“Leora, give the phone to Jacob,” I said, carefully lowering my voice so as not to wake Leon, who was finally asleep in his crib. I stood there for a moment, listening to the faint sounds of my son’s breathing, hoping that, for once, he’d sleep longer than usual.

There was a brief shuffle on the other end, and then Jacob's voice came through. “This is Jacob.”

Straight to business. “I have two possible answers for the information you want,” I began. “The location of the Lesser Key of Solomon, or the direct translated information on how to catch devils. Choose the former, and you’ll owe me another three favors. Choose the latter, and we’ll be quits.”

Jacob paused, the line silent for a few seconds before he responded, his voice layered with cautious curiosity. “Consider it my professional curiosity—how are you going to enforce these favors?”

I smiled slightly. Classic Jacob, always wanting to know the angle. “Easy,” I said, my tone still calm, but firm. “I’ll threaten them with information. In your case, dissemination of everything about you—your special ability, your weaknesses, your past life, your connections, your aliases. I’ve collected more than enough on you. Think of what I’ll do with that if you decide you're above the rules.”

There was another long silence. This time, the weight of it was heavier. I could almost hear the gears turning in Jacob’s head, the calculations he was making. He didn’t like being cornered, but he also knew I wasn’t bluffing.

“I don’t like being threatened—” Finally, he spoke only to cut his words mid-speech. “….” Nothing. Speechless, as expected.

“Don’t worry,” I continued, softening my tone just a bit to assure him. “I have no intention of blackmailing you. I’m a businessman, after all—integrity and whatnot. As long as you don’t screw with me, I won’t screw with you.”

It wasn’t a threat. It was a fact. The rules were clear between people like us, and he knew better than to cross a line that couldn’t be uncrossed.

Jacob finally let out a small breath. “Understood,” he said, his voice less smug than before. “I’ll choose the latter, the devil-catching info. It’s more useful for what I’m doing.”

I nodded to myself. “Smart choice. You’ll have it within the next two days.”

There was no need for more words. Jacob wasn’t the kind of person you built friendships with, but for now, we had an understanding. That was all I needed. Even if he managed to get the Lesser Key of Solomon, he’d need it translated, so it would be just more work in the end.

“Tell Leora I’ll see her soon,” I added before hanging up.

As the call ended, I glanced at Leon, still asleep, peaceful and unaware of the dangerous world waiting outside. For now, he was safe. For now, I had time.

But I knew I wouldn’t be able to stay off the grid much longer. Too many pieces were moving, and soon enough, I’d have to show my hand. I just hoped that when the time came, Leora would be ready.

Two weeks. It seemed like an eternity, but I had learned to make the most of time, especially now. I had already disposed of anything that could be traced back to us, burned every scrap that could tie me to this place. The cave had been wiped clean of any sign that a human had lived here. It took a week of meticulous work, erasing every trace. A week left before I could reunite with Leora.

"Buuu~"

The faint sound from Leon brought me back to the present. I felt his discomfort through the aura I was sharing with him, like a soft ripple in the air—a sensation I’d grown attuned to over time. He was cold, but before I could even react, I watched as his little body instinctively began to heat up, his natural warmth returning. A flicker of pride swelled in me as I observed his control over his heat attribute, even at such a young age.

It was strange, knowing that Leon was already developing abilities far beyond what most children his age could manage. Yet here he was, unconsciously protecting himself, showing signs of power that would have impressed even the strictest hunter teachers.

I walked over to his crib, crouching beside it and placing my hand gently on his chest. His warmth radiated back at me, steady now, his breathing even. For a moment, I just watched him, his peaceful face, tiny fists curled under the blanket. He didn’t know anything about the dangers outside, about the enemies we were hiding from. And he didn’t need to—not yet.

But someday, he would.

I sighed, running a hand through my hair.

Leora needed to know the truth. Not just about what I used to do, but about what was coming. And when the time came, I would tell her everything.

But until then, I had to keep us safe. That was my only focus.

“Hang in there, Leon,” I whispered softly. "Your mother and I will figure this out."

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I burned the crib last, borrowing Leon’s heat attribute to ignite it. Watching the flames consume the wood, I couldn’t help but reflect on the strangeness of my situation. In a world where aura followed strict rules, I didn’t fit the mold. The attribute theory didn’t apply to me.

For months, while practicing my aura, I’d tried to discern what my attributes were—what special function my aura carried. According to this world’s lore—once just the lore of a novel I’d written—aura should have an attribute, a defining characteristic that acted as a manifestation of power. Strength, speed, focus, or an elemental-class attribute—everyone had something. But not me.

I’d spent months searching, testing myself, waiting for the telltale signs of some ability. But there was nothing. Just a thin layer of aura, barely perceptible, almost like a second skin. It was so faint, so subtle, that I reckoned I could pass for a normal person in the presence of even the sharpest hunter.

Leon, however, was different. Even as a baby, his heat attribute flared naturally, instinctively. It was something I couldn’t relate to, but it gave me hope. Whatever I lacked, Leon didn’t.

I went over the finer details of my special ability: Soul Link. It had taken months of trial and error to fully grasp its potential, but even now, I wasn’t sure I’d explored all of its depths. Still, there were a few things I had confirmed:

1. Aura Borrowing: The cornerstone of my ability. I could borrow aura from any living being, not just aura users. It wasn’t limited to just one target either; I could link up with multiple individuals simultaneously, pooling their aura into myself. Whether it was animals, people, or even the weakest life forms, I could tap into their aura.

2. Aura Equality: Once the aura was gathered in me, it didn’t stay there. It would be divided equally among all those linked by Soul Link. This equalization wasn’t just a simple redistribution—it was dynamic, shifting in real-time depending on how much aura was accrued. If I took more, they got less. If they needed more, I gave it up. I imagined… combat would be really weird especially if the Soul Link was connected to multiple foes.

3. Aura Diminishment: This was one of the darker sides of my ability. I could cut someone off from the link, and when I did, they would be left with a kind of ‘aura debt’—whatever aura I had taken from them and used, they would have to make up for. It was a dangerous move, one I hadn’t fully explored. I never tried it on Leon, though. The thought of him bearing the weight of my used-up aura terrified me. It might kill him, and I couldn’t take that risk.

4. Aura Sabotage: Another more lethal aspect of Soul Link. If I dispelled the link with someone, I could control the amount of aura I returned to them. I could weaken them, send back only fragments of what I borrowed, or overload them, which could cause severe damage. It was a potent tool in combat, but morally... tricky.

5. Attribute Stealing: This was perhaps the most useful aspect when dealing with other aura users. I could steal one attribute from each person I linked to—speed, strength, durability, anything they had. The downside? Non-aura users didn’t have attributes, so I couldn’t steal anything from them, only their raw aura. Still, it gave me flexibility in a fight, letting me adapt depending on my opponents’ abilities. The attribute would be returned normally if I used up my aura.

6. Limitations: The biggest limitation was that I had to touch someone once to link with them. I wasn’t sure if there was a time limit on that touch, though. Did I have to reestablish the link after a while, or did one touch last indefinitely until aura exhaustion hit me? I hadn’t pushed the boundaries there. For non-aura users, I could link up just by making eye contact, which was far more convenient.

I slung Leon over one arm, his small weight a comforting presence against my chest, while in the other hand, I gripped my machete. The blade gleamed faintly in the dim light of the cave.

The Mivah Mountains were unforgiving, but I knew these paths well enough by now. I had no time to waste—our temporary sanctuary was gone, reduced to ash and smoke, and it was time to descend, to blend into the world once more.

As I began my descent, the cold air bit into my skin, but my aura provided just enough warmth to keep us going. Leon shifted in his sleep, his tiny hand grasping at my shirt. I looked down at him, wondering what kind of future he would inherit… especially with my interference.

I’d finished everything with Aunt Marie. After shaving off my beard and making myself look as inconspicuous as possible, I’d disposed of all my phones except for the one Leora could reach me on. That was the only connection I’d allow. Down the mountain, my second-hand car sat waiting, the final part of my arrangements with Marie. She’d been a reliable asset these past two years, but now, our business was done.

I tossed my backpack, packed with supplies and the last of my money, into the back. Securing Leon in the backseat, I made sure he was snug before checking the trunk. Clothes, wigs, supplies—everything I’d need to change my appearance on the go. I slipped into something more forgettable: a plain bonnet, a cheap wig of brown hair, and a fake tattoo drawn on with a sharpie.

The man I saw in the side mirror now looked just another face in a crowd.

I’d been lucky for the past two years, but I knew luck had a shelf life. No one had caught up to us so far, but that wouldn’t last forever. The Mivah Mountains had protected us, their natural aura-dispersing properties making it nearly impossible for anyone to track us. The mountains had been the perfect camouflage. For Leon, still an infant, his aura was so attuned to nature it blended in, nearly being undetectable.

But things were changing. Mundanes were easy to ignore. I wasn’t mundane anymore, not since I’d started manipulating my aura. And Leon—his aura was growing stronger by the day. He was becoming more visible to anyone sensitive enough to track him. It was only a matter of time before someone picked up on our trail, and I couldn’t risk waiting around for that to happen.

I glanced back at Leon, his small face peaceful as he slept in his car seat. His aura, though subtle now, would one day blaze bright enough to catch the attention of every dangerous entity out there. That thought distressed me constantly.

I got into the driver’s seat and started the car, the engine sputtering to life. There was a calmness to it, a brief moment of quiet before we would disappear again, slipping into the cracks of the world, unnoticed for just a little longer.

As I drove, I couldn’t help but think about the promise I’d made to Leora—to meet her in two weeks. March 17. By then, I’d have to be ready for whatever came next.

The road stretched out before me, quiet and empty. But I knew better than to trust the silence. The real danger wasn’t behind me anymore. It was ahead, waiting.

And I have prepared as much as I could.