Ruboo stared blankly at the scene unfolding before him.
He hadn't anticipated Madison appearing on the page at all.
Wasn't it only possible to contain a supernatural entity by eliminating it?
Just like Heather had been moments ago.
What on earth was this?
Ruboo lowered his gaze to the naked Madison nestled in his arms in reality.
Her breathing was steady, her body temperature normal.
How could she still be a living, breathing human being, yet have been contained by the Book of Containment?
Suddenly struck by a thought, Ruboo glanced at the [Status] column on the page.
Compared to Heather's [Contained], Madison's status read [Special Containment].
Were there different types of containment?
Did 'special' refer to Madison's current state?
Ruboo glanced once more at the delicate figure in his arms.
Calming his mind and focusing his senses, he suddenly detected something amiss.
Compared to before, his perception of Madison now seemed clearer.
Even with his eyes closed, or when far removed from her, he could sense Madison's presence and even her state.
Of course, he could not determine her life or death, nor her thoughts or will.
Was this another form of containment?
Achieved in one fell swoop?
One wonders whether other creatures besides humans could achieve such a state.
An elegant, aristocratic vampire lady; a fit, tall werewolf woman; a devilish temptress; a ghostly spirit with a unique allure...
Ahem!!
Mustn't let these thoughts grow more perverse.
Ruboo glared furiously at the Book of Containment.
Blame this thing!
Why couldn't it learn from the good stuff? How did it suddenly come up with such an indecent style!
What special containment?
Pah...
Wait!
It might not be entirely impossible.
Ruboo's gaze fixed intently upon the Containment Log.
Under Madison's abilities section, the entries for [Telekinesis] and [Fire Manipulation] glowed brightly, indicating he could spend Containment Points to awaken these powers.
Awaken abilities?
Ruboo's eyes lit up.
He had felt somewhat disappointed at not gaining much from Heather earlier.
Not only could he make up for it now, but these were abilities he was thoroughly familiar with—precisely matching Madison's two capabilities.
So, under special containment circumstances, he could spend containment points to learn abilities from others?
In an instant, Ruboo's thoughts drifted to the Vampire Lady, the Werewolf Girl, the Female Demon...
Acquire!
Back to reality.
Ruboo eagerly began selecting abilities.
The first ability to awaken required 50 containment points, while the second was even more costly.
He had spent 20 points during his earlier battle with Madison, leaving him with 60 points remaining.
This meant he could only awaken one ability.
He was quite familiar with both abilities.
Telekinesis was akin to the psychokinesis found in novels, a versatile and formidable ability.
Flame Manipulation does exactly what it says on the tin.
Notably, it proved highly lethal against supernatural entities like malevolent spirits.
Recalling the agonised screams of a flame-engulfed spectre under Fiona and Madison's gaze, Ruboo swiftly made his choice.
Against humans, he would undoubtedly choose telekinesis.
But given the inevitable need to deal with numerous supernatural entities henceforth, Ruboo opted for flame manipulation—the ability that posed a greater threat to the otherworldly.
50 containment points deducted.
As the pages of the Containment Manual turned without a breath of wind, Ruboo swiftly mastered the knowledge of flame control, showing not a trace of unfamiliarity.
Ruboo opened his eyes and fixed his gaze upon the curtains nearby.
A flicker of flame ignited within his pupils, simultaneously kindling a fierce, menacing blaze upon the curtains.
With another flick of his mind, the flames instantly extinguished.
Only scorched black marks on the curtains bore witness to the fire's existence.
"Quite so. Wherever the eye can see, flames will rise. Though not as precise as Fiona's casual wave that lights every candle throughout the hall, it's more than sufficient for combat."
"However..." Ruboo opened his palm, watching a ball of flame rise from his hand as he frowned slightly. "The same flame—let alone Fiona's—is considerably more potent when cast by Madison than by me. Coupled with its short duration, compared to the witches, mine can only be considered a weaker version."
Watching as the flame in his palm grew weaker with each passing moment, it soon dissipated of its own accord.
Ruboo rubbed his temples, feeling the spiritual energy within him depleted. He murmured to himself, "So, the strength of one's abilities is also greatly tied to spiritual energy. The higher the spiritual energy, the more potent the flames one can manifest."
After a brief rest, once his spiritual energy had replenished, Ruboo promptly invested the remaining 10 containment points into [Spiritual Energy]. His personal panel updated once more:
[ID: 000]
[Name: Ruboo]
[Type: Human]
[Physical Constitution: 1.4]
[Spirituality: 0.3]
[Ability: Manipulation of Fire]
[Containment Level: 0]
[Description: ...]
Compared to his initial state, Ruboo can now handle many opponents with ease, even without employing American-style iaido.
And this was merely the change brought about by a single containment.
Ruboo summoned flames once more. After several attempts, he realised that while his power had only increased marginally, his approach was fundamentally sound.
When it comes to abilities, intuition is paramount.
Of course, physical conditioning mustn't be neglected either.
He wasn't some sort of malevolent spirit, after all.
A single bullet could bring down not just him, but even Madison.
This was precisely why witches and other spiritually awakened individuals, despite possessing the most bizarre abilities, still lay dormant in modern society.
However, entities like malevolent spirits and ghosts—invisible to ordinary folk, consumed by wicked thoughts, lacking much reason, and scarcely afraid of firearms—couldn't care less about such constraints.
Take the malevolent spirit Heather, who met her end at our hands.
After absorbing all the gains from this encounter, Ruboo had just extinguished the flames when Madison opened her eyes in his embrace.
Coiling around him like a beautiful serpent, she expressed her satisfaction without a trace of modesty: "Darling, you're simply marvellous."
Any man would be chuffed to hear such praise from a sweet-voiced beauty.
Ruboo was no exception.
Putting supernatural matters aside for now, this was his moment to relax. He wrapped his arms around Madison's slender waist, his desires stirring. "There's something even better. Fancy another go?"
"Of course!"
After resting, Madison felt herself back at peak condition and nodded excitedly.
Ruboo drew a long breath.
This American lifestyle suited him perfectly.
The entire day.
After dealing with Heather, Ruboo and Madison didn't rush off. Instead, they took advantage of the owner's absence to wreak utter havoc inside.
The living room, bedroom, bathroom, balcony, and even the lawn outside bore traces of their encounter.
It was a small token of gratitude for her having rid him of that malevolent spirit.
The homeowner would surely not hold it against them when they found out.