Sitting beneath the gnarled tree, Alisia's gaze moved to the second entrance of the mine. Unease filling her heart.
'Two weeks…' she thought, 'two weeks since he entered.'
She didn't know how he was—and dared not check if she was afraid of interrupting him.
Training the soul was far more perilous than essence cultivation. Far beyond comprehension.
She had read The Threefold Origin, the passages on souls and their progression etched into her memory.
The knowledge had terrified her. Now, seeing Vincent choose this path willingly… terror gripped her already concerned heart.
Even if he succeeds, a part of him would be erased forever.
Her stomach twisted at the thought.
What would happen to the part of him that still belonged to her? Would he discard it?
Her heart clenched. She shook her head in denial.
'No. The moments we shared… those feelings aren't so easily abandoned. I don't believe he'll do it.'
Suddenly, a prickle of odd feeling crawled across her skin as she felt that something was… wrong.
*Crack*
A branch snapped inches from her.
She had been so absorbed in thought, so lost in recuperation from her last session, that she didn't pay enough attention to her surroundings.
Before she could reach for the green beans Vincent had left—a hand hastily appeared from behind and covered her mouth and nose.
She panicked and struggled, but her strength soon started to leave her, and soon darkness covered her eyes.
"I didn't expect such a pleasant catch. Lucky day," a voice muttered.
…
Hours later, Vincent's eyes trembled open in the dark mine.
Heavy breaths tore through him as he tried to rise. His hand slipped, and he fell, cold stone biting his cheek.
Every muscle felt weak. He forced essence through fractured meridians, coaxing his body to obey.
Minutes passed. Slowly, he stood, reserves of inner essence nearly exhausted.
He didn't care. Not after the terror of the Spiritual World.
Most of it had already faded from memory—except the searing instant before he almost lost himself in ecstasy as his soul was absorbing spiritual essence like a bottomless pit.
Vincent inhaled, steadying a heart still trembling with fear.
If he hadn't prepared meticulously, he wouldn't have returned at all.
Never before had he felt fear like this.
Yet, a strange, intense joy lingered. Why now?
A thought sparked and a transparent wisp of fire appeared across his forehead.
Then, hesitation struck his mind, but he ignored it.
As Vincent activated the soul force…
"AA–!!"
Sharp pain hit his mind as if boiling water had been poured into his skull.
Even with Vincent's formidable pain tolerance, he could barely hold his sanity.
Clasping his head, he collapsed to his knees, gasping, trembling.
But the pain wasn't his biggest issue.
He felt that something important inside him was erased.
An image of a girl appeared in his mind.
Meanwhile, in a hidden forest encampment, two tents and a dying fire marked the scene of something foul.
Muffled, unnatural sounds leaked from one tent.
Time passed. A middle-aged man emerged, adjusting his pants, face flushed.
"Phew… that was… spicy," he muttered.
"You didn't overdo it, right?" a slightly younger man asked, cleaning his teeth with a needle-like stick.
"If she'd behaved, I wouldn't have had to be rough. Don't worry, I was easy on her. It won't affect the price," the first man said, annoyance curling his words.
He glanced around, narrowing his eyes. "Where's Patrick?"
"Freewind town," the second man said, flicking his gaze toward the fire.
"Why?"
"Don't know. Don't care. Said he'd be back in two hours."
The first man shrugged. "We can't wait forever."
"If he doesn't return, we'll deliver without him," the second man said.
"By the way. Why does the guild require so many women lately? Something happened?" the first asked.
"Breeding Hall, most likely," came the flat reply.
Disgust twisted the first man's face, "That filthy place… no wonder demand spiked."
Crack.
Both men snapped their heads toward a distant sound.
"Patrick? Weren't you—" the second man began, then halted as he saw the approaching figure.
A bulky man emerged, carrying a limp girl.
"Oh, such a young face… virgin?" the first man asked.
"Don't know. Bitches these days lose it early," Patrik replied, dropping her in a tent before vanishing.
"What do you plan?" the first man asked.
"I haven't felt that tightness in a while. Once I do, I'll sell her," Patrik said casually and once again leaving the encampment, disappearing behind trees.
The second man glanced toward the tent, then shook his head.
"Interested?" the first man asked.
"Nah. Young ones are too boring," the first replied, spitting, and headed to another tent.
"Hey~ I'm back, my love. Miss me?"
A faint voice, followed by muffled female sounds, echoed from within the tent.
Hearing them, something aroused once again inside the first man.
His gaze moved to the previous tent.
…
Alisia's eyes snapped open.
Mouth bound, hands tied, panic grew within her.
She then hastily checked herself and relief was visible on her face.
'Nothing has happened. Thank the heavens…'
She could still be with Vincent. But first, she needs to find a way to free herself.
Then her attention suddenly was brought to the tent entrance.
Her heart jumped in fright upon seeing an unknown man entering.
Though he did not do anything, his eyes lingered on her young body, observing.
Alisia tried to suppress the rising panic and try to find a way out of her predicament.
If she doesn't do anything, something irreversible might happen soon.
Then an idea appeared. Disgusting, but it might work.
She started to wave her head and make noise.
The man looked at her with narrowed eyes and then bent down, letting her speak.
"P-please… don't kill me," she stammered, tears streaking her cheeks. "I… I'll do anything…"
His gaze flicked to her big chest.
He inhaled sharply and stood up, casually removing his pants.
"You know what to do, right?" he ordered.
"I… I need my hands," she whispered, adding a subtle note of control.
"..." the man briefly paused, "If you do anything stupid…" he warned.
"I won't dare," she said, shaking her head.
He nodded and moved behind her to release her hands, unable to see a sudden change in her eyes.
When her hands were freed, she was able to stand up. Her expression is still fearful.
Seeing that she was obedient, the man inwardly nodded and pointed down below.
"Begin," he ordered, "If I'll like it, I might ask Patrik to not hurt you."
"I… I will do my best to serve you," the girl obediently replied.
But her eyes then shifted to something else, her young face changed in fright, "I c-can't do this if there are two of you."
The man's eyes narrowed when he heard her before turning his head to follow her gaze, "Bitch, what are you talk–"
The moment he shifted his attention away, something tiny hit his chest and exploded in dark-green mist.
He unconsciously inhaled and started to choke. The veins on his eyes erupted.
He realized that he was tricked. But before he could act, something sharp had pierced his neck and then sliced to the side.
For a brief second, almost like a fountain, fresh blood splashed on top of the tent.
His eyes rolled to the back of his head as his life was cut short.
Alisia stared with wide eyes at the twitching body on the ground that was choking on its own blood.
Her eyes trembled and then shifted to her hand that was covered in still warm blood.
Alisia tried to suppress the panic, but failed.
She just took someone else's life.