Banda sat in his savage crouch beneath the broken roof of the shack. The warm current of mana flowed through him, smoothly and carefully, dousing every part of his body, mind, and soul in power.

  The river of his last cycle flowing back into his center, and he lost his grip on it. The mass of mana within him dispersed back into the air and ground.

  He had become more proficient at meditation with each passing day, and each day it rewarded him. The gain in strength was slight, but he could feel it. And that gave him all the motivation he needed.

  “Have you given any more thought to it?” Eres asked, nonchalantly turning a blue crystal in her hand.

  “To what?” Banda opened his eyes.

  “Gugal.”

  “The reincarnation lie?” He didn’t want to talk about stories today. At least not the ones he knew were false.

  “Ah, that’s right.” Eres had the uncaring look of someone just remembered something trivial. “I didn’t tell you. You aren’t his reincarnation. You have his soul inside of you.”

  “Things only have one soul.” Banda said. He had consumed many in his life, and none ever had more than one.

  “Normally, yes. Well, strictly speaking, it’s something closer to Gugal possessing you. Your… let’s call it Bull Form, isn’t your power. You gain use of his innate abilities, but his Will starts to take over. If you give up too much control, Gugal will replace you.”

  Banda stays quiet in thought. A part of him wanted to deny Eres’ words, but the more he thought about how it felt to be in the trance, the less it seemed like a lie.

  “...How do I make it mine?” Banda asked.

  “No idea.” Eres said bluntly. “This isn’t my realm of expertise. There’s definitely more we can learn on the higher floors, but this is still a place for mortals. And we’re talking about a primordial here. Only Eden has that kind of knowledge.”

  Banda wasn’t satisfied with that. But it seemed he had no choice but to wait until this land of the gods.

  “On another topic…” Eres stored her Mana Crystal away. “Since there’s no reason to go hunting for while, why don’t we learn more about cultivation?”

  The party of humans they killed were fairly wealthy. Together they held more Shards than he and Eres had acquired since they arrived at the town. And Eres had looted it all, even their items, hidden away safely within her ring.

  Frankly, they now had more of this human currency than necessary. Banda wielded no weapons and Eres’ own were superior to any of the commons scrap sold here. Martial Arts weren’t even a lure since they couldn’t store anymore martial arts within their inner sea. At the moment, the blue crystals had little use beyond buying their lives in ten day portions.

  “We still need food.” Banda pointed out the flaw in her choice. Everyday it seemed he found himself wondering how she had survived until now.

  He suspected other humans hunter her food for her. There were some beasts like that in the forest, but they were fools. That kind of life robbed them of their sharpness. Made them weak.

  That’s hardly a problem.” Eres waved her hand and a loaf of bread appeared in her hand that smelled similar to the golden stalks that grew outside the walls.

  Banda’s eyes narrowed. It seemed this ‘ring’ of hers could store more than just weapons. Perhaps it could store anything.

  “I brought enough to last half a year.” Eres continued. “It was only meant to sustain us until we found a city in Eden… but I suppose now it’s just Tower rations. Ever had bread before?”

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  Eres held out the human food. Banda remained still for a moment, then walked over and took the loaf from her hand. He sniffed the strange human food and took a bite.

  A frown washed over his face. It was not poisonous, nor was it unfilling, but it tasted of plants. The soft fluffy texture also annoyed him. Banda preferred meat fresh from a kill, or fruit and nuts from the good kind of trees. He gave the loaf back to Eres without taking another bite.

  “We should train.” The issue of food was solved, but that was hardly his only concern. Banda was adamant on the priority. They might be progressing steadily, but they were still far from mastering their martial arts.

  “Well, yes.” Eres said. “But I know for a fact there a few things we’re missing out on. Aura Techniques. Basic manipulations of aura. Divinity had something similar, like how you channelled that Thunder spell beyond its normal limits.”

  “Aura Techniques are more like arts, but they require no circles in our inner sea. Just sheer mastery. And they can be much more powerful than low grade arts, depending on how well they’re used.”

  “Say these things before.” Banda narrowed his eyes in annoyance.

  “We had more pressing concerns.” Eres stated plainly. “Besides, this is something that will take years and years to master. It doesn’t matter if we start a few days late.”

  Banda decided it wasn’t worth getting mad at. “How?”

  “We’ll need a teacher.”

  “...Who?” Banda asked, the mistake of his first day still fresh in his mind.

  “Someone moderately trustworthy would be nice for a change…” Eres mused. “There is someone who might work.”

  ---

  Banda and Eres stood before the book peddler who sat with the same detached composure as always. The pair had many interactions in this slum of town and this simple street hawker was the only positive one.

  “No.” He answered stoically.

  “Why not?” Eres asked.

  “Not my trade.”

  “We’ll pay extra.” She offered.

  “No.”

  Eres sighed. She hadn’t expected him to be a great teacher, but she had counted on him to at least be willing. “Then, can you recommend a teacher for us?”

  “Teacher for what?”

  Banda and Eres’ attention were pulled towards the source of the voice, a bearded man with a patch of leather over his right eye and gruesome scars covering that side of his head. The same man they had encountered on their first day.

  Of course, what they now knew that they didn’t before, was that he was one of the five Rank 2 slumlords of this town. A figure second only to Otto.

  “I don’t think that would be appropriate.” Eres stated with some diplomacy.

  “Two sides make a deal. Both are happy. What’s inappropriate about that?” The man responded with his odd mannerisms. And in a brief awkward silence he spoke again. “Best not to settle when learning the techniques.”

  “So you overheard?” The glint of diplomacy in Eres’ eyes dulled.

  “Good ears.” He tapped his right ear. “We should get started.”

  “That won’t-”

  “I insist.” The slumlord leaned towards them with a firm stare.

  Eres considered the situation for a moment before gesturing him to lead the way. The man held his place then popped into a measured stride, guiding them out of the bazaar.

  “You offer teaching often?” Eres asked, with a focused stare.

  “When I’m able. It’s an interest of mine.” The man bobbled his head slowly as he replied. It was difficult to tell whether he was being vigilant or not. “That hunting party you killed were somewhat known.”

  The air grew heavier in an instant at his casual statement, and Eres’ eyes sharpened. “You-”

  “Scar.” He turned back towards her intently, before breaking eye contact in his peculiar way, his intensity shrinking with it. “My name.”

  “...Were they associates of yours?” Eres asked.

  “Only fools would keep Otto’s men around them.” Scar pivoted back and continued walking. “Happened to see what was left of them. Didn’t look like the work of anyone familiar. And nothing else of note has changed recently... besides the two of you.”

  “Lot of people would want to kill Urgu. Not many could. Which leads me to believe…" Scar entered a small open space in the road and turned to face them. "You might be quite strong.”

  Eres and Banda remained quiet at the accusation, and Scar seemed to find the silence uncomfortable.

  “Five crystals per lesson.” He gestured with the flash of a hand.

  “That’s too steep.” Eres said immediately. “We can find someone else for a lot cheaper.”

  “And a lot worse.” Scar added.

  Eres waited a bit before she tossed him five pink stones from her leather bag. “Fine.”

  Scar inspected the Mana Crystals and glanced between the two. The strange man jolted more upright and pulled out one of his axes. “Then let’s begin.”