Bones entered the tavern and a familiar tune welcomed him. The place was crowded and Bones battled through the crowd to reach the back of the bar. He walked down the hall toward the burly man standing at the door to the casino who scoffed after seeing Bones. Bones stopped next to the man and turned to him.

"Say…you wouldn't happen to be interested in becoming a golem? I'd even pay you!" Bones asked with a deadpan voice. The man looked at him strangely and asked in a deep voice what he meant by that? Bones brushed his question aside and said to never mind before entering the casino.

The place was busy as usual and by now, Bones sort of learned the games they played by watching from the sides but never took a chance gambling himself. Might as well state my curiosity.

Bones approached the casino cashier and exchanged a hundred gold into tokens they used as currency in this gambling den. There were a few games commonly played and Bones planned to give each a try. He approached the first one, sat down at the table and started losing money. After losing all his tokens, Bones was sure he would have better luck next time so after another visit to the cashier, he exchanged another hundred and continued gambling.

His streak of losing was interrupted half an hour later by a hand on his shoulder. He turned and saw Solin giving him a mischievous grin.

"Hey there! You doing alright?" Solin asked, looking down at the last token in Bones' hand.

"Hit me while I'm down, why don't you! Evening Solin." Bones greeted back crestfallen.

"Bones, you know the house always wins! Come to the booth."

"Yes yes, I know." Bones said before placing a bet and losing the last token. He followed Solin to the booth and they sat down.

"So, what's new?" Bones asked. It's been just a few days, but he could see that Solin was eager to talk. The young man had a sure way of telling when something good had happened.

"That obvious?" Solin asked. "Doesn't matter! I have finally advanced all of my skills!" He proudly announced. Bones tried to whistle but failed. His gesture has been recognized though.

"Your shop thing doing ok? Oh yeah, heard about the frontlines?"

Bones spared Solin the details and said the shop was prospering. He was intrigued about the frontlines though. "Something happened? The prince went to the frontlines right?"

"Oh he went there alright! Rumors say he jumped into battle as soon as he got there and pushed the Aphitonian out of the mines within an hour! And check this…he engaged in a fight against the ascendant!"

"Get out of here!" Bones exclaimed, surprised.

That would be a sight to see. Maybe not for Solin because of the last time he saw the ascendants fighting…he seems excited about it though.

"And? They clashed?" Bones asked.

"Oh yeah! From what I hear, they've been fighting for three days now! The prince is trying to take back the fortress but the ascendant wouldn't let him."

"The prince is…quite impressive!" Bones admitted. The prince had quite the reputation. People say he would surpass his father, king Wezar, once he ascended.

"What are you two talking about so passionately?" Silva asked, appearing out of nowhere.

Both turned to him and Solin shared the news about the war while Bones greeted both Silva and Tivaara that entered the booth right after. It's been some time since they all saw each other and they had a lot of catching up to do.

While conversing, Bones felt his Soul Barrier quiver. The feeling startled him and he stopped talking. He looked at Silva looking down in concentration with a frown on his face. Silva sensed him staring and looked up.

"Hm? Everything alright, Bones?"

Bones feigned like he didn't notice anything and replied. "Yes, why do you ask?"

"Oh?", Silva cocked his head and once more, without others noticing, forced his skill onto Bones. The barrier shook once more, harder than before, but Bones endured the pain that ensued without giving anything away.

"Are you really sure you're alright?", Silva asked again.

Bones felt this one alright. "Now that you mention it, I do feel a little pressured." he replied and continued. "Must be the weather. I think I better go up the stairs and meditate on it." Bones said while standing up to leave.

"Mhm, you do that." Silva replied watching Bones stand up and leave their table.

As Bones was leaving, Tivaara whispered to Silva asking him what was that about? Silva continued to frown but didn't say anything on the matter.

After Solin left, Tivaara turned to Silva and asked again. Silva sighed and replied that he might have to deal with Bones much sooner than expected. Tiv asked him what he meant by that and Silva explained that he couldn't "dive" into Bones unnoticed, he was deflected by a barrier of sorts.

"Do you think he noticed? Does he know?" Tivaara asked.

"I can't tell for sure but he at least suspects. The barrier is something new. He might have taken up a second class with soul related abilities." Silva donned a twisted complexion and added: "I won't be taking any chances.

I will deal with our guest, sooner than expected."

Once Bones was in his room, a sense of dread washed over him. That bastard has been poking around my soul for god knows how long! I need to find out what he did just now.

It would be too suspicious if he were to leave right away, but he wouldn't prolong his stay. In two days! I'll leave the day after tomorrow!

The next day, in the morning, Bones descended the stairs and felt like all eyes were focusing on him. They usually were but today he felt like there was an extra set of eyes watching his every movement, just waiting for him to make a run for it! Bones felt paranoia for possibly the first time since being Bones. He couldn't be blamed.

Last night when Silva touched the barrier, for a brief moment Bones felt what his experiment subjects from previous life felt when he was messing around their souls, bending and shaping them in an effort to take control.

Bones looked around and spotted Solin already having breakfast. Silva and Tivaara were nowhere in sight. He walked over and sat next to him after greeting him.

"Feeling better? What was that all about last night?" Solin asked.

"Hm? Ah yes, all better now. No idea what happened. Anyway, Silva and Tiv?"

Solin raised an eyebrow, but didn't press any further.

"Riiight…they're not here. Silva, like always, returned to the Underground. Preparing for the festival I guess and Tiv…well you know by now how she is?!"

Bones nodded. Everything seemed to be as usual. "You up for a round after breakfast? I bet my golem could sweep the ground with you!" Bones smirked.

Solin paused for a second, then grinned. "You’re on!”

In the back of the Tavern, in the courtyard, Solin was lightly stretching while facing Bones and Skully. “I’ve already seen what your golem can do and…I admit, it's capable! For a golem that is!”

*hmph* “You’ll see that what you previously saw, wasn’t everything!”

The match started with movement techniques and the difference between the two was obvious. Solin movements were faster and more polished, and he was always one step ahead. Still, Solin was surprised to see Bones able to follow his movements. While they were exchanging blows, testing each other out, Bones took an opportunity to start a conversation.

"So, the date of the festival is nearing…what's your role in whatever Silva was planning, if you don't mind me asking?" Bones asked. He was genuinely interested as he hadn't really seen Solin doing much besides his own thing.

"Gathering intelligence. If you want to join in on it, you should ask Silva! I'm sure he could use an extra hand."

"No no, that's quite alright. I think I'll enjoy the festivities from the sidelines!" Bones answered and dodged an attack while counterattacking and directing Skully to flank Solin. "What IS the plan for the festival anyway?"

"Sorry Bones! You should ask Silva on that one too! I don't know the exact details but...whatever the plan is, it involves mana bombs!" Solin replied, then after hesitating for a moment, continued. "Silva's been going around hiring local thugs. Whatever he had planned, it requires many hands and many distractions…or so he would say."

Bones nodded. "And what after the festival?"

Solin backed away and stopped, his breathing steady and not at all disturbed by the combat. "I see what you're trying to do, Bones. I don't know what happened between you and Silva yesterday, but like I mentioned before, I owe Silva and I plan to repay my debt!"

Both stood five meters apart and were looking at each other. Skully stood by Bones and changed from combat to a default stance.

"I guess we're done?" Solin asked, sheathing his daggers.

"For now. I still can't catch up to you!" Bones said, defeated. Solin sized him up, then shook his head. "You do this a lot you know?"

"What?" Bones askes.

"This! Comparing us and feeling inadequate. You made tremendous progress since you came here a few months ago. You have this…slightly hunched posture and always looking down, avoiding someone seeing you. Do you know I've only seen you once without your hood on in all this time. Even during our matches, it didn't come off!"

"Solin, where are you goi-"

"I can't even make you take your hood off. You might be falling behind me, but not by much. It's infuriating!"

Bones didn't know what to say, so he didn't say anything. For a moment, they both stood there in silence.

"Just be careful around Silva, Solin. Later…" Bones broke the silence first and left the courtyard.

Solin stayed for a while, then unsheathed his weapons and continued practicing.

Bones headed toward the central area of the city, where the shops and auction house was.

I wanted to finally start working with an alchemy set but…it doesn't seem like I will have the time anytime soon. Once I leave, I'll head to Stonefalls and consult with Darsumi on what I should do next. While Silva knows about the shop, he doesn't know the exact location and I have never spoken about the dwarves. They should be safe if Silva decides to come after me…he wouldn't go that far would he?

Bones made a few stops on the way to the auction house. He still had a child-like curiosity toward anything new and shiny and the shops were filled with new stuff! While he could spend the whole day browsing shops, he was pressured for time. He bought a few adventurer necessities he might need some day, an overly decorated pen to write with and arm guards for Skully because they looked nice. The decision he regretted the moment he left the shop.

Why did I buy the arm guards?? I literally have an armorsmith that could craft better ones…

I could have a look at what kind of spears they have on sale. The one Skully uses still holds but not for long. I should've bought him a more durable spear. The one he's using now doesn't even have an enchantment! Am I being cheap?

Bones looked up, snapping out from his wandering thoughts and realized he was on an unfamiliar street. He turned around and back trekked his steps. It wasn't the first time he wandered somewhere while deep in thought. Bones stopped a few times on his way back and was even refused entry in one of the shops!

He stopped at the building that had a guard stationed at the front and approached. The man he thought was a guard, was a silver rank adventurer working for an establishment and when he saw Bones approaching, he stepped up, greeted him and politely asked to pull his hood down and his mask off.

Bones was surprised as this was the first time he was asked to do so. After the man explained himself, Bones politely excused himself, turned around and left. Huh…well that limits me greatly!

It's custom for establishments trading in rare and more valuable goods to have proof of identity required as a security measure against unknown clientele and potential danger. Bones didn plan to rob any stores anytime soon but it did limit his shopping spree.

The auction house, while requiring an ID card, didn't require anything else and Bones spent most of the day browsing and trading items. He sold the few pieces he didn't leave with the dwarves, like hairy spider leggings and an ant headpiece someone actually bought. Bones acquired a few books, used alchemy tools and ingredients for mana potion making he would otherwise have paid for a lot more in an alchemy shop.

The recipe for low quality mana potion was simple and didn't require the need for an actual alchemist. Just a set of tools and carefully following the instructions. Powdered mana crystal was used as solute and an extract of blue orchid flower as a solvent in a process of diluting to make a dilute solution. The end result is a liquid mana that increases the mana regeneration exponentially when consumed. Overuse led to mana poisoning, Bones had no issue with. The same recipe DID have an increased effect when made by an alchemist. Health potions were something else entirely and Bones didn't bother to learn the recipe.

Bones was reluctant to buy a new spear for Skully as he could request Hemdus to make one even if he wasn't a blacksmith. Hem could bend and shape metal to an extent and that would be enough to make a spearhead. The problem was…enchantments huh?!

He knew the enchanter in Stonefalls, but the man could only inscribe a few enchantments and none were combat oriented. In the end, Bones bought the spear with medium durability and minor sharpness enchantment.