Hilda gave him one last hug, “Don’t be late for lunch tomorrow... I’ll roast some ribs for you.”

“Thank you, Mom! You’re the best mom in the world! I love you!” Sokram’s face broke into a wide, genuine smile.

His arms wrapped around Hilda, tightening as he kissed her repeatedly, a rapid flurry of kisses on her cheek.

The soft, familiar feel of her skin and the gentle scent of home were a comforting balm to his soul.

“I need to learn how to make ribs too, hm?” Miralyn muttered, a mock pout on her lips as she turned to walk away.

Before she could complete her dramatic exit, Hilda’s arm shot out, and she was pulled into their hug with a soft, surprised yelp.

The sudden press of bodies and the warmth of the three of them filled the moment with a new, comforting laughter.

After thanking Margiory, Brunhild, and Riella a few more times, they decided to leave, but someone decided to stay with Sokram.

“So, what are we doing now?” Kasine asked curiously.

“Just a controlled experiment. I have about 30 variants of a formula for the pill I created to aid in Core compression.”

Sokram explained, and he started taking the ingredients Margiory had gathered for him.

There were multiple types of grasses and herbs, glowing mushrooms, and moss, all shimmering with all kinds of energy.

Liquids and powders of impossible colors clinked softly against each other as he moved them.

A faint, bittersweet scent of concentrated Magi reagents began to fill the air.

Kasine could only watch it curiously while listening to his every word tentatively.

“You mean a variant for the pill you created to help me and Kamus advance to Semi-Perfect?”

Kasine’s eyes widened slightly as she tried to remain composed.

Sokram wasn’t surprised by her reaction.

What he was planning to do was still considered impossible on his planet.

“Yes, as you know, the first nine Tiers of cultivation are about expanding our energy Core or Cores. The third and sixth have small compressions, but the tenth tier is the only one where a perfect compression is necessary to advance to the next Level of Existence.”

This was common knowledge in the Path of Evolution.

If a Core only expanded endlessly, it would make any cultivator’s heart explode at some point.

So, the compression of their Cores was a simple yet necessary evolutionary step. The more energy a Core carried, the higher someone’s Level of Existence would be, and the denser their Cores would become.

“That’s the reason so many people get stuck on the same Level of Existence for centuries at a time after reaching Flawless Existence. The amount of energy they need to compress their Cores is exorbitant. Now imagine that they have to compress their Core back to the size of a Tier 1 Core, while also absorbing twice the energy of the previous Tier.”

Sokram explained his thought while preparing the Blood-ink with a mixed portion of Dusted Mithril and Diamond Dust.

“But now, with the Compression Pill, we can speed up the compression in the final stages of Tier 10 of every Level of Existence. Though, for now, I can only concoct pills that will be usable for those below Perfect Existence.”

Kasine stepped closer, observing his meticulous care in preparing the blood ink solution, as if the balance of even the ink for his runic enchantment could make a monumental difference.

But his words confused her, so while leaning over and studying the array he had drawn with his pen earlier, she asked:

“If you already have a way to speed up the process, and one that, for now, will work well for you and your family, why are you trying to make a variant?”

Sokram smirked, knowing the reaction he would cause in her.

But he answered honestly anyway, “What I’m aiming for is not a way to force the compression of the Core, but something that can decompress it, because what we need now is a pill that will help us reach Tier 10 faster.”

Kasine’s head snapped toward him. She couldn’t contain herself.

“Are you insane? Don’t you know that decompressing a person’s Core can kill them?”

“I know, Nana. But while working on converting so many Cores, I understood something: the risk is not in decompressing the Cores, but it’s in how much of the Core you decompress, so you don’t lose energy and can absorb more instead.”

Sokram added, now looking at her, and flashing his usual confident grin, “If I can do it manually, shouldn’t I also be able to make a pill to mirror the same effect? Because it’s not just a simple concoction, but an Arcane one. And if it has Magi, it has the power to bend reality in our favor.”

Kasine looked at Sokram with a complicated gaze.

“You’re truly aiming for the Crystal Palace, hm?”

“That would be an amazing reward, but would a dragon from such a small and forgotten planet be able to impress Nhiria that much?”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from NovelBin. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Sokram scratched the back of his head in fake humility.

Kasine reached for him and gave him a few head pats.

“As long as you keep following those eyes of yours, which seemed to be aimed at a sky we can’t even see, you will reach it, just like your name states.”

“Thank you, Nana.” Sokram smiled at her sincerely.

Then, taking a deep breath, he stood up.

“Well, let’s get started!”

Meanwhile, in the main hall of a palace further North, King Alonso di Whiteland.

A human with the appearance of a young man in his twenties, dressed in white and gold regal robes that covered his stocky build of 1.85 meters, with long dark blond hair, a well-trimmed beard, and piercing blue eyes. Sat on his throne as one of his generals knelt before him.

“Your Highness, the Orcs of Frostaxe have already infiltrated the county of Eversnow. The City Lord was lured away as planned, along with the Magus and that unsufferable wolf. But the Dragon Duchess is still in the Royal City.”

The General wore a complete set of golden-plated armor, along with a helmet that hid his appearance.

The only one among the generals who wasn’t obligated to show his face before the King.

But if anyone could see beneath his armor, they would see someone strikingly similar to the King, because the General was also the crown prince of Whiteland, Afonso.

“Good, is the teleportation formation set?” King Alonso asked with a proud smile, confident in his son’s competence.

“Yes, Your Highness. The Count that lives in Winterheart assured that it was all set, but only three people can be teleported at a time.”

The prince looked at his father hesitantly, but still decided to ask, “Your Highness, why go so far for someone who betrayed his own country?”

“You don’t know this. In fact, only a few of my council’s elders know of this. But the Steelhearts were never from Norwinter. They had always been spies of our great Whiteland.”

King Alonso scratched his chin thoughtfully and met his son’s gaze.

“The reason I’m personally going to his and his family's rescue is to both test the prowess of the Duchess and because Marcel knows too much of our plans; if we delay his rescue any longer, he might begin leaking our plans to them.”

King Alonso’s fingers tightened briefly on the armrest of his throne.

Debt was a chain as heavy as any iron, and Count Steelheart had wrapped one around his neck long ago.

A debt of gratitude he couldn’t dare to forsake, or he risked losing his life to the Mark of the Judgment.

The King stood from his throne and walked down the steps until he was right in front of the prince, “Stand.”

The prince stood up and felt the King's hand on his shoulder, as the King now spoke in a more fatherly tone, “I know you had to sacrifice your Kasulla that you have been raising for a long time, I know how much you sacrificed for it too. I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

“It matters not, father. Besides, those Necromancers are there with her. I know she will survive and come back to me; she is resourceful and trustworthy.”

The prince did not hide the affection he held for the creature.

“Then let’s depart. Marcel and his daughter must be here before tomorrow. Is the rest of his family safe?”

Alonso led the way toward the teleportation formation with the prince following him.

“Yes, they have crossed the border. The foxes have been successfully diverted.” The prince’s tone was firm and full of certainty.

The King nodded proudly, seeing that his son was ready to take the throne, and Alonso could already dream of his early retirement.

“Good, son. I’m proud.”

At the same time, Licarus and the others had just reached the Kasulla thanks to the help of Lythor and the two mages who, alongside him, were the only three Exalted-level powerhouses of Greenmorrow.

Two snow elves, with long red hair, green eyes, pale skin, and beautiful and delicate enough to be confused with women, as even their bodies were slender and somewhat curvy.

Both elves had cast upon themselves the curse of Magnus.

Still, they were highly respected High Magicians called Ginully and Gamilly.

Following Neloph’s instructions, they managed to close the path of the Kasulla before it reached the city, forcing the creature and its puppets to divert their path to a dense snowy forest between Eversnow and Greenmorrow.

But Kamus realized something seemed off, “I think that thing is luring us, for what purpose I don’t know…”

“Does it make any difference?” Licarus sighed, indifferent to whatever the creature could be plotting. “We have to make sure it doesn’t escape, that none of its parts escape.”

“At least we can see all of its parts. It’s your turn now, Sahvus. Where is that barrier I asked you about?” Kamus asked Sahvus, only to be ignored.

Sahvus and Sienna continued to weave their spell together along with the other two mages, without losing focus.

“It would be faster if I could sustain the tracking spell and help them at the same time, but if the Kasulla decides to attack…” Just as Neloph was speaking, something enormous, carrying one of the Kasulla’s worms, came fast in Kamus’s direction, “Wolf, duck!”

But it was too late, as an enormous canine-type monster with stripes like a zebra and with lightning crackling on its mouth came crashing down, pouncing at him only to hit nothing but the snowy ground.

“That is neither a wolf nor a duck. What are you talking about, elf?” Kamus chuckled mockingly, but his voice came from behind Neloph.

The monster, which had been preparing to strike again, froze in pouncing position. In the next second, its body collapsed into countless pieces, lifeless before it realized its fate.

Neloph waved his hand and burned the worm that tried to snake its way toward him after it slipped out of one of the many pieces of the monster’s body. Along with the worm, the rest of the monster's remains were burned to ashes instantly.

“It seems old Neloph has been taking care of children in Frozen Root for too long and forgot that we wolves can spot things even before they enter his sensory range, hahaha.” Kamus continued teasing while Licarus tried to hold back a chuckle.

“Hmph.” Neloph averted his gaze, embarrassed.

“That’s not the worst part, he forgot he is sharing the tracking spell with us and forgot we can also see the worms approaching just like him, Hahahaha!” Kamus continued poking fun at him, and this time, neither Licarus nor Lythor managed to hold back and laughed too.

“If you don’t stop joking around, I'll cancel the spell on you!” Neloph tried to argue.

“Oh, so you would put a companion in jeopardy to protect your pride? Kasine would be so disappointed…” Kamus said in mock disappointment that his words hit the mark, and Neloph could only blush.

“Heh, still holding onto that hope, hm? Even after she picked me all those years ago, such a simp…” But this time Kamus’s tone wasn’t just mocking; it was almost evil.

“Tsk!” Neloph averted his gaze, acting caught, and stepped away, kicking a rock, “Just leave me alone, wolf.”

“Lord Kamus, you go too far sometimes…” Licarus said with a sigh.

“Hm? At least I don’t eye anyone’s woman.” Kamus shrugged, not denying it, and neither did Neloph.

Suddenly, a pillar of golden light shone right on top of where the Kasulla’s main body should be, and like a shockwave, a wall of light spread over a two-kilometer radius, but it wasn’t just a circular barrier; it was a spherical one that covered the entire area, sealing it even underground.

“Finally, what do we do now?” Licarus asked, looking at Sahvus.

“One of you will need to go with Sienna to chase the body that escaped the barrier; that thing’s senses are very sharp, and it had an escape plan I didn’t account for.”

Sahvus's tone carried a slight undertone of urgency, even with his morbid expression remaining unchanged.

Noticing that, Kamus lowered his body in front of Sienna with his back to her and looked back with a grin, “Pig back, little Sisi, just like when you were a child.”

“Thank you, Uncle. But it’s best if we go by flying.”

With a wave of Sienna’s hand, Kamus’s body started floating without any resistance from him, and they took off.

“Don’t let that elf die, I lost too many friends already. I only have the two of you and my wife left."

Kamus shouted to Sahvus as the three of them were the last survivors of Eversnow’s golden generation.

Then, seeing Licarus's dejected look, Kamus added, "Well, the children the others entrusted to me, too, of course! Hahaha!”