Unive’s eyes widened so much that they looked on the verge of bursting.

Just... just what the hell had she just witnessed?

Not one, nor two, but five level threes! How in the stars had a peak level one defeated a group of such caliber?

Even more... he had not only withstood the corroding effects of the Primal Will, but had even gone as far as to take control over it.

In all her decade spent in the First Crown, never had she seen any human use Primal Will. It was centered solely around Reverents, no one else.

Yet this child was currently wielding it as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

The entire fight, from start to finish, should never have happened. In fact, it was akin to an ant trying to topple a towering mountain.

He should have been crushed instantly, yet of all the powerful presences that had filled the volcanic region, only one remained.

Unive swallowed as she stared at Atticus hovering in the sky.

Intense crimson blazed around him as though alive, while an overwhelming bloodlust that seemed to blanket the entire region seeped from his body.

Around him, an endless cascade of dead Reverents plummeted lifelessly from the sky, yet it was his unnaturally wide crimson eyes that made her heart sink.

’What the hell is this child?’

Suddenly, Atticus turned toward her.

The bloodlust blanketing the entire region instantly converged on her.

Unive’s body locked up. No matter how much she tried, she couldn’t move.

One moment, Atticus hovered in the sky.

The next, he was standing directly before her.

His wide-open crimson eyes met hers, and Unive’s heart lurched as a surge of killing intent froze her spine. Her body began trembling uncontrollably.

Unive bit down on her lip, a surge of shame rising within her.

She was one of the Queen’s Guard. Their sense of pride should stand second only to the primary line. She should never lower her head, never tremble, never falter before anyone.

Yet beneath Atticus’ silent stare, Unive felt her pride crumbling apart, replaced entirely by an overwhelming sense of fear.

When her mouth moved, Unive barely even realized it.

"I-I’m a-an a-ally... pl-please d-don’t kill m-me..."

"..."

Atticus did not reply.

Even after several seconds, he remained completely silent. Instead, his intense gaze slowly traveled across Unive’s body from head to toe.

Accepting the Primal Will meant letting go of all inhibitions. Everything that restrained him.

Right now, he was bare. As blunt and instinctive as anyone could be.

He felt intense lust toward Unive, and every part of his being pushed him toward indulging it.

Atticus knew for a fact that it was utterly wrong.

Yet he also had a feeling that if he resisted, he would be going against what the Primal Will represented at its core, which would essentially reignite his earlier clash against it.

Atticus couldn’t allow that.

Yet... he also couldn’t do such a thing to Anorah.

This... this was a bind.

Under Atticus’ silent stare, Unive’s trembling worsened. But Atticus didn’t seem to notice. Instead, his eyes suddenly sharpened as an idea surfaced in his mind.

’...I could do it later.’

He wasn’t refusing. He was postponing.

That shouldn’t count as going against the nature of the Primal Will, right?

Atticus decided to test it.

Suddenly, he looked away from Unive. Then, he paused.

A moment passed, and nothing happened.

’It worked.’

A surge of thrill rose within Atticus.

What he had just discovered was an incredible loophole. The only reason he had been so focused on Unive was because she was the only woman here. If he returned to the city like this... would he end up trying to stick it into every woman he met?

Somehow, even the thought disgusted him.

However, this way, "later" could mean years. Decades. Centuries. In essence, until all women who caught his attention hopefully died.

With that settled, Atticus casually waved his hand.

The next moment, the bodies of the five gods appeared before him. Different colors of bright light engulfed them as their essence slowly seeped away.

Unlike in the Span, Atticus unfortunately needed to manually absorb each one.

As he observed them, he gave a slight nod.

’Good.’

Due to the nature of the Primal Will, it was impossible for other hunters to absorb it and grow stronger from it. Hunters either advanced gradually over time or by killing other hunters.

This had been Atticus’ plan from the very beginning.

To use whatever trap this was... to grow stronger. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

And right now, five level three hunters... it was an incredible haul.

Atticus’ Will suddenly surged forward, enveloping the hunters.

The moment it touched them, their bodies instantly crumbled into ash.

Atticus frowned faintly as he lowered his gaze toward his arm.

Dead or not, those were still the bodies of level threes. His Will usually wasn’t this potent.

His eyes suddenly sharpened as he entered his mindscape.

’They merged.’

It wasn’t simply that he could now manipulate the Primal Will. Rather, for some reason, the Primal Will had fused with his own Will. With his very being.

The new substrate now possessed both corrosive and burning properties.

’Is it because they resonate so well with each other? Corroding... burning...’

But Atticus couldn’t say for certain.

He emerged from his thoughts the next moment as the Wills surged through his body.

Atticus had expected a battle of attrition due to the sheer power contained within them, yet the moment they entered his mind, each one turned docile before obediently allowing itself to be absorbed.

In an instant, overwhelming power surged through his veins. The force was so immense that veins bulged across his body, throbbing relentlessly beneath his skin.

Behind him, Unive swallowed hard.

The child was already so monstrous, yet he was becoming even stronger?

How was this remotely fair?!

A moment later, the surge subsided. Atticus glanced around, instantly sensing the changes.

First, his eyesight had improved tremendously. He could now perceive details of the world he normally would have overlooked.

But the greatest improvement was his range of perception. With the increase in both his rank and Will, his former one-kilometer range had expanded into a staggering ten.