"Fine, I'll do what I can for now," King said, his tone laced with reluctance, yet tinged with assurance. He might as well try to learn more about the Outlands while he was at it, and simultaneously, regain some of his strength.
"So, what information do you need?'' King asked, recalling the content of the other party's first condition. A slight frown creased his face as he narrowed his eyes with a calculating gaze. Questions swirled in his mind.
Knowing this guy, he must be asking about the Forbidden Land. He'd ignored all of Jax's questions previously when they were still trapped there. Now that King had agreed to cooperate, he was probably gonna ask everything.
"You see, I'm new to this kind of magical world. Everything's strange to me and I've got tons of questions." Jax, as if meeting King's expectation, sighed in response, "But there's this one thing I'm so curious about..."
Jax waved his hand and ordered the Scroll to reveal the Inventory. The Scroll obliged, fluttering open to show the contents of what he was looking for.
With a low mumble, Jax commanded, ''Take out, Royal Mermaid Soul.''
A wisp-like creature emerged from thin air, transforming into a humanoid creature moments later. The soul of the Royal Mermaid was once again revealed.
But this time, King was more surprised than last time. His eyes widened, hands trembling. He could no longer maintain a calm demeanor before Jax. He opened his mouth to speak, only to shake his head in disbelief.
What in the freaking world was this guy made of? Were there no end to the surprises he was going to show?
Breath. Breath.
King took a couple of deep breaths to force himself into calmness. He turned to Jax, only to catch him wearing a calm smile.
"'This..." King finally spoke, trying to ignore Jax's annoyingly calm face. "How did you get this mermaid's fragmented soul?"
"Can you guess?" Jax chuckled, curious to see King's reaction. Maybe King would slip up and reveal something he wasn't supposed to.
"..." King thought for a moment, his expression turned calculating. He knew splitting a mermaid's soul was near impossible.
But even as the odds seemed insurmountable, he also knew a lunatic who could split the mermaid into two, as if dividing it into two separate personalities. She despised the fragile and weak character of the normal mermaids as he only considered a Royal Form mermaid worthy of being his Familiar.
But it wasn't the mermaid's soul she had cleaved asunder, but rather the mortal coil of her physical form.
And in the case unfolding before him, a strange and unsettling sight was on display. Right now, the mermaid floating before him was nothing more than a spectral presence. Not physical, but rather a ghostly apparition.
Looking at it with a scrutinizing gaze, this soul in front of him was fragmented and was definitely in her Royal form.
Just what could he have done for this anomaly to exist?
If King remembered right, this guy had been dead-set on making the mermaid princess his Familiar. But he'd ignored him at that time, too caught up in dealing with the Royal Knight that just arrived.
He could only guess what happened to them previously.
With realization dawning, King nodded and replied, "Looks like you failed to bind the mermaid as your Familiar," he smiled for a moment and added, "And now you have no choice but to collect her soul instead."
That left him with another question. If he collected her soul, why was it in Royal Form? And it was fragmented at that. Did he fail to collect the soul whole because he was short on time?
Or could it be that there was still more to this guy's ability in dealing with souls.
"Haha, you nailed it. I stole her soul... but this isn't the one I took," Jax chuckled softly before he shook his head slowly. "Got it as a reward, actually. Problem is, I don't know what to do with it now."
There was a moment of pause, before he went on, "I wanna absorb this one too... but I'm curious. Can I still use this soul as a Pet?"
"You wanna make this soul your Familiar?" King shot back, looking at Jax like he was crazy. "That's impossible."
But that aside, King wanted to ask who gave him that soul as a reward. He wanted to know how that anomaly happened, but thought better of it. He didn't want to get too nosy, especially with Jax being sly enough to may have laid traps for him to fall into.
That aside, Jax's curiosity was impossible. After all, Souls had no physical form. Water without a container would only spill on the ground. They would just dissipate and vanish sooner or later unless they had a vessel to latch onto.
"You should just absorb it before it vanishes. Unless, of course, you put this soul in a certain empty body. The ones that are soulless. That way, this soul may retain its form and show some value. Even then, if the body's incompatible with the soul, it's still useless. Maybe you need another mermaid, which is impossible for you to find right now."
''That... That's too bad,'' Jax sighed in response. It was regrettable, but it appeared like he had no other choice but to take it on the chin.
"Right," King said, as if something just clicked. "This may seem invaluable, but I should at least mention it."
''There are also some special items that souls are able to linger on. In mermaid's case... what was that item again...'' King trailed off, struggling to remember. It wasn't exactly useful to him, just something he once heard about ages ago. He took a full minute, then finally, something clicked.
But this time, King wasn't the only one who spoke. Concurrent with his utterance, Jax too parted his lips, their voices merging in unison as they intoned, "Deep Sea Black Pearl."
King's eyes snapped wide in astonishment as he turned to Jax, his expression a mix of incredulity and disbelief. He shook his head, the words tumbling out in a mixture of surprise and skepticism, "You actually know that item?"
"Ha ha, just got that item as another reward, no big deal," Jax chuckled, scratching the back of his head with a sheepish grin. "Guess I'm just lucky, huh."
''...'' This time, once more, King found himself bereft of words, his linguistic repertoire momentarily exhausted. He could only harbor the forlorn hope that someday he'd become inured to the unpredictable surprises Jax had a knack for springing forth.
Composing himself with a sigh, King said, "Guess you already got the item, since you know what it is. You can do what you want with the mermaid's soul now."
As if in so much hurry, King added, ''Alright, I'm outta here. Catch you later, maybe. Depending on my mood.''
''What... Wait!... The hell...'' Jax's protest was truncated, his words dissolving into the air as King's departure was as abrupt as it was unceremonious, leaving him no opportunity for rejoinder.
Jax was struck with a pang of depression. Was he a monster? Why would that guy always ditch him like that?
Awe-struck by the prospect, Jax's disillusionment with King gave way to fascination with the Royal Mermaid's Soul. His countenance transformed, a nascent smile eclipsing his earlier distress as a plethora of possibilities unfurled before him.
With a flick of his wrist, Jax commanded, "Take out, Deep Sea Black Pearl."
The Deep Sea Black Pearl coalesced into existence almost instantaneously. Jax's fingers closed around it with urgent dexterity, his gaze locking onto the treasure with eyes ablaze.
"Now, how do I use this..." Jax murmured, his mind racing in tandem as he began figuring out the pearl's potential applications.
Jax raised his hand to grab the Royal Mermaid's Soul as it coalesced into a delicate wisp, settling onto Jax's outstretched palm. He eyed the Deep Sea Black Pearl, now cradled in his other hand, and a plan took shape.
If the pearl was the vessel, and the soul was the occupant... maybe he should just force this thing inside.
With calculated intent, Jax united the soul with the pearl. As anticipated, the Deep Sea Black Pearl absorbed the essence, embracing it like a long-awaited reunion.
The Deep Sea Black Pearl floated from its container, hovering ethereally as it underwent a profound transformation.
The pearl pulsed with an otherworldly aura. A moment later, it deformed into a dark, swirling liquid. It expanded, taking on a life of its own, until it solidified into a humanoid figure.
The Royal Mermaid's Soul had finally taken physical form. Jax's excitement skyrocketed. At last, he was about to get a seriously powerful pet.
The mermaid's eyes fluttered open. Devoid with emotion, her gaze locked onto Jax's.
Jax's throat moved involuntarily. What now? He wondered if he needed to do some sort of summoner-pet bonding ritual or something.
''You are...?'' Then the mermaid whispered, her voice a gentle melody laced with bewilderment.