Hugo didn't seem bothered. "Yeah! But I'm strong. I don't care even if I have to send her to another continent!"
Fiona walked over and sat beside Kayden and Henry. "By the way, I finally managed to modify part of my abilities. I can do so much now… far more than I ever expected."
"As expected," Henry praised.
Kayden looked at her with interest. "If you read the words… Can you recreate the scene itself?"
Then he called out to Colton, who was deeply absorbed in his book. "Hey, Colton! What do you think?"
Colton looked up without much thought. "It sounds great."
Kayden smiled and pointed at him."Fiona, Colton will be here while we're gone. You can rely on him for anything."
"Even for my work!" Henry interrupted immediately.
Colton offered no response. Perhaps he still had no idea what kind of "work" the twins were talking about.
Henry suddenly stood up. "When we come out of meditation… let's meet and have a meal together."
"Deal," Fiona replied with a smile.
Then she remembered Kayden's question and turned back to him before he left.
"As for your question… yes, I can. But it depends on what's written."
"By the way…" Iseldar said quietly, folding his arms across his chest. "Arbella and Sean… left. Or rather, they ran away. They're not coming back."
Kayden stopped in his tracks.
"Where?" he asked in a low voice.
Iseldar merely shrugged. "I don't know. I don't care about people beneath me."
"Why? Why did she leave?" Kayden asked again, unable to hide the tension in his voice.
After a long sigh, Iseldar finally answered. "I found… a body hanging in her courtyard."
A sharp headache struck Kayden.
Arbella had vanished without warning, and that unidentified corpse was somehow connected to it. Something about the way she disappeared left an empty space inside him, as though a piece of his day had been torn away. He wanted to kill her, yet he knew all too well how weak he still was. What truly frightened him was the possibility of becoming strong… only to never find her again.
Inside the carriage, Kayden spoke in a cold whisper.
"I'll kill her… even if she becomes a god."
"I know," Henry replied, trying to organize his thoughts, though he seemed just as lost in the same haze.
When they arrived home, Arthur led them downstairs into the underground level, far from sunlight and the noise of the outside world.
Meditation chambers awaited them there.
The entire place resembled a graveyard for the mind, where the only sound was one's own breathing… if it could be heard at all.
Arthur stopped in the dim corridor and placed a small round pill before each of them.
"I made these specifically for you. They'll help you focus during meditation and quiet the noise in your minds."
Henry examined the pill resting in his palm.
It looked harmless, yet something about it filled him with unease, as though it would open a door that could never be closed again.
Kayden remained silent, his head lowered beneath an invisible burden.
Arthur watched him for a moment, with the eyes of someone who recognized weakness before crushing it.
"Why won't you lift your head?" he asked calmly. Kayden's answer came out like a muffled groan.
"She… escaped."
Arthur showed no surprise, as though he had expected those words all along.
He nodded calmly. "It's normal to run. It's normal to fall. But remember this… the weak are never taken seriously among the strong. If you stay the way you are, you won't see Arbella even if she's standing right in front of you. You must become the hunter… not the prey. After this meditation, I'll teach you things about hunting."
Kayden entered his chamber with slow, heavy steps, like a man walking toward his fate rather than making a choice.
For a brief moment, he froze at the doorway.
The last time he had attempted meditation had been a nightmare, an experience that scarred a part of him that had never truly healed.
Now, standing on the edge of another descent into himself, he felt that same fear returning.
This time, however, he hid it.
He stared at the pill in his hand.
It felt heavier than stone now, as though it carried something beyond focus.
Something closer to confrontation.
Without another word, he placed it on his tongue and swallowed it like a confession.
Then he closed his eyes. His silence wasn't peaceful. It was surrender.
The surrender of a man who knew he would either break… or become something else.
Henry emerged from meditation one week and one day later.
He slowly opened his eyes, as though returning from a place unimaginably distant.
As he looked around, an unbearable stench drifted into his nose.
It was foul enough to make him sick.
Henry frowned, searching the room for its source. Then the horrifying truth dawned on him. The smell was coming from him.
He froze. A heartbeat later, he bolted toward the bathroom before anyone could see him like this.
He shoved the door open and stared into the mirror with a pale face.
Dark circles covered his skin like ancient burns, black and twisted, as though something inside him had tried to claw its way out… leaving its marks behind.
Henry blinked repeatedly, unable to believe what he was seeing.
His trembling hand reached toward one of the marks.
The instant he touched it, the black layer began to peel away like hardened gray scales, falling to the floor like mysterious ash.
His eyes widened in horror.
Before he realized it, a terrified scream escaped his lips, echoing throughout the house and announcing to everyone that he had finally emerged from isolation.
Only seconds later, Arthur was standing outside the bathroom.
"Henry. Open the door."
Henry slowly opened it. Dark fluids dripped from his body onto the floor while his skin continued peeling away, as though it were shedding an entire layer.
"What's happening to me?" Henry asked with a trembling voice. "…I'm ugly."
Arthur stared at him seriously. "Use your spiritual power, you lazy fool. Why do you even have a brain if you refuse to use it?" He pointed at Henry's head, making no attempt to touch him.
Henry closed his eyes once more and gathered what little strength remained. The moment his spiritual power flowed through his body, it felt as though an enormous weight had been lifted from his chest.
His energy moved more smoothly than ever before.
Everything became clearer. Cleaner.
It was as if his body were being rebuilt from the inside out.
Yet the horrible smell still lingered, clinging stubbornly to him despite everything his body had discarded.
At that moment, Isabelle hurried into the room.
Concern filled her face, but the instant she saw Henry, her expression brightened.
She laughed softly with unmistakable joy and rushed toward Arthur.
"It worked," she said happily.
Arthur nodded, resting an arm around her shoulders before turning back to Henry.
"You've overcome the Essence. The Essence isn't merely energy… it's a conscious entity. And you've proven yourself before it."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"You're the master now."
Henry still felt disgusted with himself. Yet for the first time in a long while… he felt closer to himself than ever before.
He smiled warmly.
More than anything else, he wanted to take a shower.
Kayden emerged from his chamber a day after Henry.
The same terrible stench surrounded him.
His entire body was covered in a thick black substance, but unlike Henry, it hadn't stopped at his skin.
It had spread across his face as well, as though it wanted to erase every trace of who he used to be.
He touched his face with trembling hands as he stepped outside. "The smell of sweat is disgusting…" he muttered in irritation. "What the hell? Was I really this bad? Am I the source of all this filth?"
Kayden continued grumbling about the smell and the grime, wiping his face with his sleeve, his hand, even his forearm.
Yet beneath all that annoyance… he could feel a strength he had never possessed before.
Unlike Henry, he didn't hesitate.
The moment he stepped outside, he immediately summoned his spiritual power.
It flowed through him freely, as though it had been waiting for him to call upon it all along.
His body felt lighter. His senses had become sharper.
And now…He wanted to jump. Not simply from joy, but to rise to reach the highest place possible and see everything from above.
He headed straight for the bathroom, determined to scrub away every trace of the black substance.
He splashed cold water across his face, scrubbed his skin until it turned red, used soap, then hot water… until the dark layer finally began to peel away, as though it had been wrapped around him like a second skin.
An entire hour passed before he finally stepped out.
The moment he opened the bathroom door, he found Arthur waiting outside, as though he had known the exact second Kayden would emerge.
Arthur smiled with quiet satisfaction. "You've succeeded… Lift your head, Aiden."
Kayden raised his head and met his father's gaze.
For the first time in a long while, warmth shone in Arthur's eyes.
Arthur gave his back a firm, affectionate pat before resting a hand on his shoulder and gently leading him toward the guest room.
At that moment, Kayden smiled.A genuine, heartfelt smile.His first in a very long time.
As they walked, he suddenly remembered Henry.
"What about Henry?" he asked. "Did he come out too?"
Arthur continued guiding him forward.
"He came out a day before you. He also subdued his Essence."
Kayden stopped immediately, frowning.
"Subdued? What do you mean?"
Arthur's expression grew serious, as though he were about to deliver another harsh lesson about life.
"I explained this to Henry already… but I'll explain it again, so listen carefully."
"The Essence isn't merely a mass of energy like most people believe. It's an entity a semi-conscious existence with its own primitive nature."
"Sometimes, that Essence begins forcing its own will upon its owner. If your will isn't stronger… if you fail to prove you're the master… then the Essence becomes your master instead. And once that happens, it begins controlling you."
"You become nothing more than its vessel. As for that black substance that came out of both of you… those were your impurities. It's similar to what appears later during the Soul Purification stage. But believe me…"
"What you just experienced was mercy."
"The next stage…That's the real hell , Especially for weaklings "
Then a faint smile appeared on his face."But both of you succeeded.Both of you."
"And…I'm proud of you."
Kayden felt those words sink deep into his chest.
He didn't say much. Instead, he smiled sincerely."I'm happy...because you're happy."
When Kayden entered the room, the table was overflowing with food and desserts.
Henry, as usual, hadn't waited for anyone.
He was already eating as though the world would end after his next bite.
Kayden glanced at him before looking toward Isabelle, who sat quietly beside the fireplace.
He walked over and embraced her tightly.
She whispered with a gentle smile,"I'm the happiest mother in the world."
Henry answered through a mouthful of food. "We're all happy."
Kayden looked at him from the corner of his eye.
For no particular reason… He suddenly wanted to punch him.
The moment he sat down, however, hunger overwhelmed him as well. He couldn't stop eating.
It was as though his body had decided to take revenge for every day spent meditating.
Henry shoved a crab toward him "I don't have time to crack this open. You do it."
The brothers began trading food as though they were competing in a race.
Just then, Adele walked into the room.
She stopped for a moment to watch the scene before speaking in open disbelief. "You two are insane! Stop devouring everything! Have you ever seen an immortal who's fat?"
Kayden shook his head while swallowing a huge bite. "I've never seen an immortal before…except Matthew."
"Try this. It's delicious."
Adele hesitated.Then she picked up a small piece and tasted it reluctantly…Only to join them with considerably less reluctance.
She sat beside her father.
Watching the chaos around the table, Arthur suddenly remarked, "My entire family eats like this…But I never expected my own children to do the same."
Isabelle smiled. "Does that bother you?"
Before Arthur could answer, he quietly took his seat across from his sons.
He picked up a crab and began cracking it apart, then carefully peeled shrimp for Kayden and Henry.
No one had asked him to. He showed no sign of annoyance.
Only quiet, natural care that he had rarely displayed before.
Keeping his eyes on the food, he said calmly,
"To be honest…Food is better than almost anything We eat to live, of course…But when I was young, I ate as though I were competing against starvation , Some people even claimed I emptied the family's food stores."
His children burst into laughter. Arthur slid the crab toward Henry and the peeled shrimp toward Kayden.
Kayden eagerly held up another piece. "Dad, try this! You won't regret it."
Arthur accepted it, tasted it, and nodded with clear approval without saying a word.
Isabelle pulled out a chair and sat beside him. "Let me tell you something."