Karen and Purr

Purr pouted, staring at Karen. Then, She quietly lifted her cat paw and placed it in Karen's palm. She did not say she was willing, simply because she had not yet recovered from her earlier emotions, sniffling with occasional nods. Karen reached down, picked Purr up, sat on the bed, and rested her in his lap. Purr sprawled over his thighs, looking away from him. From time to time, she extended a paw to shove aside the hand Karen placed on her head, yet she never leaped down from his knees. After living as a cat for over a century, she still retained the temperament of a pampered young lady. That only went to show just how willful Purr had been in the past. Still, this was for the best. If she had interacted with him from the beginning like an old matriarch, and every day upon opening his eyes he had to face a gloomy, decrepit black cat perched beside his bed, nagging incessantly, life would have felt blanketed in perpetual gray. "So, what should we do next?" Karen asked. "Call the radio goblin in to help spread out the scroll." Even though Purr was still sulking a little, she did not dare throw a tantrum over something this important. Karen glanced at Kevin, who immediately took the hint and bolted out of the study. Before long, Kevin led Alfred back inside. Alfred held a scroll in his hands, clearly prepared well in advance. "Young Master, are you ready?" Alfred inquired respectfully. "Yes." "Young Master, why don't you..." Judging by the start of his sentence, it seemed he meant, *Why don't you reconsider?* Yet the moment Alfred caught Purr's sudden, sharp glare, he dropped the teasing. "Young Master, why don't you sit on the carpet." "Alright." Holding Purr in his arms, Karen climbed down from the bed and sat on the rug. Alfred produced a pristine white scroll and spread it out before Karen. Inside were intricate, complex runes. Purr hopped off Karen, crouched opposite him, and pressed her cat paw onto the scroll. "Young Master, please place your hand on the scroll as well. Shortly, when I activate the scroll, please do not resist its pull on your soul. The symbiosis contract ritual is not particularly difficult, but both parties must be willing and offer no resistance." "And after that?" Karen asked. Purr spoke up. "After that, you must enter the soul space to find me. Once you locate me, transfer your soul power..." At this point, Purr paused, organizing her words before continuing: "Once you find me, cut your finger and let a few drops of blood fall into my mouth. Inside the soul space, that should serve as the medium for transferring soul power." Alfred remarked, "Young Master, this signifies that in this symbiotic bond, you will hold the dominant role. Purr is recognizing you as her master." "Radio goblin, you don't have to put it so bluntly." Alfred chuckled. "There are only two reasons why you agreed. First, this is currently your only way to break the deadlock and reclaim your former strength. Second, you know very well that entering a symbiotic contract with Young Master—even with Young Master as the dominant partner—is by no means a loss for you." "Woof!" Kevin chimed in. "What did Kevin say?" Karen asked. Purr did not translate. Alfred said, "I suspect Kevin means the third reason is squirrel mandarin fish." Kevin nodded his canine head with a grin. "Enter the soul space through the scroll, find her, and drip three drops of my blood into her mouth. And then?" Karen was prudent by nature. Of course, it was not that he distrusted Purr; he simply did not want to find himself at a loss should unexpected situations arise. "After that, we simply await the outcome," Alfred replied. "The symbiosis contract ritual carries a certain degree of danger, but with Young Master's soul and body, as well as Purr's soul and body, there is almost no need to worry about that. However..." "However what?" "However, I am concerned that with the influx of so much Light-attribute power, whether Young Master will be able to maintain the balance between Light and Order within your body. If the balance collapses, it might trigger unforeseen complications." "I waited until he became an Inquisitor before starting. He has already determined his path, so it won't be an issue," Purr explained. "Besides, his foundation as an Inquisitor is rock solid. There won't be any trouble. If there were going to be a problem, it would have surfaced back during his purification." Alfred disregarded Purr's explanation and looked to Karen. "Therefore, I still ask Young Master to make the decision." "There won't be any problem. If what enters is purely power, this body of mine can definitely bear it. If it is faith, there is even less reason to worry, because I don't believe in gods to begin with." At the stage of God's Shepherd, Karen placed himself where a god was supposed to be. Since he stood at the center of his own path and drove his own carriage, there was no possibility of foreign faiths seizing the reins. "Then there is no issue. I look forward to Young Master successfully completing the symbiosis contract." Alfred felt that the young master was advancing toward the kind of state Old Master Diss once inhabited—where, despite holding the rank of Inquisitor, the title of Inquisitor could no longer begin to describe him. At this moment, the young master's true strength far surpassed that of an ordinary Inquisitor. Once the symbiosis contract succeeded, then the young master... Alfred could no longer make a concrete estimate, as his power had long since overflowed the confines of the Inquisitor tier, defying ordinary metrics of measurement. "Alright, let us begin," Karen said. With that, Karen and Purr each placed a hand and a paw onto the scroll. Kevin crouched nearby with his mouth open, watching in eager anticipation. First, Purr would establish the symbiotic bond, and then Karen would help him unseal a portion of his seal. He would not fight Purr for priority, because he knew that someone who slept in a doghouse had no right to cut in line before someone who slept on the bed. Alfred began chanting an incantation. He did not speak the Maklai language, but Gersa—a tongue passed down from several eras ago, rumored to be the language of the race that originated formations. Though that race had long vanished, their language had been handed down through generations of techniques, becoming the dedicated incantation for certain spells. Once the chant concluded, Alfred's eyes turned crimson as he fixed his gaze on the scroll. The scroll emanated a purple glow that gradually spread over Purr and Karen. Karen felt a pulling force tugging at his soul. Lowering all defenses, he leaned into it willingly. ... *Buzz!* When Karen opened his eyes, he found himself standing before the castle of Allen Manor. He was entirely alone; not a single servant was in sight, leaving the grounds eerily quiet. *Is this Purr's soul realm?* Without hesitation, Karen stepped into the castle. Yet the moment he walked in, he discovered the interior decor had changed—or rather, while the exterior bore the appearance of Allen Manor's castle, the inside was none other than the first-floor living room of the Inmerlais house at 13 Mink Street. It was a scene deeply familiar to Karen. Even so, Karen did not linger, heading straight up the stairs. The second floor was dead silent. Karen reached the third floor, his gaze first drifting toward the third-floor windowsill—the spot where Purr loved to sprawl every day at home, basking in the sun. Only this time, there was no trace of Purr on the sill. *Is she inside one of the rooms?* Karen opened the doors one by one. First, he opened Grandfather's bedroom. It was empty, yet Karen let his gaze rest on the bed for a few moments longer, believing that in the real world back home, Grandfather was likely lying in that very spot right now. Next, Karen opened Grandfather's study, but Purr was not there either. Finally, Karen opened his own bedroom. Because the bed in Karen's bedroom faced the door directly, the moment he pushed it open, he spotted a figure lying upon his mattress. Before he could get a clear look, the bedroom door and the space within suddenly began to expand at an astonishing speed. Immediately after, a brilliant expanse of white enveloped everything, replacing the surroundings entirely. Karen was forced to close his eyes and take a long moment to adjust. He knew this was not literal glare; his soul simply needed to recalibrate to the environment here. At last, Karen opened his eyes again and found himself standing at the foot of a flight of stairs. Before him stood a crystalline white dais. Setting his feet in motion, Karen began to ascend. The dais was vast, but the steps were few. Karen reached the summit in short order and beheld a holy white bed. Resting upon it was... It was not a cat, but a person—a woman. Karen walked to the bedside and looked down at the young woman. She wore a red cowl, a strand of pearls around her neck, a long black dress, and brown leather boots on her feet, with a wand resting lightly in her hand. Her features were exquisite, graced with just a hint of charming baby fat. She was breathtakingly beautiful, with an air of effortless indolence. Karen finally understood why the young patriarch of Dark Moon Island had been infatuated with Purr to such an extent. Even setting everything else aside, Purr's looks were undeniably striking. Moreover, combined with an understanding of her personality, one could easily picture the expressions and gestures driven by her young-lady temperament once she awoke. It felt intensely captivating—and entirely fitting. Purr Allen, the greatest genius in the history of the Allen family. A willful young lady who had reached Rank 9 of the family faith system at an early age, only to complain that the Ancestor Allen was too weak, which robbed her of the joy of climbing toward the pinnacle of faith, prompting her to utter things like, *If I had known, I should have joined a church instead of believing in some ancestor.* Karen suddenly felt an impulse to pinch her nose. He thought it, and he did it—though rather than pinching, he gently stroked the bridge of her nose with a finger. *Hah, what a cursed, strangely unfamiliar yet familiar feeling.* He knew for certain that ever since leaving Ruilan for Wien, she had slept in the same bed with him nearly every night, yet it was hard to imagine that she had truly been sharing his bed all this time. Karen brought his left index finger to his mouth, bit through the skin, and fresh blood began to seep from the tip. He then held his finger above Purr's lips. Reaching out with his right hand, he gently pressed her lips into a slight pout. Deep in slumber, Purr seemed oblivious to what was happening outside. She did not awaken, only furrowing her brow slightly at the disruption of her rest. One drop, two drops, three drops. Three drops of fresh blood fell into Purr's mouth. At that moment, Karen suddenly felt his eyelids grow heavier and his soul turn sluggish. The terrifying drowsiness arrived with overwhelming abruptness. Instinctively, he tried to resist, and he indeed managed to hold it back. Yet just then, a faint tearing sound echoed by his ear. Karen realized with a jolt that he could not resist or fight back, or the symbiosis ritual would fail. Thereupon, Karen abandoned all resistance and let the wave of slumber engulf him. Collapsing onto the bed, he fell asleep. Once Karen drifted off, the long eyelashes of the young woman on the bed fluttered, and her eyes opened. Sitting up, she turned her head and saw Karen sleeping beside her. A mischievous smirk curled at the corner of Purr's lips. Reaching out, she pinched Karen's ear. "That's for teasing me! That's for teasing me! That's for teasing me!" "Let's see if you dare try to form a symbiosis with Luoya! Let's see if you dare! I was here first, and this was clearly how Diss planned it anyway! Humph!" "That's what you get for not making me fish every day! That's what you get!" Purr had originally intended to give his ear a rough tug, but seeing his tightly furrowed brow even in deep sleep, her heart softened. She knew that the pressure weighing on him had always been immense. He had constantly been adapting to and learning about this world, stubbornly maintaining his own composure in the face of the unknown and helplessness. *He must be exhausted.* Purr reached out, trying to smooth away Karen's frown, only to find it would not budge. "Why bother? Diss actually wanted you to live happily, yet you insisted on coming out to see the world. How could this world ever be so wonderful?" Purr sighed. Opening her left palm, she picked up her wand with her right hand and used the tip to slice a wide gash across her left palm. Letting her blood flow freely, it dripped first onto her own body, then seeped into the great white bed. Immediately, the great white bed and the crystalline white dais began to tremble faintly. If one's perspective could pull back infinitely into the distance right now, they would clearly see that this man and woman were hardly lying on a bed—they were lying on a fingernail, atop a colossal finger. Having done this, Purr stretched lazily and sighed. "It seems being human isn't all that comfortable either. You even have to wear clothes. What a hassle." Pausing, she muttered to herself again: "This doesn't seem enough to turn me back into a human, but it should restore some of my power." She looked down at Karen, a smile touching her lips. "Through this symbiosis ritual, I can carve out a crack of freedom. I just wonder how much benefit you'll be able to siphon from me." Just then, blood-red patterns surfaced across the sky. Purr raised her head, watching the red hues gradually blanket the expanse, and murmured: "Has your bloodline power already begun to stir?" Purr recalled what Karen had told her while lying in bed a few nights ago after sparring with Gerui. He had believed that his family's power of faith helped him learn, wondering if the true function of his family faith system was comprehension. Purr yawned and said, "How could a family faith system passed down by Diss ever be mere comprehension? This is clearly... plunder." With that, Purr could no longer fight off her own drowsiness. She curled into Karen's embrace, nuzzling her face against his chest to find a comfortable angle, then pulled Karen's right arm over her waist. Suddenly, fighting through the fog of sleep, Purr forced her eyes open. "Uh, I seem to have forgotten that I'm not a cat right now..." And then, she fell soundly asleep. ... In the bedroom. Alfred crouched on the floor at eye level with Kevin, both of them observing the young master. The glow from the scroll faded at that moment. "Has the ritual concluded successfully?" "Woof." "So now, Young Master is beginning to share the benefits of the symbiosis?" "Woof." Before Karen, a ball of flame suddenly materialized, dancing as though endowed with life of its own. "The Allen family's Fire attribute?" "Woof." Inside the sword case in the adjoining study, the Sword of Arius began to tremble as well, as if resonating with a distant call. Across the backs of Karen's hands, two crimson silhouettes of light surfaced. The fire that had appeared earlier began to merge with these two streaks of red. What had been a plain crimson whip-like form gradually evolved into something resembling two rivers of flowing magma. "Woof." "The Allen family's Fire-attribute power is merging with the Dark Moon Blade?" Directly after, a mist of water appeared before Karen. "The Allen family's Water-attribute power? I recall Purr walked the Fire path." "Woof." "You mean Young Master shared Purr's bloodline, and on the foundation of that bloodline, birthed dual Water and Fire attributes?" "Woof." "So this is what it means to be a genius? Whether Young Master walks the church faith system or the family faith system, he operates on the level of a genius?" "Woof." "You mean the true definition of genius lies in adapting to any environment at the fastest speed?" Kevin raised a dog paw, and Alfred reached out, high-fiving it. After the high five, Kevin suddenly froze. How did it feel as though Alfred could understand his words? Could it be that because Alfred was constantly pondering and listening to Karen, his ability had evolved to the point where he could listen to other things as well? Kevin could not help but turn his canine head, scrutinizing Alfred with utter seriousness. Purr and he were still waiting for Karen to advance to Inquisitor so they could obtain a sliver of freedom, yet this one had been quietly reaping fortunes all along? The Sea God's Armor manifested over Karen's body. Soon, the water mist dissolved into the armor, and in an instant, the Sea God's Armor became far more distinct. Every contour and pattern upon the plate seemed freshly refined, and in certain places, ice would form on its own and then melt away... This defensive boost was far more than a mere tier higher! Kevin let his tongue hang out. This was no longer "inheriting a bloodline," nor was it "fusing a bloodline." The young man he had once chosen had skipped the first two steps entirely, leaping straight into "bloodline application." Whether it was the Dark Moon Blade or the Sea God's Armor, he had already used the Allen bloodline to upgrade himself. At that moment, a blinding white light erupted from Karen. This was the power of Light! Kevin fell to his knees in prostration. Just like during the last purification, he once again sensed the aura of the God of Light, and white froth began bubbling from his jaws. Alfred prostrated himself as well, but his eyes held no terror—only wild fanaticism! Finally, the white light dissipated, and everything returned from stillness back to stillness. Slowly, Karen opened his eyes. His right eye shimmered with a holy, gentle white; immediately following, his left eye revealed a profound, bottomless black. — *Light of Order: Mythological Overview (Original Unabridged Edition):* 【The God of Light awakened the God of Order. From then on, wherever light shines, there is order.】