The back garden lay in warm afternoon light.
Styx burst through the door like a cannonball, barely containing her energy.
Piers followed at a much slower pace, book still tucked under his arm.
She immediately claimed the open space as her stage, spinning into exaggerated kicks and poses, arms slicing through the air like she was fighting invisible enemies.
"Look, look, Piers!" she shouted. "This is what Dad taught me!"
Her form was chaotic. Her balance questionable.
But her pride was unmistakable.
Piers lowered his book slightly, watching with a small, detached smile.
"Careful, sis."
[NULL SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[EMOTIONAL RESPONSE: MILD AMUSEMENT]
[VOID CORRUPTION: 28.3% - STABLE]
Then he felt it.
His ears twitched. The air shifted.
A faint vibration traveled through the ground, up his spine.
The warmth of the moment drained away, replaced by cold clarity.
"...Wait," he murmured.
Styx froze mid-spin. "Huh? What is it?"
Piers didn't answer immediately.
He extended his mana sense outward—past the garden, past the village boundary, into the forest.
There.
A pulse of malevolent energy. Dark. Feral. Familiar in the worst way.
And beneath it—
four Children.
Screaming.
Different. Not the usual corrupted beast pattern.Something weaker underneath. Panicked. Erratic.Humans, probably. Small ones.Heading toward the village....Interesting.And I've been meaning to test that mana compression theory anyway.Two problems. One solution.
[NULL SYSTEM - ALERT]
[MALEVOLENT ENTITIES DETECTED]
[ENERGY SIGNATURE: UNUSUAL]
[PROXIMITY: APPROACHING VILLAGE BOUNDARY]
[THREAT ASSESSMENT: MODERATE]
"Unusual energy signature," he said flatly. "Near the village edge."
Styx blinked. "Huh? What does that—"
Piers was already moving.
Mana surged through his body — compressed, layered, pushing downward beneath his feet. The theory was sound. The application, untested.
His feet lifted from the ground.
[NULL SYSTEM - CRITICAL NOTIFICATION]
[NEW TECHNIQUE DISCOVERED: AIR WALK]
[SKILL ACQUIRED: AIR WALK]
It worked.
Noted.
"Sis, I'll be back!" he called over his shoulder. "Don't tell Mom!"
"In an instant, he cleared the garden's edge — slipping through the same gap in the barrier he'd made days ago, the mana threads parting like old habit."
Then the village.
Then he was running through the sky — each step carrying him higher, the rooftops shrinking below, the treeline level with his eyes, then beneath him. Walking on air itself, each step finding solid ground where there was none
Behind him, Styx stood frozen.
She hadn't sensed the danger. Hadn't heard the screams.
All she saw was her little brother running through the sky like it was solid ground.
Her jaw hung open.
Through the rushing wind, a formal voice resonated in his mind.
Young master. Aid is on its way. We shall arrive with haste.
Mutou.
Understood, Piers projected back.
Good. Additional data points would be useful.
In seconds, he arrived.
His attention immediately catalogued the situation.
Three massive red wolves circled four small humanoid figures. Pack hunters. Coordinated movements. Threat level: manageable.
Piers stopped mid-stride, standing on compressed air several feet above the ground.
He observed for a moment.
The children were huddled together. Terrified. Non-combatants.
The wolves were focused on easy prey. Standard predator behavior.
[NULL SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[THREAT ASSESSMENT: RED WOLVES (RANK C)]
[RECOMMENDED ACTION: ELIMINATE OR OBSERVE]
Eliminate was more efficient.
Without hesitation, Piers formed a blade of pure mana in his hand. It shimmered faintly, humming with contained energy.
No flourish. No warning.
Three precise bursts—mana shaped into piercing projectiles, released with clinical accuracy.
Three flashes.
Three impacts. Piers descended slowly, landing without a sound.
Three wolves collapsed, heads severed cleanly.
[NULL SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[COMBAT: COMPLETE]
[EXECUTION: EFFICIENT]
[MANA EXPENDITURE: MINIMAL]
[VOID CORRUPTION: 29% → 29.3%]
Done.
Then he saw he didn't expected.
A young elf boy stood trembling in front of the others.
Silver hair. Pointed ears. A crude stick raised like a weapon — shaking in his grip.
His cyan-green eyes were wide, darting between Piers and the collapsed wolves.
Behind him, two more children pressed close together. Another elf girl, smaller. And a vampire child — crimson eyes, tiny fangs, face buried against the elf girl's shoulder.
In the shadows behind them all, a young orc boy. Watching. Silent.
Piers looked at them slowly.
Metal collars. All four of them.
Slave collars.
He noted the details without hurry. Torn clothes. Filthy. Exhausted. The particular hollowness in their faces that came from missing too many meals.
Escaped slaves, most likely.
The elf boy said something — high-pitched, shaking. A language Piers didn't recognize.
He was still processing when footsteps approached from behind.
Mutou jogged into view, blue flame puffing faintly from his collar. Gyuunyuu perched on his shoulder, unbothered as always.
The children flinched backward.
They're still afraid, Piers noted. Why? The threat is eliminated.
Young master... Mutou's voice entered his mind, calm and measured. Your mana bleeds outward. To them, it is overwhelming.
Gyuunyuu tilted her head. "If you'd fought without controlling your aura first, they probably would've fled before the wolves even arrived."
"...I see."
An oversight.
Piers exhaled slowly and drew his mana inward — compressing it, pulling it back like retracting a blade. Layer by layer until only a faint trace remained on the surface.
The children's posture shifted. Barely. Still afraid.
But less so.
Better.
Silence settled over the clearing.
Then the ground trembled.
A pulse. Dark. Deliberate.
Not one source.
Dozens.
The same malevolent energy from before — but amplified. Spreading through the forest like ink through water.
Piers tilted his head.
Interesting.
A massive horde burst from the treeline — hundreds of black wolf-like creatures, fur rippling like shadow, eyes burning with malice.
Mutou and Gyuunyuu shifted immediately into defensive positions.
Piers raised his hand.
[UNIQUE SKILL: APPRAISAL - ACTIVE]
[SHADOW WOLVES - RANK B]
[Pack hunters. Enhanced speed. Dark energy manipulation. Weakness: Light element.]
[ALPHA SHADOW WOLF - RANK A]
[Advanced pack control. Unique ability: Shadow Step. Threat level: Moderate.]
Rank B. Manageable. The Alpha would require more attention.
"Gyuunyuu. Mutou." Flat. Calm. "Defensive positions. I'm testing something."
"Understood."
[UNIQUE SKILL: SOUL PUPPET - ACTIVE]