Eternal Rest

Around noon the next day, Bones arrived at the address Mirami had given him. He stood before the steps leading down to the basement of an apartment building. Mirami's workshop was a cluttered haven of gears, cogs, and an assortment of contraptions that baffled Bones. He paused for a moment, taking in the organized chaos that filled the space.

Mirami greeted him enthusiastically, her shirt and face smudged with dirt and grime. "Hey Bones! Is it afternoon already?!" She glanced at a small circular object on her wrist and let out a surprised exclamation. "Darn! Time sure flies by! Well, come on in!"

Bones followed Mirami through the cluttered basement, careful to avoid stumbling over scattered tools and components. They navigated towards a large working table piled high with gadgets of all shapes and sizes. Mirami deftly shuffled through the clutter until she found what she was looking for—a small object that resembled a lightbulb.

"Here! This is what ye were looking for!" Mirami announced proudly, handing the object to Bones.

Bones took it in his hands, turning it over curiously. Despite his expertise in alchemy and magic, this device was unfamiliar to him. He couldn't immediately discern its purpose.

“To be honest, Mirami, I am at a loss here. What am I looking at?” Bones admitted, looking to her for guidance.

Mirami chuckled good-naturedly, taking the object back from him. "No worries, Bones! This is a powder dispenser. It's perfect for dispersing the substance you mentioned needing for your bomb. I use a similar mechanism for my smoke bombs."

She began explaining the intricacies of the gadget to Bones, detailing each part and how it functioned.

Mirami beamed with pride as Bones praised her ingenuity. She nodded enthusiastically as Bones absorbed the instructions, ensuring he understood each step clearly.

"See the top part?" she began, and Bones nodded in response. "Ye twist and take the top off, then add yer powder substance inside the container and twist the top back on. Make sure ye twist it tightly so no air would leak inside! Next is this needle right here…" Mirami paused briefly, searching through the clutter on her table until she located a small box with a transparent lid.

With a satisfied nod, Mirami opened the box, revealing an array of neatly organized needles inside. She carefully selected one and handed it to Bones, who accepted it with a nod of thanks. Mirami continued her instructions without missing a beat.

“Sorry ‘bout that. It’s a bit of a mess right now. The needle is the igniter ye need to pierce all the way through the top," Mirami explained. "When ye want to activate the dispenser, all ye need to do is gently imbue some mana into the needle and it will activate. Yer bomb will detonate on impact, or after two, maybe three seconds so be careful about that!”

Bones listened intently, impressed by the simplicity and effectiveness of Mirami's design. "This is amazing, Mirami!" he exclaimed sincerely. "This is better than I expected! I thought about inscribing a rune to ignite the powder, and I am not confident I could inscribe the runes yet!"

Mirami grinned broadly, clearly pleased with herself. "Glad I could help, Bones! I knew my gadgets would come in handy one day. If you need any more help or modifications, just let me know!"

Bones only had a dozen pouches of ground powder, and with the small dispenser, he estimated he could make around thirty bombs. Mirami was initially reluctant to part with thirty dispensers, but Bones compensated her generously. She preferred mana stones to gold, and fortunately, Bones had hundreds of them.

After concluding his business, Bones headed back to the smithy, hoping Darsumi had all the information needed to calculate the cost of his new ID. As he entered the smithy, he heard a lively conversation. For some reason, the kitchen, rather than the living area, was the place to gather and chat. Bones figured it was because food and drinks were conveniently within reach.

“What got you all so worked up?” Bones asked as he entered the kitchen and greeted everyone. Hem and Dar were sitting at the table with two other dwarves: Belmus, whom Bones had met before, and Thaddeus, a member of the dungeon farming crew.

"Bones! Come sit and join us," Darsumi said. "You remember Thaddeus from the dungeon? He just returned from the capital with some interesting news."

Bones greeted Thaddeus again and asked what was new in the capital. The dwarves at the table spoke simultaneously, each trying to outdo the other. From the chaos, Bones gathered that Prince Tristan had returned from the frontlines after being away for over a month.

Crowds of people welcomed and cheered him upon his return, but what truly captivated everyone's attention was the fact that the prince had lost an arm. The dwarves were passionately discussing the prince's remarkable achievement on the frontlines. Bones couldn't grasp what they considered an accomplishment; losing an arm and failing to repel the enemy hardly seemed noteworthy to him. His confusion was swiftly countered as everyone explained to him just how extraordinary it was for the prince to battle an ascendant on equal footing.

"Mr. Bones, you must understand, ascendants typically face other ascendants, not those of lower rank and level. It's rare for a third-tier to confront an ascendant and only lose an arm!" Belmus interjected, while Hemdus added, "With the resources at his disposal, his arm will be as good as new within a month!"

"A whole month? Doesn't the royal palace have healers capable of regrowing limbs?" Bones asked, surprised by the lengthy recovery time.

snort "There ain't no healers in the kingdom capable of healing an ascendant or someone at the prince's level! There's a third-tier healer in the palace, but even he can't regrow limbs fer someone like the prince!"

"Hemdus is right, Bones. As you ascend in levels, your body becomes more resistant to healing from lower-level sources. Only healing from someone of equivalent level would have a significant effect, and healers of that caliber are exceedingly rare! Otherwise, everyone would be advancing past the third tier with non-stop healing." Darsumi finally chimed in, feeling left out of the conversation.

After the prince departed the frontlines, so did the ascendant. Though unscathed, he was incensed that someone below the rank of ascendant could match him in battle. While he fulfilled his orders and prevented the prince from reclaiming the fortress, the difficulty he faced was considered a personal defeat.

Prince Tristan had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth. From birth, he had enjoyed the privileges of royalty: the finest tutors, resources, and unlimited access to Hagos Dungeon. Being the sole heir to the throne in over two centuries, he was pampered by the king. At hundred and forty-eight years old, Tristan was one of the youngest prodigies poised to ascend. His prowess in battle stemmed from a dual class, with his primary class capped at level ninety-nine. The specifics of his classes were classified and unknown. Once he ascended, the Wezar Kingdom would emerge as a dominant force among the minor kingdoms, which explained the citizens' pride in welcoming their prodigious prince back from war.

"Bones, shall we move to a more private place to discuss your plans after the festival?" Darsumi interjected into the ongoing conversation.

Bones nodded and followed Darsumi into the workshop, where they settled at a secluded table he had used before for work. Darsumi spread out sheets of paper and reviewed them before speaking.

"Alright, good news: everything's set for your new ID, and it'll be ready for you to use soon," Darsumi began.

"Will be ready?" Bones interrupted. Darsumi gestured for him to let him finish.

"Forging a new ID is a process, Bones. It can take up to a month. I've considered your plans to head to the front and then travel northeast as you mentioned. Your new ID card, along with a fresh adventurer badge, will be waiting for you at a branch of the Adventurer Guild in a small town in the Remore Kingdom." Darsumi pointed out the location on a map he handed to Bones. "That's your destination. After that, it's up to you. You'll find more details about who you'll meet and the exact exchange time in the documents I've given you. Don't lose them."

"Now, this is crucial, Bones, so listen carefully. Since you've disclosed your... past to us, I need to warn you and explain a few things about your new ID. What I'm arranging involves bribing an administrator at the guild's branch office to falsify the mana signature and register you as a new adventurer. Your mana signature as 'Bones' is already on record in the database at every Adventurer Guild headquarters, and possibly in branch offices by now."

Darsumi paused, allowing Bones a moment to digest the information, but sensing the need to clarify further.

"Every new and existing member of the guild has their mana signature recorded and stored in crystal displays used throughout Adventurer Guild buildings. The larger displays store comprehensive information and are located at headquarters across kingdoms and empires. Local branch offices use smaller displays for storing regional data on adventurers, quests, monsters, and criminals. Updates from branch offices to headquarters occur monthly, varying by location and transmission time. When you visit a guild, it's crucial not to trigger your mana signature more than once."

"If your signature is detected twice, the administration office will be notified, and your mana signature could become associated with two different names. Both IDs would be revoked, followed by a thorough investigation into your guild activities. Given your reasons for seeking this new identity to evade Silva and his guild connections, discovery must be avoided at all costs."

After Darsumi finished, Bones admitted he had often wondered about those crystal displays on reception desks. He expressed gratitude to Darsumi and inquired about the cost involved. Just bribing an official had set him back almost as much as acquiring an orc skeleton. After factoring in all expenses, Bones had spent fifteen hundred gold out of the five thousand he received from the dwarves. Despite this expenditure, he remained content; gold was something he could always acquire more of, in his view.

Bones suddenly asked Darsumi, "Dar, do you plan on going to the capital once more before the festival?" Darsumi shook his head, indicating he had no such plans, but mentioned that Thaddeus would be returning to the capital in two days.

"Great! Would Thaddeus mind delivering a letter for me?" Bones inquired.

"No problem at all. Just make sure to give him the letter before he leaves," Darsumi assured him. "I think we've covered everything now, Bones," he added as he stood up, ready to head back to the kitchen.

Bones opted to stay behind, expressing his intention to begin working on his new golem. Darsumi nodded understandingly and departed, leaving Bones to his tasks.

Bones started engraving the skeleton in preparation for obtaining another mana core. Working on the bones of the once very alive orc proved challenging due to its level, but his engraved skills made the progress faster and smoother than expected. He wrapped up his work after midnight and slipped outside under the cloak of darkness. Bones still needed to complete the bombs and acquire one final item.

The local cemetery lay inside the city walls, situated in a remote area within walking distance of the residential district. Casually strolling along the cemetery fence, Bones eventually jumped over, landing quietly in a crouch. As he rose to his feet, he scanned his surroundings, half-expecting someone to be present overseeing the grounds.

"Thought there'd be a watcher here. I guess the work hours are done," Bones muttered to himself.

He navigated through the rows of tombstones until reaching the far end of the graveyard. Checking once more for any observers, Bones retrieved two shovels from his inventory and summoned Skully, handing one shovel to his skeletal companion. Together, they began to dig...