"Very well. First, allow me to say how sorry I am." Lith took both of her hands in his while looking Phloria in the eyes.
"I never meant to involve you in the mess that is my life. That's why I tried to push you away over and over back when we were at the White Griffon. Your persistence made me into a better man, but it also put you at great risk.
"I prepared for years for this moment, hoping that it would never come, but here we are. I can't guarantee your survival, only that I will do everything in my power to save you. The procedure could last long, but it will surely be agonizing.
"I can't anesthetize you and spare you the pain because, even though I can assist you, it will be your willpower to tip the scale between life and death. It's more pain than most men experience their whole life, so I would understand if you choose an easier way out." Lith said.
"Most men?" Phloria chuckled at the distinction.
For some reason, the tower felt like home. She could feel Lith even in the air she breathed and in the ground she stood upon. The pain in her abdomen was gone and so was the fear that she had felt while in Baba Yaga's hut.
"Indeed. Based on the women I helped during my career, each breakthrough is as painful as giving birth, but yours will be like Rena with her triplets." Lith replied.
"I guess it's a pain you're used to." Phloria said.
"Me, Tista, Protector, and a lot of other people I want you to meet." Lith said.
"What would you do in my shoes?"
"I don't know. I can only tell you that, in my shoes, I'm not ready to lose you."
"That makes the two of us." Phloria chuckled. "I don't want to die. Not here. Not now. Not like this."
"Then you'd better drink this." Lith took out two potions.
One was a purple potion filled with nutrients for Phloria and the other was a red top-grade tonic for himself. His body was battered from the mana abuse and he needed to spare as much Invigoration as he could for the procedure.
Even with the tower further boosting his recovery abilities, Lith needed a nap to return to his peak condition, but doing it would doom Phloria.
"Why the heck did you shut me and Friya up while you can give a speech?" Solus pouted.
"Because the mental state of the patient is vital for the success of every procedure and because it's Phloria's life that is at stake. She deserves to know everything she needs before making such an important decision." Lith replied.
"Sorry, guys. What did I miss?" Nalrond Warped back after finishing to treat all those in critical conditions.
"Nothing much." Protector replied. "Just Lith being cheesy instead of the usual sourpuss."
Nalrond knew there was a joke somewhere, but they didn't know each other for long enough that the Rezar could either understand it or laugh at it. He felt too indebted to Lith for introducing Protector to him and giving him a share of the silver mines.
Both Nalrond and Protector shapeshifted back into their human form, making the girls flinch.
"Wait, all this talk about hybrid confuses me to no end. What are you exactly?" Quylla said.
"It's complicated, but the short version is that I'm a purebred Emperor Beast, Nalrond is one of the Werepeople, a hybrid from birth, while Lith was born a human and became a hybrid later." Protector replied.
"I didn't understand anything aside from you being an Emperor Beast." Quylla clenched her temples. "Now, however, I'm only worried about Phloria. Why didn't she start Awakening and when will you start her treatment?"
"It didn't start because thanks to our mage tower, we can produce a mana pressure even above that of the mines." A snap of Lith's fingers revealed a magic circle surrounding Phloria.
It was identical to those used by Forgemasters to accumulate the world energy except for its lack of runes and the fact that it was perfectly stable. Solus had kept it invisible until that point because, even though she could move the boundaries of the circle at will, if Phloria noticed how small was her breathing space, she might have panicked.
"As for the treatment, we'll start right now." Another snap and everyone moved to the Heart of the tower, the control room for the arrays.
While Lith was talking, Nalrond was politely introducing himself to the Ernas as Selia had taught him. He was a man in his mid-twenties about 1.84 meters (6') tall, with a lean and toned body.
He had raven black hair, green eyes, and a perfectly shaven face. His bronze skin was a clear sign that he was a native of the Blood Desert.
Protector was a good-looking man, but he was too tall and rough-looking for Friya's taste, whereas Nalrond acted awkwardly but in a cute manner. He stuttered the same way with her, Phloria, and Quylla, making Friya feel treated like a person for once.
'Wow, he isn't staring nor spouting inappropriate compliments, I wonder why…' Her question found its answer when she noticed how familiar he was with Tista, almost at the same time when Lith's words hit her like a freight train.
"What do you mean, mage tower?" The three Ernas said in unison with their eyes almost popping out.
That day, legends and reality kept intertwining in front of their eyes. After meeting Baba Yaga, discovering about hybrids, Awakening, seeing Lith single-handedly exterminate two armies, and now discovering to be inside one of the fabled mage towers, their knees buckled.
Luckily for them, Solus had seats to spare and had them appear right under their falling asses.
"Who do you think I am? A god? I managed to fight like that only because Solus backed me up. Besides, why do you act so surprised? According to Solus's readings, the hut was a mage tower as well, so mine is the second you visit today." Lith replied.
He kept his eyes closed while taking deep breaths, not to use Invigoration, but to savor the energy that thanks to the tower coursed through him and slowly rejuvenated his body.
The Ernas became so pale that Solus worried they might faint at any moment. She conjured a cup of hot tea spiked with a bit of liquor and a lot of relaxing herbs for each one of them.
"Please, drink this, it should help." Solus said. "Phloria, you can't faint, no matter what. Otherwise, all we've done so far will be for naught."
Phloria complied, letting the hot beverage remove the chill of death from her bones and the herbs soothe her nerves.
"Wait a second. Why is your speaking pattern so similar and what's with all those 'we'?" She asked.
"We'll have plenty of time for explanations during the first phases of the procedure. Now I'll guide you step by step so that you can understand what's happening and not panic. Okay?" Lith said.
"Okay." Phloria finished her beverage in one gulp before hugging her sisters and then Lith to find the necessary courage to start the procedure.
She trusted him would make her survive, but the perspective of entering a world of pain that might last hours was far from alluring.
