The rest of the day passed by quickly as Theo continued his training.
Before long, the next morning arrived, and he found himself back at Elise’s estate.
The moment he hopped off Elise’s summon, he immediately noticed something unusual.
Several workers were carefully carrying large reinforced crates toward the mansion.
Each one wore a tense expression, moving with extreme caution as if they were afraid of dropping what was inside.
Two armored hunters followed close behind every crate, their eyes constantly scanning the surroundings.
Theo’s footsteps gradually slowed.
’They’re already here...’
His heart started pounding faster.
For a moment, he stood frozen in his tracks, his mind racing.
Just then, Elise’s figure appeared from behind a set of crates.
She held one of her fingers near her mouth, a nervous expression on her face as her gaze remained completely locked on the crates.
Even now, Theo still didn’t know why exactly she was feeling so nervous about this.
’I feel flattered,’ he thought. ’But it cannot be that simple, right?’
Walking toward her, he felt his own nervousness recede slightly.
’’Hey,’’ he said, raising a hand.
Elise jerked slightly, immediately turning toward him.
’’Oh, perfect timing,’’ she said, gesturing to the crates. ’’Everything has just arrived.’’
Theo nodded once, his gaze sweeping over the enormous crates.
’Must be the bones,’ he thought, pursing his lips. ’The S-rank wind wolf was what, as large as a house?’
Luckily, that was still on the smaller side of S-rank creatures.
Had he chosen something like the Behemoth or World Turtle bones, even the space outside the estate wouldn’t have been enough.
Just then, a familiar blond-haired instructor approached them.
In his hand sat a black briefcase, heavily reinforced by countless golden inscriptions.
’’Good morning,’’ he greeted them warmly. ’’I’ve come here to deliver this.’’
He raised the briefcase up to eye level.
Whoosh!
A wave of pressure rushed out of the case immediately, pressing down firmly on Theo.
’Fuck!’ he thought, barely able to breathe. ’Is this an S-rank soul fragment?’
Elise’s expression also became serious.
’’Careful,’’ she said.
With a flick of her finger, the briefcase left the instructor’s hand and flew into her own.
A thin layer of ice instantly wrapped itself around the briefcase, weakening the terrifying pressure.
Theo finally let out a deep breath.
’Damn,’ he thought, staring at the case. ’That thing’s will is still more than alive...’
Or at least, that’s how it felt.
The blond-haired instructor let out a helpless laugh.
’’I told them to reinforce the seals a little more,’’ he said, rubbing the back of his head. ’’Guess they underestimated just how active this fragment still is.’’
Elise didn’t take her eyes off the briefcase.
’’How long has it been since the Galehorn Unicorn died?’’ she asked coldly.
’’Just under three months,’’ the instructor replied. ’’The dean caught it personally inside one of the S-rank dungeons.’’
Theo’s brows rose immediately.
’It’s only been that long?’ he thought. ’No wonder it’s so active!’
The blond-haired instructor let out another chuckle.
’’Truth be told, even the dean was surprised when its soul condensed into a soul fragment.’’
Elise gently tightened her grip on the case.
’’It must’ve been close to evolving then, wasn’t it?’’
The instructor smiled bitterly before nodding.
’’Very close.’’
’’Another year or two... and we’d probably be looking at a Disaster or even Catastrophe-class beast.’’
Before Elise or Theo could say something else, the instructor cleared his throat.
’’I have to go back now,’’ he said, turning to Theo. ’’I don’t know what you’re going to use it for, kid, but you better be careful.’’
Without another word, he began walking back toward the estate’s entrance before taking off into the sky.
Within moments, his figure disappeared amongst the clouds.
’Flight, huh,’ Theo thought. ’It won’t be long before I’ll be flying through the sky too.’
He subconsciously clenched his fists as his heart began to pound faster.
’I have to succeed.’
Nearly three hours flew by as the workers moved the boxes inside.
After they finally left the estate, Theo and Elise found themselves in front of the massive crates.
Silence filled the room around them.
Theo’s palms had grown sweaty, while his heart pounded as fast as a racing car.
’So this is everything,’ he thought.
Just standing near all the materials made the hairs on his arms stand up.
Elise carefully placed the black briefcase on top of one of the crates before turning toward him.
’’Ready?’’ she asked.
Theo nodded without hesitation.
’’Once the crates have been opened, I can start it right away.’’
A faint smile appeared on Elise’s tense face.
’’Good,’’ she said, raising her hand. ’’Go to the center and I’ll open all the crates simultaneously.’’
Theo nodded once and immediately took off.
Only after reaching the circle painted on the ground did he finally come to a stop.
For a moment, everything fell silent around him.
He closed his eyes, going through the instructions one more time.
’I just need to trigger the mana circle in my heart,’ he thought. ’Then it’ll open a gate to the summoning dimension around me.’
Slowly opening his eyes, Theo sucked in a deep breath.
’’You can start now,’’ he shouted through the hall.
A chilling mana spread through the room immediately.
CRACK!
The first sealed crate shattered.
A dense pressure shot through the room.
Before Theo could even respond, several more explosions rang out around him.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Crate after crate exploded.
Powerful waves of pressure and mana immediately burst out from within the crates.
It didn’t even take a second before Theo couldn’t breathe anymore.
A sharp pain shot through his skull as his vision began to spin.
Just then, Elise’s voice echoed loudly through the hall.
’’I’m opening the soul fragment now!’’
Theo shook his head, pulling himself together as best he could.
’’Do it!’’ he shouted.
PANG!
Another wave of pressure burst through the hall.
This one was far, far more powerful than the others, instantly suppressing them.
A warm liquid streamed down Theo’s nostrils.
Even so, there was not an ounce of hesitation in his eyes.
’Now!’
A faint white circle lit up inside his heart.
In an instant, the entire floor around him was covered by a white swirling mass.
WHOOSH!
Theo disappeared together with all the resources.