"Child, I’m interested in your potential. It would be a pity to let your life burn out. So, tell me about your story," Tobias said, urging me to speak.

Technically speaking there was the possibility that he was lying to me about my upcoming demise, but he would have no reason to do so. He had reached a realm too high to still resort to such petty tricks to obtain what he wanted. If he really wanted, he could just force the answers out of me.

Moreover, if he even remotely resembled the Tobias Miller I had designed in my previous life, he was an actually benign person, committed to keeping the world running as peacefully as possible. Proof of his character was that, differently from many of his peers, he was still guiding his Household and hadn’t left for somewhere far away.

Now certain that there was something wrong inside my body, I determined it was necessary to tell him my story. I omitted the part of me reincarnating without memories of my previous life and flew over the exact details of how I could know of Faye before even meeting her, which he gracefully let go I rather went over everything else: my awakening in the middle of the wastelands surrounded by consumed folks, my acceptance inside of the Gamma Perimeter, my meeting with Faye, my training with Marnie, etc…

"... and then, after three not particularly funny weeks, I was reborn with an artisanal circuit. After that,..."

I had just finished recounting the surgery I had received on top of the mountain when I immediately stopped talking. I felt something was wrong and realised Tobias’ expression had turned into a distorted grimace. The fact he showed no signs of wanting to rein it in was what really struck me. I looked into his eyes and could see nothing but rage.

A shiver ran down my spine. Every single muscle of my body tensed, ready to spring into action at a moment's notice, and my field of view closed in on him. Surprise hit me, as I realised I was genuinely scared. I didn’t even think I could still feel fear.

Tobias faced me with all of his fury.

"You."

The stone throne armrests collapsed under his contorting fingers.

"Did."

The throne broke apart when he suddenly pushed himself to his feet.

"What?!"

His mighty voice made the earth tremble. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of me, his hand on my throat and my feet off the ground. I gasped for air and grabbed his wrist with both hands, trying to shake him off of me, all in vain. He relieved the pressure on my neck, making it possible for me to breathe, but his hand still held me steadily.

"You let a complete amateur of a newly funded art put her hands on your body?! You are a fool! The blessing you possess is keeping you alive, but you are so blind you can’t even see it"

His voice was unbelievably cold. He was looking at me like I had committed an unforgivable sin. We stayed like that for some time. Then, Tobias resumed speaking, this time in a calm tone, but his eyes were still reproaching me.

"You still have a chance... Tell me, child, what is your aim?"

"I will become a Legion," I replied to his words.

“Legion” was the name given to any of those human beings who were above all in this world. They were pretty simple to describe: they were pure unbridled strength and power. They were in a class of their own, even Tobias or the great enemy of this world was nowhere near comparable to them. A confrontation between Tobias and a Legion would unfold just like a fight between an unborn child and a fully-formed adult. In terms of modern weaponry, an apex archuman would be comparable to a destructive carpet bombing a Legion to a strategic thermonuclear weapon.

Tobias raised his eyebrow.

"You want to become one of those. You already know what it entails, right?"

I nodded. The massive power of a Legion came at a cost: differently from an arch, who could have an indefinite lifespan, a Legion would sooner or later meet his natural end. A human body, even if preternaturally enhanced, was not designed to hold such great amounts of power.

Tobias pondered for some time. Finally, he seemed to reach a conclusion. His expression changed and he became more relaxed.

"I understand, child. I will give you a chance. I know it is difficult to believe, but I’m truly sorry for what is about to happen"

He raised his open free hand with the fingers outstretched. The hand disappeared from my field of view and reappeared on his side. The next moment, I heard a thud. I looked down. My left leg had been cleanly chopped off. No blood gushed out: friction had cauterised the wound. It had taken less than a split second, his hand had traversed my flesh and bone like a cleaver slicing butter.

"I’m sorry," he repeated.

His hand moved again. My right leg fell off. I felt a scream of rage and hate rise from my throat, but his grasp prevented me from emitting any sounds outside of muffled groans. I raised my right hand to punch him. I knew I couldn’t hurt him, but I still wanted to try. Before I could even swing my blow, the arm was severed from my shoulder.

At the same time, I unhooked my mace from the belt and swung it towards his face with my only remaining arm. In one fluid motion, his hand blocked the mace inches from his face and the weapon crumbled like a sheet of paper under its grasp. Then, my last limb was taken away.

"You have potential, but you are not the only one. Reshape yourself by facing the end. This time, do it properly," he told me.

The next moment, I felt an unstoppable force push inside of my body, rearranging my inwards by breaking them apart. With every passing second, the pain of his aura ripping me apart became less and less bearable, until I started to scream. I could no longer ignore pain like I had recently learned to do.

With every moment that went by my body was reverting to a precedent stage. First, my strength waned. Second, the aura in my bloodstream was swept away. Third, every single wound I had received during my life in this world started to reappear, from the small cuts I had self-inflicted onto me to test my regenerative abilities on my first day here, to the broken sternum caused by Sloan's onslaught. In the end, I was forcefully reverted to an almost normal human state. I wasn’t a proper arch anymore.