Path to Transcendence

Marcus POV

Marcus observed as Julius and Lily went out for breakfast. He had a complicated expression on his face as he drank his morning tea. Even now, he watched Julius from afar with the slightest bit of doubt. He and Lily had already confirmed that he was indeed the same Julius that they knew before. Yet Marcus couldn’t help but feel his spine tingle each time he saw him.

Admittedly, there was a small part of him that suspected Julius had been taken over by the Lord of Obsidian. Especially after he told them what had happened inside the Obsidian Vault. But the more he talked with them, and the fact that Lily had already established a deep connection with both of their minds, convinced Marcus that wasn’t the issue.

However, if that wasn’t the case, why did he feel such a dangerous presence emanating from Julius? Marcus had almost attacked Julius the moment he saw him on the road. The sense of danger was that intense.

Marcus had rarely come across anything like it. Not even amongst other normal Tier 5s. The only people he could say that evoked that kind of feeling were masters or other very dangerous monsters.

Honestly, that was almost exactly what it was like. As if Julius was actually a monster or something. That heavy and menacing presence Marcus got from him chilled him to his bones. It wasn’t hostility either; it was his analysis skill alerting him of a possible threat. One that he needed to be careful of.

But then again, Lily didn’t feel any of this at all. Not even when she connected to Julius’s mind. She felt completely at ease with him. Which Marcus honestly trusted more than his own skill. She was very good at detecting threats and dangers on her own. Not to mention Julius had always been like this. He always had this savage aura around him, but perhaps never to this extent.

How strong had Julius gotten during their time apart? Just how far had the crazy boy pushed himself?

Funnily enough, it was Drasil who might have been the best indicator of Julius’s strength. A contracted spirit was a reflection of its contractor. Which meant that as Julius got stronger, so did the adorable little life spirit. So when Drasil felt closer to a Greater Spirit than a common one, it was quite telling.

However, it was also a relief. He knew that Julius wouldn’t harm Lily and would do his best to protect her. It was why he felt comfortable enough to let Julius handle whatever might come after Lily. Not to mention Julius was quite an accomplished healer in his own right. Julius didn’t like to admit it, but there was no way someone like the Saint of Winter would train someone who wasn’t proficient in the healing arts.

It also gave Marcus more freedom to investigate other threats. He hadn’t told Lily about some things, but he’d already gotten reports from various agents about dangers lurking within Goldmere. People and powers who were looking to undermine House Violet’s position.

So when Julius said something about the Conclave being involved with Celestine Cromweld and other organizations within the city, things started to become a little clearer. While Lily hadn’t come to Goldmere solely to establish a new market for House Violet, the Conclave wouldn’t know this. And if they were heavily invested in this city already, Marcus had a feeling they wouldn’t be too happy that a young girl was stepping on their toes.

Hence, he needed to prepare for anything they might throw at them. And if they wanted to interfere with things, it was smart to assume they would be making a move sooner rather than later. They would want to nip the problem in the bud before things started to build too much.

He messaged Angelina that he was going to go investigate some things, and with one last look at Julius and Lily, he went off to look into a troubling report he received the other day. He was also going to check on what kind of ritual Celestine was trying to complete. Julius had given him one of the reagents and one of the storage rings from the Conclave agent he'd killed. The ring would be difficult to crack open, but he could at least look into the other thing in the meantime. Anything that used preserved human limbs as a component wasn’t a good sign.

Luckily, he had a person in mind who might be able to help with this.

***

Lily POV

Lily smiled brightly as she walked beside Julius. She had almost forgotten how much fun it was just to spend time with him. Not to mention she enjoyed how comforting his mind was to be around. He had excellent control over his mind, and so she was never overwhelmed by his thoughts. Sure, it was a bit more powerful and intense than other minds. And from some people’s perspective, quite dangerous and volatile. But to her, there was this undeniable warmth and lively feeling to it that she suspected was partly due to his Phoenix Concept.

However, she also sensed a constant flow of peace coming from him. Something that hadn’t been there the last time she saw him.

“Your mind feels more at peace and balanced than it did before,” she noted as they walked through a crowd of people who were wandering the streets in the morning.

“You noticed, huh?” he asked with a slightly pleased expression.

“Yeah, what happened?” she asked curiously.

“I got myself a new concept,” he said with an upwards tilt of his nose

“A new one?” she asked with surprise. She had already lost count of how many he had. But another one? She knew she shouldn’t be shocked, but he already had so many powerful concepts that she couldn’t imagine that it was easy to get any more. There were only so many concepts one could have before their soul couldn’t handle anymore.

“Yep, got me a Concept of Balance to you know… balance everything out.”

She nodded softly. So that’s what it was. That was why she got a more solid and steadfast feeling from his aura and mind.

He looked down at her with a grin, and it was only then that she noticed that he’d gotten a little taller. Not only that, but without the illusion necklace, he looked older; his face had matured. It no longer had that softness around his cheeks; rather, it was quite sharp. Add that to his soft black hair and slightly reddish eyes, and before she knew it, he almost looked like his age.

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"You look... different," she finally commented to him.

To her surprise, he almost seemed frustrated after she said this to him. Or perhaps, bitter was a better descriptor. It was then that she remembered that he said something to her last night that she brushed aside, but now she was becoming suspicious.

“How long did you say you were trapped inside the Obsidian Vault?” she asked cautiously.

He looked away from her, and she felt him raise up some of his mental barriers. That was when she knew he was hiding something from her.

She grabbed him by the arm. “Don’t shut me out like that. How long was it?”

He grimaced and shrugged. “Time was hard to calculate while I was inside there. There were time dilation enchantments for the entire realm, so it made things weird.”

“How long?” she repeated.

“At least a year, probably more,” he said with a sigh.

“Over a year!?” she almost shouted in disbelief and took a step back, not quite comprehending what he just told her. A whole year, probably more if she knew Julius. And all of that time was spent in total isolation...

“Yep.”

“I’m going to kill that smelly bastard,” she said furiously.

“Let me know when you find him; I want to give him a piece of my mind too,” he said with a chuckle.

Lily chewed on her lip. “Is that why you look so much older?”

He shrugged. “Probably. I didn’t even really notice it that much until you pointed it out.”

“Are you planning on hunting him down?”

Julius shrugged. “I don’t know. He’s pretty strong, so even if I find him, I’m going to need to be a lot stronger if I want to do anything to him.”

“I’ll help you find him.”

Julius smiled and bumped her shoulder affectionately. “Thanks, but he basically told me where he was going.”

“Well, just tell me when and I’ll come along with you and shred his mind apart.”

He grinned warmly at her and decided to shift topics. “What about you? You never answered my question last night.”

“About what? We talked about a lot last night,” she replied with a frown and pulled him over to a stall that was selling handmade wooden figurines. She still couldn't believe that he was trapped inside that realm for over a year. At least two years, going off the way he was acting. She had to distract herself before she got any more upset over it and examined the figurines, admiring how well they were made.

“Are you serious about building something here in Goldmere?” he asked.

She looked up and shrugged. “Sure, I mean why not? I’m already here and have things set up. Not to mention, it’s probably the most straightforward means of extending our business. I feel like the regular citizens of Goldmere and Corvus in general could benefit a lot from it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I mean the average cost of a standard healing potion is almost twice as much as it is in the Empire. That is only a single product too. The cost of other daily necessities or useful items is considerably more expensive than they should be,” she explained as they left the stall and continued their stroll down the market.

She wasn’t too worried about people overhearing them. Julius had already placed an isolation barrier that would silence their voices from anyone close by. She also set up a barrier that would distort their words for anyone who might actually hear through his barrier.

“I thought Goldmere is pretty good for trade though? From what I heard, it's pretty easy to set up your own business and shop,” Julius commented.

Lily nodded. “For sure, it’s really quite simple for everyday folk to set up something as long as they have the capital or an investor to help them. But it really comes down to general knowledge and avenues to learn specific professions.”

“I don’t understand,” he said with a curious tilt of his head, but before she could explain, he took a brief moment to grab what looked like crepes from a food stall and handed one that was full of various berries to her. They had already eaten a small breakfast at the cafe, but it looked delicious, and she couldn’t resist giving it a try.

She mumbled in surprise. It was really quite good. The crepe was delicate and soft, but the berries were truly wonderful. They were perfectly tart and sweet. They weren't ordinary berries, and she suspected the sugar that was coating the berries was special as well.

She was so distracted by the crepe that she briefly forgot about what she was going to say. It wasn’t until they had polished off their crepes that she remembered her train of thought.

She cleared her throat. “Anyways, as I was saying, it’s not a problem of entering the market. But rather that most people don’t know how to create healing potions or other such useful items. Almost all routes to learning such things go through sects and clans. And while people who do make these potions independently are somewhat protected by the city’s laws and regulations, there just aren’t enough of them. Not to mention these same people won’t be willing to lower the cost of their items when they don’t need to.”

“But you will?”

Lily shook her head. “Not at first. I’ve already talked to City Lord Zheng and discussed initial pricing on various items so as not to adversely affect the market of other competitors.”

“Won’t there still be people who will be angry? I can’t imagine everyone will be fine with you effectively lowering their profit margins by driving prices down.”

Lily laughed. “Of course not. But the city lord has already discussed this with relevant parties such as the Golden Cauldron Sect and other clans. They have agreed that in the long term, vital things such as healing potions and other necessities will help increase adventuring and lessen the risk of fighting monsters in the region. Which in turn will drive up the demand for other related items, which are more expensive and will also bring in more materials in general. They will also be receiving favorable trade agreements via my family for source materials they need for their own products.”

“I see, so they see it as a win-win too.”

Lily nodded. “The Golden Cauldron Sect has always been very reasonable and logical about things like this. I’m more worried about other parties interfering, though. And while the majority of the sect thinks this to be a good idea, many oppose a foreign noble house such as mine coming into their country and amassing influence.”

“So you expect someone will try and stop you,” Julius noted.

“Exactly.”

“You want some help?” he offered.

She looked over at him with a slightly surprised expression. “You want to help?”

He nodded. “Sure, why not? As you said, we’re both already here and all.”

“I thought you were trying to keep yourself low-key.”

He scratched his head awkwardly. “Yeah, I did that partly because I wanted to go about things without worrying about people like the Conclave trying to kill me, but I realized that I’m a trouble magnet and people will be trying to kill me regardless. That or a grumpy, smelly dwarf might suck my soul until it's a withered leaf,” he said, the last part with a scowl.

“And my illusion item doesn’t seem to be working all that well,” he added.

“You do look somewhat different. Some people might not recognize you,” she added.

“That helps too," he said with a pleased nod.

She smiled to herself. She hadn't expected much when she arrived in Corvus, but perhaps it was going to be a little more exciting than she anticipated. She had truly missed Julius.

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