Chapter 17: First Companion

' ': speaking to himself

" ": regular talks

[ ] : status and store related sections

<Fireball> :silent activation

<Fireball !!> : voiced activation

*...* : action

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General POV

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After closing his eyes Arthur starts his mana cycle but this time with each end of a cycle he sent a pulse into the black void. Each pulse he sent advanced with increased size and speed trough out near-infinite space.

While the pulse of mana expanding in this weird space it found multiple beings that have the potential to became Arthur's soulmate.

These beings mostly consist of creatures that Arthur never heard or seen before. Some of them have humanoid shapes but those similarities stop at the number of limbs and how they are placed in the torso. Some have horns that unified into a weird crown and some have sharp blades as their arms.

Arthur also saw beasts similar to what he heard from legends or the books he read but all of these creatures make him like They are not the one he's searching for. According to the book, Arthur was supposed to know when he met the right being to become his soulmate and stand by his side through eternity as his strongest aide.

Arthur sends dozens of mana pulses into space, hoping that each one would be the last and he can finally meet this 'soulmate'.

With the passing of time, he starts to send these mana pulses unconsciously and start observing the creatures it pass by. While he was checking out a seemingly sentient demonic tree, he felt a sudden pull from his left.

He focused his senses on to place that the pull came from, as physically he was still sitting in a meditative position in the central ritual circle and can't move from his location, he retracts all the mana sends as pulses to his body and use that gathered mana to form a solid rope and send it to wat that pulse came from.

Mana rope moved with amazing speed that before this moment Arthur wasn't capable of achieving. When the rope reached its destination it surrounded the being send the pulse for a couple of times like a snake and the tip of the rope enlarges and turned into a shape similar to Arthur's face.

The being in front of Arthur is a black wolf with red blazing eyes looking right at the where he continuing the ritual.

"Are you willing be to become a part of me? " asked Arthur.

The animal looked at his face consecrated with mana and raised its head and send a roar that echoed through the black void that they currently reside in.

Because of the unexpected roar, Arthur gets startled and nearly break the ritual circle. The circle was a little damaged but there was no mishap with his connection with the wolf.

Before Arthur recover from the shock, the wolf rushed to his position. The speed that the wolf moves wasn't impressive as the mana rope he sends towards it but, the might and aura it carries was truly more intimating than anything Arthur witness before, with the exception of the person who grants him, his powers and sent him to this world.

When the wolf reached Arthur it roars once again and puts its paw at his chest. At the place, the wolf put its paw on turned black in color and start swirling towards Arthur's shoulders. After a second those black swirls turned into some sort of a tattoo that resembles the wolf in his chest and shoulders.

"So, Ashena, right? I'll be in your care. I hope we can get along." said Arthur

While the wolf, Ashena wasn't capable of speaking, with the connection they had she and Arthur can understand each other without needing to talk, they can even sense and communicate with each other while they are in different realities.

"While I know that becoming a soulmate means we are practically best buddies created the help each other If there something annoying you don't bother hiding from me just like how you doing right now."

Hearing Arthur actually concerned about her and didn't count her as a mere beast but as a true companion, Ashena grin happily and start snuggling Arthur.

While patting her head Arthur said " I know you don't like this place but I need to be careful when I'm closing the ritual cycle, so please be patient for a little more. After that, I can show you, our new home" to her.

After nodding to Arthur, Ashena started to dematerialize and entered the new tattoo in Arthur's chest that represents her.

Knowing that there is now another being residing his chest was a weird feeling for Arthur but since that being was Ashena that weird feeling quickly gets replaced with the felling of the warm hug coming from your family.

While he and Ashina were just met, with the first touch and completion of the tattoo they saw all of each other's memories from the day they born to the moment they met here.

Taking a deep breath Arthur starts slowing down the speed of his mana cycling through diagrams that forming the ritual but before he could keep going he struck with an unimaginable pain completely paralyzing him.

Ashena try to get out and help him but she gets struck by a bolt of red lightning and pushed back inside on the tattoo. That single lightning bolt was just the start of a storm appearing above the Arthur.

The bolts of lightning start raining on Arthur's body solely his body. Bolt didn't cause physical damage that decreases Arthur's HP but directly hurt his soul. His lowest stat that stayed as 1 point from the beginning of his journey.

[ Primary stat ( Soul ) failed to meet requirements ]

[ Fatal Error ]

[[ Critical Damage ]]

[[[ Beginning of soul erasure %0 ]]]

[ %5 ]

[ %10 ]

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