Finding Himin didn’t prove too difficult. Other than staying well clear of the citadel, she wasn’t making any special effort to hide. A quick canvass of the area where Sherp believed she was living pointed them in the right direction. The house was large and surprisingly nice. Nicer than Kano’s, at any rate. Kano wasn’t sure how much hospitality to expect. Her relationship with Himin was on questionable terms at best, but when she knocked on the door, she was greeted by a smiling Himin.

“I did it,” she said.

“Did what?” Kano replied, already suspicious. Seeing Himin happy like this would be enough to put anyone on edge.

“I figured out what the orb does.”

“And? What does it do?”

Her gaze swept the street behind them, then Himin beckoned them inside. “I’ll show you, but let’s talk inside. You never know who might be listening out here, especially these days.”

Sherp glanced at Kano, presumably looking for reassurance, and the natural gave her a nod. Whatever Himin was planning, Kano doubted she was going to ambush them here. It wasn’t her style, not when she’d have to put herself at risk to do so. They stepped past the threshold together. Once they were in, Himin closed the door behind them and said, “Right this way.”

She brought them to a large, mostly empty room around the middle of the first floor. The golden orb was sitting on a small table, partially wrapped in cloth. Its thin delicate fibers were fused together in a complex pattern of raised lines. Nothing about it had changed, nor did it seem to be doing anything.

“Well?” Kano asked, disappointed. “What’s it supposed to do?”

“At first my assistants and I thought it might be a soul receptacle for naturals, but we were wrong. It’s so much more than that. We tried putting it in a body to see how it would work, and the damn thing started moving on its own.”

“Like it had a soul?” Kano asked.

“Exactly. It was only an artificial one, but the incredible thing is that once we removed the orb, the new ghoul kept moving.”

Furrowing her brow, Kano trying to discern what exactly that meant. It was obviously significant, but she wasn’t quite sure of the implications. From what Himin was saying, it seemed to be able to generate souls? As far as Kano knew, that shouldn’t be possible. “Does it just have multiple souls in it, then? And it put one of them into the ghoul?”

“Maybe. Though even that sort of storage and transferal would be quite a breakthrough. But I think it’s more than that. I think it can actually create souls. Or at least attract them from wherever they come from. It doesn’t really matter which. You could create new ghouls without having to rely on artificial souls or necromancers.”

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“If it works the way you think it does,” Kano said. She was still far from convinced. Could Gresitosis really have created something that significant? And if he had, why had he left it down there rather than do anything with it? What Himin was suggesting seemed too clean, too perfect compared to Gresitosis’s other creations.

Though from what Miusvon had said, he hadn’t been working alone. Could this have been what he and An were trying to make? If so, then the necromancer would probably want it badly. It certainly sounded similar to what An was trying to accomplish.

“Have you figured out everything you can about the orb?” Kano asked, reaching out for it.

“I think we’ve figured out everything we can short of taking it to a necromancer. They might be able to unravel more of its secrets.”

Wrapping it up in the cloth around it, Kano picked up the bundle. She could feel the orb’s warmth through the fabric shrouding it. “Then I’m taking it back.”

“Wait,” Himin said.

Kano glared at her. “What? It’s mine.”

“I know, but what are you going to do with it?”

“Hold on to it for safekeeping.”

“And then what?”

“I’m not sure about that yet, I’ll figure it out later.”

“If you don’t know what you want to do with it, why not let me hold on to it for now?”

Clutching the bundle in her hand, Kano stared at Himin, trying to divine her intentions. “And why would I do that?”

“For one, it would mean you don’t have to worry about keeping it away from the necromancer. But more importantly, I think we could both stand to benefit from us working together on this.”

“What makes you think I’d want to work with you?”

“It’s better than you working alone or with a necromancer, yes?”

“I’m not sure so sure about that. Working on my own would be a lot easier.”

“Yeah, you could do that, and it’d probably work for a while. But you can’t keep going like that indefinitely. Sooner or later you’ll have to pick a side or leave town altogether.”

Kano sighed. Himin was more on point than she knew. There was no way Kano could keep going on her own. She didn’t have much time left. “Okay, maybe you’re right. But how would working with you help me? From what I can see, you’re easily the weakest one in this conflict.”

“I may not have the resources or manpower of the necromancers, but I know this town. I’ve lived here all my life, not like these invaders. Even if I don’t have many soldiers, I do have connections. Connections with the people who actually keep the town running rather than just lording over it.”

“Suppose I join you,” Kano said. “Suppose together we oust the necromancers and take over the town. Then what? What would you do with it?”

Himin shrugged. “I’d get things organized, make sure everything is running properly. Nothing drastic.”

“Why? What’s in it for you?” She didn’t believe for a second Himin was doing it out of altruism.

“Well, naturally I’ll be the one to benefit most from these changes. But that doesn’t mean others won’t as well.”

Her genuine admittance of self-interest was refreshing, and much easier to understand than the loftier ideals An aspired to. She still didn’t trust Himin—indeed she’d be a fool to—but she did trust the ghoul’s greed. If she was willing to be up front about that, Kano found that she was willing to stomach an alliance. It wouldn’t be a long-lasting one, even if it continued until Kano’s death.

“And what exactly would I be doing if I decided to work with you? What would be our first step?”

“For now you’d just wait until we have a better idea of how things will shake out in the rest of the town. But even just your word that you’ll support me would go a long way toward solidifying my position with other potential allies.”

“Then I accept,” Kano said, putting the orb back on the table. “But on one condition. There’s an old warehouse where Eomonsa’s doing… something. And you need to get us in there so we can find out what.”