Alec took a few days to study the other monsters and thoroughly examine their physiques before returning to the glass coffin. He was curious.

After asking Moira about it, he had confirmed that the woman in the glass coffin was Shim Lester's betrothed, who, unfortunately, became a monster. She had been a third-circle mage of the wind element.

Rita Moser.

Alec hadn't needed to ask Moira about her name. It was written below the coffin.

He did ask Moira about any possible boobytraps Shim might have set, though. She wasn't sure, but the two of them were pretty convinced he wouldn't do anything that could harm Rita. So, as long as they were careful, there shouldn't be anything to worry about.

Which meant Alec could possibly use Scan 2 on her as well to compare a mage turned monster to a human turned monster.

However, it wouldn't be that easy. She would be strong. That meant her magic resistance would be powerful as well.

Alec struggled to break through the monster wearing Milo's face's magic resistance with his current strength. Even if it was easier now that he had gotten used to the spell and optimized it, he still needed more raw power.

That had made his next goal to condense his second circle.

It was easier said than done, but it was also easier than the first circle, at least for most mages.

He didn't have to learn how to sense Aether from the beginning, and he had experience with the first circle.

However, the condensation of Alec's second circle would be different from his first. He wouldn't need to have his mana undergo metamorphosis and split into two. That was a relief.

His invisible, formless mana was floating around his body like a cloud of gas. Once he had enough, he could condense it into a second circle around his heart.

That was where his unique problem lay. His Heartguard, which kept his heart beating with the pressure of his first circle, would be affected by the addition of a second.

Alec had thought about this problem over the past weeks. He had reached a couple of possible solutions.

The one that seemed the most likely was to reinforce the Heartguard.

Instead of weakening the second circle by placing it further away from his heart, he just needed to make the Heartguard strong enough to endure the increased pressure. But if he did that before he had his second circle, the Heartguard would be too robust for his first circle, which might lead to his death.

In theory, he could reinforce his first circle and the Heartguard until his first circle was strong enough to delay the need for a second circle. It was a method Reina had mentioned he could make the most of when he shared his breakthrough with her.

It wasn't a bad method, and Alec had done it a little to test whether he could reinforce his Heartguard.

But condensing a second circle was a larger, more immediate jump. He could reinforce his circles and his Heartguard during downtime in the future.

Alec didn't see a reason why it wouldn't work except for one thing.

While he tested the method, he had confirmed that he needed to focus on what he was doing with his mana. Otherwise, he would lose control and might end up disturbing the balance of his circle and the Heartguard.

During the condensation of his second circle, it would be even more imperative that he made no mistakes.

But with the simple mind of a single human, that would be very difficult. He needed to give his wholehearted focus on two separate things at the same time, all the while keeping track of the progress of both things to make sure the balance remained.

Average multi-tasking skills weren't enough.

That train of thought and what he did during his last breakthrough had given him an idea.

Last time, he stretched his mind until it felt like his head would split in half.

So, why not split his mind in half?

Alec had sensed around carefully.

Compared to last time, his mind was 'larger,' more flexible, and more tolerant. It was something he could only chalk up to the amazing effects of the Poem of Neverlasting Wisdom.

His mind was on a whole different level from back then.

It was possible.

'It has to be.'

There were other options, but Alec didn't want to compromise on his strength.

So, after making sure that the other monsters were secured and that Moira wouldn't bother him, Alec locked himself in the bedroom, sat down cross-legged on the bed, and focused.

With his eyes closed and his senses sharp, he sensed his body first. The skeleton as the base, the muscles and tendons on it, and the skin on his flesh. He sensed the blood flowing through him like a river.

Inside the physical, he sensed the metaphysical. His mana flowing similarly to but separate from his blood. His magic circle. His Heartguard.

His focus rose and deepened.

Beneath the physical and inside the metaphysical, he grasped the existence of his mind. The flow of his thoughts called out to him.

He controlled his mind to elongate and stretch in opposite directions. The physical limitations of his body were not a constraint. The interference from his magic was nonexistent.

Alec felt his perspective on everything shift as he pulled his mind apart like gum. It was like his eyes were suddenly moving apart from each other.

Eventually, he reached his limit. Any further, and he started to feel pain.

Too bad. He was going to do it anyway.

It was maybe a little dangerous. If his mind broke, he would die, wouldn't he?

But Alec set aside all those thoughts and focused on the pain. He let it grow sharper, sharp enough to act like a knife and cut through his mind.

He focused his pain on the thinnest point between the two stretched sides of his mind.

Like a rubber band stretched taut, it snapped almost as soon as Alec started severing it.

Alec blacked out before he even realized.

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