Path to Transcendence

Eventually, Marquis Easten returned. Julius and Reinera were simply waiting and eating some snacks as they relaxed.

"I have discussed your request with some of the elders of my House. Your first request was quite easy to agree upon. You will both be provided with our best advancement chambers to use in order to facilitate your advancement. We will also be providing you each with a Tier 3 Advancement Potion. They are of such quality that neither of you will experience any negative side effects from consuming them. As long as the two of you are confident that your foundations are solid enough, there shouldn't be any short or long-term issues," Marquis Easten explained.

Reinera was the first to speak up. "We gratefully appreciate your generosity. However, what about our second request?"

Julius saw the man frown. "That is still up for debate. I am still trying to convince them to allow you two rift access. However, I can promise you that I will do my best to make the most compelling case."

Reinera bit her lip like she wanted to say something, but gave a firm nod instead. "I understand, that is all we can really hope for, Marquis Easten," she said politely.

"I told you already, please call me Casidus. My title is normally used for more formal settings"

Casidus then took out a pair of bottles from his storage ring and presented them to Julius and Reinera.

"This is the Advancement Potion. The rooms are ready whenever you two feel like it's the right time. Just let me know and I will have you shown to the chambers."

That was fast.

"We can do it immediately?" He asked Casidus.

"Of course. I suspected that both of you wanted to do it as soon as possible so I made sure to expedite the preparations," Casidus explained.

That's convenient. I wasn't expecting it to happen so quickly, but I am not exactly complaining either. The sooner I can advance to Tier 3, the better.

He looked over at Reinera to see her reaction. He was honestly ready to do it this very second, but he wanted to see if she was also prepared.

He got a firm nod in return.

The Marquis saw both of their actions and gave a small smile. "Follow me then. I will show you where you two can advance."

***

The Marquis took them down the large hallway and Julius took this time to just observe the mansion.

There was so much luxury within reach that it was a bit jarring. The walls were covered in immaculate art pieces. The paintings themselves almost felt alive, as there was mana gently pulsing from its canvas.

However, what caught his attention was a particular massive painting. It was probably around the size of a small movie theatre screen and it was one of the most fascinating things he had seen. Whereas the other painting felt alive, this one actually looked alive.

The scene depicted in the painting was a simple view of the plains they had seen when traveling to Blumand. However, where it was different was that the image actually moved. The tall grass gently swayed across the canvas, the sun dancing just over the horizon glistening and the birds in the sky flapping their wings.

The Marquis stopped when he noticed Julius's attention. "My mother made that," he said proudly. "She was a talented fighter but an even more brilliant artist. She had a way of infusing her mana and Concepts into her work in a way I haven't seen many others do."

It was only then that Julius realized what else was so different. Beneath the layers of paint and mana, there were profound Concepts almost peeking their heads behind the tall grass. He tried to get a sense of what they were and found himself completely lost within its scenery.

For some reason, something pulled him in, like a whirlpool that had him totally enraptured. It was only when he felt Reinera give him a soft poke did he realized that he had spaced out.

He blinked several times to get his bearings again, but he couldn't help but notice the intense look Casidus had given him.

***

When they arrived at the chambers, Julius was surprised.

It wasn't like he had been imagining at all. In his mind, he had been prepared for a bare cellar or underground ritual chamber like the one he had been to for his affinity ritual all that time ago.

Instead, what he saw was pretty much a normal bedroom that was covered from wall to floor with enchantments. The bedroom was of course much larger than any normal bedroom, but there was even furniture placed in the room. It looked like it was built for comfort.

"Not what I was expecting," he commented.

"What were you expecting? Some dark dungeon with only cold rock to keep you company?" Reinera asked, joking with him.

However, when he didn't laugh and looked at her while scratching his head she opened her mouth in disbelief. Her poised demeanor crumbled away just a bit. "You did! You really thought that's what we were going to experience."

The Marquis who had been about to leave after explaining the basics of the chambers to them stopped and gave Julius a disgruntled look. He just shook his head and said to them, "Remember, if you need anything, just press the white glowing button and someone will come and assist you."

Julius and Reinera both thanked the man and watched as he left to go do some important Patriarch stuff.

He gave Reinera a questioning glance. "How long do you think you will need to advance to Tier 3?"

"It's kind of hard to say. A lot of people advance at different rates. My cousin took almost a week to advance, whereas her brother took only a couple of hours. I am hoping that I am at least somewhere in between."

"A whole week? Is that normal?"

"You don't know the process? I know that Professor Youma explained to our class the general process," she said to him.

"I understand the process, but he never mentioned how long it would take. He just said that some people have an easier time melding their souls and cores into their body, while others have a more difficult time," he defended himself. Although, he admitted to himself that it was likely he hadn't been paying attention at the time.

"And what? You think you might take a long time?"

"I don't know, maybe."

"Don't worry about it. It's why we have these chambers. They are used in order for you to take as much time as you need. They create the perfect atmosphere to facilitate advancement. The ambient mana is balanced, the enchantments protect the room from any outside interference, and nobody can interrupt you unless you want them to. There is a reason why these kinds of chambers are so expensive for the normal person," she explained.

"Expensive?" He asked curiously.

"Oh yeah, it probably costs them a lot of cores to keep this room running. It is only a room meant for Tier 2s, but if you wanted to rent a room like this in the outside world, you would have to spend a good amount of money to use it."

Julius looked at the two rooms with a little more care. "Well, then what are we waiting around for? The last one who advances has to buy the others whatever they want to eat?" He proposed to her.

She grinned at him, her teeth brilliantly shining at him with a predatory smile. "Deal."

***

He closed the door and retreated to the most comfortable-looking chair he spotted.

Until I reach Tier 3, I will be staying in this room for the time being, he told himself.

It felt kind of weird that he was planning to advance to Tier 3 now. He had half expected that he would advance to Tier 3 during his fight with Dustin or some other fight. He was glad though that he was able to do so at his own pace.

He felt prepared, and after these past few days, he managed to squeeze out a few more levels of his skills.

He did a quick checklist of what he had.

Name: Julius Von Hyperius

Tier: 2

Skills:

[Armaments of the Arcane lvl 7] (Epic)

[Sage of Savagery lvl 7] (Epic)

[Phoenix Renewal lvl 4] (Epic)

[Empowerment of Will lvl 19] (Rare+)

[Barrier of Severance lvl 15] (Rare+)

[Soul Tempering lvl 6] (Rare+)

[Spatial Perception lvl 19] (Rare)
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[Kinetic Augmentation lvl 19] (Rare)

[Flash Step lvl 10] (Rare)

Current Skill Slots: 9/11

Concepts:

[Concept of Sharpness]

[Severing Will]

[Concept of Will]

[Inexorable Resolve]

[Concept of Phoenix]

[Ashen Rebirth]

Three epic skills alone were three more than most Tier 2s would ever be able to acquire. It was only due to his unique situation that he was able to do so.

It wasn't just that either. He also had six rare skills, most of which were at the end of rare rank. If that wasn't enough, he had three Concepts which were used for each of his epic skills.

He doubted that in the world, there could be many, if any people who could say they have gained so much at Tier 2. He was confident that there wasn't anymore he could do in Tier 2. He was ready to advance and continue his improvement.

He would need to if he truly wanted to stand on equal standing with the rest of the world.

This whole experience had taught him one thing. It wasn't enough to be able to beat Tier 3s. He couldn't be satisfied with just that. He needed to be able to beat Tier 4s as well.

That was the standard he needed to go after. Tier 3s were common, but being able to beat a Tier 4 was a mark of being able to stand up to the world.

He gritted his teeth tightly, recalling the feeling of defeat he felt when Dustin beat him not long ago. No matter how much he was grateful for Dustin and his mercy, he still felt the sting of defeat deeply within his heart.

He didn't want that to happen again. And if he wanted to change that, he needed to grow stronger.

He clenched one fist and gazed at the potion that he held within his other fist. It was the same one that Marquis Easten had given him and Reinera.

This would be his opportunity.

He would advance to Tier 3, no matter what. It didn't matter how long he had to stay in this room, he vowed to himself that he wasn't leaving this room until he achieved his goal.

So with a resolved grin, he uncapped the potion and poured it straight down his gullet. He was so focused that he didn't even pay attention to the surprisingly tasty and fruity flavor of the potion. He simply sat down on the chair and closed his eyes.