The moon stretched out behind thick clouds that night, appearing almost as the main character in the scene... while the stars stretched behind it as helpless spectators.
It was a gloomy night... a cold breeze covered the village of Morge and a heavy silence hung in every corner after recent events.
Eliver Morse, Egg Morse, and Kante sat with Detective Urge. All around a campfire near the edge of the village.
"It's a cold night."
Egg whispered as he grilled some meat on a long skewer.
The smell of fire and grilled meat filled the cold air, while the rising golden ash made the place even brighter.
"This is a very tasty roast."
Urge showed his appreciation as he tasted it.
"It just needs a little salt."
He said it like a child experiencing a moment of genuine pleasure.
"Urge, are you still determined to go to the capital of the Mantes or will you continue investigating with us here?"
Elifer said in a hoarse voice, and his features showed signs of weariness.
"I suppose I'll finish the case of O'Verd's death first. When the Diavli detective arrives, he'll be able to deal with the case of the fortune."
"What made you enter the field of investigation, Org? Most of the nobles who lived in the Capital were just fat, vain lot, of no use."
Canti intensely disliked the nobles who lived in the Capital... most of them lived off their fathers' wealth and wallowed in luxury, and were arrogant because of their lineage.
"Actually, it's an old story from my childhood. Although I was raised in luxury, I always liked to delve into the details of everything. Once, my cousin stole a small piece of cake that my mother had left for me, and I spent three days searching until I discovered that he had eaten it during the night after everyone had gone to sleep. From there, I had a desire to become an independent detective, not just an ordinary person like the rest. We only live once, and what's the point if you live it as just another version of society?"
Although the motivation was childish, true dreams are formed in childhood...
Some, when they grow up, ridicule their old selves their dreams impossible... and others—the few—struggle for their dreams, for in them lies what gives their lives meaning.
"So that's it. It seems the difference between us is very great. I was born an isolated boy, though I am the son of a king, but an illegitimate one. This made everyone look at me coldly in the royal court. Emperor Noyth was never harsh with me, unlike everyone else, and this made me feel somewhat grateful that the king himself valued me as his son. And I will not give up until I have proven myself to everyone who mocked me or treated me cruelly."
Canty was the complete opposite of Org... his only dream was to prove himself... and to fight for it.
"And I have a goal now to prove myself. I have picked up a small lead to find out who stole the fortune. And I suspect there is a whole criminal organization in the village of Morge right now."
This sentence was enough to change the course of the quiet session.
"You've picked up a lead? What do you mean? Did you know one of the members of this organization?"
Egg's eyes widened immediately upon hearing that.
"Yes. I suspect that someone in this village named Tok-Nim is a member of this organization. What strengthens my suspicion is, remember the night the treasure was stolen, we saw bare feet on dried blood. I saw dried bloodstains on this person's feet. He also possesses a Supreme Stenema, and the soul he captured that night is of the same level as his."
He had recalled every detail that could put Leeward in danger.
"A Supreme Stenema? Only a few possess it. Even kings don't have this kind of Stenema. Either he is an extremely dangerous person who stole the treasure, or he is an important member of this organization."
Eliver considered this possibility deeply.
"Currently, you have the entire village surrounded. This person's presence here indicates that the organization that stole the treasure may still be here, or that the organization has escaped and this person remained only to mislead the investigation. There are many possibilities, and the evidence you have against him is not sufficient to convict him of anything."
Org knew that seeing dried bloodstains—and all those indicators—wasn't enough to take formal action.... There had to be, at the very least, evidence that made him a suspect
The indications—not enough to take formal action… There must at least be evidence to make him a legal suspect in this case.
At that moment, Elifer realized that the matter was far more complicated than he had thought… and he suddenly remembered the Emperor's order that had originally brought him to the village of Morge.
"Kanti, I completely forgot to tell you. You must return to the capital. The Emperor himself has ordered it. The younger Prince Hemorgar is going to an annual festival in the province of Homien, and no one is better equipped to protect him than you."
These words were enough to send shivers down Kanti's spine.
His staying in the village of Morge, and his involvement in solving the case of the missing fortune, was his way of proving himself to his family…
A step through which he hoped to gain a high position within the royal court.
But that path was shattered right before his eyes upon hearing the order.
Was he serious? Damn it, this was never the right time for my younger brother Hemorgar to go to an annual festival in the southern province of Arvia
Hemurgar is the legitimate son of Emperor Nwyth Sharman... and thirteen years younger than Kanti, who is only twelve.
Kante's features wrinkled, and misery was evident on his face at this sudden decision.
"When should I go?"
Even after an internal struggle, he couldn't refuse.
"The festival will be held three weeks from now.
The important thing is that you must be in the capital before the final week."
When he heard Elifer's words, his heart was slightly at ease.
He still had two weeks to track down that person—Tok Nim—and discover anything that might advance the investigation.
That's good. At least I have some time to participate in the investigation. I will intensify my work here for the next two weeks, and I will find out who that person is. I'm sure he has a hand in the theft of the fortune.
He thought to himself as he calmly ate his flesh.
"So, we will go to the capital together. I also plan to finish investigating the Owerd case in a week at the most."
Org broke the silence with a cool smile, his noble features showing.
Canty looked at him calmly, then replied as if nothing had happened.
"Of course. Returning to the capital in company will be better than going alone."
At the same time...
Inside Leeward's room in the inn he had rented, he lay on his bed, having finished all the spirit elixirs he had purchased.
Currently, he was beginning to refine the last one—a Rank 2 elixir.
Taming his spirit energy was proving much harder than he had anticipated... it was stronger than his current spirit.
This is more exhausting than I thought. I've never attempted to refine an elixir above my spiritual level.
This was the first time he had ever done anything like this...
Sweat covered his entire body.
Leeward was very close to breaking through to Rank 2... he didn't have much left.
Inside his body, a real spirit battle was taking place
the elixir's energy and his soul.
He would take a small portion of the elixir's energy, surround it with his soul, and then the struggle of wills would begin until it lost all resistance... and became part of his being.
His spiritual density reached its peak... and then began to flow even more...
So much so that the entire room became foggy from the leakage of his extremely dense spiritual field.
And any ascendant passing near the room could sense that someone was performing a refining process within it...
The reason for the leakage was that its density had become higher than the body's capacity to contain it, and on top of that, Leeward's focus was on penetration... not on regulating the field within his body.
After about two hours...
Leeward had finished refining the second-level spiritual elixir.
He opened his eyes... to see the gray mist surrounding him on all sides.
He folded his legs over each other and sat hunched over.
He clasped his hands together... and opened all his spiritual pores.
And he began to draw all the scattered spiritual energy into the air the room
There... he felt completely full inside his body....
Like a water bottle filled to the last drop... and any more would cause it to shatter.
He had to break his body....
And so he forced himself to absorb more... until he drew all the spiritual energy from the air.
At that moment, he felt his body from the inside begin to crumble...
His eyes turned completely red....
His veins swelled....
And his muscle fibers began to tear.
The Transition Layer was not like the others...
There were three layers before it:
The Foundation Layer, where the Ascendant builds and strengthens their body to withstand the power of the spirit.
The Middle Layer, where they develop and concentrate their spirit further within the body.
The Peak Layer, where they imbue their consciousness, becoming fully aware of their power and techniques.
The Transition Layer...
is the layer where everything reaches its limit... and the Ascendant must completely rebuild their body.
That is, shatter the old body... and then reshape it based on the acquired spiritual density...
And in it, the spirit and consciousness ascend together.
This is why it was the layer where most Ascendants get stuck... because of how difficult it is to penetrate.
There...
Leeward let out a stifled scream...
and a tremendous pain engulfed him...
His body was disintegrating from the inside out... before the outside...