In the few precious hours of shut-eye Mark managed, the camp had transformed around him. When he stirred awake—well rested—he found the place unrecognizable. The loyalists, joined by several neutrals, had reinforced their position. What had been a haphazard barricade was now a wall buttressed with pillars and fitted with breakaways.

The ground had been swept clear of rubble and remnants of the old world, leaving open lanes for movement. At the very center of the defenses, a secondary shelter had been raised—sturdy enough for the tenders to hole up in.

Mark rolled his shoulders, working out the knots from sleeping on stone. He'd picked a quiet corner for his nap, but he knew the camp hadn't hushed itself for his sake. What surprised him most was that he had actually managed to sleep at all.

Now, with shelter secured, the camp bustled. Supplies were sorted and handed out in careful measures, the idea being that if they were split apart, each person would still have enough to endure.

Mark dug through his inventory and pulled out the rations his faction had pressed on him before. Preserved and long-lasting, they would have kept him going for weeks. He walked them over to the soldier in charge of distribution, dropping the bundle onto the growing pile. He still had more than enough to live on—and, if it came to it, the points to buy more.

From what he knew, Sam had just lain down to, so she wasn't going to be up anytime soon. Who knew where Jon was at this stage, probably out on the front line, watching.

That left Mark with Gibby's request: teach others the ward.

The full version—the one projecting outward to contain external energy—was too advanced. They would have to start simple: shielding themselves first, and only then worry about anything larger.

For that to work in time, though, the learners needed to be competent. Mana users were best. Jade came to mind immediately, but she was currently the only thing concealing them. Nathan was a good candidate too—if he had the time.

Then Mark caught himself. What if people relied on someone else to shield them and got separated? That would be worse than useless. No—everyone who could learn needed to learn.

So he opened the offer to anyone with a free moment. To his surprise, nearly twenty people stepped forward. All he had to do was mention that the technique would make them harder for the Corrupted to detect, and volunteers arrived in droves. Those who didn't were either on duty or asleep.

Once the lessons began, Mark noticed something obvious in hindsight: the fewer attributes a person carried, the easier the ward came to them. With less energy to hold in check, their wills grasped the shape of the technique faster and kept it stable longer. The skilled and the tenders were the first to manage it cleanly.

Still, the results were uneven. Many could only maintain the ward briefly before it sprang leaks. Some, however, excelled. Nathan, for instance, managed to shield himself and another in less than two hours.

By the end of the session, more than a dozen people could at least mask their own energies. It wasn't perfect, but it was something.

Mark cautioned them against using it while he was covering the group, though. Their unstable wards interfered with his adjustments, and when one collapsed, it made things harder on him.

With that out of the way, he realized they still had a lot of time before 'morning' arrived.

If the days here were anything to go by, then the night would be just as long. Traveling in this darkness was a far cry from home.

At least there, they still had the moon to guide them. Right now, all Mark could see were pitch black skies that hung over the world like a blanket, suffocating it. The only thing holding the shadows at bay were the few lights, flames, and skills illuminating their campgrounds.

The next problem was rather obvious, the Courruption.

Before Mark had gone to sleep, he'd set up a construct with his remaining energy. When he'd woken up, he'd reasserted control, only to find its strength almost entirely gone. It had kept the worst of the putrid energy at bay, but a lot had still leaked in.

In the two hours that Mark had slept, people Cv's had probably grown dramatically. Mark found himself an open spot near one of the abandoned houses and checked on his construct again. Even now, he was pumping large quantities of Prana into his [Engrave Mana]. Mark kept it as an invisible dome over their space. It would not serve to stop physical attack or even others' vision, but it would keep everyone from being further affected by the Corruption.

Which was rapidly becoming a problem. As things stood, every time Mark rested, there would be leaks in their defenses, and while it was manageable right now, over time, it would compound. Until people started turning in front of them. So Mark had to come up with an alternative.

It was then that he actually had time to inspect [Warden of Corruption]. The spell he'd made with [Animated mind] and [Draw Corruption] was certainly a powerful spell according to the description, but he now needed to test how effective it was.

According to its description, it would allow him to pull in the surrounding Corruption and store it.

Still, even though it was a spell the system had given him, Mark had long since learned how foolish it was to do these kinds of tests alone.

'Jon, can you hear me? Where are you?' Mark called through their link.

The response came back quickly.

'I'm around, Mark. What's up?' Jonathan shot back in seconds.

Mark sent the current situation through the link, along with the fact that Sam was still resting. He didn't want to wake her, so Jon would have to fill in.

'Alright, let her sleep. I'll be there in five. Don't start without me,' he responded.

Mark checked his Prana levels and hummed to himself. Forming his core was the only thing keeping him afloat—without it, he'd have burned out long ago from the energy demands.

Less than five minutes later, Jonathan arrived and dropped down beside him with a heavy thud.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. "Gibby and Andy are covering for me, but let's make this quick," he said, his words dragging as though each one weighed him down.

Mark studied him for a moment. Subtle ripples of Aura bled off Jonathan's frame—a clear sign he was sustaining a skill. It couldn't have been costly on its own, but the constant drain explained the exhaustion in his eyes.

Sensing Mark's hesitation, Jonathan gave a low hum. "Don't worry about it. It's just enhancing my senses—lets me react faster."

Mark's mouth tightened into a thin line. He held back the urge to lecture; Jonathan knew the dangers of skill overuse better than anyone. Still, the man should have been resting. "...Alright. I'm going to start. Just make sure to stop me if it gets out of hand."

Jonathan gave a slow nod, lids heavy as he fixed his gaze on Mark.

Mark closed his eyes and brought his hands together, palms open and facing upward. Triggering [Warden of Corruption] was almost effortless—even smoother than his old [Draw Corruption].

The air stirred as Corruption surged toward him, but before he could brace, it began to bleed out of the people closest to him. He hadn't intended to draw from them yet, so the sudden influx caught him off guard.

Jonathan tilted his head, clearly attuned to the shift in energy. To most, it would be imperceptible, but Mark saw it plainly: Corruption seeping out like vapor. From Jonathan, it rose from his chest, forming a thin, glistening chain of ichor that reached for Mark, coiled around his wrist, and sank deep into his veins before rushing to his core.

Mark didn't panic even though his reserves filled up rapidly. Instead, he funneled the Corruption up through his arms and into the waiting vessel.

Black tar began to pool in his waiting hands.

At the moment Mark began the spell, an Animated mind came into being. Mark could feel it as easily as a third hand. It waited patiently like a lifeless puppet, but the moment the Corruption arrived, it woke up.

Until now, the Animated minds Mark created were one-dimensional. Their only objective had been to follow his guidelines to the letter. However, what came into being was something more. Something alive.

Mark felt as Mana and Prana encasing the Corruption before it could get any funny ideas. He could also tell that there was a required ratio; Mark couldn't just shove Corruption into the Warden. He needed to make sure it had sufficient Energy to combat the internal pressure. No sooner had he gotten the balance right than the animated mind came into being.

Mark was immediately assaulted with desire spreading through the connection. The warden wanted a task, no, it was a demanding one.

Mark had scarcely thought this far ahead, but he had to make a choice now. The ambient Corruption was thinning out as it rushed into Mark and fed the growing warden. Even the stone below Mark began to grow slick with black muck as it latched onto him.

Mark could sense the moment when the ratio was stabilized. Any more and it would throw things out of balance. Mark closed the connection and sealed in a single thought. Imprinting it upon the warden.

"Protect us," Mark muttered before the spell solidified. He just managed to force the blueprints of [Force bolt] and [Regenerate] into the spell before it closed for good.

When Mark opened his eyes, the cold, slimy sensation in his hand had been replaced by a warm sphere. There, floating just in front of him, was a dull violet orb. It was reminiscent of his old [Animated minds], but there was one key difference. He could see through the sphere to the middle of the spell, where a writhing back core currently sat.

The outer casing of the spell gleamed like reinforced glass, unwavering.

Mark had not had the available resources to push the spell to its limits, but over time, he could feed it as he saw fit.

To Mark's surprise, the warden drifted out of his hands and into the air of its own accord. It orbited him for a couple of rotations before wandering towards Jonathan.

Mark blinked in wonder. He could still feel his connection to the spell as it ambled about. If he wanted, all it would take was a thought, and it would return.

This was unlike how he was used to controlling spells.

Normally, one had to direct their energy toward the outcome they desired. If one didn't complete every step, the spell would fail.

The only exceptions to this rule were Ideals, but this was nothing like worship.

At least that's what Mark thought. It felt more like when he and Sam were working together. Only in this case, the spell was working with him, similar to a partnership.

It was strange; neither Mana nor Prana was capable of this kind of feedback. So was it the Corruption? It was the only aspect of the equation that had changed.

For a moment, Mark wondered if this counted as directly using Corruption, but seeing as the system had not poked its head in, it must be skirting the line. It had created this spell after all.

No, if Mark were to guess, he was using the Corruption more like a sacrifice. The Mana and Prana would burn through the Corruption to gain a harmonizing effect, making them more effective at their jobs.

Opening his hand, Mark called to the warden. The spell suddenly stopped wandering around Jonathan and rushed to Mark, slamming into his palm with numbing force. The spell was incredibly stable, so much so that it was a weapon in its own right. Mark had the warden zip around himself several times to pick up speed and sent it at one of the nearby houses. There was a caphionus crack as a stone wall crumbled inwards, before his warden returned to his side. Mark tensed, glad they had soundproofing in place.

Jonathan whistled.

"So that things made up of my Corruption?"

Mark glanced back at Jon. He'd unintentionally drawn the guys' Corruption out, and normally that would be a good thing, but Mark then remembered that he had use for it now.

In many ways, Jon and Mark's warden were the same. Both may use the release of energy that came about when Corruption was destroyed. Jonathan with his transformation and Mark spell as reserves.

Mark was a bout to apologise when Jonathan shook his head.

"Don't worry about it, I have a feeling I'll be getting more of the stuff where I want it or not."

Mark nodded.

"Thanks for keeping an eye open. I should be good now. I'm going to look at my max-level skills now and then. Head over to Sam. She said she was close to forming her core, so you should go see her. I'll be over as soon as I'm done."

Jonathan chuckled, but his grin shifted into a playful scowl—the look of someone who hated losing.

"Dammit, she's trying to pull away now?"

Mark chuckled.

"Remember, Aura and Prana take longer to gather than Mana. I only pulled ahead because of my extra attributes. The fact that we're just barely ahead proves how fast you are."

Jonathan snorted and rolled his eyes.

"That's an excuse only third place can make. I'm going to go use [meditation], maybe I can still catch up."

"What about getting back to the frontline?" Mark chortled.

Jonathan's eyes darkened once more, but he quickly refocused.

"I'll tell them I'm going to rest. Also, why not send this little guy? It seemed almost self-aware," He said, pointing at Mark's warden.

Mark scratched his head.

"I guess I could? I'll go over there and explain what I'm doing for now."

Jon shot him a thumbs up before heading in Sam's direction. Mark couldn't help the grin that broke out over his face. He'd wanted to get Jon to rest, who knew it would be the guy's competitive nature that would end up saving the day.

Mark headed to the frontline before dropping off the spell with Gibby. As far as Mark could tell, there didn't seem to be a limit on how far from the spell he could be. When it left him, it seemed to function completely separately. Though the people he left it with didn't seem all that keen on having it there, even Gibby gave the warden a second glance as it orbited him.

It was no danger to them, so Mark didn't give it a second thought. Right now, he needed to check out his spells.

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