Chapter 680 Familiar
Nial Lacardian was not too sure how much time he spent inside the Monster Dimension, but he carefully inspected every single monster to analyze the quality and stability of their mana, and the hue of potential that shrouded them tightly.
Being able to tell how much potential a monster had, and how much of that potential had already been unleashed was a great thing. It allowed Nial to figure out which monster would be the best familiar for the short-term, and which monster he should choose to have the greatest benefits long-term.
Of course, the best familiar would be the monster that was the most compatible with his soul. Choosing a monster according to that would give him the greatest benefits over a long period as long as the monster's future potential was not too low.
Thus, a good ratio of high compatibility and future potential turned out to be the most important factor for Nial's final decision.
As time passed, more monsters filled the clearing in the vast forest. Nial encountered a few Dragons, a Glacier Phoenix, two Elemental Rocs of the Ancient Era, Unicorns, a Pegasi, and various other mythical creatures whom Nial had never expected to encounter.
He could have never expected that any of those mythical creatures would be willing to be turned into a Familiar. Most mythical creatures were too prideful to allow anyone to subdue them. They would rather choose suicide than allow someone to control them. Rex, the Blaze Dragon, was an exception.
His mother, the Empress, found an abandoned dragon nest in which she found Rex's egg. Apparently, there had been a huge fight between a few rivaling dragons and Rex's mother had been severely injured before she was outcasted by the new ruler of the territory she had once governed.
Taking care of the Dragon Egg and hatching it, the Empress turned into a replacement of Rex's mother. That being said, Nial and Rex were more like 'siblings', rather than a Dragon and a Creatoran connected due to their relationship with the Empress.
Nial was too baffled to comprehend what was actually going on with the mythical creatures but he presumed that there was something about his Soul. It had to be special enough for mythical creatures to consider becoming Nial's Familiar.
That was equivalent to accepting to lose their freedom in exchange for the benefits a Soul Link with Nial would cause.
Unfortunately, Nial was not able to bind a mythical creature to his Soul Space right now.
His body was still underdeveloped and his Mana Core had merely been activated. His body and Mana Core would rupture the moment he was to receive the share of strength from a fully matured mythical creature. The amplification in strength he could endure for now was not too high, meaning that most somewhat powerful monsters were already disqualified as his first familiar.
This made things a little more difficult, and it frustrated the young Crown Prince a little. After all, he had been forced into the Monster Dimension without short notice beforehand. If he had known that the Monster Dimension would forcefully pull him inside, he would have waited with the creation of the Soul Space a few weeks, or even months.
Training his Mana Core and body would have given him a chance to pick a mightier monster as first Familiar.
While Nial was complaining inwardly, his attention was inevitably pulled in a certain direction. His golden eye began to hurt tremendously as the potential hue of a particular monster entered his sight. Blood trickled down his golden eyes and his Soul Space began to shake.
His displeasure dispersed at once and he swallowed his saliva in excitement as he made his way in the direction of the immense pressure.
Something made its way in his direction as well. However, the being was much slower than Nial was. It took several minutes before the two finally encountered each other, only for more blood to trickle down Nial's golden eye.
He was overwhelmed by the immense potential he perceived, and only when he reached his fate partner did he use some of his mana to suppress the powerful trait of his golden eye.
The potential hues turned semi-transparent and were barely visible anymore. This allowed Nial to take a final look at his partner, a small monster that he would have never found if not for the tremendous potential.
"Buddy, looks like you will shock the entire Empire," He spoke out loud, laughing lightly as he bend down with his right hand reaching out to the small monster. The monster tilted its head and stopped in its tracks for a few seconds before it approached him.
The monsters in the surrounding roared out and issues various noises to forward their displeasure as they hadn't been picked, but that was not something Nial and his Familiar to-be cared about. Nial's Soul Space was shaking violently and a small thread of a glistening golden color was detached and lead through his body.
The golden thread, also known as the Soul Link, moved slowly through Nial's arm until it emerged from within his palm, where his Familiar to-be was located.
"Let's have some fun in the future!" Nial said as he closed his eyes to focus on the connection that was formed between him and his Familiar as the Soul Link entered the small monster's body.
A light, brighter than the sun, filled their surrounding area as their Soul Link was established. The dark forest lit up and the lifeforce in the beings around them seemed to surge out all of a sudden. Every single being, whether it was a monster or a plant, began to react to the sacred Soul Link that had been formed between Nial and his Familiar.
Their connection was established while the glistening light continued to turn brighter with each passing second.
Half an hour passed in an instant, and it was only a little later that the glistening light disappeared all of a sudden, almost as if the surrounding space had swallowed it.
As for Nial and his Familiar, the center of the glistening light, they had been swallowed as well.