Page 4187

No, he was stronger than before. Much stronger. In fact, thanks to him, Desmond had barely needed to get his hands dirty, as of late. Which was a novelty. He'd gotten so used to being in constant pain, thanks to the lingering effects of his transfiguration ability, but these days, he almost felt like a normal human being again.

Still, it did beg the question. Just how many times had that guy achieved emergence over this last year?

And was there even more to it than that? His whole vibe felt different, too. Perhaps Karkash was using his electromagnetic ability in order to mess with the air around him. Like a subtle, tingling cage or something.

Why would he do that, though? Just to fuck with Desmond?

...Possibly.

'Get up,' came Ezmortig's soundless voice.

Desmond had been reclining on a wooden stump at the edge of the encampment. All the noise from those weird squid things had gotten pretty annoying, so he'd started maintaining his distance. Plus, it was more difficult for the cultists to find him out here.

He did not immediately do as the reaper requested and instead merely scratched his cheek as he eyed the ethereal white mask that covered Ezmortig's face. 'Got some real work for me?'

'Killing, you mean? That's not your job, anymore. Best get over it.'

Desmond sighed but stood up.

The reaper began floating away.

Desmond followed. 'So what IS my job, then?'

'Outreach.'

He made a face but said nothing.

'You're a charmer when you want to be,' said Ezmortig. 'That is something Karkash will never have over you.'

At that, Desmond's frown actually did turn upside down, just a bit. Compliments from reapers were rare. So rare, in fact, that he knew pointing it out would probably motivate the reaper to either take it back or otherwise explain how it was actually nothing of the sort.

Instead, he tried to focus on the task. 'And who is it that needs charming?'

'Some politicians in Andeyal.'

He stopped walking and groaned. He didn't even bother keeping his next words private. "Are you kidding me? I thought we already agreed that infiltration is a shit detail, right now. The Vanguard's on high alert. Jackson's in the city. I go there, I'm toast."

The reaper turned and waited for him. 'I haven't forgotten. Conceal your voice.'

Desmond eyed the nearest servant a few meters away, then did as requested. 'So what's changed, then?'

Next page tomorrow

Thanks for reading, everyone.

Page 4186

And yeah, sure, Desmond knew his place well enough. He was a low-ranking chump, too. But he still had some pride. He didn't really have to start acting like he enjoyed doing bitch work for all these big shots, did he?

Well, if he wanted to climb through Jercash's ranks, then apparently he did.

But that was fine. He wasn't looking to move up in the world. Maybe one day. Assuming he lived that long. Which he probably wouldn't, he figured.

And besides, there was no telling how long he would stick around with Jercash's men. Ezmortig was truly unpredictable. At any point, the reaper might decide that they should go try their luck somewhere else.

And thanks to Karkash and Hoyohté, their little entourage actually had enough autonomy to do that, these days.

Those two were a lightning rod in more ways than just physical. Ever since that hubbub in Kavia, people had started calling Karkash the Bolt of Kavia. And that had only been the inciting incident.

Karkash had made even more of a name for himself as a kind of assassin on the battlefield. Not one that employed much stealth, but one who had nonetheless managed to snipe several famous Vanguardians and "local heroes" in recent months.

Jercash had even met with him directly and promoted him twice.

A lesser man might've felt intensely jealous, but Desmond was perfectly fine with riding Karkash's coattails all the way into the sunset, if need be. The only surprising thing, really, was that Karkash was actually letting him.

They couldn't be more different. Karkash originated from Dozer's side, and Desmond from Morgunov's. They rarely agreed on anything, and on paper, they shouldn't have gotten along at all.

Yet Desmond harbored no ill feelings towards him. And for some reason, Karkash still hadn't left him behind.

Desmond couldn't quite wrap his head around it, but maybe it was just down to the reapers. Hoyohté and Ezmortig rarely talked in front of him and Karkash, but he had noticed them being conspicuously absent over the last few months, perhaps to discuss their plans in private.

Whatever was going on, he supposed there wasn't much point in worrying about it. He was just a servant, after all.

There was definitely something strange going on with Karkash, though, and it wasn't just all the extra attention inflating his ego. Probably.