I was currently travelling inside an open carriage headed towards the Delta Perimeter. I was in the company of Jonah, who was sitting in front of me, and Faye, who was sleeping with her head resting on my shoulder.

A number of people not belonging to Jonah’s entourage were following us. When I asked about it, I was directly told by their leader they were guards entrusted with the mission of protecting Faye. Jonah confirmed this version, so I rested at ease.

My gaze was fixed on Faye’s gift. I turned it around in my hand, looking at it from every direction. It was a mace, a little bigger than my original one but characterised by the same shape. The material constituting it had changed considerably. It was made from an incredibly peculiar amalgamation of metal and minerals, donning an ivory colour which shone with silvery reflections when light hit its surface.

It fit me perfectly, as it had been carved directly from my body. I rapidly came to know it had actually been made with my body, or at least, the remaining parts of my old body. Before leaving for the Delta around a year ago, Faye had gotten hold of my severed limbs and broken mace.

“I needed something to exercise on,” she tried to justify herself, furtherly convincing me her condition had taken a turn for the worse.

By mixing my past bones with the broken mace, she had remodelled and repaired it. She had operated according to the logic that using a weapon made from one’s body parts should facilitate aura circulation through it. Although I was convinced her true intention was making some sort of keepsake of me, I was quite happy with the final result.

I bit my finger and pressed it against the surface of the mace. My blood flowed from my wound and it was absorbed by the bones mixed with metal. As the blood imbued the weapon, its colour changed towards a greyer tin, until it completely turned black.

I felt a connection being established between me and my weapon. It was as if it was an actual extension of my arm. I effortlessly commanded my aura to move and it shifted around the weapon, moving from the handle to the head, from the right to the left, even projecting it outside, covering it with an incredibly thin but dense layer of dark light.

I thought this was how the other archumans felt while infusing their weapon with their aura. It was an incredibly useful device, as I could now fight without worrying about wounding myself and covering my weapon with blood. Moreover, although I had confirmed my blood to be poisonous to beasts, I didn’t know if it would also apply to archs, but becoming able to project my aura outside my body allowed me to circumvent the problem altogether.

Suddenly, Jonah opened his mouth.

“May I ask you what you intend to do going forward?”

I laid the blackened mace to my side, paying attention not to wake up Faye, and turned my attention to him.

“I don’t actually know. I’ve decided to take the place of the Torchbearer, but it’s not like I actually need to do something. After all, I’m growing stronger with each passing second. I could simply bury myself somewhere and wait”

Jonah looked at me with contempt.

“I cannot understand how a respectable person such as Ms Deveraux could end up with someone as useless like yourself”

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I shrugged.

“We are good friends”

Silence dominated for a good half an hour. Jonah was the first to break it again.

“I’ve been by her side for months. I’ve borne witness to her efforts and commitment, but most of all her brilliant mind…”

“And her beauty too, I’d say”

Jonah eyebrows twitched.

“You have no grace. You are not worthy of her”

He was starting to get on my nerves. I wouldn’t kill him, but a good beating would straighten his attitude up. While I was entertaining these thoughts, Faye’s voice was heard.

“Shut the f**k up. Your voice annoys me,” she uttered, before immediately returning to sleep.

Jonah’s mouth hung wide open. He looked like his entire words had been broken to pieces. I decided to twist the knife in the wound.

“Seems like you are not worthy either,” I chuckled.

He flinched and his face darkened.

“You really thought you had a chance?” I continued my verbal onslaught.

He started shaking in anger.

“You really…”

“You like her quite a bit. Archs shouldn’t be like that, should they?”

He looked me in the eyes, his face slightly reddened. He reminded me of a child experiencing for the first time the sweet honey of passion.

“I… We… are different from others…”

I simply nodded. The external factor had modified their psychology. They had probably been made more “human” than what I had intended. If Caleb’s words were reliable, it was easy to understand why: characters of a novel needed to be relatable and romance could be a nice touch if done correctly. Next time I met him, I would ask him some questions.

I decided I had learned enough. As he had said, he had been by Faye’s side for all this time, watching over and providing her with everything she needed and even more. He was not an enemy, just a stuck-up ally.

I turned back to the previous conversation topic.

“I will rest for some time. It has been an eventful year and I think I need some time off. After that, I will start my own enterprise”

Jonah rapidly regained his bearings at the word “enterprise” and we started a more serious talk. Normally, he should have dismissed my words, but my demonstration seemed to have left a strong impression.

“What sector were you thinking of partaking in? I saw your fight against all the many beasts. I’m sure it would fit you”

“Are you not gonna ask me which Household I belong to?”

“Patriarch Miller had explicitly told me to treat you as I would treat the Torchbearer. You may take orders independently, without fearing any kind of repercussion”

Tobias had been of help once again. I took a comfier position on the seat and continued the talk.

“Simple ether-gathering won’t cut it. I will hunt genais, deviants and archs”

He was quite taken aback by my words, but he quickly recomposed himself.

“I’m sure there will be no remonstrances from the Alpha, but rogue archs elimination is the competence of the inhabitants of the Epsilon. They won’t be keen on having someone intruding in their field of work”

“You see, I don’t really care. As a matter of fact, I really hope they try something”

Jonah frowned visibly.

“What?”

“I really need to break something”

He stared at me in disbelief, but immediately let out a small cough and put the conversation back on track.

“What do you ask in exchange for your services?”

I looked towards Faye and listened to her breathing, confirming she was sleeping.

“Resources and personnel to recover the Gamma Perimeter. I also want you to look for the survivors of the stampede of twenty years ago. I want to find a person called Marnie Bridges”

He raised an eyebrow.

“You are asking for much”

“I plan to become a Merchant. I need fun and Faye needs money to get back her home and friends”