Their garden was beginning to look pretty decent. Two rows of five raised plant beds stood in their front yard, licking sun all day everyday. Both Eik and Ihasu tended to them daily, watering and trimming.

Killing weeds was a task that mostly fell on Eik's shoulders since his preferred method was to inject the soil with copious amounts of liquid Profound Toxin which would seep throughout the plant beds, killing only the unwanted species. It was incredibly effective and a service which, if he hadn't already been stupidly wealthy, he might have charged others for.

Today was Bin's second day back in school and the announcement at the Alchemist Guild of Gimleh that Eik was the creator and sole manufacturer of Eik's Legendary Mystery Medicine was tomorrow. Ihasu and Bin had left for school about thirty minutes ago and Eik was enjoying the sun, watering his potatoes. These ones were going to be big. Like, crazy big.

He hadn't quite realized just how much larger plants grew after the world changed until he finally had the freedom to start growing his own. Many fruits and vegetables reached twice their previous old-Earth sizes if not more. Not only that, the sheer speed at which they ripened and matured was jaw-dropping.

Soon he would embark on the adventure that was growing his own cocoa beans!

He loved having his hands in the soil, feeling the roots and pebbles against the tips of his fingers. It was an exercise in peace that he could fully appreciate after all the blood he had shed. Obviously, the bloodshed wasn't at an end, and probably never would be, but for now, he could revel in the sun and feel its rays caress his skin.

"Eik Magnasen!" Ihasu called, causally clearing their picket fence before coming to a stop in the middle of the yard, hands on her hips.

"Oh, boy, the last name. This can't be good," Eik mumbled to himself as he stood up, Profound Toxin flowing across his hands and leaving them squeaky clean. He cleared his throat. "Yes, my love?" he asked with a smile.

"Did you stick a Living Manifestation on your daughter?" she questioned.

"Uuh…" he hesitated, eyes flitting about in panic. "No?"

Ihasu clicked her tongue in annoyance. "I just dropped her off at school and when she walked through the door and we waved to each other, one of your damn beasts peeked out of her shoulder at waved at me as well! You are completely out of line sometimes, you know that?"

Eik grumbled and kicked a ceramic pot across the yard. "And I even specifically told it not to do that…" he muttered under his breath.

"How could you do that to Bin?" Ihasu asked. "What if she gets hurt?"

"Profound Toxin would never hurt her!" he said with confidence. "We're like two souls in the same body. Profound Toxin loves her like a parent. I can feel it. And it's exactly because I don't want her to get hurt that I planted one of them on her."

Ihasu was silent for a moment, just looking at him. She had been terrified of what happened a few days ago as well. They had both had a tough time letting her go back to school again where they couldn't constantly watch her and protect her. Even if they were powerful Awakened, that meant nothing if they weren't there to help. "Eik, you can't do that to her. She deserves her privacy, even if she's only seven. David and Michelle Stevens are in prison for now."

"Yeah, but you know as well as I do that there are people right here in Forest who despise the thought of 'aliens'," he said, doing air quotes. "You've experienced it yourself, but you can defend yourself. What if someone does something to our little girl, Ihasu?" he said, feeling a heavy lump settle in his throat. "I have been too lax. I need to get a handle on Forest. Make sure something like this doesn't happen again. Fuck."

"Eik…" she sighed. It was clear that his words were getting to her. Judging by her face, those same thoughts had weighed heavily on her own mind as well.

"Until she Awakens then? I'll load her up with my Legendary Mystery Medicine from the day she does."

"You want to leave that serpent with her for at least the next five years? She needs privacy too!"

"I'll tell the Living Manifestation to leave for a little bit if she asks it to, then!" he tried. "But you don't think she's going to start kissing boys already, do you?" he asked with horror, the idea hitting him like a wrecking ball.

"There are other situations where someone deserves privacy besides kissing boys," Ihasu sighed, rolling her eyes hard. "Even children should have the opportunity to keep a secret or two from their parents. I would have absolutely hated it if my dad knew everything I did at all times when I was a kid."

"Yeah…" Eik mumbled, absentmindedly twirling a new tomato stalk between his fingers as he stared at the grass. "Yeah, me too. But Ihasu—"

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Alright, how about this, then," she began, interrupting him with a finger in the air. "We give her the choice. Ask her if she wants to carry around one of your little beasts, and if she says yes, then that's fine. If no, then no. If sometimes, then we do sometimes. Let's just leave the decision to her, okay?"

"Yeah, okay, let's do it like that. She loves those guys anyway. Treats 'em like pets and they love it too."

"Good. Let's do that then," she said. "How are you feeling about tomorrow? Are you nervous?"

"Mmh, yeah, a little. But yapping is kind of what I'm good at so it's probably going to be okay," he chuckled. "I kind of haven't been thinking about it that much on top of everything that happened with Bin and those parents. And I'm going to be anxious about it until they stand trial later. For now, I'm just happy that I crushed them a few dozen times, and then planted Profound Toxic beasts inside them."

"I get it," she said with a nod. "You care more about Bin than some annoying, groundbreaking, all-encompassing, money-magnetic, cosmic, once-in-a-lifetime fame-farming event. That's one of the things I like about you." She laughed and kissed him.

"And one of the things I like about you is that you like that about me," he chuckled into her lips.

"What about Vendekaabe? The cultist. Did you talk to Andihar and my grandpa?"

"Yeah, and we all agree that I'll have a considerably better chance of being taken seriously if I bring it up to the Nidafjeld Alliance after I identify myself as the man responsible for one of the biggest advances in the race for power the Unified Mass has ever seen. So, for now, he's got a pretty comfortable, but tightly locked room at the Dayarunar estate while we wait."

"Sounds like the right thing to do."

"Right?"

"So what are you going to wear tomorrow?" she asked, seamlessly switching topics.

"Uuuh… What? What am I going to wear?"

"Yep. What are you going to wear?"

"A, uhm… A shirt."

"Okay, pretty good start. And then?"

"Pants?"

"Good answer!" she said, offering enthusiastic applause. He punched her in the arm. "How about we go and find you some nice clothes in Gimleh? I know you don't really care, and I'm usually fine with that, but this time it would be nice to look a bit less… disheveled," she noted, gesturing at his dirt-stained t-shirt, ragged shorts, and flip flops.

"But I was actually just—" he began, glancing at the pot he had been filling with soil, then noticing his girlfriend's stare. "actually just… uuh, going to get my stuff so we can leave."

***

"The sun is out and proud, rays baking, light blinding. The wind is mild and gentle, caressing my skin like a caring lover. Excitement flows all around and the mood is just great! Today… Yes, today! Today is a good day to di—"

"I highly doubt you're going to die today, mate," Heath scoffed, kicking Eik's back leg as he took a step, tripping him. It would probably have worked if he hadn't been an A-ranker.

"That totally isn't what I was going to say!" Eik insisted.

"Oh yeah? I know you. You do this little speech every time you're doing something even remotely dramatic. Not all of them are dangerous, bro."

"I wasn't this time!"

"What were you going to say then, smartass?"

"I was going to say, uuh… Today is a good day to… uhm, divulge my identity as the amazing creator of Eik's Legendary Mystery Medicine."

"Uh huh, well, nice save anyway," Heath admitted.

It was crowded. Not because today was the day where he was speaking at the Alchemist Guild of Gimleh, but because it was always crowded. The main base of the Alchemist Guild was located on the outskirts of one of the biggest markets of Gimleh.

It really was a very nice day. Bird were chirping on the rooftops, merchants were hawking their wares at full lung along the busy streets, and children played between the countless stands and stores selling nearly anything you might desire.

It was the perfect day for big news.

"Are you okay, my boy?" his father asked him in their native tongue, putting his arm around his son's shoulders. "You know, I can always tell when you're nervous."

Eik chuckled. "Oh yeah? And how is that?"

"You get a certain energy about you. And you talk too much."

This time he laughed out loud. Ihasu fell into step next to them. "I'm pretty sure he always talks too much."

"Alright, now I just feel attacked."

By the time they arrived at the gates of the Alchemist Guild, the sheer number of people waiting to hear the announcement of the inventor's identity such that they were forced to stand in the street. Monitors were being hastily installed along their outer walls of the guild in order to allow as many people as possible to witness the event. This was by Eik's own request.

He wanted this to be as public as he could make it.

"How are we going to get in?" Michael asked? Like Eik's crucible test, the whole gang had come along to bear witness to this day. It would change everything—not just for Eik himself, but for Earth in general and its position in the cosmic hierarchy.

He had recently come to understand just how much a single exceptional individual could impact the standing of a world, especially when it was still as fresh as Earth. Every Earthling would command at least a bit more respect among other races of the Unified Mass simply because of his achievements. It was a net win for humanity.

"Backdoor," Eik said and led them around the perimeter, away from the crammed front gates.

He knocked on a door and seconds later a woman dressed in an immaculate outfit stuck her head out. "Yes?"

"We're here for the event," Eik said.

She looked him up and down and threw glances at the many people behind him. With a gesture of her head back the way they had come, she spoke bluntly. "Guest entry's that way."

Eik stuck a foot in the door before she had a chance to close it. "I'm not a guest," he said with a smile.

She gave him another look but didn't seem convinced. "Phrase?"

He looked back at his friends and family with a shit-eating grin. "Hot chocolate."

Surprised, she hesitated for a beat but then closed the door and jangled with some locking mechanisms on the inner side before the door swung open again, this time fully.

"I apologize for the misunderstanding, Mr. Magnasen," she said with a deep bow. "Director Aohan awaits you in one of our lounge rooms. I will personally guide you now."

"Hot chocolate?" Michael asked.

"I got to pick my password myself."

"Good one."

"Thanks."

Several beautiful inner courtyard gardens decorated much of the perimeter of the guild as they weaved through wall-wide windowed corridors, a clear demonstration of the wealth the guild possessed.

"Well, gang," Eik said, taking a deep breath. "Time to get rich and famous."

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