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n“Of course, she’s a comrade who fought alongside me. I didn’t want them to join me on the adventure in hopes that they could stay safe and sound.”

nFinishing his bread roll in two bites, Howard looked into Nula’s eyes.

n“Don’t worry, Vivia is not as fragile as she appears to you. Although I haven’t had many interactions with her, I’ve researched quite a bit about her. That girl is much stronger than what you’ve seen. Her adventurer level is even higher than yours, and she’s a quite skilled magic potion maker.”

nNula took a bite of her bread, paused, then continued, “I dare say, if she had the talent to become a magus, her future achievements would certainly not be minor.”

nWhile many talents remain uncertain without trial, one’s character can often be readily assessed.

nIf a person’s talent defines the lower limit of their achievements in a certain field, then their character will determine the upper limit.

n“As long as she’s safe.”

nHoward seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, hurriedly finishing his breakfast.

n“I’ll be troubling you these next few days. I won’t go out, to avoid running into Vivia.”

n“Sure.” Nula readily agreed, tidying up the table and picking up the unfinished food.

n“I might go out again this afternoon. Is there anything you want me to bring back for you?”

n“Clean bandages, and if possible, some herbs. I don’t like the smell of magic potions.”

n“Got it.”

nNula waved her hand as a farewell gesture and walked out the door, pushing it open.

nAs Nula’s footsteps faded away, Howard sat on his bed, gazing into his palm.

nA certain yearning churned quietly within him.

nIf, just if he now possessed absolute “power,” would the situation still be this passive?

nHoward sat cross-legged on the bed, holding his breath and concentrating, his consciousness diving deep like a submarine.

nThe fastest way to enhance strength was to leverage it.

nSince there was a deity hidden within himself, why not seek a method from it?

n…

nHis consciousness passed through a layer of warm seawater, devoid of any light.

nHoward’s “field of view” was pure darkness.

nTo say “field of view” was actually inaccurate, as Howard, in a purely conscious state, had no organs at all.

nHe was merely a thought, roaming in the depths of his soul.

nHe was searching for another consciousness.

nHe couldn’t be certain of what “Two’s” essence was, but one thing he was sure of was that “Two” was not fundamentally different from him.

nThe two consciousnesses should belong to one soul.

nThis was also why he sought “Two.”

nTheoretically, what “Two” could do, he should be able to do as well.

nThere was no difference between him and “Two,” whether in terms of energy strength or soul strength.

nThe first search yielded no results.

nHoward’s consciousness moved through the warm, pitch-black seawater, but found nothing, neither a second consciousness nor any odd entity.

nCould “Two” be hiding again?

nSometimes “Two” would do this, concealing itself, avoiding Howard’s call.

nHe didn’t know what “Two” was up to, but he knew “Two” was always acting towards a goal.

nAs the second search neared its end, a faint light appeared before Howard’s “eyes.”

n“Two” manifested, responding to his call.

nControlling his consciousness to approach the light, he passed through it.

nIt felt like traversing a tunnel, with countless stars flashing by, resembling the changing starry sky of time.

nIt seemed like a second yet felt like an extensive period, and Howard’s consciousness stopped in a purely white space.

nA blurry orb of light hovered in the center of this white expanse.

nSupreme Deity?

nThe moment Howard saw the orb, these words flashed through his mind.

nIt was unavoidable; it looked too similar.

n“Howard? Are you looking for me?” Two’s voice resonated directly within Howard’s consciousness.

nDrawing closer to the orb, Howard observed it from below. 𝘳.𝑐ℴ

nThe orb, with a diameter of about a meter, floated about two meters off the ground, perfectly spherical without any distortion.

n“Yes, I’m looking for you.”

n“I want power.”

nHoward responded to Two’s question.

nHoward’s understanding of Two came from Nula’s descriptions, making this their first encounter with each other’s true form.

nFor two consciousnesses sharing a soul, physical appearances were secondary; the essence of consciousness was the fundamental difference between them.

nA brief yet seemingly prolonged silence followed.

nTwo’s voice once again echoed near Howard.

n“Do you understand what you’re saying, do you realize what that statement implies?”

nTwo’s voice bore no discernible emotion, but Howard could sense a kind of astonishment, followed by feelings akin to disappointment and resignation.

nDid Two not want him to make this choice?

n“Will I become like you?” Howard asked.

nTwo didn’t respond, or perhaps, it had already answered.

n“Even so, I still want power.”

n“Why?”

nThis time, Two’s reply was immediate, echoing by Howard’s ear the moment his words were spoken, causing Howard to pause before he could react.

n“Even if you turn out like me, would that be acceptable?”

n“Even if it means losing the qualification to be human?”

nHoward hadn’t yet answered when Two’s questioning followed.

nAgain, there was a brief silence, but this time, it was Howard who remained silent, not Two.

nThe orb of light slowly descended, touching the ground and gradually reshaping.

nIn about the span of two breaths, a blurry humanoid figure emitting white light stood before Howard.

nThis was Two’s consciousness incarnate, yet Howard still couldn’t discern what Two truly was.

nIt didn’t seem human, but its essence of action was fundamentally no different from a human’s.

nAfter a long moment, Howard reached a conclusion.

n“It doesn’t matter!”

nHe looked towards where the eyes of the vague humanoid figure would be, his voice filled with determination.

nFrom birth, he had always felt subtly different from those around him.

nNow, Howard finally began to contemplate what kind of person he truly was.

nToo many non-human traits manifested within him.

n“If this is your wish.”

nTwo’s voice faded away as the humanoid figure slowly receded, “Based on the highest principle, I do not have the authority to resist you.”

n“If this is what you desire, then accept it, hoping you won’t regret it.”

n“Directive set three, unlocked.”

nA torrent of data engulfed Howard.

n…

nIn Rodel City, at the adventurer Rodel branch guild, a slender figure cloaked in a dark cape entered the hall without drawing anyone’s attention.

nAt the Rodel branch guild, such figures, intent on concealing their identities, were not uncommon.

nAfter all, not all adventurers were beloved by the people, nor were all adventurers virtuous citizens.

nThe profession of an adventurer, at any time, has been a shadow wandering in the gray areas of society.

nThe figure made no stops along the way, heading straight for the counter with a clear purpose.

n“Vivia, you’re here again! This is the fourth time this week!”

nA young service attendant, around twenty years old, behind the counter, looked at the overly youthful face beneath the hood with some concern, “Taking on so many quests in such a short period, are you in need of money?”

n“Not exactly short on cash, just trying to earn a bit more while I have the chance.”

nVivia didn’t lift her hood but directly pulled out several quest documents from beneath her cloak.

n“Here are the proofs, signed by the clients. I’ve already received the rewards; I’m just here to register them.”

nFor adventurers to raise their badge levels, the only way is to complete quests.

nOnly after completing a sufficient number of quests at the corresponding level will the guild review the adventurer’s capabilities and then decide whether to promote their badge level.

nThus, registering one’s completed quests at the guild becomes a significantly important task.

nThe service attendant took the quest documents to help Vivia with the registration.

n“By the way, about the person I asked you to keep an eye out for… have you found anything?”

nThis had become almost a ritual question for Vivia with each visit.

nThe previous times, the service attendant had managed to evade with vague responses, but this time it seemed impossible.

nVivia produced a roll of paper, on it, a portrait of a young man, showing only the frontal view.

nEven so, the service attendant recognized him immediately—it was the magus she had once served!

nThe youngest magus she had ever seen!

nThough his name was unknown to her, the service attendant knew that just a few days ago, during the monster tide defense battle, this young man had shone brightly, single-handedly killing nearly ten spellbeasts and spellbeast subspecies!

nBy individual achievements, his was arguably the highest in Rodel City!

nYet, for some reason, he had never come to claim his reward.

nThe attendant’s instant reaction to the portrait did not escape Vivia’s notice.

nShe was never one to be lost in a fog, quickly clarifying her thoughts.

n“Have you seen him?”

nThis content is taken from 𝘳𝑎.𝒸ℴ

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