I notice a presence coming closer, and take my eyes off the chunk of molten metal hovering in front of me and look towards the door.

"What?" I ask, annoyed; it just started getting interesting!

The butler returns my gaze and, after looking around the room, he sighs, "Mister Gwyn, I would like to ask you, once again, to please minimize damage to the rooms."

What is he even talking about? I’ve only melted a few bricks and metal plates with my thermal energy. Isn't it their fault for having such faulty protections on their facilities?

"The Armorer keeps complaining about the increased heat signature triggering alarms and that he has to turn off."

"Good, it will keep him sharp. I think he’s been getting lazy over the last three days. So, what is it? Are we approaching the Sanctuary already?"

"It is as you say, Mister Gwyn. The Housekeeper has told me to invite you to join us on the walls. You might be inclined to agree to help us push against the Veil forces on the ground. She said she doesn’t want to waste the mana in the core, but I suspect you know her true motivations."

"Sure, I will be there soon."

After that, he leaves, and I look at the chunk of metal floating there. It’s one of my experiments with one of the many metals I got from the Veil Ignition Station. I had decided to devote the past few days to experimentation, and I’ve only left when something broke in this Bastion that hadn’t flown in almost a hundred years.

And damn, can it fly.

I still remember everything so vibrantly, when we lifted off. I even took Vega, and we watched the Skyhold Bastion from afar, to get a better view, as it slowly rose into the air. Shaking, and crumbling in places, as people screamed, and waves of mana flooded through the inscriptions prepared by the Enchanter Guild so long ago.

Just the sight of such a huge city rising into the air, hundreds of buildings, towers even, along with the surrounding walls was a truly amazing experience. I thought I knew what to expect, but when that huge mass just floated, I couldn’t help but be amazed.

Yup, I will totally try to replicate this sometime in the future. Maybe I can bully some of the people from Hard difficulty into working for me and helping with the construction. I should be able to handle a few of them.

After the Bastion lifted off, my duplicate connected to the anchor in the Ignition Station to feed a trickle of mana to the Bastion's core, refilling what we’ve spent. Even that much isn't strictly necessary as the sheer amount of mana in the core should last through weeks of flying, even while using the barrier and weapons, but we did, just in case.

Storing the metal away, I extend my domain, place an anchor at the edge of it, and teleport. I repeat this until I reach the section of the wall where the others have gathered.

As I arrive, I look over the edge, and observe the vast forest below and the mountains in the distance, noting that we're floating well above their peaks. Even the clouds seem to be so close, just a bit higher and I might be able to touch them. And I love it.

What I don’t love so much is the way the Veil has become even more visible in the sky. It’s already gotten to the point where I can see it without my mana sense or my trait, and soon enough, even people without good mana sensitivity will be able to see it as well.

The Veil is made up of hundreds, and thousands of lines encompassing the entire planet. Like pathways and inscriptions hanging in the air. And even after spending the last few weeks here, I have no fucking idea how they did it. It annoys me.

"One Veil Guardian nearby and a few hundred veilshriekers," the Housekeeper states, breaking the silence.

"We will take care of the Veil Guardian," my duplicate says, appearing nearby.

"Shouldn't you be working on your plan to keep yourself alive?" I ask.

"It's almost done. Now I just need granny healer or soylent healer."

"That’s such a terrible name for the guy."

"I know, I just couldn't come up with anything better."

Even as he says that I can tell that his mood has improved. "Are your preparations going well?"

He nods, taking a few steps and looking over the wall, "It's not perfect, but it should work. I just need a tiny bit of help from the annoying big guy. He’s looking for something entertaining to do while he stalks the first Beyonder, so I’m going to try something."

"Sounds good. For now, let's bully the Veil Guardian."

Not even waiting for the Housekeeper, he jumps off the wall and I follow, the barrier lets us pass thanks to the identification bracelets on our wrists.

The Housekeeper jumps right behind us, and when we stop our fall and float in the air, she continues to fall, in fact, she does something to increase the speed of her fall.

She crashes into the ground like a meteor, her purple mana exploding into the surroundings, and she emerges from the small crater, undamaged. The monsters that survived her crash immediately attack her.

That's when the Veil Guardian that’s been keeping an eye on the Bastion and communicating with the Veil decides to attack. My duplicate appears in his way, armor surrounding his body. Their voidsteel blades collide, producing a clear ring. They connect dozens of times before the Guardian's jump ends and he lands on the ground.

The two of us approach him, wearing the same armor and wielding the same weapons.

The Veil Guardian increases the gravity in the area, as he growls and charges at me, only to be shot in the back of the head with a thin, concentrated cone of kinetic energy. The monster turns midstep, and that's when I do the same, releasing a thin stream of kinetic energy from my Vortex core, throwing the monster into the air.

At that point, the Guardian increases its own weight and quickly lands, before lowering its posture and swinging the blades on the end of its arms.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

The forest falls apart around us, trees falling to the ground cleanly cut, as we jump over and dodge a series of attacks we track with our senses.

My duplicate's heart beats, and he uses kinetic energy to power his armor, effortlessly pushing through the enhanced gravity and closing the distance.

Another exchange later, the Guardian staggers back bearing a gash across its chest, and my concentrated stream of golden flames crashes into the blade it’s using to protect itself. More mana flows into the voidsteel blade, and the monster swings its arm, cutting through the attack, only to be hit by a compressed javelin filled with kinetic energy.

The monster staggers again, and more javelins slam into it one after the other. Some are filled with thermal energy, others with kinetic, and some are merely highly compressed mana.

For the next ten minutes, we test our skills against the monster, looking for weaknesses and learning what kinds of attacks it has trouble with. The guardian tries to fight back, but every time it pushes one of us, the other takes advantage, so in the end, it's not even a challenge.

"It could be an enjoyable 1v1, but after learning its skills and how it fights, it's not that fun anymore. It isn't really that smart either," My duplicate says, finally taking the opportunity to bring out Flame Bearer, the heavily damaged arcane grade ax.

Together we use [Redistribution], and the monster becomes unable to move at all with our combined effort. Well, more of my effort as I activate my trait to pierce through its protective field.

The black ax lights up with glowing red inscriptions, thermal energy dancing across the blade. The weapon seems to strengthen the flames, and even this far away, I can feel the heat radiating from the ax. and Trees burst into flame in a circle around us, scorching the air.

"As expected, even damaged, this weapon still qualifies as an upper epic," as my duplicate swings the ax, and in front of him, a huge patch of trees gets washed away by the flames, crumbling to ash in moments.

"The ax is doing most of the heavy lifting, and I only need to feed it thermal energy. It seems to work with mana as well, after converting it into fire, but it's more efficient with thermal energy, and the effect is stronger," he says taking a step towards the Veil Guardian.

At that moment, all the heat disappears from the area, pulled into the blade of the ax as its color shifts. There is no heat for me to sense, and even the blade itself feels ice cold. Then my duplicate swings, burying the ax in the monster’s flesh.

The Veil Guardian’s body erupts in a short burst of flames, reducing it to a charred husk in a single attack.

[You have defeated Veil Guardian - lvl 291]

[Lvl 227 > Lvl 228]

"That took most of the thermal energy in my Vortex Core, but the resulting damage seems to have been highly concentrated," my duplicate states while examining the weapon. After that, he disappears to help the Housekeeper finish off the veilshriekers.

I, on the other hand, return to the Bastion seeking Vega. I have noticed a few lower-level veilshriekers; it's time for her to level up.

Vega dodges to the side with a graceful leap and leaps into the air, higher than normal, boosted by her kinetic energy. At this point, the hiding veilshrieker she failed to detect crashes into her, trying to tear her apart.

I watch as the monster's attacks fail to pierce Vega´s [Kinetic Barrier] and she siphons off bits of the attack's kinetic force to fuel her passive.

Crashing to the ground with the monster, she coats her weapon with mana, extending the blade, and stabs it into the monster's side. She then pulls her legs to her chest and kicks the monster off her. Acting quickly, she throws the dagger, giving it a boost with kinetic energy, lodging it deep inside the monster's head.

This time, she senses the presence behind her and ducks under the swing, a dagger made of mana forms in her hand, and she uses it to stab the monster repeatedly, as she absorbs its attacks with her barrier.

Not bad, if I do say so myself.

Vega fights while keeping the stronger monsters out of her path. We don't have much time, and in the past few days, it's been hard to find weaker monsters, so we need to make the best of this opportunity. There is no need for much feedback either. Unlike me, who likes to switch between ranged and close-range attacks, Vega prefers fighting at close range.

She relies on her barrier and her kinetic energy to give her short bursts of power. Using her heart and passive to generate and store kinetic energy, it doesn't seem like all that bad an idea.

Seeing that she is at the last monster, she forms a small orb of mana, and I feel her transfer kinetic energy into it. She ducks, jumps backward, and slings the orb in between the last two veilshriekers, where it explodes, tearing a sizable chunk out of both monsters.

With one last push from her remaining kinetic energy, she boosts herself at the monsters with the dagger in hand.

"Your handling of kinetic energy is good, but your mana control is lacking, minion," I say as she hobbles over to me, her senses scanning the area.

"I know, but master’s the one who’s weird; mana isn’t that easy to control."

"That’s just because you use your kinetic energy too much, minion. When we return to the Bastion, I want you to stop training kinetic energy for a week and focus on mana. You can't even create a proper barrier, and your mana weapons are a disgrace."

"I don't need a mana barrier, master! I can use [Kinetic Barrier]!"

"What about mana-based attacks? What if someone uses fire or lightning?"

"I…"

"Yes? You?"

"I will train with mana more."

"Good, I will show you some basic inscriptions and give you some mana stones with relevant information. When you return to your world, you can try inscribing weapons and make a lot of money."

That seems to catch her interest now, "A lot of money?"

"A shitload of money Minion."

"Shitload of money!" she shouts happily.

"Language. You are ruining the girl," the Housekeeper joins in, followed by my duplicate. Neither of them appears to have been wounded.

Immediately, Vega's expression changes, and her face becomes even less readable, like she does any time anyone else is around. My cute minion still has issues with trusting others.

"I got a message from The Butler; someone called Nina has contacted us on the open channel. It seems like they are under attack." the Housekeeper says.

The moment she says that a side quest pops up.

Side quest: Help the survivors in the Sanctuary.

Reward: 1000 shards.

Some time ago, I would have been happy, but now, when I have almost 30 thousand shards, it doesn't seem that much.

"I need the granny and that healer guy," my duplicate says, turning to face me.

Knowing my duplicate, he will repay me if I help, and that's not so bad. I have a few ideas that won't work without him, and he might refuse otherwise or ask for something in return.

"Minion," I say reaching out to her, and she lifts her arms so I can carry her against my chest.

Once there, she nestles in like a little animal, and the familiar sensation of her pointy horns poking my chin makes itself known.

"The three of us will take the lead, you guys can follow us," I tell the Housekeeper, as we lift off.