“It won’t take long to gather the resources for your frame…”

  Rusty said as his metallic boot crunched over a crystal on the ground.

  “Hmph! I can’t believe you did such a thing! The audacity, the betrayal!”

  A rather unhappy Aburdon replied, his light flickering inside Rusty’s helmet.

  “(?—?—)”

  Gleam clung to Rusty’s shoulder as the two moved through the corridor. This time, however, they were not alone. A third figure followed them, another suit of armor, this one completely white.

  “Just leave him be, Rusty. He’ll be back to cackling in no time.”

  The visor flickered as Alexander spoke. He was now fully encased in newly created light steel armor. This was his first visit to the dungeon after spending time in the basement smithy, and it was the first real test of what his guide could do within the shell he had created. The armor seemed to be a difficult fit for the former hero, as he was clearly still adjusting to its balance.

  “Let’s focus on the hunt. Do you think you can defeat it alone?”

  Rusty pointed toward a large lizard not far away. The creature stood still, showing little reaction. In theory, Alexander’s armor was nearly as durable as Rusty’s previous evolution, which should place him around the D-minus rank. Still, Rusty was unsure. Alexander’s movements were sluggish, lacking the expertise and speed he expected.

  “I’m not sure. It’s hard to get used to the way this body moves. It feels much lighter than my old one, or at least I think it does. I don’t really remember it that well anymore...”

  Alexander replied while gripping a large mace with both hands. He swung it a few times, nearly being pulled off balance when he put too much force behind the motion.

  “I’m sure you’ll get used to it, but can you use any of my skills, or any of your old ones?”

  “I think I can, but… I’m not sure.”

  Alexander seemed confused in this form. He did not have access to a system window, which made everything more difficult, so they would need to test things slowly through battle and a round of trials.

  One thing he was certain of was that his guides required a full suit of armor made from this specific metal. He had tried using only the helmet with more conventional armor, but he could not occupy the mismatched pieces. This made things even harder, as the mana usage was extremely high.

  “Come, Alexander. I’ll take its attention. You attack it from the flank. Gleam, give us support from the back.”

  “( ?? ? ?? )?”

  Alexander looked at his mace, then at the creature, and finally nodded. Rusty moved first. His mace was smaller than Alexander’s, and he also carried a shield. With a few sharp smacks against the shield, he drew the monster’s attention. To make things easier for his guide, he activated Provoking Shout, forcing the creature to focus solely on him.

  The lizard’s slit pupils snapped toward Rusty the instant the skill took hold. The crystal growths on its back pulsed with mana, and it gave out a menacing hiss.

  “Good. Eyes on me.”

  The creature lunged, its claws scraping against the stone and throwing off sparks. Rusty braced himself with his shield raised. The impact rattled through his arm, but his frame held steady as he increased his weight. He slid a few centimeters back, boots carving shallow grooves into the cavern floor, but the creature was stopped.

  “Now!”

  He called out to Alexander, who had used the opening to move to one side. The white armor advanced, slow at first, then gradually picked up momentum. It was like watching a child learn to walk for the first time, except this was the relearning of skills long forgotten. Alexander gripped the mace with both hands and swung with all his might.

  When the mace connected with the lizard’s flank, it produced a dull thump that echoed through the cavern. The monster screeched as the struck crystals shattered instantly. It twisted its body violently, trying to hit Alexander with one of its back legs, but he managed to evade the strike as if he had anticipated it.

  “Oh?”

  Rusty was surprised by the movement, as it was not something his usual puppet armors were capable of. They could perform basic tasks and were similar to basic living armor monsters. Alexander, however, showed promise and more finesse. He evaded and blocked with precision, preventing the monster from dealing serious damage. With another swing of his oversized mace, he shattered another crystal, causing the monster’s magical defenses to weaken.

  “Not bad, but I’m also here!”

  The large lizard began to turn its head toward Alexander, but before it could react, Rusty slammed his shield into it. Soon, the two armors were pummeling the monster without mercy while Gleam watched from afar and cheered. Only after enough crystals had been destroyed and the mana veil around the creature’s body dispelled did she join the fight, showering it with mana bolts.

  “We did it. It’s down. Not bad, Alexander.”

  “Thank you.”

  Alexander replied.

  “It seems I still remember how to move properly, but this body feels quite sluggish.”

  They examined the defeated monster. It was not strange that the new body felt wrong. Alexander, a former hero who would likely have ranked among S-rank adventurers, had once wielded a body honed by countless battles, miracles, and blessings. Compared to that, this freshly forged shell was of low quality.

  “Sluggish or not, you adapted fast.”

  Rusty said as he knelt beside the fallen lizard and began the careful process of desynthesis.

  “You reacted without me issuing commands. That alone makes you different from my other puppets.”

  Alexander looked down at his white gauntlets and slowly flexed his fingers. Light gathered faintly at the joints, responding to his will with a delay so slight it was almost imperceptible.

  “It’s strange, but I think I could cast some spells.”

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  He extended his metallic hand forward, and light began to gather. It grew bright and intense, forming something that resembled a spear of light. Just as it was about to take shape, something unexpected happened.

  “Huh?”

  Alexander gasped in confusion as his body began to crumble. His knees buckled, and his entire frame collapsed. The forming spell fizzled out, and with it, his presence seemed to waver.

  “Alexander?”

  Rusty rushed forward to the scattered pieces of armor on the ground. He picked up the helmet and looked inside, but the wisp of light that represented the former hero was gone. Checking his status window, he saw that Alexander had returned to the Soul Forge. There was no cooldown timer, so he summoned him again at once. Soon, a white orb of light appeared before them, and he started asking questions.

  “What happened? Why did your frame collapse, and what was that spell?”

  “I’m not sure. I tried casting a spell. I think it was the spear of light. Then everything went white, and I was back in the Soul Forge.”

  This was all somewhat confusing for Rusty. He had not gained any new titles or skills when Alexander entered the armor, which forced him to speculate on how to handle the situation. In some ways, his guide acted similarly to how he did when Rusty was being summoned. He could not separate from him, just as he could not separate from Gwen, and there were additional limitations as well.

  “Isn’t it obvious?”

  Aburdon commented, making Rusty turn to him instantly.

  “It is?”

  “Indeed. The spell he attempted to create was far too much for his limited mana pool to handle, so it affected your own skill that was holding him in place.”

  Rusty nodded, as this explanation made sense. When he was in Gwen’s world, he had seen other summons vanish if they overtaxed themselves or when their summoners exhausted all of their mana. Alexander likely only had a meager amount of MP to work with.

  ‘Would I be able to learn that mana transfer spell that Gwen used on me, but would it even be worthwhile?’

  He considered whether giving Alexander more of his mana would be a good idea. Without enough MP, Rusty would not be able to cast his own spells or use many of his skills. It might be better to determine which skills and spells his guide could use without canceling the puppet skill. He wanted them to assist him when he faced multiple foes, but not to become the foundation of his power. Combat was still something he enjoyed and wanted to focus on as he continued evolving toward the highest rank he could achieve.

  “But what was that spell… it looked powerful.”

  “I think it’s called the Spear of Luminosity, a higher D rank spell.”

  Alexander replied while Rusty tried to recall the spell being cast. In theory, he could wield both light and dark spells and should be able to learn what Alexander had just demonstrated.

  “Bah, let’s just get this over with and get the crystals for my body! Then I, the great Aburdon, will help you with everything. Why even learn that idiotic spell when you can learn from me instead?”

  “You know spells like that?”

  “Of course I do!”

  Aburdon replied with confidence, but Rusty was not sure. There always seemed to be some kind of blockade whenever he asked to be taught spellcasting by his two guides. However, Alexander had also managed to remember one of his old, powerful spells, so perhaps by giving both of them new bodies, Rusty would be able to learn new spells and techniques.

  “Perhaps we should do that first, then!”

  “(?? ? ??)”

  Gleam nodded, and soon Rusty brought Alexander back into his new body. Their hunt continued. With one of his guides active, Rusty was only able to use eighty percent of his MP, but it proved worthwhile. In each battle, Alexander showed himself to be a capable companion. Even though his stats were lower than Rusty’s, his experience was evident. He could predict monster attack patterns and move to safety with consistent precision.

  With Alexander around, the hunts went by faster. Having someone to strike the flanks of the crystalline monsters was quite handy. Gleam provided long-range support magic, while Rusty acted as the main vanguard. If he added Aburdon to the mix, he would have a proper party that could potentially help him take down even creatures he would not be able to defeat alone.

  ‘I wonder…’

  For a moment, he entertained the strange idea of registering both his guides with the guild to form a proper party. However, they did not possess his skills, and lending them the heads of other dead adventurers would likely not allow them to speak either. At least for now, he had to bury that idea and focus on the grind ahead of him.

  “That should be enough.”

  After spending another half day in the dungeon, they gathered enough mana crystals to create more steel ingots, this time aligned with the darkness element. Once everything was deposited into his storage, he returned to the city. The trip back took some time, and although it was tedious, it was not wasted. The smithing area of the Soul Forge had recharged, allowing him to return immediately and resume the smelting process.

  “This batch will finally give Aburdon a proper body. He won’t try to run… right?”

  His second guide was a bit of a troublemaker, but after starting with Alexander, he understood their limitations. They could not escape or harm him in any meaningful way.

  “Well, let’s just get to work!”

  He dumped the newly gathered mana crystals onto the workbench, separated them by size, and began the smelting process. Now that he had learned the proper method, there were no failures. He produced enough darksteel ingots for Aburdon’s body, along with a few extra for weapons he had not been able to offer before.

  “I cannot bear another moment trapped in this… weak form!”

  When he returned and summoned Aburdon again, he was met with more complaints before the body was finally revealed. It looked identical to Alexander’s, but instead of white, it was pitch black, like polished obsidian.

  The black armor absorbed the light in the room, its surface reflecting nothing back. Where Alexander’s frame was white and somewhat warm, this one looked more oppressive. Even before Aburdon entered it, Rusty could feel a strange presence.

  “Ahhh… finally.”

  Aburdon’s voice echoed with undisguised satisfaction.

  “Do you have any idea how humiliating it is for a being of my stature to be reduced to a flickering spark inside your helmet?”

  “No not really… now just get in there…”

  Aburdon wasted no time. His dark wisp surged forward and plunged into the armor’s helmet. Unlike Alexander’s gentle merging, Aburdon’s possession was violent. Black tendrils flickered from the entrance point, and the entire suit of armor began to shudder as if overtaken by something evil. The glow that followed was dense, like ink.

  “( ?? - ?? )”

  Even Gleam did not feel comfortable with the display of dark mana. To living creatures, this energy carried an instinctive sense of fear.

  “It’s okay, Gleam. He won’t hurt you.”

  Rusty called out as the black armor’s foot slammed into the ground with more force than necessary. Aburdon rolled his shoulders, each movement exaggerated, as if savoring the sensation of weight.

  “Oh… yes. This will do nicely.”

  The helmet slowly turned toward Rusty. Two pinpoints of dark light ignited within the eye slits.

  “…You made this well.”

  Aburdon admitted it after a pause.

  “Crude compared to my original form, of course, but serviceable. Very serviceable…”

  He stepped closer and stood before Rusty, raising his hand. He swung it forward as if intending to strike, but the motion halted just before contact. His hand stopped a few centimeters from Rusty’s body, frozen in place.

  “You know you can’t harm me, right? We already tested this with Alexander before.”

  “Well, you can’t blame a demon lord for trying, can you?”

  Aburdon laughed as he pulled his metallic hand back. He had tried to hit Rusty, but as expected, he could not harm the one who had placed him in the pupper armor, no matter how much he might want to.

  “I don’t think this is a good idea. You cannot put your trust in this demon.”

  Alexander stepped forward and shoved Aburdon’s dark body aside. Aburdon glanced at him and quickly slapped Alexander’s white hand away.

  “You want to continue where we left off, hero?”

  “I defeated you once. I can do it again.”

  “Hah. You can barely control that armor. Let me show you how it is really done.”

  Aburdon’s fist began to glow with a dark energy. He seemed far more adept at controlling it than Alexander. Perhaps it was his knowledge of magic, or some other skill he possessed, but either way, Rusty felt a surge of excitement. Even though forty percent of his mana was already gone, these two could probably teach him new tricks, and he could barely wait.