“Dal,” Jiroh smiled as he approached. Looking at her one couldn’t tell that anything out of the ordinary had happened. The dark-skinned fury was sitting calmly on one of the rocks in the Stone Garden.

The barely noticeable faint green glow of the rocks reminded Dallion of the time he had repaired and improved the area. Technically, it was lady Marigold who had done that. Dallion, along with Vend, Veil, and Gloria, had only been hired to kill all the cracklings and weaken the area guardian to the point that a single hit would be enough to defeat it.

Those were different times. Dallion was so naïve to think that he could measure himself to a noble. Lady Marigold had the strength to do everything he and his group had achieved in a fraction of the time with next to no effort. The reason she didn’t was because nobles were above such things. At the time Dallion thought that to be arrogant snobbishness, but in truth that wasn’t the case. Nearly all the hunters he knew were good people, and yet with a very few exceptions, they wouldn’t resort to mending or fixing items. Eury was the one who usually did that, although technically each of the rest had the adequate skills. In the end, a person could only focus on so many things—the higher the level, the more lesser activities were ignored.

“You got your emblem,” Jiroh said as he came closer. “Looks good on you.”

“Yeah… thanks.” Dallion looked around for a good place to sit, then sat beside the fury. Eury, on the other hand, chose to remain standing. “I heard that you’re…” he paused. What was the right way to phrase this? “…leaving us?”

He expected the question to sadden her, but it did the opposite. The fury smiled, radiating joy with an intensity he had never felt before.

“I found it. I found my way home.”

At that moment Dallion couldn’t think of anything more impactful than those five words. He could feel it in Jiroh’s very being—the sensation of finding a life believed lost. And as sad as he felt about losing her, he also couldn’t blade her for it.

“This isn’t the first time you’ve said this.” Eury brought some cold reality back to the scene. “We only know that it’s a cloud citadel. There’s no guarantee it hasn’t sunken.”

“They don’t sink. Besides, I know. The scrolls weren’t the only things the dwarf sold off. The merchant had a few other pieces.”

“You bought them?” The gorgon sighed.

“I didn’t have to. I just needed to see them, which I got to do for free. There was a crest on one of them, a crest my local half remembers.”

So, you really are a princess, Dallion thought. In this world, at least.

“Doesn’t prove anything. It’s just a crest. I don’t want you to get your hopes up like last time.”

“I know, and I’m not. But I think that this time it’s it.”

Dallion could sense emotions filling the air, both conflicting in unison. Jiroh was determined in seeing this as a way out and viewing it as hope, while Euryale was viewing it with caution.

“I got a new skill,” Dallion said in his attempt to change the topic somewhat. It had an effect, for Jiroh turned towards him. “Writing.”

“You didn’t mention that before,” Eury noted.

“I am now.” Dallion didn’t want to say that he preferred not to mention anything in front of the overseer. As close as she was to him, the city’s guardian had shown that she was more loose with other people’s secrets than Dallion would like.

The skill was definitely going to be useful, sadly not during this trip. It would take Dallion a bit longer to develop his skill to the point that he could adequately use it. With luck, and a lot of help from Harp and Onda, Dallion might be able to learn nymph by the time they reached their location. However, it was impossible for him to learn fury.

“Have you gotten enough sleep?” Jiroh asked.

“I’ve gotten enough,” Dallion lied. “When are we heading out?”

“There’s no rush. Get some sleep. We’ll leave two hours before dawn.”

This wasn’t ideal. Dallion was hoping he’d have some time to rest and train before going out again. Normally, he’d ask, but given the lengths Jiroh had gone to break all ties, it was unlikely she’d agree. Most likely, the delay was in order for her and Eury to go get the rest of the team.

“Get some rest,” Eury urged. “I’ll take care of the rest.”

“Are you sure?” Dallion was getting the distinct feeling that now that Jiroh had broken the news, they were trying to get rid of him. He could feel both hiding a secret, something that they feared he wouldn’t like hearing.

“Yeah. Just go.”

Reluctantly, Dallion did. With a wave, he left the garden, making his way back to another part of the city. However, it wasn’t to Eury’s place that he was headed, but the general’s club. Despite everything he had achieved, Dallion had a promise to keep, and the Moon vow made sure he couldn’t walk away from the understanding.

As usual, Dallion was greeted by a fury upon entering and immediately led to the general’s private chamber. There, the man in question was already waiting. Looking at him, Dallion wondered whether the general ever actually lived in his proper house. This time, however, there was someone else there as well.

“Ah, Dallion.” The general made him a side to approach and take a seat across the desk. “Capital timing. There’s someone I want you to meet.”

The someone turned out to be a woman with dark ebony skins and golden tattoos. There was an indication that she was an awakened, although Dallion couldn’t be sure what her general rank was. If he had to venture a guess, it seemed like she was a double digit, though not a seer yet. The tattoos were far more interesting, created with extreme skill and precision. It almost, seemed as if someone had placed metal fragments within her skin.

“This is Nale Vanika, one of the best crafters the provincial capital has ever seen,” the general introduced her.

Dallion nodded politely. The woman responded in turn. While Dallion couldn’t sense any emotions within her, he had the distinct impression that she didn’t like the general much, either.

“You could say that Nale is one of my oldest clients. Quite a fruitful and mutually beneficial relationship, even if we no longer see each other as often as we should. Nale knows what it takes to get a job done and has the even more valuable virtue of knowing when to keep her mouth shut.”

That was a warning if Dallion had ever heard one. The only question was whom it was directed to.

“If you have other business, I can return at some other time,” Dallion said.

“Nonsense. Nale was just leaving.”

Taking the hint, the woman stood up. There was no sign of anger or disappointment, just general annoyance. Without a word she turned around and left the room, all the time escorted by one of the general’s fury bodyguards.

Dallion waited for the door to close shut.

“Anything I should be worried about?” he asked.

“Nothing that concerns you, but your timing could have been a bit better.” The man poured an orange liquid into the cup in front of him, then took a sip. “I was on the verge of a deal that would shape up the entire province, possibly even the empire itself.”

“I’m sure she’ll be back.”

“Oh, most definitely. There’s too much that she wants.” The faint smile on the general’s face sent chills down Dallion’s spine. It was obvious that the man had something on Nale. Maybe it wasn’t a vow like Dallion’s, but he had managed to obtain another useful asset in the Archduke’s capital itself. “Anyway, back to you. I hear that you’re finally a hunter now.” The note of jealousy in his voice was unmistakable. “I guess congratulations are in order.”

“You hear things fast.”

“Connections can be a very useful thing. It also helps that I’m associated with the saving of Nerosal. Did I mention that the countess herself invited me to an event in her palace recently? It wasn’t anything grand, and I didn’t even get to talk to the old girl, but the fact that I was invited at all is quite the development.”

“I’m glad.” Dallion glanced over the general’s shoulder, where there was a new cage, holding what seemed to be an orange firebird chick. “I don’t suppose you’d like to thank me by canceling my debt?”

Soft laughter filled the room. Everyone knew that the general wasn’t in the least amused, but was putting up a show—his way of reminding people that they remained in his grip.

“No,” he said at last. “However, it has earned you a rather interesting bonus.” He snapped his fingers.

There was a blur in the room, as one of the fury bodyguards went to a distant part of the room and returned with two items. Thanks to Dallion’s current perception level, he was able to see exactly what the fury did and where he took the items from. Following the display of strength, there were two items on the desk: a small cube of aether crystal and a rather unassuming dagger.

“Sea iron?” Dallion asked. “Should I be impressed how cheap my work is?”

“This is a thread splitter.”

The general pulled the dagger out of its sheath. The blade was extremely thin, composed of the same material, however there seemed to be a faint aura surrounding it. Focusing on the edge, Dallion saw that the apparent glow was no glow at all, but the blade itself sharpened to an almost molecular level.

Suddenly, Dalion felt a powerful sense of rage and bloodlust fill his realm. Even more surprising, it was emanating from none other than Harp.

“Exorbitantly expensive, and even more difficult to find, it’s said to be so dangerous that even awakened that aren’t seers run the risk of slicing their fingers off during use,” the general continued. “Naturally, that’s hyperbole. The slicing off part. You see, it can easily cut through your skin if you’re not careful, but it will have great difficulties going through bone unless extreme force is exerted.”

Harp? Dallion asked, feeling the anger in the nymph get even stronger. You okay?

“It was created for one thing and one thing alone—to slice through clouds. Supposedly during the times of fury power, there were awakened whose sole role in battle was to slice their way to a cloud city’s heart and kill the creature that maintained it. A rather horrific practice, if historical records are to be believed, causing the entire cloud to turn crimson red before fading away into nothingness.”

The mental image caused Dallion’s heart to tighten to the point he could barely breathe. So that’s what was meant by thread splitter—the ability to slice through molecules. Dallion was being offered a scalpel.

“Not to worry, though.” The general put the weapon back in its sheath. “You’re not going to kill the creature. Just get its heart and put it in this.” He tapped on the aether crystal. “The people I bought this from have assured me that it’s pre-set so that it would only capture a cloud entity. All you need to do is cut it out and place it in here. And don’t worry, I’m not picky—any heart will do, as long as it belongs to a cloud entity.”

The general pushed the items forward.

This is how a trap closes, Dallion thought. He didn’t want to have anything to do with the painful capture and imprisonment of a living creature’s heart. At the same time, the Moon vow forced him to do so.

“Will it hurt?” he asked.

“There’s no way to know. Maybe it’ll just sting a bit.”

“And if the knife breaks?”

“No need to worry about that.” The general leaned back. “It’s indestructible. And don’t worry about returning it. Think of it as a gift. You can do whatever you want with it. Melt it down for all I care. I just want the heart.”