"Fowma!" Runka shouted as he fell to the ground, watching blood pour out of her forehead that now sported a wide hole. A spear peeked through her mouth that hung open, horrifying him.
"Damn you!" Runka screamed in rage as the mist around him cleared out faster as his Invoked Spirit began to destroy it further and further.
He was a Superior Invoker and was damn strong that even the mist was helpless against him. That was why Compass Carburettor hadn't bothered to attack him before.
And even now, the case was the same as he adjusted the mist, hiding the figures of both Fowma and her Invoked Spirit. He had killed her right after she brought her Invoked Spirit, so now it was trapped in the mist.
Compass Carburettor focused his Dreamland on her body, absorbing Mental Fragments from her first. He then focused on her Invoked Spirit, gradually absorbing it.
In the meantime, Runka was raging as he was destroying the mist little by little. He stared at the crushed neck of Heela, angry at her death as he controlled his Invoked Spirit. Even though it was unable to move through the mist, the more Mental Strength he expended, the faster the mist dissolved.
It made him understand that once he cleared the mist enough, his Invoked Spirit would be able to move.
'Shit!' Compass Carburettor felt the strain as his mist was getting expended at a terrifying rate. Even though it was pretty powerful, it had its limitations too, originating from the fact that he was only an Inferior Invoker.
So, it was only a matter of time before the mist was entirely used up. Mental Fragments would begin to degrade over time upon the death of the lifeform. Therefore, obtaining them right after death was the best choice.
This was why he was targeting them one after another, starting with the weakest one first before making his way to the strongest. Otherwise, using the advantage of the mist, he could have killed all three. But, that would mean the received Mental Fragments wouldn't be in their best state.
Such a valuable chance in getting Mental Fragments of Invokers with Human Invoked Spirits was rare, especially those of elites such as the ones before him. So, he didn't wish for the value of their Mental Fragments to diminish.
His Lore stated that he was sealed in this world. And that meant his body, his powers, and the majority of him as Compass Carburettor was still sealed. He was just a fragment of the Main Character System that had formed in Pilkan's mind.
Therefore, he didn't have any of his original powers to rely upon. This meant that he only had Pilkan's power as an Invoker to use in this situation. Therefore, to become as strong as possible, he had to farm for the most potent Mental Fragments possible.
Therefore, even if it resulted in some risks, he wished to obtain the most optimal version of the Mental Fragments from both Fowma and Runka.
Compass Carburettor focused on his Dreamland, causing it to speed up its absorption of Fowma's Invoked Spirit. He had just finished absorbing Mental Fragments from her.
The mist was thinning gradually as Compass Carburettor directed more of it towards Runka. The mist originally spread out as a circle around him, spanning a radius of five metres. Now, it was gradually becoming an ellipse, with him and Runka taking up positions at its foci.
Its area was gradually shrinking, coming to a level where if he were to extend his hand, its tip would exit the mist.
Upon seeing that Runka was on the verge of noticing what was up, he brought out his Invoked Spirit and targeted Runka's remaining leg, causing him to almost faint from the pain.
His Invoked Spirit jerked in response, making a light move before stopping. But as the area had shrunk a lot, its hand slammed into his Invoked Spirit, sending it flying for a few metres, shocking Compass Carburettor.
'So, that's the strength of a Superior Invoked Spirit.' He quickly retracted his Invoked Spirit, continuing to absorb Mental Fragments from Fowma's Invoked Spirit.
It was impossible to absorb Mental Fragments when his Invoked Spirit wasn't in the Dreamland. This was a basic principle that all Invokers had to abide by. And of course, Compass Carburettor was no exception to this rule.
This was why he only injured his targets first, hoping to tire them out through blood loss, buying enough time for him to absorb Mental Fragments from the victims.
Time passed in such a fashion when suddenly, Runka rolled on the ground, surprised when he exited the mist, eyes widened as he muttered, "So, it was so nearby all along?"
He turned around, unable to see the corpses of his comrades, for he had left them behind while trying to search for the exit.
Only then did he notice that the area occupied by the mist was…damnably small.
He was angered in response but noticed that he was running low on Mental Strength, not to mention having lost a lot of blood. He didn't have any supplies to patch up his severed legs, and tying a rope around them definitely wasn't enough to stop the blood flow.
So, he needed medical attention to survive. And even though he wished to seek revenge, he had no plans on dying, despite losing his legs.
He brought out his Invoked Spirit, using it to carry his body as it bolted through the forest.
Compass Carburettor didn't interfere, sighing in relief upon seeing Runka run away. If he continued to fight, the mist would have run out, forcing him to kill Runka prematurely. But now, the situation had turned out the better for him, smirking as he brought out his Invoked Spirit, causing it to form a bow and knock an arrow, taking aim upon seeing Runka run away.
He waited in patience for more than thirty seconds as his Invoked Spirit slowly craned the angle pointed by the bow upward before releasing the arrow. The arrow swooshed through the sky, travelling hundreds of metres as it made a beeline towards Runka, slamming dead centre into the back of his Invoked Spirit that formed a large target, the impact causing it to crash into the ground as Runka fell, knocked out from the impact.
He rolled on the ground a few times before coming to a stop as blood continued to drip out of his legs.
