons that he had befriended over the course of the System Introduction were Naegeli; Amphibious Prince Of Lizards And Fire and Toqiao; Surging Heir Of Birds And Flowers.

  Both were members of his Merchant Guild, and both were Second-Veined Knights.

  In a similar manner to Amadeus and to some extent himself, both Naegeli and Toqiao were focused on more combat oriented roles. Naegeli possessing a rare Amphibian Mana Core, which manifested both transformation-type abilities and summon-type abilities.

  While Toqiao and his Bird Mana Core and Flower Mana Core often manifested abilities with the Spell Trait that presented themselves in the form of birds or flowers. Fiery-petals that scorched his opponents were launched forward beside bird-shaped wind blades that could avoid obstacles and turn mid-air to a certain degree.

  Jugen on the other hand, possessed a set of Mana Cores that he did not often see within Springtown. Given that the accessibility of Mana Cores within Springtown was extraordinarily high, given its proximity to multiple Dungeons and the continuous efforts of the Merchant Guild and Exploration Guild, obtaining rare Mana Cores was relatively easy.

  At least for those that did not receive Mana Cores from task rewards.

  Jugen Alhaiven, who could not benefit from trading resources with other participants, could only integrate Mana Cores that he had discovered in the wild, from various mutated beasts or any strange creatures that he had encountered.

  Leaving him with solely elemental-type Mana Cores.

  Time. Water. Wind. Space. Light. Shadow.

  Water Mana Cores, Wind Mana Cores, Light Mana Cores and Shadow Mana Cores were all relatively common, capable of manifesting in areas devoid of high-concentrations of spiritual energy. Locations where there existed an abundance of specific concepts had a minute chance of causing Mana Cores to form.

  Oceans and seas have a non-zero chance of manifesting Water Mana Cores, Sea Mana Cores or even Depth Mana Cores. Locations with high-elevation or intense winds similarly have a non-zero percentage of manifesting Wind Mana Cores, Gale Mana Cores or even Storm Mana Cores.

  Jon had even heard stories of these types of Mana Cores manifesting themselves within the boundaries of Springtown, although had never seen such a thing himself.

  Time Mana Cores and Space Mana Cores on the other hand-.

  ‘One of them must have been the Mana Core that he had chosen while within the Pure Room. Time natured spiritual energy is inherently transient, flickering from its position in the ‘present’ before shooting up and down the length of its timeline’.

  ‘Space natured spiritual energy is similar, although expands and contracts, behaving similar to a gas but other times a magnet. Space Mana Cores and Time Mana Cores were rare, even within Springtown, most reserved by Knights looking to form their spiritual veins.’

  Tracking either time natured or space natured spiritual energy was difficult, even for Jon. [Bestial Intuition] gave him a preternatural sixth sense for danger and approaching threats while [Eyes Through The Looking Glass] improved his eyesight and granted him the ability to infiltrate the imaginary mental landscapes of other people.

  Although Jon had wanted to use his Fragment Of Eyes on Jugen, he had decided against it.

  ‘If I suddenly found myself on some foreign world with no grasp of the geography, culture or even the languages spoken I would be more than just a little nervous. Imagine some unknown Lord coming up to me, speaking English and then using a Fragment Of Observation to peer into my status page.’

  ‘I think if something like that were to happen to me, Song and Eis would try and kill them before they had a chance to explain themselves…’

  Jon did not doubt that Aggronia would do something similar.

  Minerva-Infiltration Eyes flickering upwards, towards the ‘rooms’ that Lydia and Ariel had claimed as their own. Hades-Draconian Shadow slithering across the walls and floors of the third-floor bedrooms, listening the faint sounds of snoring, and the steadied heartbeats of their dreaming figures.

  The corners of his mouth curling upwards as he retreated back towards his own bedroom. The second-floor master bedroom, complete with its own terrace and private bathroom was exactly the same as Jon had left it.

  Fragments scattered across his bedside table.

  Spiritual items placed decoratively, adorning his walls and walk-in-wardrobe.

  Although Jon had been awake for close to thirty-nine hours at this point, neither his mind nor spirit seemed fatigued despite the lack of sleep. Eyes glancing in the direction of Lydia and Ariel once more, lingering in place for several moments.

  ‘A few hours of spiritual vein formation should be fine. Forming a spiritual vein pattern that compliments the concept of “Alnus-Viridis” is what I should be focusing on for the time being.’

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  ‘After that, I can start working on forming the Title I intent on taking to Lordship.’

  Jon sat down atop his Knight Ranked Concentrated-Mediation Mat, eyes closed and focus turned inward towards his Wood Mana Core. His expression turning calm, Seir-Perpetual Heart slowing down within his chest, lulling him into a sense of calm serenity.

  Additional Wood Mana Cores manifesting all around him, producing an overabundance of excess spiritual energy. Jon simultaneously weaving structures to capture the excess spiritual energy, while also forming the illusory structure of his intended spiritual vein.

  Time passing swiftly, but surely, as wood natured spiritual energy saturated the internal structure of his uninitiated house. Lydia and Ariel sleeping peacefully, neither noticing the motes of mana that floated around their bodies, not daring to come into contact with their flesh or spirit.

  Jon continuing his spiritual vein formation practice for a total of six hours before-.

  “Jon? Are you awake yet?”

  The sound of Lydia’s voice interrupted the formation of his thirteenth iteration of an “Alnus-Viridis” spiritual vein. Wood natured spiritual energy forking in strange and uncontrollable directions, reminiscent of a lightning storm branching downwards towards the earth.

  Flashes of pain shooting up the length of his left arm, random debilitating effects manifesting where the forked spiritual vein had grown warped and distorted.

  [Wood-Fragmentation Curse], [Alnus-Forked Poison] and [Viridis-Dream Thorn] appearing in the corner of his vision. Archetype Treasured-Avarice and Archetype Twinleaf both incapable of resolving these effects until the damage inflicted was sufficiently healed.

  [Green Is The Flesh, As Red Is The Blood] rushing to regenerate the damage caused by these debilitating effects. Eyes flickering open, mouth gritted into something not quite a smile, head turning in the direction of his bedroom door, and towards the figure standing on the other side.

  “Yes Lydia!?” Jon responded, manifesting his Carcosa-Form Horrors so as to swiftly move all of his Mana Cores back into his Fragment Of Library. His eyes glancing towards the Knight Ranked Vanishing-Light Sword placed up on the wall, alongside the Knight Ranked Stored-Treasure Mirror placed beside it.

  Fragments haphazardly thrown into the latter, ignoring his unconscious desire to sort them all out before placing them inside his storage-type spiritual item. Concentrated-Meditation Mat placed in alongside them.

  “Can I come in?” Lydia’s voice emanated from beyond the door, tone slightly more muted.

  Minerva-Infiltration Eyes glanced towards the assortment of spiritual items he had scattered about, ignoring them for the moment. Standing back up on his own two feet, Jon nodded his head, knowing full well that Lydia wouldn’t see the gesture.

  “Yeah, you can come in,” Jon replied, reaching towards his phone on his bedside table. His lock screen was filled with numerous muted notifications, most ranging from local news articles to press releases from foreign media outlets.

  A swift and cursory glance revealed nothing but more articles on ‘missing persons’ and political crackdowns on international corporations. Nothing that might have alluded to any mysterious creature sightings or the discovery of a new, seemingly unnatural species of animal.

  ‘No changes, that’s good…’

  The sound of his bedroom door clicking open echoed out behind him. Phone placed down beside him, on the half-disturbed sheets watching as Lydia walked into her room, dressed in set of workout clothes.

  Her usual oversized black hoodie still hanging loosely from her shoulders. Her smile bright and effervescent, having slept extraordinarily well atop his Gentle-Dreaming Mattress and beneath the covers of his Cool-Comfort Blanket. Jon did not comment on the wellness of her sleep, knowing that it was even capable of influencing a Knight like himself.

  “Do you two have any plans for today?” Jon asked.

  Lydia nodded her head in affirmation.

  “Ariel wants to go for a swim in your pool sometime this afternoon. The two of us are planning on going into Melbourne to buy a few things before coming back here just after lunch.”

  “Did you want to come with us?” Lydia asked, tilting her head to the side.

  “And end up carrying all the clothes and bags the two of you end up buying? I’m good thank you,” Jon replied, watching as Lydia rolled her eyes, smiling before shrugging her shoulders.

  “Ariel isn’t up yet, but I was also wondering…”

  Hand raised and finger pointed towards the extraordinarily large and beautiful master bedroom. Mortal eyes glancing towards the Vanishing-Light Sword and Hummingbird-Lightning Spear behind him, alongside the plethora of ornate-looking vases, containing various Knight-level spiritual materials.

  “What’s up with all the swords and weapons?”

  Break.

  Several thousand kilometres away, in some luxurious-looking establishment in the heart of downtown Seoul, stood Miyoung, shaking the hand of some high-end business executive that she had never met before. The man in question, who was old enough to be her father, allowed his hand to linger on her own for two moments longer than what she would have preferred.

  Her brow twitching almost imperceptibly, watching as the man’s cheeks flushed red, despite his best efforts to resist the combined effects of her Innana-Graceful Smile and Astarte-Chaste Lust.

  Fragment Of Piercing-Iris enhancing her visual acuity and spiritual perception to a degree beyond even the effects of Jon’s Minerva-Infiltration Eyes. Her strengthened sense of sight allowing her to observe the shifting expressions of dozens of men and women all at once, their sneers and desires quite blatantly written all over their faces.

  Some not even bothering to hide them.

  “We were all so pleased to hear about your return to the industry Miss Kim-Seydlitz. I know Mr Park and the rest of the management back at ARC Entertainment were all quite tight lipped about your recent holiday.”

  “The fact that the public even started organizing search parties for you, alongside all the other missing persons.”

  “What a stroke of marketing genius!”

  The man, alongside several other executives from an assortment of different companies and sections of government all laughed, some even going so far as to slap their thighs in blatant overexaggeration. Most holding glasses of expensive champagne in their hands, sipping on it without reservation.

  One of the men, who might have appeared relatively young were it not for the streaks of grey-coloured hair that wrapped around the sides of his head. While most were adorned in expensive jewellery or hand-crafted watches, this lone man wore nothing but an unassuming golden ring on his right-index finger.

  His eyes lingering across Miyoung’s form, taking in all her features and curves. [Smile A Little Smile] imbuing her flesh and skin with concepts relating to ‘beauty,’ ‘femininity,’ and ‘gracefulness.’

  While [Anael-Asmodeus] imbued her lust with concepts related to ‘longing,’ ‘chastity,’ and ‘ardour.’ Even while suppressed using a Knight Ranked Lustful-Suppression Bracelet and Knight Ranked Beautiful-Distraction Necklace, their effects still managed to seep through.

  The man in question inhaling a sharp breath of air, extending his hand forward towards her.

  “Lee Minjun. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Kim-Seydlitz.”

  “I was wondering if I might have a moment of your time?”

  His face was handsome, and his smile somewhat disarming. His beard was shaven down to a stubble, teeth pearly white, but not unnaturally or artificially so. Miyoung, while her Knight-level senses was able to detect a fragrance that she had never smelt before.

  One that seemed pleasing, at least in comparison to all the other colognes and perfumes she had smelt since returning back to Earth.

  If it were not for him quite blatantly examining her from top to bottom, she might have had a positive impression of the man, perhaps even going so far as to shake his hand. Fragment Of Piercing-Iris observing his facial features, trying to remember if she had ever seen his face be-.

  [Mine Is The Strength Of Titans And Giants, Of Mountains And Seas].

  A wisp of moon natured spiritual energy, brushed up against her Fragment Of Mind.