Page 4091

And worse still, if Abbas couldn't even tell how incredible the Amir-22 already was, then what did that mean? Was he just that out of touch? Too deep into his work? Or did he simply have much crazier plans already in mind that would make this pale in comparison?

Hector was fairly confident that it was the latter. He didn't want to imagine that their trip down memory lane together might have been for naught. Abbas knew the importance of not getting too detached. He had to.

All of these thoughts were stewing around in background thought processes.

His foremost concern remained on the mission at hand. Finding one of these senators. From the way "Prince David" had described it, Hector had a suspicion that aura would be his best bet in tracking them. Presumably, these important leaders would be in some way more noticeable than the rest.

He tried to reach out with his senses as he steered the group down toward the center of the district, aiming for a spot near the entrance of the big castle that he was honestly still drooling over in the back of his mind, even now.

He could just take them onto the castle grounds directly, but somehow, that felt like a bad idea. Better to approach more carefully.

Already, he could sense a noticeable difference in this district. No one was on the street, but he could sense auras everywhere, inside the buildings.

And as he laid eyes on the big castle walls from this fresh perspective on the ground, he felt compelled to consult his reaper.

'Garovel, do you know what this place is called?' asked Hector.

'Oh, this? Yeah, it's the Basilica of the Heavenly Ending. It's the third largest church in the world. Quite a big deal.'

'Wow.' He was tempted to ask what the other two were, but Garovel kept talking before he could make up his mind.

'I'm surprised you needed me to tell you, now that you're such a know-it-all.'

'I'm sensing a bit of resentment, Garovel.'

'Oh, is your fancy aura-reading telling you that?'

'Actually, it's your tone of voice. Your aura is telling me you're just joking and not upset at all.'

'Okay, well, now THAT is kind of upsetting. How am I supposed to mess with your head when you can just cheat and see right through me like that?'

'I'm sure you'll find a way.'

Next page on the 10th

Sorry, guys. Thanks for reading, though.

Page 4090

Those flying buttresses, though. Wow. The way they flanked the third story, supporting its vaulted formation... God, that looked so cool. Maybe he should try adding some flying buttresses to Warrenhold...

Or perhaps to the castle that was to be built around Cocora's Candle.

That hadn't slipped his mind, of course, even if it was still seeming quite impractical. The problem with it wasn't just funding, he'd come to realize. There was also the need for secrecy--and potentially, the need for a truly exceptional architect. As much as he enjoyed daydreaming about robust fortifications and fanciful heraldry, Hector was not under the impression that he alone could design such a place.

Fusion Forges all but invited sieges. Historically speaking, it was almost a foregone conclusion. A proper designer would be much needed in order to help defend against that inevitibility.

If Abbas started pumping out incredible work after incredible work, that was inevitably going to draw attention. And as Hector had been sifting through the Candle's vast historical knowledge, he was now very aware of how much danger the Forge might one day attract.

And this shield on his back could make that day arrive sooner rather than later, if he wasn't careful. The Amir-22, Abbas had called it. Just another work-in-progress, as far as the Sunsmith was concerned. He'd told Hector that the improvements were "trifles."

But Hector had tested it out during his training. He knew that it was no meager step forward, compared to the Amir-10. And that there was yet more to discover with it, too.

Moreover, he knew something was changing with Abbas himself. In the grand scheme of things, they hadn't even known each other that long, but the guy was clearly different from how he'd been before he'd started using the Candle.

Which shouldn't have been a surprise, Hector supposed. The Candle had obviously had a big impact on himself, so it only made sense that it would be having an effect on Abbas, too, even if it wasn't the same.

Nonetheless, it made Hector concerned. He still remembered Haqq Najir and Sazandara mentioning how difficult and time-consuming the creation of the Amir-9 had been. From the way they'd talked, it had sounded like that prototype shield had taken them months or even years of painstaking effort.

And yet now, Abbas had knocked out twelve new iterations in, what? A couple weeks? Perhaps a bit longer, if he'd been working on it and just not telling Hector about it, but still.

That was genuinely insane. And honestly quite terrifying, the more Hector thought about it.