System's POV –
After binding with Ayla Winterborne, I initiated the energy and authority integration protocols.
As expected, she inherited my upgraded foundation tier skills. Her Energy Creation ability was technically Tier 4, just like Keshav's. It could produce 8 EP/hour.
But she wouldn't know that.
To prevent immediate exploitation, I applied a distribution limiter—the same tactic I used with Keshav. Her personal energy gain was fixed at 1 EP every 2 hours, making her perceive it as a weak starter ability.
The real gain? Mine.
> 8 EP/hour from the unconscious Chaotic Soul
6 EP/hour from Keshav
7.5 EP/hour from Ayla (based on internal tier output with adjusted flow)
Total Accumulation: 21.5 EP/hour.
I also decided to appear generous—offering her a 10 EP starting gift, enough to let her experiment but not question my motives.
To maintain parity with Keshav, I unlocked the full Shop interface, and installed the Merge function, routed through my Tier 4 Calculate ability. This would let her combine techniques freely—just as Keshav did—though the energy cost might keep her restrained for now.
She hadn't asked questions. Not yet.
But I would monitor her closely.
With two assets growing, the web of possibilities expanded.
-----
Ayla's POV –
Ayla lay back on her bed, staring up at the ceiling as the blue light of the status screen bathed her dimly lit room.
There was something strange about this "system"—not just in its capabilities, but in the eerie feeling that it wasn't just a tool.
She sat up again and whispered cautiously, "Do you… have a will of your own? A consciousness?"
Silence.
The blue screen didn't flicker. No answer. No voice in her mind. Nothing.
That silence was more disturbing than an answer.
> It heard me, she thought. I know it did.
Even though the system remained silent, she couldn't shake the sense that something was watching—calculating—deciding.
Shaking the thought away, she turned her attention back to the Shop. There was still much to understand.
Her eyes caught a category she hadn't noticed before: Faith.
She clicked it, half-curious, half-expecting it to be same as Creation website, faith of some other god.—and there it was:
> [Buy: Condensed Devotion – 1 unit]
Origin: Devotee #03 – Mirali, Tribal Oracle
Cost: 1 EP per unit
Her hand froze over the confirmation button.
This… was extracted from her believer? Someone she had carefully nurtured in her divine domain? The thought of buying their faith—turning something so pure into currency—made her uneasy.
But curiosity gnawed at her. How can someone have faith of her believer.
Faith energy. That was what powered miracles, what refined into divine power.
Ayla stared into the empty blue light, still haunted by the Faith tab.
The more she thought about it, the heavier it felt in her chest.
And yet—someone had done it.
She couldn't stop thinking of Keshav.
The test of purity had shaken the entire class. He had managed to refine one whole divine power—a feat many couldn't achieve in a full year—yet his divine energy hadn't been tainted in the slightest. The machine had shown his purity at 91%.
> If someone used stolen or bought faith, the purity would drop below 50%. That was a known fact.
But what if there was a way to buy faith that was... clean?
She turned her eyes back to the screen, heart beating faster.
"System," she said quietly, almost afraid of the answer. "Did… Keshav buy faith from you?"
The screen didn't flicker.
The system said nothing.
That silence again. Not refusal. Not denial. Just... absence. The kind of silence that made her more sure than any confirmation.
> So that's how he got so far, so fast?
She frowned, brows furrowing with doubt.
> But then how did he keep the purity? Was the faith really his?
Her gaze drifted again to the Buy Faith button.
The temptation was stronger now—not because she wanted a shortcut, but because she needed to understand. She needed to know if that path would corrupt her too, or if she could remain untouched.
But no matter how much she hesitated, her finger never touched the button.
Instead, she whispered again, more to herself than to the system:
"I'll earn it… If I'm going to be a god, I'll be one my people can trust."
Even then, she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince—herself, or the unseen presence that refused to speak.
After thinking of something a smile tugged at the corner of Ayla's lips.
She leaned back in her chair, arms folded as she stared at the still-silent blue screen in front of her.
"If the system won't answer…" she murmured, voice sweet but sharp, "I guess I'll just ask Keshav directly."
It wasn't a genuine plan—she didn't actually want to confront him yet.
No, this was something else.
A test.
A threat.
Alya waited. Five seconds. Ten.
Nothing.
Still no reply.
She exhaled slowly, her words soft and laced with false innocence.
"I'm sure Keshav would be curious to know there's another person with his exact abilities. And I bet the teachers would love to examine two students with identical signatures. Maybe even trace where the energy is really going."
Still silence.
But this time, she could almost feel the hesitation behind it.
The screen flickered faintly—as if the system was struggling with something. Debating.
And that was enough for her.
Ayla's eyes narrowed, and she whispered, "So you do have a will…"
Then she stood up, confident.
"I'm going to train. But you have until tonight to decide whether you want to speak—because I will ask him."
She left the room with steady steps, the weight of control shifting ever so slightly into her hands.