They had been sitting on the fallen log for about twenty minutes, talking quietly about everything and nothing. The conversation had gradually died down into comfortable silence, and somehow they'd ended up with their hands intertwined.

Lucien found himself staring into Anna's eyes, completely captivated.

In the moonlight filtering through the trees, they seemed to glow with an inner warmth. He'd always known she was beautiful, but right now, with her guard completely down and her face so close to his, she was breathtaking.

"Your eyes are beautiful, Anna," he whispered softly.

Anna's breath caught slightly, and she looked deep into his eyes. Slowly, extremely slowly, she began moving closer to him. Their faces were only inches apart now.

"Are they?" she whispered back, her voice barely audible.

Lucien felt goosebumps spread across his entire body as she continued moving forward. Without conscious thought, he found himself moving toward her as well, drawn by something he couldn't resist.

Their lips were about to meet when Lucien sensed something as an inhuman scream pierced the night air.

Both of them jerked apart, the spell broken by the harsh sound echoing through the forest. Anna sat up quickly, looking around for the source of the noise, while Lucien already knew what it was.

Creatures were emerging from the portal now. Blue-skinned lizard humanoids, about eight feet tall but with claws and teeth that gleamed in the moonlight. They moved with jerky, aggressive motions, their yellow eyes scanning for potential prey.

Anna stared at them with a mixture of awe and fear. "Those are... those are real monsters."

Lucien was beyond annoyed. Their timing couldn't have been worse. "Tsk," he muttered under his breath. "I'm gonna rip them apart."

Anna heard him and looked over with surprise, a smile spreading across her face despite the dangerous situation. "You're annoyed, aren't you?"

"Yeah, a lot—" Lucien started to answer automatically, then realized he'd said it out loud and looked at Anna, who was wearing a teasing smile. "Ugh."

He stood up and walked toward the portal. "Stay here while I set everything up."

Anna watched with fascination as dark figures began rising from Lucien's shadow. Knights in black armor materialized first, followed by robed figures whose hands crackled with magical energy.

It wasn't his full army—Sukuna and the knights who had gone with Sinister were absent—but there were still enough shadows to handle the situation.

"Don't kill them," Lucien ordered his shadow army. "Pin them to the ground. Mages, freeze their legs and arms."

The lizard creatures were only E-rank monsters, relatively weak compared to what Lucien was used to fighting.

His shadow knights moved, grabbing the creatures and forcing them to the ground. The shadow mages cast freezing spells that encased the monsters' limbs in ice, rendering them completely immobile.

Two knights positioned themselves in front of the portal, preventing any more creatures from emerging. The rest of the shadows finished subduing the twenty or so monsters that had already come through.

"Anna, come here," Lucien called.

Anna approached slowly, still in awe of what she'd just witnessed. "I never actually expected this. Like, real monsters and shadow monsters. Even for a world we live in, it's like something out of a fantasy movie."

She gestured at the shadow army. "What are these shadow things?"

"They're my summons, kind of," Lucien replied carefully. "Don't tell the others about this. I'm trying to keep it a secret."

Anna's smile widened. "So this is our little secret?"

"Yeah," Lucien smiled back. "Now let's start the experimentation."

He led her to the nearest immobilized lizard creature. The thing was snarling and trying to bite them despite being completely restrained.

"Try putting your hands on its neck from behind," Lucien instructed. "And this time, try to control your absorption. Don't just let it happen—guide it."

Anna took a deep breath and nodded. She positioned herself behind the creature and carefully placed her hands on its scaly neck. The moment skin made contact, the lizard began shaking violently.

Anna's eyes went wide as power flowed into her. She could feel the creature's life force being drawn out, its strength becoming hers. The sensation was intoxicating—like drinking pure energy.

In a few seconds, the lizardman went completely still, its yellow eyes losing their light.

"I feel a lot stronger," Anna said, flexing her fingers experimentally. "Not as much as when I absorbed that wolf guy's powers, but still stronger."

"Did you try to control the absorption?" Lucien asked.

Anna looked sheepish. "Oops. I kinda got caught up in the absorption and forgot to focus on controlling it."

Lucien deadpanned. "Anna."

"Sorry! It just feels so good when I absorb power. It's hard to stop once it starts."

"What about memories?" Lucien asked with curiosity. He wanted to know more about these dungeon creatures, and since his shadows couldn't speak yet, Anna's memory absorption might provide useful information.

Anna paused, concentrating. "That's weird. I didn't gain any memories at all."

Lucien frowned. Was the system interfering with her powers somehow? He activated his status viewing ability and looked at Anna's stats.

Her strength, agility, health, and perception had all increased by 30 to 35 points, though the numbers appeared in brackets, indicating they were temporary boosts. Interestingly, her mana hadn't changed at all.

"Let's continue," Lucien said. "But this time, really focus on controlling your powers. Try not to kill them."

Anna nodded and moved to the next creature. "How exactly do I control it? It's not like there's an on-off switch."

"Think of it like controlling your breathing," Lucien suggested. "You can breathe deeper or shallower, faster or slower. Try to apply that same kind of conscious control to your absorption."

Anna approached another immobilized lizard and placed her hands on it more carefully this time. She closed her eyes and concentrated, trying to feel the flow of energy between them.

The creature began to weaken, but more slowly than before. Anna's face was screwed up in concentration as she tried to regulate the absorption rate.

"Good," Lucien encouraged. "You're doing better. Can you stop it completely?"

Anna tried to pull her hands away, but the absorption continued for a few more seconds before finally cutting off. The lizard was still alive, though significantly weakened.

"It's harder than I thought," Anna admitted. "It's like trying to stop in the middle of drinking when you're really thirsty."

"That's a good analogy, actually," Lucien said. "Your power wants to take everything it can. You need to train your willpower to override that instinct."

Anna tried again with a third creature, this time managing to maintain the absorption for about ten seconds before stopping voluntarily. The lizard was drained but still breathing.

"Better," Lucien observed. "How do you feel?"

"Energized. Like I could run a marathon or lift a car." Anna looked at her hands with wonder. "Is this what it feels like to be strong?"

"That's what power feels like, yeah. The boost you're getting from these creatures is significant, but they are still one of the weakest."

Anna moved to another monster, growing more confident with each attempt. "You know, this is actually kind of fun. I've spent so long being afraid of my powers, but using them in a controlled way... it feels empowering."

"That's exactly the point," Lucien said. "Your abilities aren't a curse, Anna. They're a tool. And like any tool, they're only as good or bad as how you choose to use them."

Anna successfully absorbed energy from several more creatures, each time gaining better control over the rate and duration. She was getting stronger with each absorption, but more importantly, she was gaining confidence.

"I think I'm getting the hang of this," she said after successfully stopping her absorption at exactly the halfway point on another lizard. "It's all about conscious intent, right? Instead of just letting it happen, I have to actively choose how much to take."

"Exactly. You're learning faster than I expected."

Anna grinned. "I have a good teacher. And excellent test subjects."

She gestured at the remaining immobilized creatures. "How many more should we practice on?"

"As many as you want," Lucien replied. "We've got all night, and I can always summon more if we run out."

Anna's expression softened. "Lucien?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you for this. For helping me see my powers differently. For the first time in years, I feel I can stop being a danger to everyone around me."

"You were never a danger to me," Lucien said softly. "And now you won't be a danger to anyone you don't choose to be."

Anna smiled and moved toward the next creature, though Lucien was puzzled, as her stats were only rising by a small bit after the first lizardmen she absorbed.

Her powers were still confusing as they were on day one.

.....

POWER STONE GOAL: 700 ( 1 Extra Chapter)

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