"Looks like Pride-1 didn't grant it any overwhelming power."
Darc watched Impmon closely.
Its core will was still intact. Only its temperament had shifted under Pride's influence. It clearly wanted to snap the leg-chain—felt insulted by it—but lacked the strength to do so.
"Speaking of strength…"
Darc immediately thought of Impmon's signature move: Small Dart.
As a familiar, it originally had no access to its special skill.
But now?
He wrote a note, looked up, and said, "Impmon. Use Small Dart on the wall."
Impmon folded its wings, raised its chin arrogantly.
"Unlock me first."
Darc laughed.
A familiar could never truly defy its master's will. He unclipped the chain to observe more clearly.
The moment it was free, Impmon fluttered twice in midair, then slashed its wings forward and shouted:
"Small Dart!"
Three shark-headed syringes materialized beneath its wings and shot into the wall in a perfect triangle.
Thup. Thup. Thup.
A moment later, they dissolved into light, leaving three neat puncture holes.
Darc immediately wrote:
Skill activation successful. Subject no longer qualifies as a standard familiar.
…
3:43 PM.
The dark-gold light in Impmon's eyes faded back to pale yellow.
Then—
It blinked.
Spread its wings.
Tilted its head back.
And collapsed onto the table with a thud, claws stiff, like a dead sparrow.
"Pride state duration: approximately 13 minutes. Three to five times longer than a normal emotion card."
Darc noted it calmly.
"Stop playing dead."
No movement.
He scratched under its chin.
Impmon burst into giggles and curled up.
Then it froze, stiffened, and looked at Darc with pitiful pleading eyes.
"Just now you were calling me 'servant,'" Darc said flatly.
Impmon instantly switched tone.
"Maaaster—"
Darc shuddered.
He wrote another line:
Lifeform alteration appears irreversible.
…
This felt like awakening talent. Once awakened, it couldn't be undone.
But there was a problem.
A silent Impmon was adorable.
A talking, sarcastic Impmon?
Potentially unbearable.
Darc did not want to lose access to Saint Marian's exclusive "delivery service" from the kitchens.
Maybe a muzzle wasn't a bad idea.
Impmon, sensing danger, stood straight with wings folded like a scolded student.
"Also," Darc added, "you are not allowed to speak in front of others."
…
The experiment had reduced Pride from 112 to 111.
Not nearly enough.
But the Magic Brain Dropper was dangerous. He couldn't rush.
The Brain Dropper Usage Guide clearly warned:
If you don't wish to become an idiot, do not extract cognitive material more than once per month.
Memory, emotion, knowledge, thought—all were classified as cognitive material.
Experienced magisters sometimes extracted two or three times per month, accepting rising risk for the sake of progress.
After three times, risk exceeded 60%.
Hence the saying: Never more than three.
Darc knew his limits.
Even once was risky for him.
That's why he used the Dragonfly Touch Method—only extracting what naturally "overflowed" from the mind.
Extremely safe.
But not to be abused.
The guide suggested one use every 24 hours, no more than ten consecutive uses before resting a month.
The brain was too complex to gamble with.
And there was no need to rush.
By Darc's understanding, Dragonfly Touch could only extract Sin values above 100.
Which meant only Pride qualified for now.
Next step:
Study emotion-type magic cards in depth.
Improve Pride-1.
Or develop Pride-2.
…
By 4:30 PM, Darc was already in the library.
Pandora wasn't on duty today.
Perfect.
He registered with Madam Bella and entered with a light heart.
Turning Sin into usable power had always been one of his planned routes.
Suppressing it alone would eventually lead to a dead end.
Fools run from problems.
Smart people redirect them.
Today confirmed it:
Excess Sin → Magic Card.
A brand-new path.
How far could Sin-series cards go?
What core power did they truly hold?
Still unknown.
…
Under the library's gentle lamplight,
Darc Diemon's silhouette looked—
A little closer to something lofty.
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