Nestra reveled in the slaughter. She tore through soldier ants while they were stuck maneuvering to box her in. She knew how they fought. If the foe was fast, they would first try to position themselves better to come on from all directions. She knew it, and played with it, but they didn’t. They couldn’t learn. They lacked the reason that made fights with Fox Mask so fun. It was the second patrol now that didn’t require her to use momentum because they were just that predictable. The next acid ant aborted its attack rather than hitting its comrade, which let Nestra close in for the kill. She dodged the charge of a bulldozer ant before striking its abdomen. Blueish lymph exploded from the wound. She wasn’t sure what to call those. They were the size of a minibus and armored at the front. Charger ants? Siege ants? Brute ants? Maybe charger ant was okay. She dodged its awkward mandible strike as she killed the last two warriors. Chargers really struggled with lateral attacks. She dropped under another strike, then jumped on the beast's head. A downward execution destroyed its brain. It fell dead with a loud thud. Once again, victory was hers. It wasn’t a very good one but that was fine. Delayed gratification! “Now where was that scout?” The deep jungle of Varang guild’s portal world buzzed with activity. The smells were all over the place, but at least the stifling heat didn’t bother her at all anymore. She batted a large red wasp to focus on her quest. She needed herself some of that stinky pheromone for her master plan. The hive was under attack. The ants knew it because of the many trails carrying the scent of alarm. Scents were their speech, and the words carried by many trails spoke of death. Many deaths. A few subtle touches spoke of a bipedal intruder with a very sharp tooth, who wielded magic. Other details were scarce. She stayed still. Soon, she was soaked in sweat. Thirsty too. After what felt like hours, she switched back to her true form. The world returned to normal around her. She immediately cloaked herself in shadows before moving on, then up a tree. Higher she went, to the upper layer of the forest where the intense light made the animals rarer. Nothing seemed to be coming at her. She made for the entrance portal. As soon as she was in range, she slipped back into the real world, appearing inside of a cubicle. It was deserted at this time. She escaped the Varang building soon after. “Holy Riel, that was close, but hey, I think I lost a B-class!” No more illegal expeditions for a while though. Not inside the walls, at least. This had been too close. Nestra’s elation lasted just long enough for her to check her messages. There were a few, starting with a very official one telling her to get a physical checkup before training could start. The five others were from a certain doctor Mazingwe. He hated having to call twice. Despite the late hour, Nestra called him. He picked up after three rings. If a powerful B-rank like Mazingwe didn’t pick up quickly, it was definitely on purpose. “Good evening doctor,” Nestra said to placate him, “I see you called me several times. Sorry, I was, hmmm…” “I can perfectly understand why you would be ‘incommunicado’, Miss Palladian,” Mazingwe replied, his voice velvety smooth. He pronounced incommunicado like it was a treasure he was sharing. Nestra liked it. She could understand collecting pretty things although for her that was just food for now. “I admit that I expected you to be still working, but I soon realized you were… working instead. Please do not be alarmed by my attempts. As for why I called, I have received a rather peculiar request from Special Affairs.” “I am being transferred.” “And I will congratulate you on your promotion to special agent. Now, how about we meet tomorrow morning at 9AM? My office.” “Miss Palladian, you know I prefer to have the building empty when we measure your metrics.” “Are you going to throw knives at me this time too?” “Of course, but that will not be part of the more… mundane examination. Will I see you there?” “There should be laws against Sunday morning appointments.” “Spoken like a true civil servant, Miss Palladian. A good evening to you.” Nestra’s human examination didn’t last very long considering her body was the same as it had been when she awakened, down to the scars. She was curious if she could get new ones. The leg wound she’d gotten from Cleaver had faded, but that could have been Valerian’s fantastic healing. Despite her physical appearance remaining unchanged, her capabilities were growing. “You are more or less at a low D-class level, Miss Palladian, and I would add that low D-class users usually focus on one or two abilities such as strength and reflexes, or perception, yet you are a bit of a generalist. If you had a core, you would be quite terrifying for your rank indeed.” That made Nestra curious. “Could it ever be fixed?” she asked. “My human core, I mean. Apparently, it was there at some point. Maybe it’s easier to fix or replace than it is to turn a baseline into a user.” “I have researched the question, and indeed, there might be a possibility.” “Really?” Nestra asked, suddenly very interested. “A specialized European hospital in the Zurich Fortress has been researching core repair. Some B-class monster can apparently damage them, and there has been a growing need to find a better solution than ‘just wait’. Unfortunately, replies to my inquiry have been inconclusive. You would need a core transfer. It would be prohibitively expensive just to research whether or not it can be done.” “How much is prohibitive?” “Miss Palladian, you are a unique case. Literally so, I’m afraid. I was given a figure of ten to twelve million credits.” Nestra’s hopes were flung into a freezer. “Indeed. That said, if you work on your identity as Crescent for another decade, you may get started, at least. The estimate they gave me includes the ritual required to rekindle your core. It will apparently require a human core with a high compatibility. Very likely ice, or electricity for you.” “Wait, how do they know that?” “By inferring from their core-repair research, I assume? In any case, it is a distant prospect. Now, let’s see how your Aszhii self is progressing.” “By the way have you cooked with my brother?” “Baked, and yes, and delaying the knife-throwing will not save you.” Mazingwe didn’t spar with Nestra since it would have devastated the building, but he did push her to her limits. Reflexes with knife throws, mana perception, repeated uses of her skill, bench pressing and arm wrestling, the tests lasted for an hour and by the end, Nestra felt ragged. It was only okay because Mazingwe didn’t look like he was enjoying himself. “Perhaps a few more uses of precision? Try to hit my corneas.” “And here I had a maple syrup-glazed doughnut with real Canadian maple syrup.” “Three times and not one more,” Nestra offered. She had her prize with some really nice coffee. Mazingwe served it with milk, cardamom, and cinnamon. He called in Qahwe. It was very nice. “Normally, I would add sugar, however the light bitterness of the unsweetened Qahwe offers a better match to the glazed doughnut. In my own modest opinion, of course,” Mazingwe said. “Hmph!” Nestra replied with much enthusiasm. “I notice that you seem more comfortable in your demon form than in your human one. Have you grown more used to it?” Nestra took a moment to reply since she didn’t want to speak with a mouth full. Mazingwe was patient anyway. “It is my true body. The human skin is nice, and I’m used to it, but it’ssss not me.” “Your diction has improved a bit.” “Yes. The teeth are very sharp. It took some getting used to.” “Do you often stay in your true form then?” “When I am with you, on a lone raid, or when I am with Sereth or my sister.” ‘Hmmm. I see,” Mazingwe said, making a note on his datasheet. “It appears your mental health has drastically improved following your awakening. We will keep monitoring it, of course. Raiders are typically under a significant amount of stress while the loss of friends always taxes the heart. It is no weakness to ask for help when it becomes too much. The battle of the mind is just as important as the battle of the bodies, yet it is often neglected. Your family and I are here for you.” “Thanks Mazingwe, it means a lot coming from a first gen.” The doctor nodded, swiping something on his datasheet. “You may not be human, Miss Palladian, but you are my patient. Now that you are in a good mood, let me quickly go over your test results. You are at the very top of C-class… in every category according to human standards..” “More than good, considering you are still in the early stages of C-class if I understand correctly. It makes your people truly terrifying. Most humans specialize but you won’t have to. You can play any role, even that of a tank.” “Well there aren't a lot of us so I guess it offsets our abilities?” Once again, Nazingwe nodded. “I have the impression from Sereth that gray demons can be loners, however I have also noticed that you cooperate well with Valerian and your sister. It could imply that human-born gray demons conserve our species’ pack bonding tendencies.” He leaned forward until Nestra felt the full weight of his attention on her. “There might come a day when it matters, for both of your species. You are the only one for now, Miss Palladian.” “Sereth also likes humanity.” Mazingwe marked a pause, and Nestra got the impression he was searching for the correct words. “Sereth is… not unlike a tourist. He likes mankind. He clearly holds great affection for his girlfriend, yet he remains… a very old warrior. You do realize he’s older than any human alive, right?” “Warriors like him can compartmentalize their emotions, and as sad as it would make him to leave in a rush or… other options, he would probably do it. He is here for you.” “It might be up to you to represent mankind in the future. I am sorry for placing this burden upon your shoulders…” “It’s ok. I like it here. All my friends are on this planet.” “Thank you, and now for the second unpleasant thing…” Nestra felt blindsided. Bad news? With my doughnut? “As you may recall, I have full access to the Pandora database, the repository of all known monsters and all the information available on them.” “Except for the market rate or edibility of their body parts.” “Bah. It’s fine. I’m always up for testing edibility.” “Hmmm yes, perhaps you should improve your toxin resistance first. But I digress. The Pandora database records who’s accessed specific pages for the sake of helping team coordination. For confidentiality reasons, the option to check it is left only to those with the highest levels of clearance. I am one such person.” “I knew you were famous as Dawn Spear but not that famous.” “I fought alongside Riel, Miss Palladian. In the evacuation of Mogadishu.” It was like talking to a living legend. “If you will stop interrupting me… I wanted to inform you that another person recently consulted the ‘cacodaimon anthropomimesis’ page. Yours, if you recall.” Nestra dropped her half-eaten doughnut. Thankfully, it landed on her plate. “I must commend you for keeping your mask and full body suit on at all times, however I suspect Shinran has identified Crescent as a gray demon. My understanding is that Seth made the cost of messing with you quite clear, but I would strongly advise you to expect some form of interference. Keep an eye out and expect him to do something.” “Do not be alarmed. Shinran strictly respects his own rules…” Mazingwe frowned, which pushed Nestra to ask the burning question that had been on her mind for a long time. “Why are all high gleams so scared of Shinran when he’s a damn bonze that heals people for free?”