Nathan led Caerina to the heart of the waterfall sanctuary. The air there held a different kind of chill—not from temperature, but because the cascading waters were replete with the energy of auras. This place was often sought by those training their auras, a natural haven for meditation.
"Do I need to sit under the waterfall?" Caerina inquired.
"Yes, take a seat right beneath it. The key is to concentrate while meditating. The core of your aura will open once you succeed in enduring this meditation process. Do not be distracted by any external sounds of the waterfall. Pretend as if you are here alone, with no one by your side," Nathan instructed.
Nathan’s explanation was crystal clear. Without delay, Caerina stepped down beneath the waterfall to seek the most comfortable spot for meditation. She sat on a stone with a flat and broad surface.
"I think I will meditate here."
Meanwhile, Nathan watched from a distance, thankful that he had no commitments for the next two days, allowing him to keep an eye on Caerina.
"People usually take twenty-four hours to unlock their aura core. I wonder if Caerina will need more time than that?" Nathan muttered to himself.
Caerina started by taking a deep breath. While seated with her legs crossed, she scanned her surroundings carefully to prevent any dreadful occurrences.
Then, with eyes closed, she visualized her concentration uniting and flowing throughout her brain. Gradually, that focal power coursed down into her body’s core before taking control, ensuring no unnecessary movements were made.
'I feel a fire in my heart. Could this be what they call the core of the aura? The heat spreads to every part of my body. I must hold on for a little longer.'
Nearly twelve hours elapsed, and the intense heat increasingly dominated her. Caerina struggled to suppress the pain enveloping her heart until it felt like her heart would burst and shatter.
"Uhuk." Caerina coughed violently, spitting out a considerable amount of blood which darkened as if purging old, tainted blood from her body.
'How much longer? My brother mentioned a twenty-four-hour process. Wait, what’s that? A white light seems to spread quickly through my heart.'
Nathan, who had been resting against a large tree, was startled by a sudden flash of white light. He stood abruptly, searching for the source. It emanated from Caerina’s meditation spot.
"Is this Caerina’s aura? How is this possible? It hasn’t been twelve hours, and she’s already opening her core aura? Impossible..."
The waterfall’s flow violently shifted, creating a massive wave that formed a whirlpool, disrupting the land around it.
"This must be a joke, right? It’s impossible for someone to have such a massive aura."
Nathan slumped, weakened as he saw white light gather around Caerina. The light swept through Nathan's surroundings accompanied by fierce winds and violent tremors on the ground.
"What is happening? Did Father know that Caerina possesses an aura far beyond normal human limits? Dammit! If this continues, the entire forest will be destroyed by her aura."
Nathan tried to form an aura barrier to mitigate the destructive impact of Caerina’s aura. In a fraction of a second, the strange phenomena ceased.
Caerina opened her eyes, feeling that her meditation had been successful.
"Let’s see if I can wield my aura now."
White light began to emanate from the palm of her hand. This confirmed that Caerina had successfully unlocked her aura core.
"Finally, I've succeeded! Now I can travel anywhere without worry. Should I leave now?"
As Caerina emerged from the meditation site, she was momentarily blinded by the dazzling morning sunlight.
"What happened here? Why does everything look more chaotic than before I meditated?"
Caerina surveyed the area, utterly confounded. She was unaware that her aura had caused the disarray.
"Huh? Caerina, have you completed your meditation?" Nathan was surprised to see his sister leave the waterfall so soon.
"Yes, but why do you seem so astonished?"
"Wow, I can't believe it. You only needed twelve hours to complete the opening of the aura core. Do you realize what that means?"
Nathan wrapped his soggy sister in a thick cloth. Caerina also couldn't understand why she could finish so quickly.
"Is it unusual for someone to complete their aura opening in twelve hours?" Caerina asked innocently.
"You are far from normal. No one opens their aura in such a short time. You're not like other humans. Now, look at your reflection in the water," Nathan suggested.
"Look at my face? What about it?"
Caerina turned around and peered into the calm water's surface, shocked to see her acne completely healed. Her skin now felt whiter and smoother.
"Brother, how did this happen? Is this the effect of the aura as well?" Caerina questioned.
"Yes, the aura has the power to expel impurities from your body. The acne was essentially a form of your aura core storing a lot of negative energy. Now, that negative aura has been fully expelled," Nathan elucidated.
Caerina beamed with joy. No wonder her homemade face masks had been ineffective against her stubborn acne.
"I look so beautiful." Caerina praised herself. True enough, she radiated a natural and pure beauty.
"Of course, you are our mother's daughter. Didn't you know? In her youth, Mother was coveted by nobles for her beauty. Your beauty inherits from her," Nathan recounted.
"Oh yes, Mother was incredibly beautiful in her youth."
Caerina felt a weight lifted slightly from her heart.
'This face is more beautiful than when I was Luine. I mean, it's a beauty unique to this fantasy world. Perhaps she will become the most beautiful girl in the empire,' thought Caerina.
She reminisced about her time as Luine. Back then, Luine had been acclaimed as a CEO and the most beautiful woman of her era. Despite being in her thirties, her beauty never faded, and many accredited her cosmetic products as the reason.
'Back then, I was very beautiful, yet why did my love life always fail? Was it because I came across as dominating? Well, no matter, my main concern now should be to rebuild the Marquess Navre family.'
Afterward, Caerina and Nathan left the forest to return home to the mansion. True to Nathan’s premonition, the entire household was astir at Caerina’s unexpectedly early return.
Especially Kledson and Sara, they could hardly recognize that Caerina was their child as her appearance had altered notably.
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