“The fog. It’s aura,” Perci spoke inside Lucas’s head.

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Lucas mentally responded as he carried Leona through the fog, trying to get her to safety.

  “I can feel it through our connection, you’re being surrounded by a dense fog of aura. It’ll be enough to form two circles if you manage to cultivate it all.”

  “What do you expect me to do? I’m running for my life here!” Lucas mentally screamed at Perci.

  “Absorb the fog. Trust your golems to protect you,” Perci replied. “You must do it before it vanishes.”

  “Fuck it!” Lucas mentally exclaimed before tossing Leona and Althea to Gun slinger who arrived just in time from where it was stationed to guard.

  Once Gun slinger got some distance, Lucas directed his attention to Perci. “How am I supposed to absorb all this?”

  Aura circles were formed by converting his own energy into aura and shaping it into a ring, and then he would proceed to feed his energy into that ring until it was stable enough to sustain itself.

  Once the aura circle is stable, an option is given to either form another circle or keep feeding the same circle energy to fully form it.

  Lucas was never taught how to absorb aura, only how to convert his energy into it. “You learned how to cultivate mana, correct?” Perci asked.

  “Yes,” Lucas replied just as the angel nearly decapitated him.

  “It’s the same process. You will just be absorbing aura instead of mana,” Perci explained.

  “You want me to meditate here?!” Lucas actually screamed this time.

  “Trust your golems and do it,” Perci stated. “As the crafter, you know what they are capable of.”

  Lucas gritted his teeth and sat down. The water reached up to his stomach and the fog just started just below his neck. Relaxing his breath, Lucas tried feeling the aura around him. Unlike mana that felt like a warm and vibrant energy, aura was cold and dense.

  Lucas began the absorption, but it felt too slow as a battle happened around him. The angel would constantly try to end his life, while Percival and Ragnar would do their best to block every attack and keep the angel away from Lucas.

  To speed things up, Lucas tried to enhance the process using his already developed aura circle.

  Perci said it himself, his attribute was speed.

  Lucas pictured his aura circle spinning like a wheel. Ripping through asphalt like a speeding car.

  The fog began to spin around him as the absorption rate increased, forming a tornado that managed to clear the area and expose the green water to the moonlight. The water began to glow, illuminating the night as the glow reached the sky.

  Lucas didn’t even notice the light show as he was focused on absorbing the aura fog. As this was happening, the angel did not stop its relentless attempt to kill Lucas. The angel blocked Ragnar’s claws and then stabbed one of its swords into the golem’s back and pinning it into the ground, then it spun and swung its sword at Percival that rushed from behind. Percival was sent tumbling across the ground, which gave the angel the opening it needed to finish off Lucas.

  And it decided to make it grand.

  The angel’s sword unleashed a golden light that managed to even topple the green light and pointed the golden beam to the sky. A second later, a giant sword of light began to descend from above Lucas.

  Ragnar forced itself up, ripping the sword impaling it off the ground and dashed towards Lucas. Red lightning sparked violently around the golem’s arm, and it swung it up towards the sword of light.

  The impact created a shockwave of mana that erupted around Lucas. But despite the powerful attack, the sword of light was still pushing down on Ragnar and getting closer to killing Lucas.

  The angel tried to pour in more energy on the sword of light, but mana bullets began shooting down on it. At the cliff edge, the Iris: Assault infantry fired their guns at the angel. The two golems crashed down on the angel shield first, slamming it into the ground. Percival followed up by leaping into the air and throwing his aura-infused lance down on the angel.

  But before the lance could land on the angel, a golden barrier erupted and blocked the attack and blew the shield golems away. The angel got up and poured more energy into the sword of light, pushing down harder on Ragnar.

  At the same time, Lucas finally finished absorbing the aura fog and opened his eyes.

  “Core break.”

  A man dressed in all black came out from the shadows and kneeled before Septimus. “I have confirmed that Leona does not have the core,” the man informed.

  Using an artifact, they were able to determine if Leona had any residual traces of mana from the core. If she took the core, then the artifact would have reacted and lead a trail to it.

  “Then who does!” Septimus roared.

  “During our investigation, we confirmed the involvement of another individual,” the man stated. “Unfortunately, our insider does not have access to the information about the individual.”

  Septimus growled.

  “Let go of me!” Althea struggled in the golems arm. “We can’t leave him there!”

  Leona gritted her teeth and kept her mouth shut. She knew very well that even if they returned, they’d be nothing more than a burden to Lucas and his golems. The angel would target them, and Lucas’s golem would be forced to protect them. Leona didn’t know how strong Lucas was, but she had no choice but to trust that he’ll be fine.

  Along with the recent light show, the giant sword of light, and the fog turning into a tornado, it was clear things were getting intense back there.

  “Rele-”

  Althea was cut off by a load roar and the sound of thunder as lightning struck down from the sky. An explosion followed that created a mushroom cloud and a very concerning sound of a shockwave heading towards them.

  “Brace yourself!” Leona yelled at Althea.

  The golem responded by placing them both down and covering them with its body. The impact of the shockwave hit the golem, shaking all of them.

  Leona wondered what could have caused such an explosion.

  Ragnar stood over Lucas with its silver fur flaring as red lightning sparked around it. Upon activation of core break, Ragnar grew double in size and gained a more intimidating appearance with it taking on a more primal form.

  Ragnar wasn’t the only one that changed as Percival’s core break activated as well. With both of his golems activating core break, Lucas felt his stamina draining rapidly. But this was the only way they could defeat the angel that was clearly a monster lord.

  “Hit it with everything you got!”

  Ragnar charged with a cloak of lightning around it taking the form of a giant sabretooth tiger. Percival raised its great sword and infused an enormous amount of aura on it, creating a giant ethereal black sword.

  The angel tried recalling its two swords to try and block the attacks, but Lucas managed to tackle one of the swords with a speeding charge, delaying it long enough that the angel failed to fully block the attacks.

  Percival’s attack cleaved through the angel’s shoulder, while Ragnar’s charge trampled what was left of the angel.

  With that final clash, Lucas fell to his knees. He was barely staying conscious with whatever was left of his stamina. He hoped the angel was dead, otherwise he had nothing left to dish out.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Forcing himself up, Lucas approached where the angel crashed. He flinched when he felt the electrical current in the water, but Lucas managed to bare it enough until he reached the angel’s body.

  Percival approached the body and stabbed its hand into the angel’s chest, drawing golden blood and pulling out its monster core. The core had a golden emblem of a pair of wings with a halo above it.

  One of Lucas’s Assault Infantry golems arrived and opened a compartment on its chest and handed Lucas a containment capsule.

  Lucas tossed the capsule at the angel’s body and watched it get sucked in. Monster parts of monster lords would sell for a high price, but Lucas preferred to use the materials for his own projects.

  With the angel contained, Lucas finally fell to his knees. All his golems returned to their marble forms to initiate repairs.

  “Well, aren’t you full of surprises,” a gruff feminine voice was heard.

  Lucas managed to force himself to look up and saw a muscular woman with short black hair and eyes, wearing a tight white bodysuit, and had a pair of massive brass gauntlets.

  The last thing Lucas saw was the woman reaching for his head.

  “Ugh...” Lucas opened his eyes with a groan.

  “Samira, he’s awake!”

  Lucas flinched when he heard the loud yell. “Oh, sorry about her,” a gentle voice spoke as Lucas felt a wet fabric on his shoulder.

  As his vision began to focus, Lucas finally saw what was going on. He was inside what looked like an infirmary. Beside his bed was a kind looking woman wearing a baggy sweater that had the sleeves rolled up as she wiped a wet towel on Lucas’s arm.

  She’s a slender woman who wears glasses with black frames. Her hair is straight, short, and dark purple in color, with bangs that fall to the right side of her face.

  A few meters away from his bed, he saw another woman leaning against the wall. She had a more eye-catching appearance with light green hair, wore a white blouse with a checkered skirt, and her face had an absurd amount of make-up.

  If Lucas had to guess, she was the one that yelled.

  “Where am I?” Lucas asked.

  “Welcome to the CDA southeastern branch,” the woman beside him spoke.

  “CDA?” Lucas raised an eyebrow.

  “Continental defense agency. We’re a secret agency that operates in the shadows to protect the empire from external threats,” she answered, making Lucas even more confused. “We were monitoring that fog for a while now, then you suddenly popped up.”

  “What do you know about other types of energy cultivation other than mana kid,” Samira asked as she entered the infirmary.

  “Other types of energy cultivation? Like Aura?”

  Samira nodded.

  “I don’t know much about the other types, but I know aura can be cultivated by everyone since you generate it yourself,” Lucas stated.

  “Well, that fog was made of volatile aura. That's why no matter how much disturbance happened within it, the fog doesn’t disperse. Yet, you somehow got rid of it,” Samira spoke. “How did you absorb it?”

  “The same way you absorb mana,” Lucas replied.

  Samira crossed her arms as she examined Lucas. “Are you a regressor? Reincarnated?”

  Lucas tilted his head in confusion. “What?”

  “Just lucky then,” Samira figured based on his reaction. “Our agency’s duty is to protect the empire from external threats. That includes people chosen by fate’s threads. People returning from the future, people reborn from the past, even people that came from another world.”

  “Why are you telling me this? Shouldn't this be a secret?” Lucas questioned.

  “Why bother being stingy when you’re already part of the fold?” Samira stated.

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Lucas raised an eyebrow. “I don’t remember agreeing to be part of anything.”

  “You don’t have much of a choice,” Samira replied. “Are you saying that you won’t help protect the world where the people you care for live?”

  Lucas gritted his teeth. “I don’t mind helping out. But never bring up the people I care about,” Lucas got up from the bed. “Thank you for your help, but I got somewhere to be.”

  Samira nodded. “Candice, give him his stuff and guide him to the exit.”

  Althea was facing a problem that made her blood boil. Three days had passed since the incident and Lucas had been reported missing ever since. This resulted in the greedy bastards in the board to start demanding Lucas’s golem research, claiming that it belonged to the company. They even stormed into his office to try and take it, but thankfully failed thanks to Lucas’s office mates.

  This incident also caused Althea to lose her job as she was the cause of Lucas’s disappearance. But this won’t stop Althea from preventing them from taking his research. She believed he was alive. She knew he was alive, so she won’t let them take his hard work, even if they drag her out of the building.

  Which they did.

  Althea sat on the pavement outside the building of Waywood industries.

  “You no longer work here ma’am. Struggle further and we will be forced to call the enforcers,” the guard stated.

  Althea was about to argue when an explosion erupted within the building. The guards hurried inside, and Althea used the opportunity to get back in.

  It didn’t take long for her to find what caused the explosion as the ceiling collapsed and a behemoth made of some kind of green ore fell to the ground. The guards and mounted turrets on the ceiling began firing at the monster, but it barely flinched from the attacks.

  Althea ran away from the scene as the monster began swatting away the guards. This incident didn’t concern her, so she rushed to Lucas’s office. As expected, when she arrived there was another group trying to take Lucas’s research.

  “That doesn’t belong to you!” Althea yelled.

  “You’re trespassing,” one of the researcher’s present spoke.

  “And you’re a thief!” Althea yelled back.

  Three guards began approaching Althea, which quickly reminded her that she was alone and was not a mage. But she did have something. Althea threw the golem Lucas gave her as a gift. It wouldn't have been able to make a difference against the angel, but it could handle a few guards.

  The guards began firing at the shield golem, but it had no effect, and the golem continued charging. Obviously, what she was doing was a crime, but she could claim that the golem belonged to Lucas and was only defending his belongings.

  The golem dragged the guards out of the workshop and stood by the door to keep them out. She'll likely go to jail for this, but she doubted Leona would just let it happen once she found out what was going on.

  Althea could still hear the sounds of screaming of anger from the guards and researchers outside of the workshop. Althea didn’t expect more guards considering there was a monster loose in the building, so did what she came here to do.

  She entered Lucas’s office and looked for any important documents and files on his computer. Althea intended on taking everything and handing it over to his family while getting rid of everything here.

  “Just destroy everything.”

  Althea jumped at the sudden voice that came from somewhere. Her eyes landed on a floating drone with a wispy aura. “What the hell are you?!”

  “I am Perci. There’s no point saving any data here. All records here are of his finished products,” Perci explained. “It’s better to destroy everything.”

  “If you say so...” Althea proceeded to pull out a lighter, stood on a chair, and triggered the sprinklers, which accomplished nothing.

  The hard drives would still be obtainable, the blueprints were waterproof. “I was under the impression you were smart...” Perci commented.

  Althea looked offended.

  The first thing Lucas did when he found out that he was unconscious for three days was to call his mother and assure her he was alive. To say she was worried was an understatement. Apparently, she had tried calling every person Lucas ever knew, even the few friends he had in high school.

  After assuring her that he was fine, Lucas made his way back home. Which was going to take a while even though he was using his enhanced speed to cross the danger zone.

  When a particularly strong monster appears, he calls upon Ragnar to swiftly dispose of it as he passed. It was already night when he arrived at the temporary home his family was staying at.

  Valeri didn't hold back in conveying how worried she was. It took several hours of assuring her that he was fine and telling her the story of what happened.

  At some point during the night, Althea arrived looking completely haggard. She explained what happened and how some higher ups tried stealing his work. Althea also mentioned how long it took for her to destroy everything.

  But Lucas was mostly concerned about the fact that Leona was still in the hospital. Althea assured she was fine, but Lucas was never the type to be complacent.

  Lucas also heard about the monster that appeared in the company building. It was caused by an attempt to replicate his work of using monster cores to create golems. But the experiment resulted in reconstructing the monster’s body as a summoned creature but with no designated master, causing it to start attacking anyone.

  “I guess I won’t be going back there...” Lucas sighed.

  At the end of the day, Waywood was just another company ran by greedy people.

  Althea explained that his contract didn’t bind him to Waywood and simply resigning wouldn’t have any complications. He was just an employee after all.

  “Hold the fuck up!” Rose exclaimed from the dining room table. “He’s Iris?!”

  “You didn’t know?” Althea raised an eyebrow at Rose.

  “I thought he was just some good repair man!”

  A week had passed, and Lucas did his best to live normally.

  “Happy birthday Mom!”

  They exclaimed as they arrived at their newly renovated home. The appearance didn’t change other than the fact the house looked completely brand new. There was also the addition of a fence around the house that included the surrounding area.

  “Did you buy the surrounding land too?!” Rose exclaimed. “We can have a pool now!” she exclaimed as she ran around the open area.

  “It’s time to party!” Shina yelled as she arrived with her friends, carrying gifts and a cake.

  “Thanks for inviting us!” Althea arrived with Leona as well.

  Lucas tried inviting his office mates, but they declined, saying that they had things to settle back at the office. Lucas had already sent in his resignation letter, and it seemed his office mates were leaving the company as well.

  “Time for gifts!” Rose exclaimed as she approached Valeri with a red present.

  Rose’s gift was a designer bag made of monster leather. Shina’s and her friends’ gifts were different types of clothes. Shina bought her some expensive casual clothes, Monique bought her a ballroom dress, and Aurora got her some comfortable clothes to use when she’s at home. Althea and Leona’s gift was a brand-new microwave.

  As for Lucas, he pretty much led them to Valeri’s room to reveal a brand-new wardrobe of expensive clothes, accessories, make-up, and many more. Lucas promised to provide her a luxurious life, so that’s what he’ll do.