Chapter 59: Creating A Catalyst And An Anchoring Rune
I looked up again. The moon was higher now.
Time?
Almost two after midnight.
’The delivery should be arriving anytime now.’
I opened a thin portal—just a slit—right in front of my left eye.
Its exit was placed in the sky above the neighboring city.
Using my Hollow Eyes, I could see everything on the ground through the portal clearly. The distance was no problem for my vision.
There he was.
The courier stood at the edge of an empty street near an industrial zone.
No one else was around.
I created another portal in front of him and opened its exit portal that led to a remote clearing in the forest, far from my current position.
The courier blinked at the sudden appearance of the portal in the air, but he didn’t panic.
He had seen it last time. He understood what he had to do.
The courier began unloading the containers—each one neatly labeled and sealed—into the portal.
Some had arcane symbols scrawled on them.
Most were wrapped in suppression cloth.
They were my precious alchemy materials.
Once the last box was pushed through, I closed the second set of portals.
Then I opened a smaller one next to the courier’s ear and spoke through it in a heavy voice.
"You can leave. I’ll approve the delivery confirmation later."
The poor guy jumped a little, but to his credit, he kept his composure and nodded.
He didn’t reply, just turned and walked off.
He’d already recorded the delivery, so even if I forgot to mark it as received, he wouldn’t be penalized.
I closed the ear-portal and opened another, linking myself to the forest clearing.
The crates were there.
"Shadow, bring them here."
My Shadow emerged from the ground.
It began moving the crates toward me one by one.
After a few minutes, everything was gathered in front of me.
I crouched down, opened one of the containers, and checked the contents.
Moonflint Shards. Blackened Amber Gel. Runesteel Powder.
I checked each container for damaged products, counterfeits, and tracking devices.
"They did a good delivery. All ingredients are ’fresh’, and they didn’t do anything stupid like putting a tracking device."
Finally, satisfied, I drew my sleeve back and chanted in my mind.
A glowing rune appeared on my palm.
[Inventory Rune.]
I pressed my hand over each box, one by one.
Each time, a quiet ripple of light passed through the container, and it vanished into the rune’s internal space.
Once the last container disappeared, I rolled my shoulders and stretched my neck.
That was everything.
The preparations were done.
Now came the real challenge.
"I need to create an Anchoring Rune on an item and give it to Marianne, or draw the Rune directly on her body."
The purpose of the rune was straightforward: prevent forced spatial displacement.
It would protect her from being caught in a Random Summoning.
The ’Anchoring Rune’ would be created by the same genius who would one day create the Mana Constellation Creation Technique and elevate spatial magic to never-seen-before heights.
’Anchoring Rune can only be created by a 9-star Mage.’
’But I can create a temporary Anchoring Rune at my current Mage grade.’
It would prevent her from being summoned for six months.
After six months, I would need to create a new Anchoring Rune.
"Should I inscribe the Rune on an item, or draw it on her body?"
I had never seen her wear jewelry consistently.
If made the rune on an item, and she didn’t have it during the summoning, it would be useless.
So I had to draw it on her body.
Which came with its own set of risks.
There was always a chance she might wake up while I was drawing it. That would complicate things.
The solution was obvious. I needed something to keep her asleep during the process.
"I should make a Dreamroot Mist," I muttered, thinking of the old alchemical recipe I’d modified last year.
Dreamroot Mist was a small pill that, when shattered, released a fine, nearly invisible vapor.
One breath, and even a bear would fall into a deep sleep.
It was safe, non-toxic, and its effect lasted six hours.
That would give me more than enough time.
"I will also need a proper Catalyst."
"Creating something complicated like Anchoring Rune while using my body as a Catalyst would kill me."
I had already bought the ingredients to make a proper Catalyst.
I laid them out in front of me.
Moonflint Shards ($35,000), Crystallized Toad Bone ($42,000), Ashroot Vine Dust ($15,000), Blackened Amber Gel ($28,000), Runesteel Powder ($31,000)
’Crazy expensive shit.’
A Catalyst would boost the quality of products by 50%.
It was a must have item for all alchemists.... is what I told myself while trying to ignore the money I was about to burn to create a Catalyst.
"Yuna, please enchant these items," I said.
She nodded, flying over them. Her wings glimmered, and small streams of light poured down, coating the materials one by one. The air shimmered slightly as the enchantment took hold.
"It’s done," she said after a moment, dusting her hands.
"Thanks."
I opened a small pouch and pulled out a bit of Fairy Dust. It sparkled in the air like floating sand.
Instead of blood, I was using the Fairy Dust as my medium.
I knelt down on the ground and began to chant.
"Seren dol vein kalen,
"Truvas min shelek vah,
"Esol daren lunai."
Runes lit up across the ground as I chanted.
The ingredients dissolved one by one, merging into a single core of floating light.
After half an hour, the light solidified into a Catalyst.
The Catalyst—a double-sided pyramid—hovered gently above my palm.
Each face was engraved with faint lines and rotating glyphs.
It looked fragile, but I could feel the dense energy packed within.
Perfect.
I set the Catalyst aside and started preparing the ingredients for the Dreamroot Mist.
I arranged the materials into the formation circle. Yuna enchanted them again.
Then I placed the Catalyst in the center and began chanting.
"Viren toma shelor,
"Essun vel kai,
"Nirak vola trem."
Now that I wasn’t using my body as a substitute Catalyst, the process felt almost relaxing.
The Catalyst absorbed the burden of stabilization.
My breathing remained steady. My vision didn’t blur. No more nosebleeds. No more blackouts.
Alchemy was soothing when it wasn’t trying to kill you.
A fine mist began to gather.
It spun into a small sphere, hovered for a second, then hardened into a translucent pill with a slight purple hue.
The runes etched across its surface glowed faintly before fading.
Dreamroot Mist.
It was done.
I picked it up and held it to the light, inspecting it for imperfections.
There were none.
The Catalyst had done its job well.
Now that I had the Dreamroot Mist, I created another portal to Seris’ house—to be exact Marianne’s room.
The lights were off, and both Marianne and Seris were asleep in the same bed.
Marianne had her arm wrapped around Seris. Her expression was calm and unguarded.
I flicked the Dreamroot Mist pill through the portal.
It struck the wall softly and exploded in a noiseless puff of haze that spread instantly through the room.
I closed the portal right after.
Back in the forest, I waited.
Five minutes passed.
"They should be fully asleep by now."
I reopened the portal to the same location.
The bedroom came into view again, and this time, I stepped through.
They were both still lying peacefully in the same position.
I checked Marianne first. Her breathing was slow and deep.
Then I gently placed a hand over Seris’s forehead and felt no reaction.
Good. No resistance from either of them. The mist had worked.
I climbed onto the edge of the bed, positioning myself next to Marianne.
I stopped when I noticed the issue.
"The rune’s too large. The only place I can draw it is across her back. Which means..."
I stared for a moment at her clothing.
"I’ll need to undress her."