As Jin was finishing his food, he noticed a few of the maids who had returned to the room a minute ago were now whispering amongst themselves.
"Did you hear? The Duke and the General are already at odds with each other," one of them gossiped in a hushed tone.
"I know! I even heard their men almost came to blows on the training field yesterday," another added.
Jin, his interest piqued, decided to remain seated at the table, pretending to be lost in thought.
"That General is a disgusting pig," the first maid whispered angrily. "He demanded the Duke let his soldiers have their way with us!"
"I heard the Duke had to send two of the foreign slaves to his tent just to calm him down," the second maid replied, shuddering.
"When do they finally leave?"
"I heard they're set to depart this evening."
This evening? Jin thought. Good. That means I can cultivate in peace tomorrow.
A loud knock rattled the door, and an old woman wearing thick spectacles peered into the room. "All of you, gather outside now!" she commanded the maids. Her gaze then shifted to Jin. "Boy, you leave. Go play or whatever it is you do."
Jin complied without a word. He had already finished eating and wanted to leave anyway. With a quick nod, he left the maids' quarters and navigated his way back to his room.
Now that he had reached the sixth layer, his path forward became more complex. Cultivating simply by circulating energy was growing more difficult. Since crossing the threshold of the fifth layer, the spiritual energy he absorbed had become more potent and ravaged his body more brutally with each cycle. It was manageable for now, but if he continued this way into the Silver Stage, he would risk falling into a cultivation deviation, which would rupture his pathways and destroy his body. He needed to forge his physical vessel to be stronger, but time was of the essence.
'If this body were just a few years older, this wouldn't be a problem,' he thought in frustration. He had to practice martial arts to strengthen his physique; otherwise, he would be like a glass overflowing with water, unable to effectively contain or use the power he gathered.
He saw two immediate solutions to this problem.
The first was to wait until he grew older, slowly and naturally forging his body along the way. This was the safe path, but it would take a minimum of five years before he could confidently use his power without drawbacks. This was far too long for Jin, who wanted to leave this place as quickly as possible.
The second option was to forcefully strengthen his body using a special technique from his WRATH arts: absorbing the life force—the vitality—of other bodies and making it his own. This would mean he would have to drain multiple strong individuals, like the soldiers in the castle.
The method would rapidly temper his body, allowing him to cultivate smoothly at least until the Gold Stage. However, while this location was a perfect hunting ground, the option was extremely dangerous. He would be completely defenseless during the absorption process, making it almost impossible to perform without alerting everyone. He had already dismissed this as non-viable.
Because of this, he was glad the Royal Army was leaving tonight, giving him the leeway he needed to solve his cultivation problem.
He stood in his room, watching the sun climb high into the sky through his window. 'There is no point in overthinking it now,' he concluded. With that, he turned and changed his clothes, putting on a set that Gilga had prepared for him.
He had not bothered to change since arriving at the estate, always wearing the rough, simple garments the soldiers had given him upon his rescue. The clothes from Gilga, however, were of much better quality and not nearly so plain. The rough, brown leather tunic was replaced by a fine, silk-like blue garment, elegantly accented with golden stripes.
He intended to wear them when he bid Gilga farewell before the man departed on his mission. It was a silent symbol of thanks for the soldier's kindness.
Even though Jin was ruthless and lacked empathy, he still possessed a code. When a debt was owed, he repaid it. For Gilga, this simple gesture of respect was how he would settle that debt. But this feeling—this rare flicker of consideration—was reserved for Gilga alone.
"There is still some time until they depart," he mused. "What should I do now?"
As if the heavens themselves wished to answer his question, the same soft, hesitant knock from the morning sounded at his door.
"Jin, come out!" Kelly's voice called.
A dissatisfied look crossed Jin's face. 'It's her again.'
"We couldn't finish our talk!" she continued from the hallway. "Open the door! I need to take you somewhere."
He sighed and opened the door to find Kelly standing there, an innocent smile on her face. Her eyes immediately lit up. "New clothes! They really suit you!"
"What do you want?" Jin asked, his voice laced with annoyance.
"There's a beautiful garden here! You have to come with me, I want to show you!"
'What the fuck?' he thought, completely bewildered by her persistence.
Without waiting for an answer, Kelly grabbed his hand and began pulling him along. Jin, not having anything better to do with his time anyway, decided to just go with it, allowing her to lead him away.
***
Meanwhile, on the training grounds, the soldiers of both armies were rallying for a final inspection before their departure.
"We kill the demons today, hahaha!" a muscular, brown-haired soldier with rough, sun-beaten skin bellowed to his companion. "And then we rejoice in glory, wine, and women!"
"You sure are confident, Jörn," the other man—a much smaller figure with blonde hair and smoother skin—replied dryly.
"Little Kilis, I am not confident. I am stating the truth!" Jörn roared. "The General may have had his fill of womanly nectar last night, but I, Jörn, swear I will soon do the same!"
Kilis looked at him with a smirk. "What is it with you brutes and women? Only money is the real deal. With the coin we get from this campaign, I can finally build my mansion."
"Bah! Are you impotent or something?" Jörn scoffed.
"Stop spouting nonsense," Kilis answered coolly.
"But anyway, women, glory, wine... what more could a man need?"
"What do you think of the Duke's army?" Kilis asked, changing the topic. "I don't think they'll be fighting alongside us like brothers-in-arms."
"Don't need 'em," Jörn grunted. "I only need myself!"
"ATTENTION!" a loud voice commanded. It was the Duke, addressing the troops from a raised platform. To his right and left stood the General and Commander Lionex.
"Today marks the day you will free these lands and triumph over the demon worshippers!" he began. The Duke's own soldiers roared in approval, while the Royal Army merely listened in silence. "Be sure that despite our differences, we are still brothers-in-arms! So please, do me the favor of fighting for your brothers beside you!"
This line was received with even less enthusiasm. The Duke, noticing the heavy silence, quickly switched topics. "You will depart soon. My soldiers, please take this time to bid your families farewell." With that, he ended his short, awkward speech.
Then, the General stepped forward.
"We will RAVAGE the demon filth," he boomed, "and we will REJOICE in the glory afterwards! Be ready for departure!"
Now it was the Royal Army's turn to roar, their cheers echoing across the courtyard while the Duke's men stood in stony silence. Kilis, however, remained quiet, a simple, knowing smile on his face. The starkly different reactions to the two speeches perfectly mirrored the current situation, and the Duke was visibly unnerved by the state of his supposed alliance.