Scarlett’s voice cut through the stillness of the command hall. “We’ll depart immediately, Lord Kael. This matter concerns Lord Sentinel himself. There’s nothing left for us here.”

Kael gave a single nod, then ended the call. The projection flickered out.

The hall fell silent, heavy with the weight of what had just been spoken. Scarlett broke it with a brisk command. “Prepare for departure. Transports are ready.”

Adrian said calmly, “I’ll return on Rune Master Selena’s transport.”

Scarlett gave him a glance, found no room to argue, and simply said, “Fine.” Her tone carried the weariness of someone who had witnessed too many impossibilities in one day.

…

Within the hour, the journey back to HQ began.

Even Dorian and Mira boarded. This was his temporary mission, since this fortress was out of danger now, he would be transferred to a different one.

Among the crowded transports, one transport drew the most attention. three runemasters aboard the same vessel, Adrian among them. The inscribers fought for the chance to step inside, but only a lucky few succeeded.

Whispers followed Adrian as he walked the corridors. “That’s him.” “Did you see what he did to those krakens?”

Selena noticed the stares but ignored them, she had long grown used to reverence. Still, her mind replayed what she had witnessed in the fortress. Even for her, it was difficult to accept.

She gestured for Adrian and Dorian to follow, Mira clinging close to her father’s side. “Come. We have much to discuss.”

The transport’s interior was luxurious, befitting humanity’s greatest Rune Master. Polished metal walls bore intricate inscriptions that hummed with protective energy.

In a private cabin, shielded from prying eyes, Selena finally allowed her composure to crack. Her golden tattoos pulsed with agitation.

The moment the door sealed, her lips curved in a sly smile. “I never thought Elara’s little boy would become so powerful,” she mused, half-smiling. “I can already picture her reaction. Hah, it would be priceless.”

She arched a brow at Adrian. “So tell me, boy. Why choose to travel with me? Did your mother tell you all the things I did to her when we were brats? Hm? You planning revenge now that you think you’re untouchable?”

Adrian blinked, genuinely lost. “No. She never mentioned it. And my mother doesn’t need me to fight her battles. She can deal with you herself.”

Dorian coughed softly, trying to hide his amusement. Mira’s eyes widened at Adrian’s casual dismissal of the legendary Rune Master.

Selena snorted, momentarily forgetting the spectacle he had caused hours before. “Hmph. Your mother never did raise you with proper respect, did she?”

Mira exchanged a baffled glance with her father. Watching the two greatest Rune Masters alive bicker like children was surreal.

Adrian tilted his head. “Actually, the reason I came was to ask something. Those runes etched across your body… why? Decoration? Or are you showing off?”

His tone was deliberately teasing. The golden lines traced delicate patterns across her face and hands, pulsing with contained power.

Selena’s eyes flashed. “Cheeky brat. I can see you inherited your mother’s tongue. Just because you skimmed through Volume III doesn’t make you a master of everything.”

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She jabbed a finger at her glowing tattoos. “These are strengthening runes. Constantly strengthening, layered into flesh. Lord Sentinel himself once said some of us would journey into space, and even the entire humanity will someday step beyond the planet.”

“Tell me, do you think our fragile human bodies can withstand the void? I’ve been preparing for that day for years. Testing it on myself before anyone else.”

The cabin fell quiet.

Adrian studied her in silence, then nodded. At last, he understood why she bore the title of humanity’s greatest runemaster. She had risked her own body, testing theories others would never dare.

He remembered the strengthening spell he created once, which was something not everyone could learn, so this felt like a far better solution for the entire humanity.

Still, his lips quirked. “They’re only basic strengthening runes, aren’t they? At that pace, you’ll still be scribbling them into your bones for decades before it matters.”

Selena’s teeth clicked audibly. Her golden tattoos flared brighter, responding to her irritation.

“Better than nothing! Don’t think everyone is like you, boy. We’re human. You… sometimes, I wonder if you even are.”

The playfulness vanished from her voice, replaced by seriousness. Mira shifted uncomfortably beside her father, sensing the sudden tension.

“Enough chatter. The runes are basic because only they can work on pure mana. But since you created that ink, I can etch advanced runes. That will change everything.”

“So you already have advanced versions prepared?”

Selena smirked, her confidence returning. “Of course. Who do you think I am?”

She turned to Dorian, extending her hand. “Dorian! Hand me that new ink.”

Dorian reached into his satchel, producing a vial of the Source-infused ink Adrian had created.

Selena bent over the polished table, her movements precise and practiced. Her fingers danced across the parchment, inscribing complex patterns that pulsed with contained power.

Within moments, she held up the finished scroll. The rune glowed faintly, its lines seeming to shift and breathe.

“If etched on the flesh, this accelerates strengthening severalfold. Far faster than the basics.”

Adrian studied the design, his Source-enhanced perception dissecting every curve and intersection. The craftsmanship was flawless.

He looked up, meeting her expectant gaze. “Impressive. But do you even know how much strength the body needs to survive in space?”

Selena’s frown deepened, her confidence wavering slightly. “Not precisely. But Lord Sentinel can. His body endures what no S-rank can.”

She gestured at the air, as if grasping for certainty. “So stronger than S-rank, surely.”

“Then this isn’t enough,” Adrian said simply.

“Even with this, decades would not be enough.”

He pulled the ink closer. Mira watched in fascination as he began inscribing, his movements fluid and confident.

The rune took shape under his hands, weaving concepts drawn from all three volumes. Space affinity principles merged with strengthening concepts he long understood to create his spell, and his comprehension was more deeper now.

The spell he created before worked passively for some time, but it still needed his own mana to cast.

With runes using his source-infused ink, he felt he could break many limitations that were in the spell.

Finally, he created something entirely new.

The finished rune gleamed white-grey, its surface seeming to contain swirling galaxies. A living script that pulsed with otherworldly power.

Selena leaned forward, her golden tattoos dimming as she tried to comprehend what she was seeing. The complexity was staggering.

“This,” Adrian said, setting it before her, “draws mana not from the user, but from the surroundings. Passively.”

He traced one of the intricate patterns with his finger. “And it carries space concepts inside it… they stimulate the body as if it were already standing in the void, acclimating it slowly.”

“Not only does it strengthen flesh, it prepares the body for space itself.”

The air in the chamber grew still. Even the transport’s gentle hum seemed to fade into silence.

Selena’s hands trembled as she reached for the parchment. Her fingers stopped just short of touching it, as if afraid it might burn her.

“This isn’t possible,” she whispered. “The mana requirements alone should be astronomical.”

Adrian shook his head. “The space concepts create a self-sustaining loop. It actually becomes more efficient over time.”

Dorian cleared his throat, his voice hoarse with awe. “Master Selena, this design… it’s beyond legendary classification.”

Mira nodded mutely, her young mind struggling to process what she’d witnessed. The casual way Adrian had revolutionized centuries of runic theory.

Selena stared at the design, the words catching in her throat. This wasn’t advanced. It wasn’t even something she could classify.

A rune which was beyond anything, born before her eyes in mere minutes. What had taken her decades to theorize, he had surpassed in moments.

She had always been the one to show new things to others. Even other rune masters were like children compared to her knowledge and skill.

But now, for the first time in her life, Selena Valcrest felt herself falling behind. The sensation was as foreign as it was humbling.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep