The day after meeting with Kaelith and his family, I awoke in the Airblade after a restless night. Farthington seemed to have made himself at home, lounging and sleeping in the back of the Airblade, with newspaper clippings about Hollia splayed about. Not sure how he brought those along…

Stretching my arms and legs as I stepped out of the cockpit, I was greeted by the morning sun casting its warm brilliance over the land.

"I guess I’ll go see if Kaelith is prepared to head back in an hour or so. Till then, I’ll have to find something to do or think about to pass the time…" Letting out an audible sigh of boredom, I let my mind wander, hoping to make the time pass a bit faster.

'Perhaps I should test my experiment out...'

Over the past few months, I tried delving into the mysteries of the mind (‘cause why not?). I had a thought: what if I could create a “split personality” that I could switch on and off at will? I would fantasize constantly about all the conveniences of being able to do work autonomously. The idea intrigued me, and I wanted to see if I could pull it off.

Initially, I tried to find another well-versed Mechanic to set it up for me. As it turns out, though, not many people are in the business of mind-framing, so that idea was quickly tossed out. I then tried to use the onboard sensors and cameras built into my glasses in conjunction with [Neruo], who was already capable of transmitting and blocking stimuli through my sensory nerves, to influence my response to incoming information.

I’m not quite sure how it worked, and the entire process was ladled with risk, but I was able to emulate a little bit of what I had envisioned. It appeared that, after being able to connect [Neuro] to my subconscious, I was able to enter a trance-like state. So far, I’ve only been able to test this in an isolated environment, so I was curious to see how it’d fare in a place with more variables.

“[Neuro], activate full combat trance for five minutes and record my vital activity.”

----------------------------------------

Inside the Airblade, Farthington had grown weary of the lack of activities and decided to take a stroll outside.

'Who knows, I might just get some good inspiration for the next entry in my autobiography…'

With a thump, the Airblade door closed, and Farthington stepped out onto the ground. As he walked around the area where the Airblade was parked, he heard multiple sharp Fwings echoing some distance away.

'Huh, who is training around these parts?'

Confused but curious, Farthington walked towards the sound. As he approached a secluded clearing, he saw Tokei swinging a dagger around. She wore a cloak over a white t-shirt and black cargo pants. Her amethyst eyes glowed as if someone was shining a light through purple crystals, and her face was scarily expressionless, like a robot's.

Each swing of her dagger's blade pushed the air away rapidly, creating swirls of dust with every movement. The speed of her strikes were mesmerizing, each one cutting through the air crisply, a testament to the power behind her strikes.

Farthington watched in silence for a moment. He had already known that she was strong from back when she managed to pick him up by the collar single-handedly in the alley not too long ago, but it appeared that she was even somewhat adept with a blade.

‘She’s quite dangerous. Maybe I should wait before making negotiations for any raises…’

Breaking the silence, he called out, “Ma’am, what are you doing?” However, the only response he received was the continued sound of slashes from each of Tokei’s swings.

Around a few seconds later, The glow in Tokei’s eyes faded out and her expression softened a little bit, making her seem human once more.

…

[Disabling “Combat Trance”... Vitals within normal limits of low-intensity exercise. Occipital/Temporal lobes lack configurations: targeting system failed to initiate]

Once again, [Neuro] was spewing phrases that were complete jargon to me. Thankfully, however, it seemed like I didn’t completely botch the trance itself—that would have been a disaster.

My contemplative bubble was burst when I noticed Farthington in the corner of my eyes,

“What are you doing here?”

He had a somewhat scrutinizing expression on his face, as if he were sizing me up.

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“Hmm, your consistency with the blade was decent, but your form and technique were practically nonexistent…” he said, rubbing his chin while standing condescendingly.

“That’s because I lack any form of training with weapons. I specialize more in information and support,” I replied firmly.

“Speaking of which, madam, I don’t believe you’ve told me what type of work I’ll be handling as part of ‘Shadow Phoenix’,” Farthington remarked with an intrigued tone.

“As far as I know, you’ll most likely be a combatant on the field when necessary and you will work to complete different missions. How familiar are you with combat?”

“Hmph! I’m glad you asked. I’ve trained with the sword and I know my way around firearms, all thanks to my career in acting. I can even strengthen weapons using mana. Heh, perks of being a Martial Artist.”

“Ah, alright…”

‘He seemed quite proud when he said that. Wonder if that actually translates to real combat, though…’

In a whisper, I talked to Neuro, “[Neuro], pull up information on Martial Artists who strengthen weapons.”

[Processing… user’s prompt indicates an over 95% correspondence to “Enhancers”. Proceed with a summary?]

“Yes.”

[Enhancer: Entities proficient in Sethnine transfiguration in equipment and target objects. Object becomes imbued and receives varying amplifications depending on the application.]

[Abundance: Widespread — records found in both Mittelreich and Entwick regions (Neutral)]

As I absorbed this information, I couldn't help but be impressed by the versatility of Enhancers. If Farthington's claims were true, he could be a valuable asset in the field. That is, if his enhancements fit our line of work.

“Well, Farthington, it seems you might indeed be of use. Once we get back, I’ll design a combat-oriented assessment befitting of the skills required of both you and our other newcomer.

Farthington’s emerald eyes sparkled with anticipation. “I’m ready whenever you are. As long as I get paid the right price, that is.”

I nodded, making a mental note to arrange a training session soon. “For now, we need to prepare for our departure. Once we get going, it will take a few days to get back to Tekuno, where the Shadow Phoenix base is located.”

With that, I turned my attention to the time.

‘Let's see… Kaelith should be ready to depart any moment now. I should probably start heading over to pick him up.’

I let Farthington know I was leaving and made my way towards Kaelith’s home. The sun was out with a clear sky. I would’ve liked to bask in the sunlight for a little bit if not for the scorching heat making me sweat buckets.

[Note: Spoken like a true shut-in]

As the blue house and rickety red shack came into view, I let out an exasperated sigh,

“Finally~”

Approaching the front door, I knocked gently, and the door swung open almost immediately, revealing Kaelith, who was wearing an oversized white shirt and jeans with a small bag slung over his shoulder, ready for departure.

“Good morning,” Kaelith greeted, his jubilant face was almost laughable when put next to my nearly unkempt state.

“Ah, right. Good morning,” I replied, trying to hurry things up. “Are you all set to go?”

“Yes, I’ve packed everything I need,” he said, stepping out of the house. His family members appeared at the doorway, waving and offering encouraging smiles.

“You need to take care of yourself and make sure you look your best. Got it? And make sure to visit whenever you have free time,” Kaelith’s mother called out, and his father gave a simple nod in response.

“I’ll be back again before you know it, don’t miss me too much!” Kaelith reassured them, waving one last time before turning to follow me.

We were trekking our way back, and I was expecting an earful of questions from Kaelith about the job, but nothing of that sort came. He was being awfully quiet.

“Is something the matter, Kaelith?”

His steps came to a halt, and he turned to look at me, his eyes slightly narrowed, which made me stop in my tracks as well.

“No, I was just thinking… your name isn’t actually Trixy, is it?”

‘Huh? I thought he was going to ask me something along the lines of—never mind. But how’d he know? My expression was perfect!’ I drew in a breath as I regained my composure,

“Hoo… You’re right, Trixy’s just an alias of mine. I’ll properly introduce myself to you and another recruit we’ll be meeting shortly. I apologize,”

I paused for a moment, and decided to ask away,

“How long have you known?”

“Ah, it’s nothing much, really. I just had a hunch when I first met you at the market.” Kaelith gave a light chuckle and rubbed his face.

‘I had the impression that he was an extroverted conversationalist like a certain swindler (perhaps they’d get along). He’s more cognizant than I gave him credit for.’

Kaelith seemed to be satisfied with my response, and he continued on our way back. By the time we reached the Airblade, I was drenched in sweat, my clothes sticking uncomfortably to my skin.

Farthington was already waiting, leaning against the vehicle with an impatient scowl.

“About time. I nearly died in there with the engine turned off!” he remarked, his tone annoyed.

While I could understand Farthington’s gripe to some extent, he seems to have already forgotten that I had so kindly left the engine on yesterday for him. So much for goodwill.

“I was as punctual as I could be. Now, come on, let’s get going,” I said, ushering both Farthington and Kaelith inside. “It’s a long journey to Tekuno, so you best get prepared.”

With everyone on board, the Airblade roared to life, its engines humming as we lifted off the ground. As we soared into the sky, leaving the small farming town behind, I felt a mix of anticipation and uncertainty.