Progression, Yet Not For Long

Lua found himself in the streets, trying to find a shop that sold brass of decent quality. The bustling town inspired him to keep wandering, until eventually, he reached a shop that looked like it was a blacksmith. Lua knew that blacksmiths had gone out of fashion long ago, being replaced by the more industrialised alloying techniques. However, he couldn't help but lack trust for the capitalists that sought nothing but profit.

The bell above the door dingled, indicating someone had entered the store. Lua closed the door behind him, preventing the loud noises of the street from infiltrating the calm shop. The room was surprisingly clean and not a workshop, having a few chairs in front of a counter. It looked like they wanted to look proper in front of potential customers. It certainly worked on Lua.

He saw a bald, burly man with an apron waiting in front of the counter. He heard the bell's dingle and looked up, only to meet eyes with Lua. He didn't bother forcing a smile, and got straight to the point.

"How can I help you, kid?"

Lua was unbothered by the attitude of the man. All he needed was some amount of brass, then he would be on his way. He cared little for how others behaved.

"Have you got any Brass?" Lua asked, prepared for rejection in the event they lacked the items he needed. However, to his surprise, the man nodded.

"You need it plated?" The man asked. Lua didn't need it to be plated - all it needed was to be Brass. So, he shook his head. Lua's golden eyes sparkled with relief, finally finding the resource he desperately needed.

Lua had been searching for a shop that would sell him the Brass all morning. It had gotten so desperate that he almost caved in and went to purchase an factory produced alloy, ignoring his moral compass. That was also the reason he was so prepared for rejection by the shopkeeper. 

"How much is half a kilogram?" Lua prepared for the worst. He wouldn't bother to haggle, as he had recently gotten the payment from the Company. He had enough money to go around. The Company had given an entire ducat to the team as compensation. Between the seven members, Lua had gotten 14 Shills. It was a large sum, more than enough for Lua to survive until the next mission.

The man wiped his hands on his apron, indicating he had been busying himself before Lua had shown up. "2 Shills."

Expensive! Lua nearly collapsed on the ground. Despite having a payout recently, he hadn't wished to spend so much this quickly. He sighed, relenting. He didn't have much of a choice either way, unless he wanted to spend another three hours in the streets.

Taking out two shill notes, he handed them to the man. The man promptly stuffed the money in his pockets, going to the back, likely to grab the materials Lua had requested. In two minutes, the man returned with a slab of metal that seemed heavy.

"Here it is. Pristine condition. Best of the best." The man boasted his own metal's quality, much to the amusement of Lua. He didn't care, however. He had gotten what he wanted.

"Thank you." Lua gave a slight bow, then opted to leave.

He wandered through the streets, eventually making it back to the band's headquarters. He saw Luna in the living room, reading a book. She didn't bother glancing up at Lua while he passed through.

The men were out drinking, per usual. Victoria's whereabouts was unknown. The band had practically begged her to stay and rest, but she had insisted she had important things to do. Due to her unrelenting nature, they had eventually caved in and let her leave.

Lua entered the room, finding Arc in his original spot. It seemed he was replenishing the weapons he had used. Lua sat down on his desk, talking to Arc.

"You really have to work on a new type of weapon."

Arc shrugged, indicating he didn't mind that he didn't have much use in combat other than playing support. It did make sense, however. Lua completely understood where he was coming from, due to the similarities in their personalities.

Arc was more fragile than Lua. And due to this, he lacked the desire to be a frontline fighter, standing behind to support to minimize the risk he had to undertake. Lua would have done the same, if he had been put in the same position.

"Not even a sword?" Lua pleaded, trying to get his friend to defend himself better. Arc chuckled at his insistence.

"Just evolve for now. Maybe you will learn new information that lets us make something better than we could before." Arc explained his thought process, enlightening Lua. Of course, Lua had considered it prior, but he had gotten considerably more paranoid after the previous mission. He felt that he needed a way to defend them both right now.

"Fine.." Lua relented, finally agreeing. He began to prepare the concoction, adding the various disgusting materials to the mix. He crushed the brass, turning it into dust with the additional strength from the glove. The heating feature also assisted during this process.

He watched as the concoction gained an orange tint with the addition of the Brass. It looked utterly disgusting, but also absolutely mesmerising at the same time. Lua immediately wanted to drink it, and keep his reservations to after he had already finished drinking it.

He finished mixing the 'delicious' meal, and looked upon it with horror. He pinched his nose to prevent tasting the disgusting liquid, and gulped it down in an instant. He instantly felt the sensation that he had missed so much.

The cells in his body rearranged themselves like pieces of a large puzzle, forming a new design that only changed the interior works. His muscles gained strength, and he learned new information that he didn't have access to prior. It was utterly enlightening.

Lua patiently waited for the daze to end and return to normal.