Without the puppets to deal with, and with the executioner and Roderick already taken out of the picture, the king and his freshly-freed supporters quickly cleaned up the remnants of the New Republic. The queen and Clarina caught up, while Wisp crawled around in the trees and Ike investigated the Unique skill.

He couldn’t get much information on it, even when he drew it out of the storage ring. Heat. Not fire, but heat. He couldn’t tell what part of the body it applied to, or if it even had to do with the body. It shimmered in his grasp, not quite suited to his aether passages.

Ike pursed his lips. If we get a second one, it might be better to take that one, and give this to Wisp. This one clearly doesn’t match with me well. I’ll take it, but…

Four limbs clutched onto his shoulders. Wisp leaned forward. Her messy dark hair tickled his chin. “What is it? Smells good.”

“You can smell skills?” Ike asked.

“I can smell this one.” She leaned in, sniffing it again. “Yeah. Smells good.”

Ike palmed the skill and slid it back into the storage ring. “If they give us a second Unique skill, I’ll give you this one.”

“What? How come you get to give out the loot? We both fought for it,” Wisp pointed out.

“You got the fire skill.”

“And you got the wind skill, so it’s my turn again.”

“We’re doing turns?”

“We are now.”

The queen laughed. “I’m sure we can find a second Unique skill for our heroes.”

“Oh, hear that? Hand it over!” Wisp patted Ike on the shoulder.

Ike laughed. “I’ll hand it over once we’ve got a second one in hand.”

A bright light shone over the distant castle. The queen looked up. “It looks like my husband has finished. Shall we return?” She offered her hand to Ike and Wisp. Clarina took her other hand.

“Sure.” Wisp still crouching on his shoulders, Ike took the queen’s hand. Another light flashed, and they stood in the castle once more.

Mages rushed around. Some carried trash or cleaned the ramparts, while others plied skills to fix up broken walls. The queen and Clarina still wore rags, but the mages still bowed the second they saw them. The queen lifted her hand, bidding them to continue their work, and they stood. They returned to their work.

Ike stared around him. Was this what a normal mage city looked like? He’d never entered Brightbriar’s mage city. It floated in the clouds, out of his reach. Only proper mages could enter its hallowed streets. If he’d reached Rank 3—no, Rank 4, he might have been invited up. But for a slumrat who happened to become a hunter, proper magehood was forever out of his reach.

Back in Brightbriar city, anyways. This city didn’t float in the clouds. He could easily walk up to it, stride around the castle, and no one could tell him no. He glanced at the queen. Maybe the monarchs. He hadn’t felt their auras yet, but he was kind of afraid to try. It struck him as rude to attempt to sense someone’s aura if they weren’t actively releasing it. If the queen and king were the Ran k 4 or 5 they should have been to rule a city of this size, they’d be able to kill him as soon as look at him. Plus, even if they were unlikely to kill their hero, they might be less likely to reward a rude hero. With the current Unique skill that wasn’t particularly suited to him, he still needed to hold out for the true reward.

It wasn’t so bad to be a hero, either. The other mages nodded and bowed as they passed. Mostly at the queen, but they also extended that respect to him. He nodded back, slightly uncomfortable with the respect. It felt strange.

The queen gestured Ike and Wisp on. “Let’s get you two cleaned up for the banquet tonight. The baths are down this hall. Once you’re clean, we’ll bring you some fresh clothes.”

“Baths?” Wisp hissed.

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“You’ll be fine. No… you’ll benefit,” Ike said, nodding.

Wisp narrowed her eyes at him.

“Oh? You knew about the springs?” the queen asked.

Wisp looked up at that. “The springs?”

The queen nodded. “A mana vein feeds the hot springs beneath the castle. Soaking within their waters can fortify one’s mana and reinforce the body.”

Wisp’s eyes widened, then narrowed. She frowned, thinking desperately.

Ike chuckled silently. He met the queen’s eyes and smiled. She already knows how to play Wisp? I’m impressed.

The queen gave him a mysterious smile back and tilted her head innocently.

Or… was it just happenstance? Ike tilted his head back, but the queen had already looked away. She pointed. “Here. Women to the left, men to the right. I’ll have the servants lay out some fitting finery for tonight.”

“Thank you,” Ike said.

“Yeah. We don’t have shit for clothes,” Wisp said, nodding.

Ike sighed. “You have to talk nice to royalty, Wisp.”

“Who says? She doesn’t rule me,” Wisp muttered.

The queen laughed. A faint impression of her aura washed over Ike, and he stiffened. Rank 4 at least. How the hell did Roderick beat her?

Oh, right. Mana-absorbing puppet. Still. I shouldn’t take her lightly. I don’t think Wisp and I could beat her. He bowed to the queen and gave Wisp a push. “Come on. Let’s go get washed up and eat some tasty food.”

“Do we have to wash up to get the food?” Wisp asked, reluctant.

“Yes, I’m afraid. There are courtiers who are less tolerant of the unwashed,” the queen said sadly.

Wisp sighed. “Oh well, can’t be helped. I guess I have to go soak in that mana.”

Ike chuckled. With a final nod of thanks to the queen, he set off toward the men’s bath. “Just checking, but you’re a man, right, Shawn?”

“Huh? I’m a mountain,” Shawn replied sleepily.

“Close enough,” Ike said. He’s a lump of earth, ultimately. As Mont said, mountains don’t function like humans. I guess either bath works, and since he’s attached to me, he might as well go in with me.

“Men’s baths fine…” Shawn snored again, falling back into sleep.

Ike glanced at Shawn. He’d slept through the whole battle, all the running around, everything. It was honestly a little worrying. Was he okay? The black-robed mages had been keeping him in a mana vein, but walking around, they obviously weren’t able to provide him with that level of mana. We are heading to a mana-vein supplied hot spring right now, though. Maybe he’ll revive down there, and then I can ask him about it.

The passage sloped down. At some point, the brick floor became smooth, natural stone. Dampness clung to the walls and slicked the rock underfoot. Ike walked cautiously. Warm, wet air surrounded him. Rich mana swirled into him with every breath. It sat in his core, slowly converting to aether. He practiced transforming the mana to aether. The process was still too slow for now. He needed to hasten it.

The air grew damper, the mana thicker. Ike turned a corner and found himself standing at the edge of a massive pool. Hot mist rose off the surface of the deep blue water. A faint scent of sulfur hung on the air. Soft, curving edges were lined with sulfur crystals. Ike undressed, leaving his filthy clothes piled up at the edge. Under his clothes, his skin was several shades paler. Dirt and dust had discolored his skin to the point that he had forgotten its original color. He laughed at that.

“What?” Shawn asked. He yawned. Drowsiness clung to his eyes, but he moved with purpose, now. No longer asleep.

“We’re at a hot spring bath mana vein… thingy. Should probably take your clothes off before you get in,” Ike informed him.

Shawn looked up. He hopped off Ike’s shoulder and rushed to the water’s edge.

“Hey! Clothes off first!” Ike called.

“Is it okay?” Shawn asked.

“Huh? Yeah. Queen said—”

The water stirred. A figure rose up from the depths. Shaped from the water itself, the translucent feminine figure gazed at Shawn. Long robes of flowing water draped her. Her hair poured from her head, streaming back into the water and circulating back up to become new hair with each passing moment. Sulfur-yellow eyes glittered in her face, the only opaque part of her whole body. She tilted her head.

Ike jolted. He clapped his hands over himself. What the hell?

“I’m only passing through. I need some mana for sustenance. Is it fine if I take some of yours?” Shawn asked her.

She thought for a second, then nodded. With a splash, she vanished back into the water.

Shawn sighed in relief. He stripped out of his clothes and stepped into the water. “Ahhh…”

“Is it safe?” Ike asked.

Shawn turned. “I just asked permission. Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Er, but… I feel bad uh, stepping into a girl’s… water…”

“She’s a mountain. You’re already walking on her,” Shawn pointed out.

Ike blinked. He looked down, then back up. “I guess so.”

“Come on. Don’t be filthy. You’ll be a bad example for Wisp.” Shawn patted the water next to him.

He’s got a point. If I come out of this filthy, Wisp is never going to touch soap ever again. Ike glanced around. He bowed to nothing. “Sorry… thank you.” Still covering himself, he stepped into the water.

The water swirled. Shawn glanced down. “She says, ‘you’re welcome.’ She’s happy that people are using the springs after so long.”

“Oh, that’s good!” Ike said, nodding. I wonder how many unseen people and unknown worlds I walk by every day, without ever interacting with them? If not for Shawn, I would never have encountered the spirit of this mountain. If not for Mont, I would have passed by Shawn without ever encountering him.

I need to keep my eyes open. There’s worlds all around us. Opportunities await, as long as I stay aware.

Warm water wrapped around him. Forgetting about the mountain spirit, he settled down in the spring. His muscles unwound. He floated on his back and just let the water carry him. Silence hung over the spring. For a moment, the world was at peace.