The World Devouring System

In spite of Caelum's sarcastic thoughts, his mood was actually improving in real time. The madness deterioration rate was a value that kept fluctuating constantly. In a few brief moments, it had increased from 0.83% all the way to 0.9% per day. This was not because Caelum was forcing himself to think happy thoughts.

The existence of Combat Contribution as well as Devourer's Madness overturned some of the overly pessimistic theories regarding the system's origins which Caelum had come up with right after his transmigration. This was the main reason for Caelum's improving mood.

'I need more time to truly think about and understand the implications of this. For now, it's time to leave the dungeon and feel the sunlight on my skin again.'

Caelum smiled at the warden and handed his sword back to him.

"We are done here; let's go back to the entrance. Thank you for entertaining my request."

"It isn't worth mentioning, young master." The warden stored the sword inside his spatial ring and started to lead Caelum back to the entrance of the dungeon. He noticed that there was a subtle change in Caelum's mood. He seemed… happier?

What kind of a person enters a jolly mood after killing three helpless people in such a fashion? Obviously, it was the kind of person that you did not want to hang out with! It seemed like this young master had a few screws loose in his head. The warden was eager to part ways with him and get back to his cultivation.

On their way out, Caelum and the warden took a slightly different route back to the entrance due to the grid-like structure of the dungeon. This led to Caelum encountering a most interesting prisoner. Inside one of the cells close to the dungeon's outer walls, Caelum spotted a woman who he felt did not belong to such a dark and depressing place.

Inside the cell, a beautiful woman dressed in prisoner rags was cultivating in a cross legged posture. She was of a slender frame and had slightly sharp facial features. Her black hair which fell to her waist was held together by a knot near her neck.

The woman piqued Caelum's interest because unlike a lot of the other prisoners, she wasn't chained to anything and was freely allowed to cultivate. Caelum stopped before her cell and spoke to the warden.

"Is it alright to just let prisoners cultivate like this?"

Caelum's inquisitive question caused the woman's black eyes to shoot open. The warden answered Caelum's question. "Her circumstances are a little special."

The next words the warden spoke sounded directly in Caelum's mind – there was no physical sound.

"She's someone who has been 'reserved' by Young Master Boros. She being allowed to cultivate was requested by the young master himself."

'Boros?' Caelum had a very vague recollection of this name. It should be someone from the Goldheart family – a cousin who was a few years older than Caelum.

Just as Caelum was about to inquire further, a loud, confident voice cut through the air.

"Look who I found! If it isn't Brother Caelum… in the flesh! Half the people of the estate that I've come across in the last few hours were buzzing about the fact that you awoke from your coma; the other half were discussing the new rift that spawned. This was the last place in which I expected to meet you though."

A tall, broad-shouldered man with tanned skin and black hair strode confidently toward Caelum and the warden.

Caelum eyed the new arrival and responded.

"Greetings. You are…?"

Caelum's words caused the approaching man to stop in his tracks. It seemed as if he had expected Caelum to know who he was. "You don't know me? …Well of course you don't know me. You just woke up from your beauty sleep! Warden! Tell Brother Caelum who I am."

Caelum was flabbergasted at the newcomer's way of speaking. He spoke assertively and aggressively – it reminded Caelum of typical school bullies from his old life. He then looked at the warden who had an uncomfortable expression on his face. On a side note, the warden finally realized who Caelum was. While the badge that Caelum wore indicated his identity as the son of the Patriarch, the warden had no recollection of seeing him anywhere on the estate, leaving him confused. He was sure that Caelum's face was not one he would forget after he saw it once. Now things started making some sense – apparently Caelum had been in a coma for a while!

Anyways, the reason the warden had an uncomfortable expression was due to the bullish attitude of Boros – the newcomer. He did not want a conflict the break out here in the dungeon.

Caelum spoke to the warden in an encouraging tone, "Go on. Introduce me to this new friend of ours who seems to disdain the idea of introducing himself."

Upon receiving Caelum's instruction, the warden obliged. "This is Young Master Boros. He is quite famous within the estate for having won the most recent Under-20 Yearly Martial Arts tournament. Notably, he was only 19 when he won the prize – meaning he has a good chance of attaining first place once again this year when the tournament will be held in six months."

"Aah… so it's Brother Boros. It's good to meet you. I offer you my apologies for not recognizing you before. We've probably encountered each other a couple of times when I was younger but it is not easy for me to recall."

Boros was satisfied with Caelum's words. "No problem! Also warden, there's one small thing that's wrong with your introduction."

"Please enlighten me as to what that is, Young Master Boros."

"My fame is not limited to just within the estate. You see, the Goldheart family is one of the most prestigious families of the Empire. Being one of the most prominent members of the family's younger generation will get many people across the realm talking about you – including commoners and nobles from other families!"

While speaking, Caelum noticed that Boros glanced at the young woman inside the cell a few times – she was supposedly someone Boros had 'reserved'.