Suguru Geto, despite his initial reluctance, eventually told Kenmyo Isayama everything he wanted to know. Consequently, Kenmyo had gained a wealth of ideas from Geto and was currently putting them into practice.
Shimmering blue-white chains, constructed entirely of psionic energy, firmly bound a Grade 3 Cursed Spirit. It was centered atop a white carpet etched with complex, vivid red runes.
[Your Talent "Spirit Devourer" activated. Recovered 6 Mana points.]
"Psionic Bind" counted as a spell attack, thus returning Mana. Kenmyo, eyes closed and fully concentrated, ignored the system notification. His right hand was splayed open, facing the Cursed Spirit which was sizzling and smoking from the psionic erosion. The runic array beneath his feet served to heighten his casting efficiency.
Kenmyo's lips moved in a low, rhythmic chant.
"Envelop..."
As the first syllable left his lips, the air in the room—previously so quiet you could hear a heartbeat—turned violently turbulent. A small cyclone of brilliant blue light birthed at the center of the array, completely swallowing the shackled spirit.
This majestic psionic storm was composed of Kenmyo's energy, pre-weakened to an extreme degree. It was designed only to suppress and corrode the Cursed Spirit, not obliterate it instantly.
"Decompose..."
Following the second command, the scattered psionic energy began to aggregate. The color deepened from pale blue to a dark, sapphire hue. The Cursed Spirit within began to weather away, as if subjected to the ravages of an eon of time, slowly turning to dust.
Even infinitely weakened, the concentration of psionic power still provided a decomposing effect; it was simply a slower process. The second step concluded only when the spirit's form had completely melted away, leaving behind a swirling, iridescent ball of light.
It was obvious that what Kenmyo was doing mirrored the process of Geto's [Cursed Spirit Manipulation]—the sequence of exorcising, absorbing, and devouring. Indeed, this was the specific methodology Kenmyo had pried out of Suguru Geto.
Geto had spent years eating Cursed Spirits and had long ago refined a "refinement method" better suited for the human constitution. Subtracting the time he spent posing, Geto's process from exorcism to absorption took less than a minute. It was highly efficient. Because cursed energy and Cursed Spirits shared the same source—the manifestation of human negative emotions—conversion between the two was exceptionally easy.
However, psionic energy was different from cursed energy. They were entirely different attributes, with psionic power being a higher-order force. This resulted in an infinitely higher difficulty curve for the conversion process.
By the time he reached the second step, beads of sweat had formed on Kenmyo's forehead. It was clearly a massive drain on his mental energy. He practically forced the final word through gritted teeth.
The third step was the most crucial.
"Reconstruct..."
Kenmyo needed to separate the mottled impurities of cursed energy and the majority of the psionic power from the light orb as much as possible. Otherwise, a concentrated block of cursed energy laced with psionic power would act as a lethal poison to a low-level spirit rather than a tonic.
The dark, uncrushable filth floating within the orb represented the impurities. With his eyes shut, Kenmyo was manually sifting them out while simultaneously filtering out the psionic matter. It was grueling work.
A significant amount of time passed.
"It's done!"
Kenmyo opened his eyes and looked at the crystal-clear, pure essence extracted from the Cursed Spirit. But the moment his hand touched its soft surface, his smile vanished. The orb shattered instantly.
[Your Talent "Spirit Devourer" activated. Max Mana permanently increased by 7 points. Current Max Mana: 676.]
Damn it. Kenmyo would have preferred not to see that notification. From the moment he started this practice, his Max Mana had grown from 400 to 676—a 276-point difference. That was how many times he had failed, and how many Cursed Spirits had essentially exploded in his face.
"Aaargh!" Kenmyo ruffled his hair in frustration. "Why does it keep failing?"
This had been the closest he'd ever come to success, yet it crumbled at the final hurdle. The only thing that could make Kenmyo work this diligently was something involving his sister.
The inspiration came from Suguru. After watching him swallow a light orb, Kenmyo noticed that Geto's total cursed energy had increased slightly, however minutely. Geto was already too powerful; a semi-Grade 2 spirit provided limited growth for him. But for someone else, it would be different.
Kenmyo immediately thought that his "Cursed Spirit Sister" could use this method to evolve into a more powerful entity. According to his research, only high-level spirits—like the powerful Special Grades—attained self-awareness. Though he didn't know if his sister becoming a Special Grade would awaken the memories of "Sakura Isayama," he had no other choice.
The worst-case scenario had already happened; the future couldn't be any worse than the present. It was better than the alternative: standing before his sister while her only thought was to rip him open and eat his organs.
Thinking of this, Kenmyo spoke to the empty room.
"Uncle Blue, go to Room C and bring me two more spirits. Thanks. I'm not finished yet."
The third floor of the Isayama residence had once been empty; Kenmyo had converted it into a laboratory for his small experiments. The stairs were sealed with a welded iron door covered in blood-red "Suppression" runes. Several rooms had been turned into cells for the experimental spirits.
As soon as Kenmyo spoke, a voice responded from the room. It was devoid of emotion, like a cold machine reacting to its master's summons.
"All is dust..."
The language was unlike any spoken on this world—ancient and weary. In just those few words, there was a sense of infinite, suffocating despair.
Kenmyo was used to it. When he heard those words, he knew his request was understood.
The voice came from a figure standing next to the wardrobe behind Kenmyo. It was a giant, nearly reaching the ceiling, encased in massive, royal-blue power armor made of ceramite and steel. Without Kenmyo's orders, it stood perfectly still, looking like a statue. No one would guess it was alive.
Though "alive" wasn't quite accurate.
More precisely, due to a curse known as the "Rubric," this being had transcended the boundary between life and death. It had become something neither human nor ghost. Its soul was forever bound to a hollow suit of armor—without thought, without fear, without emotion.
Only eternal loyalty to its master.