"You don't know what it is either?"
Alistair was surprised. They knew far more about the occult than he did.
"Alistair, we have books on how to use the 'Evil Holy Grail,' not a supernatural encyclopedia," Seraphina said, giving him a weird look.
"Fair enough. But that thing was modified. If it were a natural parasite that fed on souls, it wouldn't have been that weak."
Alistair had also asked Sister Anna. Her "Divine Revelation" suggested that such creatures couldn't survive in this environment yet. Parasites that fed on souls required a high concentration of "Mystery" just to breathe. In the current world, they would suffocate instantly.
Maybe it's a different kind of ascension?
As the world filled with Mystery, new and horrific cultivation methods would appear. His own Ring was a high-level version of this concept.
Alistair leaned back on the sofa, his mind drifting. My 'Grandfather'... who the hell was he? Seraphina's records say he's dead, but he left me all this. What was he really doing?
In a basement of an ordinary house:
"Oh? Did it die?"
In the dim light, a brown-haired boy watched a black sphere emerge from the shadows. He looked disappointed. This was one of his proudest "creations." No normal human should have been able to kill it.
"Let me see... who broke my toy."
The boy reached out, and the black sphere merged into his body.
"Him again? He has bad luck. My creation should have countered his brute-force ability. How did he suddenly appear next to the host? Is there a limit to his range?"
The boy rubbed his chin, analyzing the footage. In an instant, the host was pulped and the attacker had retreated. Super-speed? Or a short-range teleport?
"Tsk. If only it had touched him. Just a graze, and I could have left a piece of myself in him. Why is someone that strong so cautious?!"
He slammed the table, rattling another "creation" sitting on it. Several mana links snapped.
"Ah! My masterpiece!" He frantically stabilized it, sighing in relief when he saw the damage was minor. "I need a projectile 'seed' next time. I'll give him a real surprise. Hehehe..."
A dark mana flared around him, but a signal in his mind stopped him. He opened the basement door and walked upstairs into the gentle sunlight.
If Alistair had seen his face, he would have recognized him instantly. It was Gray, the "tool expert" from the group of four Alistair had accidentally "saved" earlier. Gray still had Alistair's signal jammer.
Gray waited at the foot of the stairs.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
A beautiful young girl descended from the second floor.
"Not bad. This body is quite suitable for me."
She flexed her fingers. Dark red and deep purple "flame-light" wove a web of light in the air that lingered long after she moved.
Snap!
The lights turned into ribbons and dove into Gray's body.
"But the power is too weak. I need more souls," the girl said, her voice sounding far older than her appearance. "I am not even Transcendent yet. Fortunately, the World Gate is opening. I can recover my power slowly. When the gate is fully open, I will reclaim what is mine."
She gripped her hand, clearly dissatisfied with her current limitations.
"Still, this face... it meets my requirements."
She touched her cheek. It wasn't her original face, but it was stunning. High potential for "Mystery" naturally led to an attractive appearance. High-tier lifeforms instinctively evolved to be more attractive to lower-tier life.
But potential was just wood that hadn't been burned yet. She had to stay hidden. Her combat ability was the weakest among her sisters, but her growth potential was infinite.
She was Sonaya, and she dreamed of using her power to bring "peace" to the world.
"Now then, 'Big Brother'... I'll be counting on you for my growth~"