Michael read the note of the Will twice before he put it away in disappointment.
The Will might be trying to tell him something, but Michael’s mind didn’t work properly right now. His mind felt sluggish and he felt as if someone was squeezing his heart painfully.
He lifted his head weakly, only to notice that the Starless Summons around him were lying on the ground, struggling to get up. Dragon Might’s presence was weighing down on the Starless Summons, forcing them to the ground.
Seeing the fear in their eyes, Michael quickly dismissed Dragon Might’s presence. That was quite easy now that he bound the Legendary Ring to his War Rune. He could easily adjust the naturally exuded dragon might.
The Starless Summons got up from the ground with Michael’s help. For a moment, they looked at him with a trace of fear, only to recall how well Michael had treated them until now. The Summons saw the surprise and guilt in Michael’s eyes as well, dispelling the trace of fear that was about to take root in their hearts that somehow their Lord was angry with them.
“I’m sorry for startling you. I didn’t expect the Artifact’s presence to be that strong,” Michael said weakly, helping the Summons up from the ground.
After that, he excused himself while his eyes remained locked on the Legendary Ring Artifact.𝑛𝑶𝚟𝓮𝓵𝐍𝖊xt.𝗇𝓔t
He sensed that Ring Artifact had another power, other than the naturally exuded dragon might. He kept some distance from everyone else before his energy surged inside the Ring Artifact. After a few seconds of channeling energy inside the Ring Artifact, Michael sensed something interesting.
The Extraction Soultrait was triggered, altering the origin energy inside Dragon Might into the power of Extraction. The crystalized eyes embedded in the ring’s Red Dragon changed into a bright golden color as the power of Extraction filled it.
This surprised Michael a little. He stopped channeling energy inside Dragon Might and tried to use the power of extraction stored in the Ring Artifact. In response to his mental command, the power of extraction reacted. It shot out of Dragon Might, waiting for Michael to set a target to extract.
‘The Ring can store the power of a Soultrait?’ Michael wondered, dispersing the power of extraction before he filled Dragon Might with origin energy once again.
But this time, Michael used Glacicle to fill the crystalized eyes with its power, changing its color to glacier blue.
Michael stopped utilizing the Glacicle Soultrait to test something. He easily accessed the power of Glacicle stored in the crystallized eyes of the Red Dragon and conjured a handful of Glacicles without activating his Soultrait.
‘Interesting…’ Michael thought, indicating Liopham Zelc, the Forest Elven Adventurer, to come towards him when he saw him from the corner of his eye.
“Use Rage of the Primal on the Ring after I channeled some origin energy inside it,” Michael commanded, his tone low and weak.
Yet, despite having such a weak and low tone, Michael’s eyes were cold and void of emotions. It was confusing, and totally different compared to the way Michael acted usually.
Liopham followed Michael’s order, but he couldn’t help but think that Michael was different today. He looked weak and exhausted.
“You don’t look good. You should rest, Michael” Liopham said after hesitating for a few seconds. The power of the Rage of the Primal Soultrait was already entering Dragon Might, yet Liopham’s gaze never left Michael.
Even though their Link of Loyalty determined that their relationship was that of a Lord and a subordinate, Liopham had begun to consider Michael as a friend now.
They had fought side by side for months and strived hard to expand the territory together. Michael often had his meals with the EmeraldLeaf Adventurer team, sharing stories about their native worlds and the things they had experienced. Sometimes, they even talked about their friends and families, their future goals, and the hardships in their life.
Liopham wanted to be a good friend, give Michael some time to rest and get better before talking to him about his hardships. After all, it was obvious that something was terribly wrong.
But Michael just shook his head.
“I cannot rest…” He responded firmly, “If I rest, I will always think abo–…No, forget it…”
Michael shook his head vigorously again. His focus returned to Dragon Might which he accessed to manifest the Totem of Liopham’s Soultrait, Rage of the Primal.
Seeing the totem that belonged to his Soultrait, Liopham was momentarily stunned. He even forgot what Michael had just said, and stared blankly at his Soultrait, which had been utilized by Michael just now.
“It’s a Legendary Artifact that stores the power of a Soultrait, whether it is my own or somebody else’s Soultrait. That’s quite amazing,” Michael mumbled, staring at Dragon Might for a while. “The only downside is that I cannot use any complex Soultraits through the Dragon Might Ring since Soultraits require the corresponding knowledge I can only obtain from thorough research or by fusing the Soultrait Symbol to my War Rune. Only simple functions of a foreign Soultrait can be used…”
He tried to focus on Dragon Might and its extravagant power, but Liopham’s earlier comment pulled Michael back to reality.
Distracting himself by studying the Legendary Ring Artifact worked quite well for a few minutes. Unfortunately, Michael’s mind was a menace. His attention pulled away from Dragon Might.
Michael’s eyes moved to the keychain fastened to his belt subconsciously.
“A miniature casket keychain as a gift from the Will…Is the Will trying to make fun of me?” He mumbled quietly, his voice cracking before a tear trickled down his cheeks.
Michael sighed heavily. He turned around and walked away, his head hanging low.
Michael left Liopham and the Starless Summons stupefied. They stared at his sloppy figure as Michael began to take a stroll through his territory.
The number of his subjects didn’t increase in the weeks of his absence. However, his territory’s infrastructure changed considerably. The training grounds for his army had been expanded threefold, the high treehouses had been upgraded to ensure their longevity, and Michael could tell that the canopy bridge network system was longer and wider than ever before.
Michael was not sure how far his army conquered the middle area of the Untamed Jungle, but he could easily sense the strength of his people through their Links of Loyalty. The Links of Loyalty showed quite clearly that Michael’s subjects never stopped working on themselves even in his absence. They continued to work hard even after Michael didn’t return for several weeks. That was promising, and it eased Michael’s worry a little.
He feared that his subjects would struggle without him, but they were doing quite well. The warehouses were filled with Agriculture-type blueprints and various low-level Armaments that had yet to be sold to the Forest Elven Tribe. At the same time, Michael’s army had been equipped with better equipment. The Enchanters of the territory had finally begun to use their theoretical knowledge to start practicing etching enchantments on the low-level armaments to gain experience, and to reinforce the armaments.
Taking a deep breath as he strolled through his territory, he inhaled strong herbal scents mixed with the sweet smell of the Tiatcha. Only six weeks passed in his absence, but the small farms that had been cultivated beneath the treehouses were already in full bloom. The Tiatcha trees grew rapidly, and the first batch of sweet Tiatcha was ready to be harvested. The same could be said about the cocoa pods of the Cocoa Trees, and most other plants planted inside his territory.
Overall, Michael could say that he was the proud owner of dozens of small but highly efficient house farms with various plants, herbs, and other plants of the highest quality.
They gained the grace of the Untamed Jungle’s highly nourishable soil and dense origin energy, followed by the blessing of the 4-Star Nature Spirit that had taken root in the center of his territory. Other than those two favorable factors, there was also a 3-Star Botanic Magician, and farmers nurturing and aiding the herbs, flowers, and other plants to grow under the most beneficial conditions.
Usually, Michael would feel happy just by glancing at his bustling territory. Everyone was working hard, giving their utmost effort to ensure that the settlement could be expanded. Seeing the satisfied expressions on his subjects would have been enough to dispel most of Michael’s worries.
But everything was different now. Even Michael’s desire to live was not as strong as it used to be.
He didn’t want to die but being alive seemed nothing short of hell at this moment. It was like the essence of life was pain, suffering, and torture. At least, that was what Michael felt at this moment.
The memories of the past felt even more torturous than ever before. Recalling the time he spent with Masked Saber, and the easy time they had when they first entered the Lord Rift, Michael could only feel guilt and regret coursing through him. These feelings wreaked havoc within him, making him lose the will to do anything productive.
“Both I and Masked Saber chose to enter the Lord Rift alongside you. You never forced us,” A familiar voice rang out from behind, “We wanted to enter the Lord Rift with you because we wanted to grow stronger. It’s not your fault that a Dragon appeared out of nowhere.”
Michael halted in his tracks. He turned around slowly, just to stare straight at Tiara’s face. She had an impassive expression on her face and her lips were pressed into a thin line.
Michael felt a little uncomfortable being stared at like that, but he didn’t say anything. It was not that he couldn’t say anything, but Michael didn’t know what to say.
Tiara was correct.
Both Masked Saber and Tiara chose to enter the Lord Rift willingly. They were fully aware of the dangers, which included death.
In the first place, the death rate inside rifts was known to be quite high. Everyone willing to enter the Lord Rift knew that they were risking their lives in exchange for the golden opportunity to obtain great wealth and treasures.
Despite that, Michael couldn’t really forgive himself.
“It’s good to see that you’re fine,” Michael said while looking at Tiara in an attempt to subtly change the topic.
She had shorter hair than before, but other than that she was perfectly fine.
He had sensed that Tiara was alive when he regained consciousness thanks to the Link of Loyalty connecting them. Tiara’s injuries hadn’t been as severe as Michael’s either. He had thrown himself in front of her while utilizing Extraction to the fullest when the dragon breath reached them. Nonetheless, Tiara healed extremely fast, which was quite surprising given that their territory didn’t have any great healers. There was one Priest, but that Priest was not exactly what one would consider a miracle healer.
“We Silverfangs are good at healing. The Silverfang Tigerfolk are known for their tenacity. We’re exceptional fighters, and great at surviving. As long as we have a single breath left in our bodies, we won’t die!” Tiara said pridefully before her attention moved back to Michael once again.
Right now, was not the time to brag about her race or survival instincts.
Tiara clearly recalled Michael saying “Danny…” just before the Lord Rift closed. She saw him cry and the desperation on his face when Masked Saber’s face was revealed.
Michael had spoken about his brother quite often in the past. Thus, Tiara was already aware that Michael’s brother was also called Danny.
Seeing Michael’s physical and mental state, it was not difficult for Tiara to connect the dots.
Tiara stared at Michael for a few seconds before she strode forward to pull him in a tight embrace.
“Everything will be alright…” She mumbled, holding him even tighter in an attempt to warm his heart and console him.
However, Michael could only stare ahead with an empty gaze.
“No…it won’t…”