Before he could face the last cardinal point, the West, where everything had begun, Nick took a moment to rest.

That group is very slow, so I can probably recover all my mana before I have to hunt them down.

[Vitality Drain] had done much to help him. Nick didn't even feel pain despite being struck by a massive lightning bolt. But he still wanted to be in perfect condition.

The last step of the Blessed Hunt was the most dangerous, after all. The fight against the thunderhoofs wouldn't be that bad, considering the sheer power of the storm hiding within the ether, but what came after would demand everything he had.

"First things first. Let's see what I'm working with."

He had gained two levels in quick succession, which was quite an achievement given the experience needed for higher levels, but it was minor compared to what he would earn once the ritual was completed.

The Blessed Hunt triggered a spiritual storm that consumed a large portion of the prey's souls, meaning he would only fully benefit from hunting such a massive herd if and when he managed to absorb the brewing power.

It felt a little unfair, but then again, Nick was self-aware enough to realize that he wouldn't have been able to defeat the matriarchs without the storm.

Hell, he wouldn't have made it past the first step if he didn't use the storm to sow chaos and cull all the thunderhoofs that fell prey to his trap.

Therefore, while he was satisfied with the two levels, he kept his eyes on the big prize.

I don't know how much experience it will translate to, especially since I had to use [Vitality Drain] earlier, which probably reduced the storm's intake somewhat, and that could explain the increase in experience I gained. But I know it will be a lot—possibly enough to make me jump a few levels altogether.

Though the rewards would be significant, especially since raw experience wasn't the only thing he'd gain, Nick still had to tame the storm to earn them.

And while he wasn't worried about losing himself in the process, as his mind and soul had been forged against much greater foes than he, taking on such a powerful mass of mana, one led by a Greater Ritual at that, gave him pause.

"Alright, I think I dawdled enough," he muttered, looking up at the slowly darkening sky. He'd recovered fully about an hour earlier but had been putting the last step off as he tried to summon the courage.

Nothing to it; I'm as prepared as I can possibly be for something like this. I just have to get it over with.

A single gesture with his hand made the remains of his camp vanish into his ring, erasing any evidence he had been there.

Non-magical items didn't need physical touch to be recalled, as he'd discovered by fiddling with the ring. That suggested its function might be affected even by slight disturbances, but he doubted anything Ogden gave him would be so poorly made. I'll have to experiment with it more once I'm done with all this.

Just because the Duke didn't bother to patrol this far out didn't mean anyone wouldn't detect the massive signature of the ritual once he unleashed the storm's full power.

He'd be long gone by the time they triangulated his position, mostly because of the huge area he'd been operating in, but that didn't mean he could be careless. Divination mages were no joke, they could find him with just a scrap of food he'd chewed on.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

Fortunately, he was fasting throughout the entire ritual and was only allowed to drink water he summoned on his own. Therefore, the traces he left behind were minor and should have long faded into the storm's signature by the time he was done.

Having finished, Nick jumped into the air, summoning the winds to accelerate his pace.

Oh, right. I was thinking about combining my travel suite into a single spell.

He had been putting it off for a while, since he was aiming to achieve true sustained flight, but while that remained his ultimate goal, there was no need to limit himself now.

After days of traveling at high speeds through the grassland, he had a clear idea of what he needed to do, so he set about stripping the two spells, [Telekinetic Field] and his wind manipulation, of all secondary effects, focusing solely on stability, comfort, and speed.

Since the two belonged to entirely different elements, he had to tweak things a bit to ensure a smooth transition between the various components, like removing the area control granted by [Telekinetic Field] and giving up wind sensing, but that was fine because he had a much better spell for that now.

Even as the ground blurred beneath him, Nick's steps began to smooth out, shifting from short, quick bounds that required him to touch back down to longer, more sustained arcs, which became easier once he decided to repurpose the excess kinetic mana into platforms, allowing him to stay aloft.

By the time he returned to the spot where he last tracked the two remaining matriarchs and their charges, he had a sleek, efficient spell ready, turning a journey that would have taken at least two hours into barely more than one.

Once again, this new spell started at a higher grade than usual, but since it resulted from two magics he knew well, it wasn't that surprising. I guess it's a benefit of my mental stats being over a hundred points.

Built into the matrix was a natural tailwind, allowing him to increase his speed without needing to control three different spells, and the kinetic platforms were summoned automatically as soon as he extended his feet, further reducing his travel time.

All in all, it was such a significant improvement in quality of life that he wondered how he'd gone so long without it.

Sure, it wasn't true flight. He still had to adjust wind pressures and jump every time he touched a platform, but it was a lot better than the hodgepodge of spells he'd been working with before.

A flicker of power at the edge of his senses snapped him back to reality, and Nick let the new spell fade into the background as he focused on tracking it down.

A few more steps brought him closer to the source, and [Empyrean Intuition] let him see it in all its glory.

It was the lead matriarch, and she was releasing enough power to be felt from miles away.

Thunder boomed as golden light illuminated the night sky, and Nick finally saw what she was fighting.

It was a Rock Worm, about the same size as the first one he had killed, making it considerably larger than the already massive matriarch. Nick didn't know why it decided to attack the herd now, but it seemed he wasn't the only one who had noticed the overall weakness affecting the thunderhoofs.

I should have seen it coming. The grassland is a harsh place. Anything goes, especially if it's clearly damaged.

The lead matriarch and the other one she had fled with were still full of vim, but the many regular thunderhoofs they were desperately protecting were evidently not doing well.

Even with the threat of the rock worm so close, they moved slowly, barely stumbling away from a large stone the monster hurled at them.

The matriarchs punished that moment of distraction by unleashing powerful bolts of electricity, but the rock worm's very nature made that a poor match-up.

It still sustained damage from the sheer force of the attacks, but the discharge fizzled on contact, barely chipping away at its armor.

Over time, the matriarchs would be able to whittle it down and possibly kill it with a physical attack, but the worm seemed to know this, as it vanished into the ground to avoid another assault, only to reappear much closer to the herd, forcing the leaders to abandon their efforts to run and protect their charges.

If Nick let this go on much longer, he was quite sure it would end with the deaths of several thunderhoofs and the eventual retreat of the rock worm after it received too much damage.

But that wasn't something he could allow. He'd set up the Blessed Hunt knowing he wouldn't catch every thunderhoof, but as it progressed, he realized he was actually doing it, and he wasn't about to let a stupid rock worm break his streak.

That frustration, the intense desire to end this entire ordeal, to drink from the endless fountain of power that still surrounded him in the ether, he used to power his next spell.

The [Spirit Crush] that emerged from his efforts shot through the grassland instantly, hitting the rock worm just as it was breaking ground to keep hunting.

BOOM

The explosion sent a rain of rocks and debris everywhere, drawing lows of pain from the thunderhoofs and obscuring their sight.

Nick fell onto what was left of the rock worm like an avenging angel, with a [Vacuum Sphere] already fully formed between his hands.

He released it the moment he sensed what remained of its body twitch, even as its soul bled freely into the ether, torn apart by the spiritual attack.

The secondary explosion was, if anything, even more powerful, sending thunderhoofs scattering and eliciting angry bellows from the matriarchs.

With the System confirming the monster's death, Nick shifted his focus to the thunderhoofs.

It was time to complete the ritual.

The moment the thought fully formed in his mind, he felt a tremor in the fabric of reality. Something large and very dangerous was coming closer, rumbling louder and louder, and he wasn't the only one to notice.

The thunderhoofs went wild, probably sensing the same threat that had scattered their herd.

The lead matriarch ignited with mana, forming a cage of electricity around her group that was powerful enough to protect them for a time if the storm had still been the same.

That just went to show how smart and adaptable these creatures were. For her to create such a spell in just one day, between Nick's attack and now, demonstrated a level of understanding that he seriously doubted many mages had.

It almost made him feel bad. Almost.

Reality gave in, and Nick felt the full force of the storm unfurl. The corona of dense power that had surrounded him since the Northern hunt began seeped through the cracks, and this time, it wasn't just a simple storm.

Colors started bleeding through the ether, transforming the grassland into a maze of vapors and howling gales, all painted with every hue known to man, and some beyond.

The second matriarch started discharging electricity everywhere, using the protection provided by the leader, trying to hit anything that moved.

None of it mattered. The Blessed Hunt couldn't be stopped now that all its steps were nearly complete.

When the last ounce of mana seeped out, Nick felt strangely empty, even though he was still full of his own power. He hadn't even realized it, but he had become used to the constant presence of the shroud around him.

It had been a warm, comforting weight.

That same power now howled horribly, challenging reality itself. The cage of electricity trembled, losing power with each passing second.

It was a truly impressive display of magic, but Nick knew something the thunderhoof didn't. Spiritual magic didn't rely on finesse; it only responded to the strength of emotion. While the matriarch wasn't lacking in that regard, she had no idea how to channel it.

The cage broke, and the Blessed Hunt entered its last step.