Even if favorability held steady and Alaric could borrow power from heavyweights, his own low sequence and limited spirituality meant he could only sustain it briefly. In a prolonged fight or an ambush by a cunning foe, he'd be vulnerable once the borrowed power ran out.
So, while Alaric treated the Shadow of Time skill as a trump card and worked to gain favor with powerful figures, he never neglected improving his own abilities... his true foundation.
Only by advancing his sequence and strengthening his own power could he ensure self-preservation in any situation, avoiding scenarios where he couldn't borrow power, was too weak, and ended up done for.
Even if sequence 9 ritual magic seemed trivial compared to the abilities of Mr. A or Azik, Alaric wouldn't dismiss it. It was the power he truly possessed, and mastering it was his priority.
Relying solely on borrowed power and looking down on "low-end" Abilities would turn him into a hollow shell, even if he advanced smoothly. The gap between individuals in the same sequence could be as vast as between a human and a dog.
Solidly mastering his own sequence's abilities was far better than blindly advancing without skill.
"Advancing to sequence 8 isn't easy, either. Forget digesting the potion... just the supplementary materials for Actor are a headache." Alaric muttered to himself, slightly troubled.
Like the Joker potion requiring items tied to the Error, Fool, and Door pathway's high sequences, the sequence 8 Actor potion needed something specific: an item related to a high-sequence Hunter or Demoness.
Honestly, Alaric's first thought was the Red Priest Card of Blasphemy. But using a Card of Blasphemy for a sequence 8 potion was extravagant, and its ties to the Outer Deities made him wary of consuming it. Plus, it was currently with Sauron-Einhorn-Medici, the evil spirit, whom Alaric wasn't ready to confront without borrowing power from Azik or Pallez.
So, after careful thought, Alaric decided to wait until he'd earned enough favor with Azik before approaching Medici. He'd try to trade for a related item... either the Red Priest Card or something crafted from Medici's authority.
As for using the evil spirit itself as material? Alaric had principles. He could stomach using something like a Worm of Time, but consuming a sentient soul felt too much like cannibalism.
High-sequence Demoness? Alaric wasn't considering them.
The Joker potion had shown that different supplementary materials could affect the outcome of advancement. What if using a Demoness-related item turned him female? He wasn't willing to gamble on that. He'd rather spend extra time securing Hunter-related materials.
Hearing Alaric's request, Xio and Fors weren't surprised. Ritual magic was common for support-type Beyonders. Fors, recalling her own self-taught days as an Apprentice using Mrs. Aulisa's notes, felt a pang of sympathy for Alaric's upcoming struggles and asked curiously, "Don't you want to buy the next sequence formula for your pathway?"
Alaric gave a shy smile. "Thanks to my ancestors, I'm not short on formulas for now."
Fors's smile froze. Her fruitless search for the Trickmaster potion formula sparked a fleeting urge to curse, followed by envy. She muttered, "That's something to be jealous of."
Xio's mood mirrored Fors's. Though she had better luck... her desired formula was available... she was too poor to afford it.
As they chatted, the trio settled into a corner. A server approached, explaining the rules: attendees could write their needs on notes for the server or, during a break, list items for sale on the blackboard in a private room.
Alaric unhesitatingly wrote down the spiritual materials he needed on a provided slip, then glanced curiously at Xio and Fors, who'd done the same. "What are you two looking for?"
"You can probably guess." Xio said casually. "I want the Sheriff potion formula, but I haven't saved enough yet." Since Alaric already knew her sequence, it wasn't a secret.
Fors sighed, looking at Alaric with a glimmer of hope. "I've been trying to buy the Trickmaster potion formula, but no luck so far." Knowing through Xio that Jack might come from an ancient Beyonder family, she hoped he might have leads.
Then she saw Alaric's hooded face hesitate.
Caught off guard... she'd only asked on a whim... Fors blurted, "Mr. Jack, do you have a lead on the Trickmaster formula?"
"Strictly speaking, I have the formula." Alaric said, nodding reluctantly. "My ancestor's notes included it."
Fors's eyes lit up. "Really? Can you sell it to me?" Realizing her eagerness, she glanced at him warily and added, "Under Mr. A's supervision, of course."
Her caution was understandable... things seemed too convenient, and she wanted to avoid a fake formula.
"Of course. How about 450 pounds?" Alaric said, understanding her concerns and offering a fair price.
"That's reasonable." Fors said, relieved. The market rate for sequence 8 formulas was around that, with no markup.
Xio, watching, was genuinely happy for her friend but couldn't help touching her own wallet, wondering when she'd save enough for the Sheriff formula.
The deal was soon finalized at the gathering, both sides pleased with the outcome.
---
[1] Fun Fact:
According to the Orthodox churches' myth, the Evernight Goddess was formed from the eye of the Original Creator. "She" awoke at the end of the Second Epoch and helped humanity through the Cataclysm during the Third Epoch, along with the Eternal Blazing Sun, the Lord of Storms, the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, the God of Combat, and the Earth Mother.
In reality, "She" was the Goddess of Misfortune Amanises, one of the Subsidiary Gods of the Annihilation Demonic Wolf Flegrea during the Second Epoch. When Flegrea death, "His" blood splattered all over the body of the Goddess of Misfortune. "She" later vanished after "His" death. Some time afterward, "She" had likely collaborated with the Ancient Sun God to help Lilith pretend to be Omebella using "Her" authority over concealment, while the Ancient Sun God helped Lilith steal the fate of the Giant Queen. "She" also managed to become Sequence 0 around this time.
In the Third Epoch, the Evernight Goddess formed "Her" own secret organization under the nose of the Ancient Sun God. "She" collaborated with Sasrir and formed the Rose Redemption as the head of the Subsidiary Gods faction, which eventually caused the Ancient Sun God's death. After the battle of the Gods, "Her" remnant divine power can still be found in the Sea of Ruins and the Forsaken Land of the Gods to the present day, causing living creatures to vanish suddenly in the darkness of the night.
[Fourth Epoch]
In the Fourth Epoch, all deities had their own countries in poorer places and acknowledged the first Solomon Empire and the Black Emperor's rule over the Northern Continent to fight against opposing factions. At this time, the Evernight Goddess had major conflicts with the God of Combat and Death due to "Their" neighboring pathways. Later on, "She" reached a common agreement with the other 5 Orthodox Gods, which led to the fall of the Black Emperor and the first Solomon Empire. Afterward, the 6 Orthodox Gods supported the Tudor-Trunsoest United Empire that ruled the Northern Continent. When the Black Emperor was about to resurrect, the 6 Gods helped Trunsoest ascend to Sequence 0: Justiciar, becoming the Night Emperor. During the War of the Four Emperors, the Evernight Goddess and the Lord of Storms banished Bethel Abraham from Earth to an isolated space surrounded by storms and darkness. After the Blood Emperor fell, the Evernight Goddess sealed Antigonus in the Foggy Town after "He" lost control and went mad. Around this time, the Church of the Evernight Goddess also eliminated the Antigonus Family and gained the potion formulas of the Fool Pathway. "They" also eliminated the Nation of the Evernight and gained control of 0-17 at that time. They have been controlling the Fool Pathway ever since. Later on, in the Pale Era, when Death went mad and caused havoc on the Northern Continent with the Primordial Demoness, the now 7 Gods (including the God of Craftsmanship) joined forces and caused the destruction of Death and dealt a critical blow to the Primordial Demoness. At the end of the Fourth Epoch, the 7 Gods fractured and supported different angel families of the Trunsoest Empire to form their own country. The Evernight Goddess supported the Augustus Family to create the Loen Kingdom, along with the Lord of Storms and the God of Craftsmanship.
When the barrier around Earth cracked at the end of the Fourth Epoch, "She" and the other Orthodox Gods moved "Their" Divine Kingdoms into the Astral World to mend the cracks. "Her" old Divine Kingdom on Earth - the Tenebrous Heaven in the Amantha mountain range - later became the headquarters of the Church of the Evernight Goddess, i.e., the Cathedral of Serenity.
[Fifth Epoch]
In the Fifth Epoch, "Her" believers are mainly concentrated in the Loen Kingdom, where the headquarters of the Church of the Evernight Goddess is located.
It is revealed later that the Evernight Goddess had heavy involvement in the situation surrounding Klein's "transmigration". Using the Uniqueness of the Fool Pathway in Antigonus, "She" indirectly affected Sefirah Castle to Tamper with the Beyonder characteristics that accompanied him, throwing it into the Forsaken Land of the Gods to prevent the reawakening of the Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings. "She" also gave him "Her" blessings from the powers of the dream domain, which, combined with the aura, strength, and magical powers of the Sefirah Castle, allow him to remain lucid in dreams and during instances where his mind is intruded upon.
During the Great Smog of Backlund, "She" descended using 0-17. After erasing Lady Despair and Mr. A, "She" smiled to Klein and left.
Later on, when Klein attempted to steal the Antigonus Family's Notebook to learn the formula for his next advancement, he was quickly "erased" and sent to Foggy Town by 0-17, which was controlled by the Evernight Goddess. The reasons why "She" did so is because the Antigonus Family's Notebook contained traps, so if Klein directly read it there would be bad consequences. In addition, releasing Zaratul serves as a distraction to hide her true intentions. Klein was able to eventually escape by drawing the Dark Sacred Emblem on the door inside the cathedral in Foggy Town.
When Klein and Azik were exploring the Death Mausoleum, they discovered the resting place of Artificial Death. The Evernight Goddess appeared at that moment through 0-17 and prevented Azik from being absorbed by Artificial Death, acquiring the Uniqueness of the Death Pathway in the process. "She" then began to usurp the authority of Death from Artificial Death. Since then, "She" has started to respond to prayers made to Death.
Klein later found out that ever since he took up the oath before the holy sword during his time as a Nighthawk, he had been marked by the Evernight Goddess and can be considered as one of "Her" Blessed. Since then, the Evernight Goddess has entrusted Klein with managing the Artificial Death faction of the Numinous Episcopate in Backlund through Patrick Bryan, as well as sending Arianna to help him on multiple occasions.
All 7 Deities wanted to have a Sequence 0: Black Emperor, but "They" were not unanimous in "Their" candidate. As such, when George III managed to obtain the opportunity to become one through "His" preparations, the 7 Deities had no choice but to give "Their" tacit agreement. However, "She" also tacitly allowed Klein to interfere with George III's Apotheosis Ritual, causing it to eventually fail.
When Klein was captured by Amon and brought into the Forsaken Land of the Gods, "She" helped him during a critical moment by controlling the dead body of Bladel using "Her" authority over the Death Pathway to prevent Amon from entering Sefirah Castle, allowing Klein to successfully commit suicide and escape from Amon.
In response to the Evernight Goddess acquisition of the Death Pathway's Uniqueness, the God of Combat initiated the World War by having Feysac invade Loen. Near the end of the war, when "They" confronted each other in Backlund, "She" successfully killed "Him" with the help of Lilith. "She" then gave a "Crimson Moon" to Lilith, which is later revealed to be the Uniqueness of the Moon Pathway. After the war, "Her" stance was to stabilize the situation as soon as possible by allowing the majority of the Church of the God of Combat to be integrated into the Church of the Evernight Goddess, keeping the fact that "She" had replaced the God of Combat from the citizens of Feysac, giving priority to the Church of the Lord of Storms to fill the gap left behind by the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery in Loen, and working with their allies to force Intis and Feysac into unconditional surrender.
"She", along with the Eternal Blazing Sun, the Earth Mother, the God of Steam and Machinery, the Lord of Storms, and the God of Knowledge and Wisdom held off the Mother Goddess of Depravity when Mr. Door returned to Earth because of Amon's and Medici's plan.
Later on, "She" gave Klein "Her" bird-shaped golden accessory and told him to take the river water from the River of Eternal Darkness in Calderón City. During Klein's Apotheosis Ritual, "She" used the River's water to make Antigonus and the will of the Celestial Worthy enter a slumber to help Klein maintain his consciousness during the ritual. "She" also Concealed the Hornacis Mountain Range until after Klein managed to steal Antigonus' identity, fate, and self-awareness before dispelling the Concealment to let the fate there interact with the real world to complete the ritual. In the ensuing battle of Gods, the Evernight Goddess held off Amon's true body to prevent "Him" from interrupting Klein. When the Celestial Worthy was about to awaken inside Klein's "Main Body", "She" used a drop of water from the River of Eternal Darkness to make "Him" enter a state of slumber and destroyed Klein's "Main Body" to stop the awakening of the Celestial Worthy in this body. When the ritual was on the verge of failure due to Amon's and Adam's interference, the Evernight Goddess killed Klein and managed to Conceal Amon, the Earth Mother, the Primordial Demoness, the God of Steam and Machinery, the Hidden Sage, and Antigonus for around 2 seconds. This brief opportunity allowed Klein to Resurrect through the power of Miracles and then successfully become The Fool.
After The Fool's Gambit, "She" helped Klein enter a slumber by using the water from the River of Eternal Darkness and gave him "Her" blessing from the powers of the dream domain to fight against the remnant will of the Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings.
[Circle of Inevitability]
In 1358, it was revealed that the Evernight Goddess gave permission to Hela, a Transmigrator with connections to the Church of the Evernight Goddess, to use the Sealed Artifact Angel of Concealment's Nation of the Evernight as a meeting place for the Curly-Haired Baboons Research Society.
According to Hela, it was already a challenge for the Evernight Goddess to maintain "Her" humanity.
"She" was one of the True Gods who were in The Fool's Dream as owner and shopkeeper of Star Dream Provisions Store, where Klein's goods were kept for sale and rent. In the latter part of the dream, the Evernight Goddess provided assistance to Lumian Lee during his confrontation with the Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings.
During The Apocalypse, the Evernight Goddess accommodated the River of Eternal Darkness with the help of the Underworld Daoist, and became the Haoli Sect next Sect Master. "She" successfully became the Eternal Darkness and fought against the Outer Deities. During the battle, "She" joined Lumian Lee, who has become the Calamity of Destruction, and fought against the Circle of Inevitability and the Monarch of Decay.
After The Apocalypse, the Church of the Evernight Goddess merged with the Church of the God of Combat and the Church of the Death to form the Church of the Eternal Darkness, which became one of the three mainstream faiths in the world, along with the Church of the Fool and the Church of the Ruler of Calamity.