How to respond? “Fine… Drop it then. What happened after this Lady blacked out?” You won’t answer? I’ll remember this. Poor An had another grudge added to his account.

“Sir Leory and his men won the fight, I picked you up, and we all continued to travel while you slept.”

“That’s it?” Somehow, Sol felt it was hard to believe. “What about that deer?”

“What deer?”

“This too? An… That thing came out of me, you can at least answer things about my cognitive model, right?” It was hard to describe Sol’s frustrations at this point. She felt as if she struggled for days to climb a rope only to discover the trail after it was cut off. What was the point of her fight if it provided no answers?

“Oh, no. I meant, what ‘deer’? I have no idea what that thing was, but it wasn’t a deer. It’s not a common thing for Assemblers to project their soul. It requires an immense amount of willpower, however it’s totally possible. Once you leave this lower plane, you’ll discover quite a bit of cool things exist out there.”

“Can I use it often?” Sol’s eyes lit up. It’s basically a summoned beast! Even though it looked sort of weak and could only act as a distraction, Sol figured she could treat it like a pet. As if to read the girl’s thoughts, An chuckled.

Sol blacked out before she could see the deer contort into its terrifying appearance. Rather than inform her, An thought it funnier to leave it be. “You can use it after solidifying your foundation a bit more. Right now, it’s more like a stress response than you properly ‘using’ it. As for what it actually is though, I have no idea. I can only guess it's a soul projection.”

Despite saying so, An knew he was incorrect in his heart. Soul projections, in the end, are nothing more than an Assembler using their spiritual awareness to collect, shape, and control free floating magic. Although it’s uncommon, it’s more of a trick than something useful. Although he lied a bit, the bulk of what he said remained the truth.

An made sure to keep his full attention on Sol during her fight and was able to understand from the flow of magic in her system and her mental state during the fight. Although he couldn’t identify the apparition, he was able to derive the triggers to use it.

An was certain that Sol would be able to use it freely as she grew in strength. The first time he saw the creature, it had almost no strength and was forced to steal Sol’s vitality in order to maintain itself. Although it knocked Sol out this time, there was no damage to her health and the creature was able to show an astonishing degree of power.

In a way, An was somewhat jealous of the beast. Sol had such little magic to fuel it with, and yet it was able to fight beyond its means. Such a thing was only possible if the beast had an incredibly high efficiency when consuming that little magic. 

It was hard to describe how rare such a task was. Any magic used by an Assembler would typically leak a small degree of its fuel into the environment. Most detection methods actually look for this leakage to signify danger. Even the Elders who lived for nearly 10,000 years were always trying to find ways to improve their efficiency.

“I can only keep practicing then…” Sol whispered to herself, however she felt the deer’s image was growing on her. Did she want to pet it? She wanted to pet it. Did she want to ride it? She absolutely wanted to ride it. The hint of a childish dream motivated Sol forward.

“Very well! Let’s move on then. Get out, I need to change. The sooner this problem is solved, the sooner we can leave. Since their ambush failed, I doubt the assaults will continue.” Though interrupted by the battle, Sol didn’t fail to remember the reason for her trip.

Spare clothes were brought to Sol and after kicking An out of the carriage, she quickly changed. After exiting the carriage, Sol felt gazes landing on her, but each of them would look away whenever their eyes met. Though confused, she continued on her way and entered the Iridescent branch building.

After her aggressive expansion, Iridescent had nearly 190 remote sites around the Blonsall Kingdom. Each site was located near critical cities, supplies, or throughways. This particular shop in Loughzar was situated near the territory’s main trade hub. In particular, it was almost next door to the 4 largest trading conglomerate headquarters.

Sol selected this location soon after Iridescent was created specifically for access to her competitors. At the time, she only wanted a location where exchanges between rivals could be conducted in relative peace, however with tensions rising between herself and Prince Roland, the location held a whole new meaning.

As the business had direct access to the company headquarters, it also had the ability to directly bargain with that conglomerate. Sol had already purchased bulk stock from the conglomerates at a premium in preparation for the future, however she still required this access.

Her plan preparations were only halfway done and she needed another year or two before she could strike back. With An tagging along, Sol visited the shop manager and built an understanding of the situation. After the discussion, Sol’s gaze was enough for An to understand her intentions and his figure disappeared from view.

She soon placated her manager and offered a bonus to help clear any lasting grudges. Talented personnel were rare and Sol wanted to maintain her company’s talent. The negotiations ended rather quickly as Sol’s treatment towards her employees was already above standard. 

Few would disobey her orders, much less quit their job due to a few hiccups. It was nigh impossible to find an equal position outside Iridescent. For this reason alone, many of Sol’s managers were willing to even lose an arm or leg rather than leave her employ.

The two concluded with some bantering after which Sol left the premises. Immediately after, she picked up a signature following her. She continued her walk back and found the signature disappeared at some point bringing a smile to her face.

Upon arriving at her carriage, Sol issued an order to the Knights to pack up. It was too dangerous to spend time in Loughzar. Although the first ambush failed, there could be a second and third if they stayed too long.

Sol entered her carriage and closed the door behind her. She then took a seat across the aisle from An with her gaze locked onto the 3rd party. The man’s limbs were loose and twisted at odd angles. Bruises littered his body and Sol could hear slight wheezing after every breath the man took. An clearly did a number to him.

“So? Who is this?”

An kicked the man as a threat. His breath hitched and he coughed a bit before replying. “This… This servant is Dunkey…” Silence filled the room before another kick roused the man once more. “This servant is innocent!”

Sol couldn’t help but smile at the statement. Her innocent face belied the depths of her heart. Rather than call the man out, Sol planted her elbow on the armrest, propped her chin in her palm and peered into the depths of the man’s eyes.

Although he felt there was a chance initially. The innocent smile and constant stare started to eat away at the man’s confidence. After another 10 minutes of silence, Sol spoke lazily. “Why were you following this Lady?”

Apparently, the man didn’t know Sol could track him. His face blanched, yet he fervently denied it. “This servant is innocent! The Lady must have seen incorrectly!”

“You doubt this Lady’s eyes? That’s interesting as this Lady didn’t need eyes to know you were following. This Lady asks one last time. Think carefully. Why were you following this Lady?” Although Sol maintained her genial smile, the man was no longer fooled. His joints were ruined, his limbs numb, and his freedom and life at the girl’s whim.

Another kick from An made Dunkey sweat bullets from the pain. He understood his situation and finally relented. Those behind him would never rescue him. His life was in his hands. “This servant asks to trade with the Lady! Information for this servant's life and freedom!”

“Sure. Answer this Lady’s questions then.” Her answer was so nonchalant, as though Dunkey’s life was trash to her. Although he didn’t believe her, Dunkey didn’t really have an option other than dying a dog’s death in vain. He soon answered.

“This servant was tasked with harassing and injuring anyone related to Iridescent by Prince Roland.”

“Prince Roland is behind this?” Sol’s brows furrowed. This wasn’t good. If Prince Roland had access to disposable Assemblers, how was Sol supposed to bring the man down? Her thoughts spun while waiting for confirmation, however she noticed the slight hesitation in the man.

“Who else was involved?” An acted faster than Sol and pressed the man. To deter any lies, he made sure to get a good kick in.

“Prince… Prince Elric.”