As the words left Alex's mouth, the world around him shifted instantly.

His bedroom walls dissolved into swirling starlight. The ceiling vanished, replaced by an endless void speckled with slowly turning galaxies. The floor beneath his feet became a vast, dark expanse dotted with countless glowing motes—like he was standing at the center of the cosmos itself.

Time seemed to stretch and soften as his consciousness fully stepped into the Astral Domain—a space that belonged to him and him alone.

Alex stood there for a moment, in the middle of that endless starfield.

With a flick of his fingers, the space around him rippled and reshaped.

The swirling stars folded inward, arranging themselves into pillars of condensed light. The void condensed into smooth, obsidian-like flooring. In a few seconds, the infinite cosmos transformed into a massive training chamber—wide, empty, and silent. It still held the feeling of the universe, but now in the form of a giant room whose walls shimmered faintly with starlight.

At the center of that chamber, resting on the ground, lay the bag Alden and Draven had dropped on him.

Alex walked over and stopped in front of it.

He took a deep breath. "Let's see if this works or not…"

He knelt and opened the bag.

Inside, dozens upon dozens of skill cores glowed softly—at least a hundred of them, piled together like gemstones made of frozen mana.

Some were small, dull, and faintly colored—F-rank monster cores, with their weak, wobbly light and unstable aura.

Others were brighter, more solid spheres—E and D-rank cores, their colors clearer: pale green, muted blue, faint amber.

Further down were the C and B-rank cores—crystal-clear structures that pulsed with stronger mana. Some spun faintly in place, others crackled with tiny arcs of lightning, swirls of mist, or thin tongues of flame trapped inside.

Near the bottom lay the real treasures: A-rank and even a few S-rank cores. These ones were beautiful and dangerous. Each radiated a dense, potent presence that made the air tremble slightly around them. One had a storm swirling inside it—dark clouds and miniature lightning bolts. Another contained a swirling vortex of water in miniature, spinning eternally. One glowed with pure, blinding white fire. Another was pitch black, absorbing light instead of reflecting it.

They were like caged fragments of the monsters they had once belonged to.

Alex studied them, eyes reflecting the many colors. "Useless," he said aloud. "You're here, right?"

[ I'm here, ] the system's voice replied. [ What are you trying to do with those? ]

"Do you remember the fight with the Seven Sins we had?" Alex asked.

[ Of course. I remember it perfectly, Host. ]

"That guy controlling them," Alex said, "was linking to those stronger beings through their mana cores. He'd implanted his mana signature into each one. If they disobeyed him, he could destroy their cores from the inside."

He picked up one of the mid-rank cores, turning it between his fingers. "These skill cores from monsters… should work on the same principle. A core is just a condensed, structured mass of mana and instinct. If I can rewrite that structure… I can use them."

[ Use them where? ] the system asked.

"You'll see soon," Alex answered.

---

Alex lifted his hand, and several other items appeared in flashes of light.

From his storage ring, he brought out a set of seven cores that glowed far brighter than the rest—each one uniquely colored, their mana incredibly dense and condensed.

"These are the cores from the Seven Sins," Alex said. "Analyze them thoroughly. Then we'll begin for real."

The seven cores hovered in the air before him, slowly rotating.

Each one pulsed with remnants of terrifying power: greed, wrath, envy, sloth, pride, gluttony, lust—twisted fragments of their former owners still clinging to the structures.

The system went to work.

[ Beginning detailed analysis, ] it said.

Lines of faint light traced themselves around each core, scanning every layer of their structure—outer shell, internal circulation routes, instinct matrices, and memory imprints. In Alex's Astral Domain, the process became visible: transparent diagrams of runic grids and branching mana channels appeared beside each core, slowly building themselves in mid-air.

[ Observation: These cores retain fragments of the Seven Sins' original will, ] the system reported. [ The controllers' signatures are burned deeply into the structure. Interfaces were created by imprinting a dominant mana pattern layer over the original beast matrix, allowing remote control and self-destruction. ]

The grids shifted, and the system began highlighting sections in different colors.

[ If we want to replicate or adapt the principle, we must do three things:

1. Erase the residual will and hostile signatures inside the cores.

2. Reinforce the structural integrity so they don't collapse when altered.

3. Imprint your mana signature into the empty channels without destabilizing them. ]

Alex crossed his arms. "So in short—we rip out their old 'mana signature,' keep the hardware, and then reprogram it."

[ Crude… but accurate, ] the system replied.

"Run some simulations," Alex said. "Start with the basic monster cores—the F and E-rank ones. If they explode, at least it won't hurt."

[ Understood. Running simulations on modification patterns now. ]

Schematics shifted again. The system showed hypothetical scenarios: injecting death energy into a core, its structure cracking, then reinforcing it with life energy, making the shell flexible instead of brittle.

Another simulation showed Alex's mana signature overlaying the existing pattern, then the entire structure shattering from overload.

[ Preliminary conclusion, ] the system said. [ We can use death energy to kill the residual willof th beast left inside these beast cores. Then we use controlled life energy to stabilize and prevent them from collapsing. Afterward, we can implant your mana signature as a governing layer, giving you full control over how they function. ]

Alex's eyes lit up faintly. "Good. Then let's do it. In here, creation and destruction move according to my will. Let's see if we can pull this off."

[ On it, Host. ]

They started with the lowest-ranking cores.

Alex placed several F-rank cores in the air before him, letting them hang in a loose cluster.

"Begin with these," he said.

A thin film of pitch-black energy—death energy—coated one of the small cores, seeping into its structure. The faint, muddled instinct inside the core twitched once… and then went still as the death energy devoured it.

Almost immediately, thin cracks began to spiderweb across the surface.

[ Structural integrity dropping, ] the system warned.

A soft cracking sound echoed.

The core shattered into dust.

Alex clicked his tongue. "Again. Adjust it."

The system altered the pattern. This time, when the death energy entered the second core, a gentle, pale-green glow of life energy followed right behind, weaving itself into the shell like a reinforcing net. The internal instinct matrix was erased, but the outer structure stayed intact—barely.

The core flickered, unstable.

Then it popped like a bubble.

"Too much life energy," Alex muttered. "It's forcing it to regenerate the original pattern."

[ Agreed. Reducing life energy density. Trying again, ] the system said.

They repeated the process.

Core after core.

Sometimes the shells exploded immediately. Other times, they twisted and warped, turning into strange, useless lumps of mana crystal before disintegrating. A few managed to survive for a few seconds before collapsing, unable to handle Alex's mana imprint.

"Again," Alex said.

Death energy thinned, life energy recalibrated.

"Again."

The patterns on the holographic schematics shifted each time—ratios, flows, timing windows adjusted by milliseconds.

"Again."

Slowly, incrementally, progress crept forward in the silent.

Meanwhile, inside the royal palace…

Twenty-four hours had passed.

But there was still no movement from Alex's room. The door remained shut. No sound, no response.

Alden, Alicia, and Evelyn stood in the corridor, exchanging uneasy glances.

Elaria's voice broke the silence. "Does he… do that often?"

Alicia shook her head. "How would we know? It's only been a few days since he got back here."

"Don't worry," Alden said, trying to sound casual. "He probably just overworked himself and slept the whole day."

He frowned. "But then… why did he ask me for all those skill cores?"

Evelyn's eyes narrowed. "What skill cores?"

"Before he went to sleep the other day," Alden said, "he told me and Draven to bring him all the skill cores from the royal treasury. Said he was going to try something."

Alicia turned and smacked the back of his head.

"Ow!" Alden yelped. "What was that for?!"

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" Alicia snapped.

"I just remembered, okay!" Alden protested, rubbing his head.

Before they could argue further, the door to Alex's room suddenly burst open.

Alex stepped out, eyes sharp, expression unreadable.

Alicia and Alden rushed toward him.

"What the hell were you doing in there?" Alden demanded. "Not opening the door for an entire day?"

"Do you have any idea how worried we were?" Alicia added.

"I don't have time for this," Alex said in a low voice.

Then, louder: "Erwin."

The shadows in the corridor rippled.

A man stepped out from the darkness and took a knee in front of Alex, head bowed. "What can I do for you, Your Majesty?"

"Remember what I told you," Alex said. "About capturing all those bastards kidnapping civilians and experimenting on them?"

"I've already found every single one of them, Your Majesty," Erwin replied. "They're all locked in the prison. Ready to lick your feet whenever you wish."

Everyone present turned to look at Alex with a slightly different expression now.

Elaria tilted her head. "So you *do* have a fetish like that, huh."

Alex's expression darkened. "No, I do not have a fetish like that."

He exhaled. "Let's go. I want to see those bastards."

---

Erwin led them down into the depths beneath the palace.

They passed through reinforced doors and guarded checkpoints until they reached a cold, confined prison block. The air smelled of damp stone, blood, and fear.

Inside a large, heavily warded cell, dozens of cultists were huddled together. Some glared with bloodshot eyes, others trembled, their bodies already bearing the marks of Erwin's interrogation methods. Shackles inscribed with anti-mana restraints bound their wrists and ankles.

Among them, one man stood out.

He was slumped against the back wall, chains digging into his skin. His hair was long and matted with sweat and blood, hanging over a gaunt face. One eye was swollen shut, the other burned with hatred. Bruises and cuts marked his arms and neck. His lips were split, and dried blood trailed from the corner of his mouth.

Despite the torture, his gaze was still defiant.

Erwin pointed at him. "This one is the leader, Your Highness. He's the one who directed the experiments."

The man spat blood onto the floor. "Leave me alone, you bastards," he rasped. "I'll kill you all… every last one of you…"

Alex stepped into the cell.

He didn't say anything at first.

Then his fist crashed into the man's gut, folding him over. Another punch slammed into his jaw, sending him sprawling to the side. Alex grabbed him by the collar and dragged him back up, slamming him against the wall.

"Shut up and listen," Alex said coldly. "You're going to take me to every place you experimented in. Every lab. Every hideout."

The man coughed, blood dripping from his mouth, but Alex had already turned away.

He looked at Erwin. "You have one hour. Make sure he gives up all the locations. Use whatever methods you want. Just make sure he doesn't die."

Erwin's lips curled into a thin smile. "As you command."

Alex's gaze shifted to the rest of the cultists in the cell.

"They get the same treatment," he said. "I don't want a single one of them dying. Not yet."

A flicker of fear passed through the prisoners' eyes as Erwin's subordinates stepped forward with cold, efficient movements.

---

A short while later, Alex stepped back out of the prison block into the upper corridor.

He handed Alicia a sheet of coordinates Erwin had already started compiling. "These are the locations Erwin managed to extract so far," Alex said. "Labs, safe houses, hidden facilities."

He met her eyes. "Seize every one of these places. I want all those labs shut down. And bring back everyone who was used in their experiments. Every survivor."

Alicia nodded firmly. "Got it. But what are you planning to do with them?"

Alex looked ahead, eyes hard. "We'll find out soon enough."

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