Chapter 263: A Strange Silence

Over the following days, Ravian found himself forced to organize his entire routine around the limitations imposed by the intruder’s control.

Eating usually required him to rely entirely on his right hand, while the intruder had developed a habit of moving his left at the most inconvenient moments simply to annoy him. Sleeping was an even greater problem, since he could never be certain that his opponent would not exploit a lapse in his awareness to strengthen its control over his body.

He resorted to sleeping in short intervals, using Absolute Focus between them to examine his consciousness and make sure the intruder had not gained any significant ground. The constant strain was indescribably exhausting, draining both his mind and his mental stamina.

As the lack of sleep accumulated, Ravian began experiencing noticeable fatigue throughout his body.

Under ordinary circumstances, his physique would not have been exhausted merely from remaining awake for several days. But doing so while using Absolute Focus at full capacity almost continuously, enduring the ongoing invasion, and maintaining a constant state of vigilance was another matter entirely.

Each of those factors compounded the others, leaving him increasingly exhausted despite his body’s exceptional endurance.

The worst part was that he could not simply reduce his efforts whenever the exhaustion became too severe. Absolute Focus helped him maintain the precision required to study the Law of Void, but the moment his attention weakened, the intruder would attempt to exploit the opportunity.

That left him in a rather unpleasant position. He needed rest to continue resisting, yet resting exposed him to the very thing he was trying to overcome.

It was hardly an ideal solution, but it was the best he could manage.

On the third day, Malrik came to see him personally.

“Ravian, Darius tells me you intend to isolate yourself in preparation for your advancement.”

The squad captain’s voice was as firm as ever, and he made no attempt to conceal his displeasure at having one of his members absent without obtaining permission beforehand. In particular, he was not even certain whether Ravian was genuinely attempting to advance.

“That’s correct, Captain,” Ravian replied quietly from behind the tent flap.

“And do you think everyone can simply abandon their duties whenever they decide to train?”

“No, but I believe I also haven’t resumed my duties yet. My master ordered me to rest for a few days without involving myself in the camp’s affairs.”

Malrik did not respond immediately.

Ravian had a point. Karius had indeed instructed him to rest, and the squad had not yet required him to participate in another mission. Nevertheless, that did not mean he could isolate himself indefinitely without informing his captain or obtaining the necessary permission.

Malrik was responsible for his subordinates, and Ravian’s unusual behavior was hardly something he could ignore.

After a brief silence, the captain asked, “Is your life in danger?”

Ravian considered the question, recognizing that this was the real reason Malrik had come.

He could have lied, but Malrik was not someone he thought deserved to be treated lightly, especially after the captain had stood against a Sixth-Rank guard to protect him during the confrontation with Layla Augus.

At the same time, telling him the truth would not accomplish anything useful. Malrik might be willing to help, but Ravian had no intention of exposing him to a threat neither of them understood.

“There is a risk if I’m interrupted at the wrong moment. That’s why I’m asking you not to allow anyone into my tent.”

He heard Malrik shift slightly outside.

“Does this have something to do with the stone you bought?”

‘Everyone really does connect everything to that damned stone.’

Ravian regretted following his instincts when he had bought it.

He could hardly blame the others for being suspicious, however. They had witnessed the danger surrounding the stone, and now its owner had suddenly decided to isolate himself from everyone.

From their perspective, the connection was obvious.

Unfortunately, knowing that did not make the constant questions any less irritating.

“Not in the way you’re imagining,” he answered quickly.

“That’s hardly reassuring,” Malrik replied, and Ravian could practically picture the frown on his face through the tent flap.

“It wasn’t meant to be reassuring. I just want you to know that I’m aware of the risks.”

A brief silence followed before Malrik answered.

“I’ll give you a week, and I’ll inform the command that you’re undergoing a sensitive stage of your training. But if your isolation continues beyond that, I’ll have no choice but to inform Lord Karius.”

“I appreciate it.”

“Don’t make me regret this decision.”

Malrik walked away, leaving Ravian to consider the time he had been granted.

One week.

He knew it would not be enough.

The progress he had achieved in understanding the Law of Void was encouraging, but it had taken considerable effort to reach even that modest result. There was no guarantee that further comprehension would come as quickly, nor did he know how much he would ultimately need to suppress the foreign consciousness.

Still, he was hardly in a position to demand an entire month of isolation from the beginning, particularly in a military camp where the war was still ongoing.

For the moment, he would have to make the most of the time Malrik had allowed him. If the week ended before he found a solution, he would have to deal with that problem when it arose.

…

That evening, Claria came to see him.

She had been leaving food and water outside his tent over the previous few days, but this time she was not satisfied with doing only that.

“Ravian, I want to examine you.”

He immediately lifted his head from the Book of Sovereign Pride when he heard her voice outside.

“I don’t think that’s necessary, Claria.”

“That’s exactly what patients say before I discover they’ve been ignoring a serious injury,” the squad’s healer replied without hesitation.

Despite his exhaustion, Ravian smiled.

“Speaking from experience?”

“From my experience with you, specifically.”

He could not immediately think of a suitable response, and Claria took advantage of his silence to continue.

“I won’t interfere with your training, but that stone you handled was dangerous enough to frighten people far stronger than us. I can’t simply assume you’re fine because you’re still capable of talking.”

Ravian glanced at his left hand, which was moving slowly across the table without his consent.

There was no way he could let her inside.

Even if she failed to recognize the spiritual invasion itself, the sight of his black eye and the unnatural movements of his left side would be more than enough to convince her that something was seriously wrong.

And unlike Darius, Claria was unlikely to accept a few sarcastic remarks as sufficient reassurance.

He needed to convince her that he remained capable of handling the situation without inviting further questions.

“I’m fine for now, Claria, but I need to maintain my isolation. If something happens that I can’t handle, I’ll let you know.”

She clearly disliked his answer, judging by her tone when she spoke again.

“I’ll be back tomorrow, Ravian, and I expect you to answer me in exactly the same tone every day. If your voice sounds different even once, I’ll consider that reason enough to barge into your tent before bringing the captain and everyone else here.”

Ravian almost laughed at the seriousness with which she delivered the warning.

He had expected her to insist on examining him, perhaps even to threaten to inform Malrik if he continued refusing. Instead, she had established a daily condition that would allow her to check on him without entering the tent.

It was inconvenient, but certainly preferable to having her discover the truth.

“You’re incredibly harsh,” Ravian remarked, smiling despite the exhaustion evident in the dark circles beneath his eyes.

“And you’re an incredibly troublesome patient,” Claria retorted.

Ravian laughed as though he were speaking to a little girl rather than a grown woman, then agreed to her conditions.

He could only hope that his voice would remain under his control whenever she returned. The intruder had already demonstrated that it could speak through the left half of his mouth, and the last thing he needed was for Claria to hear another voice answering from inside the tent.

When she finally left, he noticed that the intruder had remained silent throughout the conversation, despite its usual habit of mocking practically everything it heard.

That was unusual enough to catch his attention.

The creature had spent the past several days taking every opportunity to irritate him, whether by interfering with his movements, commenting on his conversations, or laughing whenever one of his experiments failed.

For it to remain quiet throughout an entire exchange with someone concerned about his condition was strange.

He turned toward the mirror.

The left half of his face was unusually still.

“Are you still there?”

The black eye shifted toward him.

“I was thinking about something,” the left half replied.

“What a surprise. You can think too?”

The intruder did not laugh. In fact, it seemed further from laughter than it ever had before.

Ravian noticed the difference immediately.

He had grown accustomed to the creature’s constant mockery and exaggerated confidence, but its current behavior was distinctly different. Whatever had occupied its attention appeared important enough that it had temporarily lost interest in provoking him.

Instead, it spoke in a low voice.

“There’s something inside your soul that I haven’t been able to understand.”

Ravian’s attention sharpened immediately, though he kept his tone calm.

He had no intention of showing too much interest in anything the intruder might have discovered. It had already gained access to portions of his memories, and he did not know how much it had learned about his abilities during the possession.

If there was something it genuinely could not understand, however, he wanted to know what that was.

“And which part would that be?”

The black eye widened slightly.

“That book.”

Ravian said nothing, maintaining his expression while carefully guarding his thoughts.

The intruder continued, its voice carrying an unusual heaviness.

“I want you to tell me where you got it.”