Outside the window, dawn was breaking, and birds were chirping.
"Whew..." Jerry let out a long breath and slowly opened his eyes.
His eyes shone brightly, like dazzling stars in the night sky.
"This feels amazing!" Jerry clenched his fists, feeling the magic surging through his body, a satisfied expression on his face.
He had finally finished absorbing Aldrich Mammon's soul fragment.
It had been much slower than Jerry had expected. Absorbing that tiny fragment had taken him the entire night.
Hum—
An invisible pulse spread from his body, like a stone dropped into a still lake, sending out ripples.
The pulse spread rapidly, sweeping through the entire estate in an instant.
Everyone sleeping and every animal resting was forcibly awakened by it.
"Your Eminence, have you finished absorbing it?" Catherine's voice came from outside the door, tinged with urgency and concern.
"Yes. Come in," Jerry replied.
Catherine pushed open the door and hurried to his side. "How do you feel?" she asked with concern.
"Pretty good!" A confident smile curled Jerry's lips. He clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking sharply. "Come with me!"
As Jerry stepped forward, their surroundings changed at dizzying speed, and the two of them arrived beside an artificial pond in the backyard in an instant. Catherine was startled by the sudden change, especially because Jerry had used Apparition without making any physical contact with her. Instead, he had somehow brought her along in an incredible way, and she had felt no discomfort whatsoever.
Before Catherine could give it much thought, Jerry simply raised his right hand, using neither a wand nor a spell. Without any incantation, magic emerged in its purest, most primal form, flowing as smoothly and naturally as a surging river.
The next second, the once-still pond suddenly seemed to boil, sending water