CHAPTER 50: ETHEREAL TRAVERSAL

The cursed temple seemed different now, as if the very stone had bowed to the new reality. The air, once thick with echoes of ancient magic, vibrated with a subtle harmony, a balance that Eren felt in his skin, in his bones, in his soul. The bond with Sylha was complete.

The system window still glowed in his HUD, a cold reminder of what they had achieved:

[Affinity: 100%]

[Registered Contract: Bound Spirit - Sylha].

Sylha was no longer just an ethereal echo.

She floated in the center of the chamber, her form now more solid, almost tangible, as if the bond had given her a piece of reality.

Her contours were delicate, feminine, with smooth curves reminiscent of a statue sculpted in light.

Her hair, long and translucent, danced like veils of mist, shining with shades of silver and amethyst. Her eyes, once stellar points, now had an almost human depth, yet still bore the weight of centuries.

She was, without a doubt, a vision—a stunner, as the players of his past life would say, but with an aura that transcended the flesh.

Sylha was chaos and beauty, a wild force shaped into the form of a goddess.

"Look at me!" Sylha exclaimed, spinning in the air, her voice oscillating between a scream and a hysterical laugh. "I’m real! Or almost! HAHA!"

She stopped suddenly, eyes wide, as if she were about to cry, but then she smiled, radiant.

"You did this, Tamer! You brought me back!"

She floated toward Eren, her body brushing the air like a warm breeze, and he felt a shiver. It wasn’t just desire—it was power, raw and vibrant.

Kaela, ever dominant, crossed her arms, her black fur gleaming under the rune light.

"Okay, you’re cute," she said, her voice dry, with that tone of someone who doesn’t accept competition. "But don’t overdo it."

Morwynn, adjusting a web with surgical precision, merely raised her faceted eyes, analyzing Sylha as if she were a puzzle.

Nyssa, shy as always, blushed—or at least her liquid form glowed in shades of pink.

"You are... beautiful," she murmured, almost hiding her face.

Eren remained impassive, his eyes cold, calculating. He was Lee Min-Jae, a programmer who lived for exploits, and now, as Eren Vale, he was the master of the game.

"The bond changed you," he said, his voice sharp.

Sylha laughed, floating back, her body spinning as if dancing.

"I took half of everything, from you all! Half of your strength, your wolf, your spider, your cute slime! And I gave half of myself to you! We’re one now, isn’t it amazing?" She shouted the last sentence, then fell silent, as if she had forgotten what she was saying.

The system confirmed.

[Shared Status: 50% of Attributes and Skills Transferred.]

Eren felt it even before he saw it.

His skin seemed more flexible, like Nyssa’s; his muscles, denser, like Kaela’s; his mind, sharper, like Morwynn’s.

And something new, something ethereal, pulsed in his chest—Sylha.

He looked at his monsters and saw the same.

Kaela had a liquid glow in her movements, Nyssa moved with a predatory grace, Morwynn seemed to float slightly while weaving.

Sylha laughed, the sound echoing like broken bells.

"See? Now we’re a family, Tamer! A crazy family, but who cares?"

She floated to Nyssa, touching her, and the slime shivered, shining with starlight. Kaela growled but didn’t attack. Morwynn just watched, calculating. Eren smiled, barely. He was the leader, the strategist, and now he had a new piece on the board.

Eren knew something had changed, but he only truly felt it when he left the seal chamber. The temple seemed smaller, as if its walls were no longer barriers.

He moved with a strange lightness, his feet almost gliding, as if the ground responded to him.

Kaela, ahead, tested her own movements, her claws slicing the air with a fluidity she didn’t have before.

"This is... weird," she said, her voice deep, but with a tone of excitement. "I feel faster. More... light."

Morwynn, always analytical, stopped to weave a web. The threads emerged with impossible precision, shining with an ethereal light that wasn’t hers.

"Half of Sylha," she murmured, her faceted eyes gleaming. "I see more. I feel more."

Nyssa, shy, hesitated before speaking.

"I... I think I can be stronger," she said, her liquid form hardening for a moment, as if mimicking Kaela’s musculature.

Eren stopped, closing his eyes. He felt everything. Nyssa’s flexibility made his movements fluid, almost liquid.

Kaela’s strength pulsed in his muscles, ready to explode.

Morwynn’s agility gave him an almost supernatural perception of the environment.

And Sylha... Sylha was something new. He opened his eyes and saw the HUD flash:

[New Skill Unlocked: Ethereal Traversal.]

"Try passing through an object," he ordered, his voice cold but authoritative.

Kaela tried first, concentrating. Her body glowed, but nothing happened. She growled, frustrated.

"It doesn’t work."

Nyssa tried, her form trembling, but she also failed.

Morwynn, however, succeeded.

She activated the skill, and for a second, her body became translucent, as if she could pass through space.

"It works," she said, surprised. "But only for an instant."

Eren didn’t hesitate.

He activated Ethereal Traversal, and the world changed.

His body seemed to dissolve, not into matter, but into intention.

He passed through a temple wall, reappearing on the other side effortlessly. The system confirmed:

[Ethereal Traversal: Unpassable State Active. Duration: 10 Seconds.]

He tested again, moving through another wall, his body light, untouchable. Kaela widened her eyes.

"How do you do it for so long?" Morwynn watched, calculating.

Nyssa just smiled, shy.

"You’re amazing, Eren."

Sylha, floating beside him, laughed loudly, the sound echoing like thunder.

"That’s it, Tamer! You took the best of me! Unpassable, untouchable, invincible! HAHA!" She stopped suddenly, looking into the void. "Or not. Maybe I’m exaggerating."

She laughed again, spinning in the air, her body solid but still ethereal, shining like a star.

Eren ignored the theatrics.

The group left the temple, the sky above the cursed city now clear, as if the bond with Sylha had dispelled the darkness.

Eren walked ahead, his steps firm, his mind sharp.

He was cold, calculating, the kind of man who made the world bend to his will. Kaela followed by his side, the dominant wolf, her movements exuding power, each step a challenge to the world.

"Let’s continue to Barovik."

Morwynn, silent, wove webs around the group, an invisible net of protection.

"They won’t expect this," she said, her faceted eyes gleaming.

Nyssa, always the most delicate, walked close to Eren, her liquid form shimmering with silver hues.

"We’re going to be okay, right?" she asked, her voice timid, her big eyes seeking approval. Sylha, floating above, laughed loudly.

"BE OKAY? We’re going to crush it, sweetie! Barovik doesn’t know what’s coming!" She twirled, her ethereal body glowing, her solid curves dancing in the air like a mad goddess.

Eren didn’t respond, but his silence was response enough.

He thought of Barovik, the city where the fanaticism of the Eye in Flames reigned. He knew that The Core was watching them, that Sylha’s mission was no coincidence. But he was not a pawn. He was the player, and the game was his.

The system flashed:

[Destination: Barovik.]

The group was more united than ever. Kaela, with her brute strength and dominant attitude, was the spear.

Morwynn, with her sharp mind and lethal webs, was the shield.

Nyssa, with her protection and sensitivity, was the heart.

And Sylha, with her chaotic energy and ethereal beauty, was the fire. Eren, at the center, was the master, the strategist who turned weaknesses into weapons.

"Let’s go," he said, his voice cold, his eyes shining with determination.