Emily looked at the potions before glancing back at Isaac. Alice’s eyes were also fixed on the bottles, though she remained quiet.
"These are..." Emily muttered.
"They’re the Soul Evolution Potions I told both of you about. The number of spirits you can bond with depends on the strength of your soul, so this will be incredibly valuable for you, Emily. As for Alice, you’re beginning to focus more on Magic Arts, and once you’ve mastered several of them, an evolved Aura that strengthens both your Magic Arts and skills will become a deadly weapon," Isaac explained.
Neither of them asked where the potions had come from. They already knew Isaac’s abilities were unusual enough that questioning every treasure he produced had long since become pointless. Instead, both women simply looked at him with gratitude.
"Should we drink them upstairs?" Alice asked as she carefully accepted one of the potions.
Although her face remained mostly expressionless, there was a faint excitement in her eyes that she couldn’t completely hide.
Isaac thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. "Let’s use the gym instead. It’s reinforced enough to survive the shockwave from a breakthrough, or... maybe should Breakthrough Center?"
"The gym is fine," Alice said immediately. She didn’t want to waste time travelling to the Breakthrough Center.
Without waiting any longer, she reached over, grabbed Emily’s hand, and started pulling her toward the basement gym.
Isaac followed behind them while carrying the sleeping Punpun in his arms. Both he and Emily exchanged amused smiles after seeing Alice’s unusually eager behavior.
The basement gym was unsurprisingly empty when they arrived. Alice and Emily each uncorked their potion before drinking it in one smooth motion, then quietly sat down on the floor to meditate. Isaac remained nearby, calmly observing them while making sure nothing unexpected happened.
After watching both Catherine’s breakthrough and his own Soul Evolution, Isaac had already learned that two people could safely evolve their souls at the same time. Their breakthroughs wouldn’t interfere with each other, so all he had to do was remain alert in case something unusual occurred. Thankfully, everything progressed exactly as expected.
Alice finished first.
A powerful shockwave burst outward from her body, causing the air throughout the room to tremble. Isaac instantly activated one of his defensive skills, raising a barrier that absorbed the impact before it could reach Emily, who was still in the middle of her breakthrough.
At the same time, he wrapped Punpun in a dense layer of mana. As he did so, Isaac noticed that mixing his evolved Aura into his mana significantly increased its defensive power. The simple shield of mana felt far sturdier than it normally would have.
Once the shockwave settled, Alice slowly opened her eyes.
"Congratulations on your breakthrough," Isaac said with a smile.
"Thank you," Alice replied.
Her voice remained as calm as always, but the excitement in her eyes gave her away completely. Isaac could practically see her resisting the urge to immediately test every change her evolved Aura had brought.
He smiled knowingly.
"Should I open a Mirror Dimension for you?" he asked.
Alice’s tail, which had unconsciously begun swishing behind her, suddenly stopped. Realizing Isaac had noticed her excitement, a faint blush appeared on her face. Even so, she quietly nodded instead of pretending otherwise.
Isaac opened a Mirror Dimension beside them.
Alice stepped inside without hesitation. Isaac spread his senses through the dimension and immediately felt waves of Aura exploding one after another as she began testing every skill she possessed.
Since she seemed to be enjoying herself so much, Isaac decided to help.
He summoned several Boss Monsters of his from the Soulbind Pendant before sending them into the Mirror Dimension as well. They would serve as excellent sparring partners while also allowing Alice to test her newly evolved Aura against powerful opponents.
His summons welcomed the opportunity enthusiastically.
Ever since hearing about the tournament Emily’s spirits had held, they had repeatedly asked Isaac to organize one for them as well. If they had somehow been able to enter Emily’s Soul Space, Isaac was fairly certain they would have abandoned him for the day just to participate.
Fortunately, the Great Dungeon gave them plenty of opportunities to fight. Because of that, none of them stayed dissatisfied for very long.
While Alice continued rampaging inside the Mirror Dimension, another wave of Aura suddenly erupted from Emily.
This one was considerably stronger.
The pressure filling the room surpassed even the Aura Isaac himself had released during his own breakthrough earlier that day. He immediately reinforced the barriers around the gym by combining Aura and mana together, making sure the room remained completely intact.
He was even prepared to move Emily into the Mirror Dimension if the breakthrough became any stronger.
Fortunately, the violent Aura gradually settled.
Emily slowly opened her eyes before trying to stand. The moment she put weight on her legs, however, her body swayed unsteadily.
Isaac instantly appeared beside her and gently caught her before she could fall.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
One hand supported her back while the other gently held her arm, making sure she didn’t put too much weight on her unsteady legs.
"Yes, I... just didn’t expect the breakthrough to be this significant. It’s a bit hard to move because of that," Emily replied with a small smile.
Although she looked exhausted, there wasn’t any pain in her expression. It was simply taking her body some time to adjust to the changes brought by the Soul Evolution.
Isaac let out a quiet sigh of relief after hearing that. Since both of his hands were occupied supporting Emily, he used Telekinesis to pull the handkerchief from his pocket. At the same time, Punpun continued floating peacefully beside them, also held aloft by his Telekinesis while the little bunny remained asleep.
The folded handkerchief floated through the air before gently wiping the sweat from Emily’s forehead. Emily blinked for a moment before smiling softly at the unusual sight. Somehow, being cared for that way made her feel even more pampered than if Isaac had done it by hand.
"If you’re this exhausted, you should retire for tonight. I’ll bring dinner to your room afterward, and you can get some rest," Isaac said.