"The goddess has accepted your decision," Mira said softly. "The ritual can begin now."
"But before that…" Mira continued, her voice gentle but firm, "Emily, can you please remove the magic suppressing device? I need to circulate my mana freely so I can properly guide the ritual."
Mira tried to draw on her power, but nothing flowed. The rectangular box on the door continued to hum, completely blocking her mana. She had only been able to speak with the goddess earlier through their special divine connection and the soul abilities granted to her as saintess.
Shin glanced at Emily quickly. "Turn it off, Emily."
Emily nodded and walked over to the door. She reached up and switched off the device with a small click. The low humming immediately stopped, and the oppressive weight in the room lifted.
Mira let out a soft breath of relief as her mana began flowing again, warm and steady.
Mira turned to Emily with a curious tilt of her head. "Emily… where did you find such a device? As far as I know, these are extremely rare. They're crafted only by master Artificers and are not easy to obtain in this world."
Emily scratched her cheek with a sheepish yet proud little smile.
"Hehehe~ I found it on an online shopping app," she replied casually. "After researching about it in some old books in the library first, then searching the entire market… after so many tries I finally found it in a newly launched shopping app."
Shin and Mira exchanged a wary glance, smiling awkwardly at her nonchalant reply and the casual enthusiasm in her voice, as if she had simply ordered a new pair of shoes instead of a rare, dangerous artifact.
With the suppressor gone, the three of them moved to the center of the room.
Mira stood facing Shin, while Emily stood close on his right, still holding his hand possessively.
Mira raised both hands, palms glowing with soft golden light, and began to recite the ancient verses of the Soulmate Ritual. Her voice was clear, melodic, and filled with divine power, though a faint note of reluctance lingered beneath her usual gentle tone:
"By the crimson threads that defy all fate,
Let two souls entwine in eternal embrace.
No other heart shall ever claim their gaze,
Their love a fire that burns and never fades.
Through every breath, through every shadowed night,
Let love bloom, fierce and pure and bright.
Where one aches, the other shall bleed the same,
Where one calls, the other answers without shame.
Let affection be the sweetest chain they wear,
Let every thought, every dream, be only theirs.
No distance, no time, no force shall ever sever,
Two souls now one, bound in eternal fever.
What one desires, the other shall crave forever,
In madness and bliss, in storm and in calm weather.
Possess each other wholly, body, mind, and core —
Until the end of time, and then once more."
As the final words left her lips, the golden light around them intensified.
Shin with his newly acquired soul related magic "Origin" can see the thin red thread connecting him and Mira pulsed brightly, and a new, similar crimson thread emerged from his chest, reaching out to wrap around Emily's heart. Both threads began to braid and fuse together in a dazzling display of light, weaving their souls into one inseparable bond.
Mira stepped back slightly, her eyes soft yet carrying a subtle flicker of jealousy as she watched Emily stand so close to Shin, clutching his hand so tightly. Even though Mira had agreed to this, the sight of the new bond forming between her husband and his big sister still stung. She remained perfectly indifferent on the surface, but her fingers tightened just a fraction at her sides.
"Now… seal it with a kiss," she whispered, her voice steady but quieter than before.
Emily didn't hesitate. She turned to Shin, cupped his face with both hands, and pulled him into a deep, passionate kiss. Their lips moved together with raw hunger and obsession — tongues sliding, breaths mingling, the golden light swirling around them like a living flame.
When they finally parted, both were breathing heavily.
Emily stared into his eyes, crimson gaze burning with yandere devotion.
"I love you, Shin… more than anything. You're mine now. Forever."
Shin looked back at her, voice low and sincere.
"I love you too, Emily."
The moment the words left his lips, the two red threads flashed with brilliant light and fully merged. A warm, electric sensation spread through Shin's entire body as the new soul bond settled into place.
He could already feel a faint but constant pull toward Emily — her emotions, her obsessive love, echoing softly in the back of his mind.
Mira watched the entire scene with quiet devotion, though a small, possessive tightness lingered around her eyes and mouth.
She stepped closer afterward and rested her head against Shin's chest, reclaiming her place in his arms as his first wife.
"The ritual is complete," she said softly, lowering her hands. "You two are now soulmates."
Emily immediately pressed herself against Shin's other side, clutching his arm tightly, while Mira stayed nestled against his chest, her petite body warm and pliant, subtly reminding everyone that she had been first.
The three of them stood together in the quiet room, bound by new and old soul threads, with four long years of strict abstinence stretching out before them.
____
The Isle of Skye — a wild, primordial jewel of the Sariel Empire — stands as one of the most breathtaking and mystical places in the entire Humanitus world.
Jagged mountains pierce the sky like ancient blades, endless emerald hills roll into shadowed valleys, and towering sea cliffs plunge dramatically into the churning, restless abyss of the ocean. Here, nature itself feels alive with forgotten power and timeless secrets.
It is on this sacred isle that legends were forged. Countless heroic figures of history were tempered and taught, rising to become pillars that upheld the fate of nations.
The one who founded this island's glory and established its legendary academy — a sanctuary for the most gifted young souls across the Humanitus world — was none other than the immortal warrior-queen herself.
She is Dún Scáith, the Shadow Fortress incarnate, known to all as Scathach.
It was she who christened her academy the Fortress of Shadows, a name that would echo through the ages as the most prestigious and feared institution of martial and mystical excellence in existence. Under her guidance, generations of humanity's greatest warriors, mages, and heroes were born.
Scathach stands as one of the Three Immortals of the Humanitus world — an eternal being whose power defies comprehension. She is the unparalleled strongest warrioress to have ever walked the mortal realm: a living storm of crimson spears, divine martial mastery, and unyielding will.
As the official guardian of the entire Humanitus world, she watches over its fate alongside her immortal sorceress counterpart, her shadow stretching across continents like an unspoken law.
Her presence alone commands absolute reverence. No king, emperor, or god-touched champion has ever dared question her authority. To meet her gaze is to feel the weight of centuries; to challenge her is to invite oblivion.
Mortals avert their eyes in instinctive awe and terror, for she is both teacher and executioner — the crimson shadow from which no enemy has ever escaped.
And yet, on this fateful day, a single brave soul — reckless or destined — barged uninvited into her grand mansion. Without hesitation, without announcement, this audacious intruder strode straight into the heart of the Fortress of Shadows and stood directly before the immortal warrioress… their master.
The air grew heavy with ancient power. The legendary Scathach, Queen of the Isle of Skye, turned her piercing eyes upon the intruder.
Elara stood tall before her master, the woman who had forged her very soul.
Once an ordinary noble girl, Elara had been reshaped by those merciless hands into the fierce, battle-hardened warrior she was today. Every drop of her strength, every lesson in life and death, every scar she proudly bore — all of it came from the immortal standing before her.
Scathach.
Her dark crimson hair, the color of fresh-spilled blood, cascaded like liquid fire down her back, framing a face of devastating beauty.
Piercing scarlet eyes, sharp enough to cut through steel and souls alike, glowed with ancient, unyielding power. Despite being the oldest living being in the Humanitus world, Scathach's body remained the epitome of lethal perfection — a breathtaking, sensual masterpiece of toned muscle and feminine allure.
Her skin was flawless porcelain kissed by centuries of battle. Broad, powerful shoulders tapered into a narrow waist, accentuating her full, proudly heaving breasts that strained subtly against the fabric of her dark attire.
Her hips flared into a magnificently shapely, firm ass that spoke of both raw strength and intoxicating femininity. Long, sculpted legs, thick with powerful muscle yet elegantly graceful, supported her towering presence.
Every curve of her body — from the swell of her chest, the seductive dip of her lower back, to the toned perfection of her thighs and calves — radiated an overwhelming, dangerous sensuality. She was like a goddess of war and desire woven into one: a muscular, voluptuous warrioress whose mere presence could make hearts race with both fear and forbidden longing.
Elara glared at her master for a long moment, gathering her courage, before finally speaking.
"Master… have you actually forgotten how to use your cell phone?"
A mischievous glint flashed in her eyes. "Is your memory finally failing you? Are you reaching that age where you keep forgetting things and—"
She never got to finish.
A blindingly fast flick of Scathach's fingers struck Elara's forehead with surgical precision. The impact was deceptively light, yet it sent a shockwave through Elara's entire body, knocking the breath clean out of her lungs. Even as one of the strongest warriors alive, Elara was still nothing compared to her master's overwhelming power.
A visible vein throbbed on Scathach's forehead as she narrowed her blood-red eyes, her voice low with both irritation and dark amusement.
"Keep calling me old, little brat… and I will personally throw you into the training grounds for an entire month. Let's see how well your so-called endurance holds up against immortal beings."