Four days until they were to start the trail, and Ben was leaving the workshop to get a few hours of sleep. It looked like the queen had pulled some strings for him to get the enchanted threads significantly faster than he had expected. Instead of having to wait until the last minute to get them and potentially not having any time to put them to use he was already in the process of spinning them on the wheel with his mythril wire. From there he'd just have to weave them together and stitch it into the leather as a lining and he'd be done. If there was one small hangup it would be how much the threads had cost. Needing two different types of threads with two different types of enchantments was always going to be pricey, he knew that. He just hadn't guessed how much. Even though the spells he was having placed on them were comparatively simple, the skill level needed to enchant on something so small and delicate without destroying it was high, and it left the price almost quadruple what he had expected to pay. It had hurt more than he had expected, but his finances were still in great shape, it was just the knowledge of spending so much that was a bit hard to swallow.

He made his way through the overly large building and down the various corridors he'd grown used to, expecting all but a few of the servants to be asleep, when he heard a voice and saw a light coming from under the door of one of the rooms. Globs room to be specific.

Ben had mixed feelings about the grey. On one hand, he was definitely an asshole and seemingly a little prejudiced against anyone from outside his reality. On the other hand, he was just as trapped on this world as he was and he had at least kept him from accidentally being crushed by one of Theras boulder-sized earth bullets.

Whether he liked the guy or not though, Ben had some questions about barrier magic, and since he seemed to be awake was more than happy to take advantage of that fact.

Without knocking he threw open the door and found not one, but two of the small grey's standing inside.

As Ben got through his moment of confusion one turned to the other.

"Did you seriously forget to lock the door?" Said the first.

"Excuse me for being trapped on a planet without rudimentary privacy systems." The second, presumably Glob, responded. "Anyway you. Out with me now."

He marched Ben out of his room and closed the door behind him.

"Did you need something? I'm a little occupied at the moment."

"Oh, I just wanted to ask about barrier magic. Do you think it would work better if I was to craft a shield using a solid barrier or interlocking scales?"

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"A solid barrier will be easier to get through but will be less mana intense while a scaled one will be stronger but harder to maintain due to the mana cost and keeping a stable mental image. Now do you mind? I'm busy."

The fact that he gave Ben such a clear answer right off the bat just made it extra apparent how much he wanted Ben on his way, but that just made him curious.

"So who's your friend? I thought you were the only grey in Anailia."

The little alien let out a small groan before giving Ben an answer. "Look, it's just a friend I was summoned with. In case you haven't noticed, there aren't many creatures that look like me on this world so every now and then one of us will sneak off for a visit. I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't mention it."

Dealing with loneliness was something Ben had been struggling with himself since he arrived on the planet, but he hadn't given much thought to how the other summoned were handling it. Sure he was the one nobody wanted, but everyone he knew was almost immediately split up in the name of training. Honestly it was something he should have tried to show more consideration about.

"Okay my bad, have fun with your friend."

With that he walked off, his thoughts filled with his own friends. Maybe when this was done he'd try to make some time to visit them.

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"We'll see," Ben said as he continued putting the finishing touches on his work. With only one day left before he was to enter the trial he was cutting it close, but the day was still early and he was almost done. Not only that but the end result had turned out far better than he expected.

Myriad let out a sigh. He had let his apostle have his privacy while he'd spent the last week getting acquainted with his new believers, and it looked like that led the boy to wasting his time and money. It seemed Ben had schemed to try something ridiculous with his holy water, applying it to a jacket. He would admit it looked nice, and he could understand the desire to have a coat that's defense would raise with his belief, but it would just be a jacket in the end.

Ben however was sure of himself. He got the garment stitched together, giving it a thorough look over before he put on the finishing touch. He wanted it to be perfect after all.

Satisfied there wasn't a stitch out of place he reached down and grabbed the water skin beside him. The one he'd filled with Myriads holy water only a week before, and as he had been told, soaked it.

He thought he heard his god scream, but it was hard to be sure with all of the notifications going off in his head