That afternoon.

  “Let me perform blood etherization. I’ve been stuck at this stage for days without any progress,” Aaron said.

  “Go ahead.” Acher nodded. “Don’t waste any more time.”

  Aaron lay flat on a blanket on the floor, arms resting at his sides, preparing for the ritual to advance to the rank of high knight.

  “Luther, place a purewhite etherstone on his chest. It will make him feel more comfortable,” Acher instructed.

  The black-haired boy ran into his room and returned with not just one, but five etherstones, carefully placing them on the brown-haired boy’s chest.

  Acher: “…”

  “For ordinary people, performing this ritual requires drawing runes around the area, using special magical herbs, and drinking magic-enhancing potions to increase the success rate. For you, though, you can just proceed without all that,” the raven explained.

  “All right, I’ll start now,” Aaron said.

  Luther sat beside with his eyes fixed on him without blinking, his hands tightening.

  Acher rolled his eyes.

  “What are you worried about? With this boy, even if fate plays a joke on him and he fails, he won’t suffer any real harm and can try again right after that.”

  Under Aaron’s control, a fine stream of liquid energy, thinner than a strand of hair, flowed out from the sun-shaped ether focal point. It shone like molten gold, traveling along his veins and spreading throughout his body.

  Aaron felt as if a wave of scorching heat surged through him, making sweat bead on his skin.

  About ten minutes later, the golden liquid returned to his heart, completing a full circulation through his body. This created an eternal cycle, meaning Aaron had become a high knight.

  “He succeeded. This circulation mimics the Great Flow and will continuously diffuse ether energy until his blood transforms into pure energy,” Acher remarked.

  Luther exhaled in relief.

  “This step carries a fair amount of danger for ordinary creatures. If one loses control before establishing the Cycle, the unleashed energy will damage blood vessels throughout the body,” Acher continued. “While creating a permanent Ether Focal Point is considered the first founding step on the path of magic, establishing the Cycle marks the moment a mortal creature begins transforming into a supernatural being.”

  Aaron opened his eyes. The golden light within them now burned even brighter, radiating with an almost divine brilliance.

  "From this moment onward, you guys must address me as Sir High Knight Aaron Attenborough, understood?"

  Luther and Acher exchanged a silent glance.

  "…"

  "I can feel that my body is now far stronger than before.” Aaron’s face lit up with a bright grin. “And as the Cycle transforms my blood even further, I’ll grow even more powerful. This is incredible!”

  "It seems that we might be able to start our next mission tonight," Acher remarked.

  Luther gave a nod. It was Saturday, and if they didn’t go on a mission tonight, the next time they would be free would be the following weekend.

  "Yayyy!" Aaron let out a cheerful exclamation.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  …

  Eight o’clock that night.

  "Before the two of you begin your next mission, you should first sign the Covenant of Companion," Acher reminded them, not forgetting his plan. "Luther, bring out the Book of Fate."

  Luther extended his hand in front of him, and a stone-bound book materialized in his palm.

  "Open it. Aaron, place your right hand on the page to the right, and Luther, place your left hand on the page to the left."

  As the two of them pressed their hands on the book, it began to emit a soft, pale blue glow.

  "Now, repeat after me," Acher guided. "Say ‘I,’ followed by your name."

  "I, followed by your name."

  "I, followed by your name."

  "No, you idiots, that’s not how it’s done! You have to say it like, ‘I, Luther Ravenswood.’"

  "Ah, I see now. My apologies, Mr. Raven, hehehe. I, Aaron Attenborough …"

  "I, Luther Ravenswood …"

  "… do solemnly swear, under the witness of the Supreme Circulation, that we stand together, two souls bound by the sacred vow of the Covenant of Companion. With the Sky, the Earth, and the Abyss as our witnesses, we pledge to walk in harmony, never allowing darkness or storms to stain our intentions.

  We vow to protect the sanctity of this pact, to aid, defend, and grow alongside each other, abandoning malice, deceit, and every form of betrayal. May our thoughts remain pure, our actions upright, and our souls united as one.

  If we should stray from this path, let the Great Current be both judge and guide, ruling with fairness and leading us back in the proper way. This vow shall bind our fates together, weaving our destinies into the eternity of time.

  By the power granted from the Flow of Destiny, we affirm that this pact is inviolable and everlasting. As these words leave our lips, they shall become truth, from this breath until our last."

  When they finished speaking, the pale blue light from the Book of Fate shone brighter, illuminating their youthful faces.

  A mark shaped like a scythe appeared on the back of both their hands then faded away within seconds.

  "Good. With this pact in place, you two can now do quite a number of things. For instance, communicating, locating one another, summoning each other, and even borrowing a portion of each other’s power for a short time."

  "That sounds awesome! Let’s try it right away!" Aaron urged, his excitement bubbling over.

  After some experimenting, they discovered that through the scythe-shaped mark on their hands, they could:

  Send messages. If the recipient accepted the message, it would appear directly in their mind.

  Sense the other’s direction, though the signal grew faint if they were far apart.

  Send a summon request to the other. If accepted, the recipient would be transported to the summoner’s location. The summoned person could also cancel the summon and return to their original place at any moment.

  Request to borrow one of the other’s skills.

  "Let me borrow your scythe, please!" Aaron demanded.

  He swung the reaper’s weapon around with great enthusiasm, then draped himself in the cloak of ambiguity.

  "How do I look? Kinda like Batman, right?" Aaron struck a pose. "Too bad a selfie can’t capture the cloak. Oh, here, let me show you this thing."

  An orange light blazed in Luther’s palm, its glow casting warm highlights over his face.

  "Oh, Ambaeris. I didn’t expect you to have it as well," Acher said.

  "This was left to me by Orpheus.” Aaron beamed. “Luther, it’s one of the seven primordial lights from the Era of Chaos. You can turn it into anything you want, just think about it. Go on, give it a try."

  The light in Luther’s hand shifted shape, taking the form of a thick math textbook.

  Aaron:

  "…"

  Acher shook his head.

  "Are you two done playing? Save your magic, there’s still a mission waiting for you."

  Luther opened the Book of Fate again and began searching.

  Last time, three missions had appeared in the New York City area. Two of them were ranked at apprentice mage level, and one was at novice mage level.

  He had already completed the apprentice-rank task at 115 Esplanade, but now, looking at the map again, he saw that only the novice mage mission remained.

  "This is normal. Either some other messenger has completed the other mission, or it simply vanished, like when a lost soul gets their wish fulfilled," Acher commented. "Besides, missions sometimes can also become easier or more difficult."

  Above the only remaining point of fate was a countdown timer, with just a few hours left.

  "Some also have time limits, much like mandatory quests. It means the disturbance will vanish when the time runs out," Acher explained.

  "Ah, I have to head home first. My mom just called, and Uncle Adam is almost here. You can summon me after that,” Aaron said.

  Almost an hour later, Luther received a message from Aaron and summoned him. The brown-haired boy appeared beside him, his arms full of various pieces of clothing. He draped a thick fur coat over Luther’s shoulders.

  "It’s cold outside. These are mine. They’re super warm."

  Then Aaron wrapped a gray scarf snugly around Luther’s neck and placed a knitted beanie on his head.

  "Put on these gloves too,” he said, “and this trouser also, it’s fleece-lined."

  Acher gave him a side glance.

  This kid … they’ve only known each other for a few days! Give it a little more time, and Luther will be completely head over heels for him. Not that it matters now, he has already been tricked into signing the Covenant of Companion. Too late to back out now. Heh heh heh.

  Aaron used his phone to check the address and announced:

  "Let’s go! Straight to Elmhurst!"