Sakura watched from the shadows as Warren followed Edge through the streets of Puppet Town, occasionally fingering the spellslinger at his hip. The manslayer was in a foul mood today—a truth that was revealed in every crook of his posture.

Some of Warren’s irritation was due to simple bad luck. But the lion’s share was the result of Sakura’s diligent, daily efforts.

While the bounty hunter stalked Edge, Sakura trailed Warren. She flitted across the rooftops, silent as a ghost, keeping an eye on the manslayer who was hunting the man she was trying to protect. The man with a unique core that had the power to change the world.

Sakura didn’t care about the world. She only cared about herself and the small group of people she called family and friends. Right now, Edge Vasher wasn’t counted among them. But she hoped that one day soon, he would be. That they would form an alliance to their mutual benefit.

While she wasn’t willing to reveal her powers to him yet, she was doing everything that she could to give Edge a fighting chance. Starting with a tip on where to find a jobo that was on the verge of learning double strike.

Edge’s potential aside, Warren was a common enemy. One day, Sakura would turn around to find the manslayer standing behind her. A threat that would grow more likely by the day if they didn’t put an end to him now. With the bounty he would earn for turning in Edge’s core, Warren would become powerful enough that she couldn’t hope to evade his notice, let alone stand against him.

But that wasn’t the only reason why she hoped that the scion of Skill-Eater would come out on top. Sakura had her eyes on the future too.

Edge would grow more powerful at an incredible rate, assuming that he survived long enough to evolve to a higher stage and flesh out his collection of skills. Once he did, he would have the strength to protect her from the overwhelming danger that was coming in the days ahead. Sakura intended to make herself valuable enough that he would want to.

She planned to keep him alive and forge a partnership that would benefit them both, along with everyone living in Puppet Town. Right now, that meant keeping Warren away from Edge for as long as possible, giving his powers time to mature.

One day soon, the bounty hunter would decide to claim Edge’s head. Even if he didn’t discover the existence of Skill-Eater, he would inevitably reach the conclusion that the man was hiding something about the nature of his core. For a stone-cold killer like Warren, that would be reason enough to pull the trigger.

When that day arrived, Sakura would make sure that Edge knew the manslayer was coming and do whatever she could to tip the scales in Edge’s favor.

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Today, that meant disrupting the skill-summoned drone that was following him, trailing the man from the sky. Then she needed to delay the bounty hunter before he figured out what was happening, buying Edge enough time to slip out of the gate unfollowed.

She wouldn’t be able to keep them apart for much longer. Every distraction carried the risk of revealing her presence. One way or another, the men were headed toward a showdown, and Sakura was dead certain that only one of them would be walking away.

***

After eating breakfast downstairs and spending a few minutes chatting with Sam at the bar, Edge met Jumo in front of Trapper’s lodge. They grabbed the cart and then made their way out of town, heading for the south gate this time.

Since neither of them knew where to find another jobo, they decided to range out and hunt whatever they ran into along the way. However, fortune wasn’t on their side today. The few beasts they spotted caught wind of their presence, darting to safety before the duo could close the distance.

It left Edge feeling rather frustrated, but Jumo told him not to get discouraged. Some days were lucky, others were not. That was the life of a hunter.

“It sucks that we didn’t bag a beast, but it doesn’t mean that we’re home emptyhanded. While it isn’t as profitable as beast hunting unless you’re an expert, a bit of resource hunting on the side is an easy way to score a few creds.”

While expounding on his philosophy, Jumo walked with Edge to the boundary of the river lands sub-biome, where a type of herb grew that could be used to make medicinal poultices. Relieved that today wasn’t going to be a total bust after all, Edge paid close attention while his teacher showed him what they were looking for.

It was a broad-leafed plant that looked a bit like orange tobacco. To protect itself from grazing animals like buffalo, it grew hidden between tall tufts of bladed grass, which made harvesting it a painful chore.

Since Edge could heal cuts by burning a bit of mana, Jumo did most of the foraging and let Edge handle the retrieval. He showed Edge how to sever the top of each plant without killing the roots, so that the leaves would grow back the next time that it rained.

Over the next four hours, they sliced and diced, gradually filling the bed of the cart. The herbs had a pleasantly minty smell, and the work was honest if a bit tedious. He cut himself on a dozen different occasions, barely even noticing the pain before regeneration stitched him back up.

The experience provided Edge with a grudging respect for the yellow grass that gave the Ivory Plains their name. He supposed that he could jump into a thicket if he was ever in danger, and let the bladed stalks deter whatever was chasing him.

While they worked, they shared a bit about their pasts. Edge revealed how much he had hated his old life. How alone he had felt, with no one other than his mother to talk to. It was the first time that he had told anyone about it, and it felt good to get it off his chest.

He learned that Jumo had been on Ord for nearly three years by this point. The hunter had been a mechanic in his prior existence, servicing models that were so old the AIs didn’t bother to deal with them. Unlike Edge, Jumo had a large family, and the man had been supporting them with his royalties from the feed.

He was worried about them, still grappling with the fact that he couldn’t go back. But Jumo was trying to keep his chin up and his eyes on the horizon. Edge had to respect the courage it took to brave the dangers of the wilds when the hunter had so much to lose.

They called it a day a little after noon and made the trip back in silence, each man lost in thoughts of their own.