They just act normally and my kids play with me as if nothing is different from normal. As usual, it turns out that I was worried about nothing, but it is still a pleasant surprise. I play with the kids until they are worn out and then spend time with my wives.

  It still feels strange not having all of my wives together, but the training they are getting is worth it. They will actually get soul levels, which will get them that much closer to being able to become goddesses. I wonder if the same can be said for my kids, can beasts even become gods?

  I’ve never heard of any beast gods, so when I end the first soulscape and open the second, I ask the goddesses. They tell me that beasts follow a different path and don’t get the same options. In other words, no matter how powerful a beast gets it can’t become a god, but it can be as strong as one.

  Much like dragons, beasts who become strong enough can rival gods in power and live for thousands of years. The goddesses explain that it is mostly about ranking up for beasts, but soul levels help. The stronger the soul, the less they will encounter road blocks in ranking up their cores.

  For example, if their soul level is high enough, they will be able to become sacred beasts without outside help. Of course, most beasts don’t have the knowledge to access the hallway and level up their souls. They are just stuck and can’t ever get beyond being normal beasts on their own.

  Krenocia says “Also, some beasts don’t even have souls, so they can’t ever hope to progress beyond being beasts.”

  “My kids all have souls, right? They wouldn’t be able to enter a soulscape if they didn’t, right?”

  Seronia says “Yes, you are correct on both counts. Before you ask, I have no idea if you just got really lucky, or if you somehow caused it.”

  “Does Kirito have a soul?”

  Seronia says “Hold on, let me check. Yes, he does!”

  “Good. Now I just need to check his intelligence level before I invite him to a soulscape. Oh, on the subject of cores, do either of you know about core integration?”

  Seronia says “If you had asked that question in the past, the answer would have been no. However, thanks to you, yes we do know about core integration.”

  “What do you mean thanks to me?”

  Seronia says “Your idea to have a hidden library for our followers beneath the tower has given us a lot of knowledge. That’s how we know about core integration. It was part of the knowledge that Yui added to the library.”

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  “Oh, to be honest I had forgotten about that. So, what do you know about core integration?”

  Krenocia says “According to what we know, core integration is the process that happens after a core reaches maximum rank. It is the process where the core integrates with the body. The purpose is so that the core can draw on the body’s strength, which allows it to advance further. Why do you ask?”

  “Because I recently maxed out my core and started the integration process.”

  Seronia says “You what?! You can’t!!”

  “What? Why not?”

  Seronia says “Because your core contains no essence! It shouldn’t be possible for you to start the integration process!”

  Krenocia says “Come now, sister. Ash never follows the rules! You should be used to it by now!”

  Seronia says “I am mostly used to it, but it still surprised me!”

  “Um, I’m sorry?”

  Seronia says “It’s alright, but you need to be careful. Since you don’t have any essence, I have no idea what will happen when you integrate.”

  Krenocia says “We never have any idea what is going to happen with Ash. It is like he intentionally does the opposite of what we expect.”

  “I do not! Krenocia’s power is acting as my essence, will my integration use it up?”

  Krenocia says “I have no idea. It might, or it might not.”

  “Well, Everburn told me that my core was too weak for me to put the gold dragon’s essence into it. I would assume that core integration is what will make my core strong enough to handle dragon essence.”

  Krenocia says “You should probably discuss it with Everburn then. Dragons are the only beings that have perfected integration. In fact, they complete it while still in the egg. If anyone knows how a lack of essence would affect integration, it would be a dragon.”

  “Sounds like a good plan. I needed to go talk to him anyway and I should probably check on his wounds.”

  Seronia says “Just make sure you talk to him before you complete the integration!”

  “I will. I will pay him a visit tomorrow.”

  After that, we move on to having our fun and then I end the soulscape before entering my meditation. I spend the rest of the night working on my core integration, but it is still slow going. Maybe after I visit Everburn I will know enough to speed up the process.

  Core Integration Progress: 7%

  I end my meditation when I sense Sero and Kreno waking up and join them for some fun. Afterwards, we join the kids for breakfast and I take care of feeding Kirito while the others eat. Once he is fed, I head outside while the others are still eating to make the modifications to the carriage.

  However, first I check in with Lizzy and see if the stable is to her satisfaction. Once she confirms that it is just the way she wanted it, I copy it to create the new form for the carriage. By the time I am done modifying the carriage the others are done eating breakfast.

  However, the caravan is still getting ready, so I put away the cabin and then watch Kirito run around. I really need to find a way for him to get more chances to run around and get exercise. I don’t want him to turn into one of those fat laptop dogs, although he will probably be huge.

  His paws are still huge compared to the rest of him, so I expect him to grow a lot. Once the caravan is ready, I tell everyone to go ahead and that I will catch up before lunch. Then, once they are moving, I open a gate to Everburn’s cavern and walk through.

  I haven’t even fully materialized on the other end when my instincts start screaming at me. I throw myself to the side without even having a chance to think about it and that saves me. Everburn’s teeth snap shut on the spot that I was just standing, it is close enough to be terrifying.

  “Everburn! It’s me!”

  Everburn says “Oh, Ash? Sorry, I thought it was another sneak attack!”