"Young Master! Wake up, it's already noon!" rang out a happy, soft voice next to Reignar's ears as two soft, small hands gently shook him awake.

  “Mmmhg… already…?” He grumbled, opening his eyes and squinting at the bright lights as he sat up in his bed.

  "Yes!" Orsi nodded, wearing a maid-like outfit, holding onto a warm, soaked, soft towel, and she quickly started to wash down Reignar's face as she climbed onto the bed next to him. "You drank too much yesterday... Geez! I told you to take it easy!" She scolded him a little.

  "Sorry, but after almost a year of traveling the demons' territory, far away from civilization… I needed to let out some steam." He yawned, letting Orsi do her usual routine and gently wash down his body.

  "I understand, Young Master..." She shook her head with a soft smile. "I already finished preparing lunch; you can eat whenever you wish."

  "You prepared it? We stayed at a hotel so you can have some rest!" Reignar sighed, rubbing her head, making Orsi giggle happily.

  "Of course I did!" She decred proudly, "No one else knows my Young Master's taste as well as I do. As your maid, I can't leave it to others!" She procimed once again, "Also, we can take a carriage to the Capital from here; you should visit your elder brother, Young Master."

  "I think I'm gonna skip that. I don't need the constant nagging in my ears." He shook his head, got out of bed, threw a towel around his naked body, and sat down at the table in the room, while Orsi just followed him, standing beside his chair as he started to enjoy the meal she prepared.

  "It's not a good idea, Young Master... You should really visit him!"

  "Is it Leinor?" Reignar looked at her with one eye and a half-smile. "He contacted you?"

  “Um… ah…” Orsi flinched a little, turning shy as redness crept up to her doll-like face. "Yeah…" She nodded in the end, admitting it honestly.

  "I thought so! Okay, okay, we will do as you say..." He patted her head, pying with her hair, before pulling Orsi into his p and starting to feed her with small bites. "If I go back to the Sect without visiting Feynor, then Leinor is going to be the one to nag me for weeks."

  "Also, Elder Lacuss will be there too," Orsi added quickly.

  "Fuck…"

  "Young Master! Language!" She looked up at him with a scolding face, but that made her even cuter in Reignar's eyes.

  "Haaah… I knew there was a catch somewhere..." He looked out the window, watching the clear sky. "At least he doesn't talk too much."

  …….…..

  When they arrived at the Capital, Reignar went to meet with Lacuss and Feynor, leaving Orsi behind with Anniel so that, until he finished, she could meet with others closer to her age, namely, the trio of Elyse, Sys, and Valen. Plus, Valen was somewhat familiar with her, so it fell upon him to introduce Orsi to the rest of the group. As Orsi was still older than them, and she had just come back from the demons' territory, they looked up at her with awe, bombarding her with questions.

  "Whoa… they really live in a vilge like that?" Elyse blinked her eyes as Orsi described the fox demons' home to them.

  "Yes! It was very peaceful and beautiful. If not for their big ears and tails, I would not be able to tell them apart from us. Oh, and I met their Queen, too!" She procimed proudly, enjoying being at the center of attention. "She was the most beautiful woman I have ever seen!"

  "No, that is our mom!" Elyse protested.

  "No, it is my mom!" Valen countered quickly before another foreign, young male voice joined in.

  "Orsi is right; she is the most beautiful demon or human to ever grace this world with her presence. Nobody who ever saw her would dare to say otherwise. You are lucky to regain your mind's clearness, Orsi."

  "I was protected by the Sect Head's aura as he was there too," Orsi answered without turning toward the voice. "It was thanks to his efforts that I was let into their vilge in the first pce!"

  The owner of the male voice was a young teen dressed in tight, bck clothing, and what immediately gave away his demonic presence were the big, bck wolf ears and fluffy tail behind him. His body was slim, reaching only 170 centimeters in height, yet as he stood there, he carried a proud, aloof air, his long bck hair serving as a cape. It was Shadow, Lacuss's wolf companion, the first of the bunch to evolve, even before Kyu. Even though he did not wear the Sect's uniform, everyone looked at him as part of the Immortal Wonders Sect, working directly under Elder Lacuss, as his partner. Just like the Elder, Shadow was also known as a cultivating maniac, the only difference being that he was blessed with a more open but way too proud personality.

  Most disciples who interacted with him at first had to fight Shadow, and if they won or tied, they earned his respect. Otherwise… Usually, he looked down on the losers. He wasn't openly mocking them, but from then on, he didn't take their words seriously or pay them any attention. No disciple was exempt from it; anybody who even wanted to speak with him first needed to challenge him, and if the other party was someone weaker, he suppressed his own strength to their level, taking no excuses.

  "Mister Shadow." Orsi turned towards him, cupping her hands and making Shadow's mouth twitch a little, as he had always seen her the same way he was... A companion. The only difference was that she was following a different master from the same family... They should be simir, in Shadow's mind, that is, yet somehow, Orsi never warmed up to him.

  "Just… Shadow is enough." He cleared his throat, returning the gesture, greeting her the same way.

  "Whoa, a real demon!" Sys cried out, then Elyse, as they surrounded him excitedly, almost grabbing his tail, only holding back at the st moment.

  "Are you a dog?" Elyse asked, making Shadow tremble. If not for his self-control, he would've shouted at her...

  "No. I. Am. A. Wolf." He said slowly, holding back his voice and anger.

  "Cool! Can you show it to us?" Sys cpped happily, and Shadow quickly put on a proud smile before turning into a 5-meter-tall, bck wolf. "Woaaah! So awesome!" Both of the kids yelled as they looked up at him, while Valen acted like it was a normal, everyday occurrence for him. Yet deep down, he wanted to climb up onto his back too...

  "Of course, it's cool!" Shadow procimed loudly, "My kind is strong and graceful!"

  "Didn't Lady Emi beat you to a pulp when you first spoke to her? Plus, you challenged her 22 times since then and lost every one of the battles?" Orsi said suddenly with a pure, innocent voice, tilting her head to the right. "If I heard correctly, she refuses your challenges because she doesn't have time to humor a clown every day."

  "..." Shadow immediately froze in pce, slowly turning towards Orsi with a bnk look while the kids burst out ughing. He tried to say something, but in the end, he just shook himself, turning back into a human and fixing his clothes. "She is far more advanced in strength and has way more battle experience than I. Our friendly sparring sessions are just to help me gain the same experience!" He expined with a monotone voice, ignoring the st part completely.

  "Oh, I see, I see, now it's getting clear! I thought you were a masochist." Orsi nodded with an understanding look, while Valen pulled on her maid's skirt.

  "What is a mazo…Christ?"

  "Someone who likes pain," Orsi answered calmly while the trio of kids started to think a little, trying to understand the newly learned word.

  "I think our Masters are going to finish soon; it's better for me to go." Shadow scratched his face before leaving in a hurry, raising the white fg against Orsi and her relentless attacks with words.

  "Goodbye, Mister Mao Chriss!" Sys and Elyse waved their hands, smiling from ear to ear, while Shadow just shivered, leaving even faster, his tail hanging depressedly behind him.

  "Big Sis Orsi, you don't like him?" Valen asked with a grin while the other two also looked at her curiously.

  "No, I don't. He is a snobbish guy!" She nodded immediately. "Hmf, I dislike him a lot! I can't fight him because he is stronger, but I can beat him with words. Hmf-hmf! He wouldn't dare to touch me!"

  "So cool!" the trio whispered, surrounding Orsi, making her blush a little.

  "You don't cultivate?" Elyse questioned her.

  "I can't, I was injured in the past. I still can't remember a lot of things from when I was little." She expined, shaking her head, immediately drawing out Elyse's sympathy as she grabbed onto her hand, holding it tight. "But it seems I got some new… power out of it! It came to me not long ago; that is why we were visiting the foxes. Their territory had many well-preserved ruins... We brought back a lot of books; maybe we can find something in them!"

  "What kind of powers do you have? Something special?" Elyse asked immediately as the two boys also looked at her with expectations in their eyes.

  "Um!" Orsi chuckled before looking at them and concentrating. Then, just like that, they were slowly lifted from the ground, rising about 30 centimeters before being dropped back to their feet. "Still… I can't do much!" She groaned, holding her head, rubbing it as it started to throb viciously.

  "Whoa! We were floating! How did you do it?!" Valen blinked, having grown up around cultivators, he was familiar with how it felt when someone used their powers... Yet the accompanying tingling sensation was completely absent when they were made to float.

  "With my brain." Orsi chuckled, sniffing a little; luckily, her nose didn't start to bleed this time. "I don't know, really… Elder Ren said it's… weird in my head! That makes it possible. If I focus strongly, I can move things with my mind..."

  "Soooo cooooool!" said the trio with sparkling eyes, surrounding Orsi, who really enjoyed being at the center of the attention.

  .............

  While they were pying around, Reignar and Lacuss received news of the attack on Anya and what happened afterward. Feynor expined everything they knew so far and about what was really going on while they were away.

  "I won't return." Lacuss stood up at the end. "I'll take Shadow and travel to the Kingdom. I am already familiar with the border regions, and I have some contacts. I'll try to catch some clues."

  "I'll report that to the Sect Head." Reignar nodded, watching his brother. "Be careful."

  "I will."

  Before Feynor could say something, he was already away, so the only thing he could do was let out a sigh.

  "Honestly, I miss the days when you two were my little brothers! I liked being your big brother, someone you looked up to…" Feynor sighed with nostalgia in his voice. "Nowadays, none of you ever comes to visit me."

  "And now you sound like an old grandpa, moaning about the good old days." Reignar chuckled.

  "Heh. Maybe!" He smiled, looking at his younger brother. "At least I still have Leinor. He frequently calls and asks how things are in the Empire!"

  "He always was the most attached to you."

  "Because when he was born, I was here, and you two were out, doing whatever you wished to do!" He rolled his eyes, shrugging his shoulders, "But at least you also grew up."

  "Kinda. It is weird!" Reignar smiled softly. "But I had to."

  "How's the little girl doing?" Feynor asked, turning a bit more serious.

  "Now? Fine. She is healthy. The problem is her mutated brain."

  "Mutated?" He sat up straight, listening to Reignar, who slowly nodded, continuing to expin.

  "We visited Lady Rumira, who examined her mind and soul. She is even more proficient in that field than the Forefather!" He sighed with admiration. "She said the time when Orsi got her mind controlled and then almost had her soul wiped clean, being broken down, it changed the energy point in her head. It mutated and somehow fused with the brain, forming a symbiotic entity. But... All of the other energy points in her body are a total wreck, unrecoverable... The problem is that she has never cultivated before. Using her new, maturing power means straining her body that is not ready to withstand her abilities… so that is why she suffers when doing so."

  "And she can't train…" Feynor folded his arms, thinking, furrowing his brows.

  "Yes… There is another problem."

  "Which is?"

  "The only functioning energy point in her body is active. It does its natural thing: absorbs energy." Reignar expined, closing his eyes and letting out a soft sigh.

  "How much time has she left?" Feynor asked in a heavy voice, after a brief silence.

  "5 years. At most. If she uses it again and again, it shortens the time." Reignar answered in a calm but somewhat... still-angry tone.

  "Fuck…"

  "Yeah… it is fucked." He opened his eyes again with a mixed look on his face. "So I need to hurry." He stood up, fixing his clothing. "We brought back a lot of books that are two to three thousand years old, originating from the fallen line of the House of Ein. I need to transte them and find some clues if this has ever happened before. There is a solution somewhere, and I am going to find it!"

  "Let us copy them before you go." Feynor stood up, too. "Don't forget, my wife is a bookworm! She memorized almost the whole library in the pace."

  "Thanks."

  "Oh, shut up!" He walked up to him, gently punching his chest. "I am your older brother. You better start counting on me again, you little twerp!" He ughed, drawing a happy, thankful smile on Reignar's face, too.