Preparations

The days flew by as preparations for the summer hunt intensified. The monarch was away on crucial business, leaving the Queen to preside over the ceremony alongside Dukes Tush and Duval.

A palpable energy buzzed through the palace, a stark contrast to the somber mood that had lingered since the heir's untimely demise. The army was securing the coastlines, conducting marine scout missions, and registering expedition teams. Traders, spectators eager to witness the hunt, and those seeking to showcase their talents flocked from across the archipelago, filling hotels and restaurants to capacity. The archipelago was the epicenter of activity.

Pax, however, was consumed by a simmering anger. The incident at the auction house had ignited a fire within him, and his frustrations often spilled over onto his siblings, resulting in broken objects, punctured walls, and more. Never before had he felt so disrespected. His pride, deeply wounded, refused to accept the humiliation.

The worst part? The culprit, ensconced within the impenetrable walls of the palace, was beyond his reach.

"You are too rash, too impetuous," Duke Duval admonished, entering Pax's messy room. "You lack the magnanimity, the bearing of a monarch. For a minor setback, you're throwing a tantrum like a petulant child. It's truly embarrassing."

"He mocked me in front of Miss Minx! My honor is sullied!" Pax retorted, his face flushed.

"You sullied your own honor by groveling before an apprentice weapon designer," the old duke countered.

"What do you mean?" Pax demanded.

"I've spent years grooming you for the monarch's position, for you to wield your power to impress, not to be swayed by women! How pathetic!"

"What should I have done?" Pax asked, kneeling.

"Establish law and order among your subordinates. They should respect, or at the very least, fear you. Does this weapon designer possess any of these qualities?"

Pax remained silent for a moment, digesting his grandfather's words. "You should focus on the summer hunt," the duke continued, handing Pax a list. "The monarch's bastard will be participating. Here is his team composition."

"Just five people? Why didn't any of the King's faction join him?" Pax inquired.

"He dismissed them. I don't know if it's audacity or foresight, but he's one to watch."

"A team with a bastard, two losers I've already defeated, and a pair of crybabies? What kind of impact can they possibly make?" Pax scoffed.

"I should send you to the fiefdom after the hunt. Your foresight is severely lacking," the old man declared before exiting the room.

Pax activated his communication device. "Gather the team. I require a report on the summer hunt preparations. Also, dispatch someone to clean this mess."

He gazed out the window, a steely glint in his eyes. "I'll focus on the important things. This hunt will be my stage."

In Nioh's lab, the explosion and screams from the training room were muffled by his sound isolation technique, "Quiet Hand," which he was steadily refining. "They're making an awful racket," Ekoh complained. "I'm getting tired of playing with counter-waves."

"I wouldn't know," Nioh replied with a mischievous grin, "I haven't heard a thing."

"We're on the final step for your weapon's completion," Ekoh declared, his tone more serious.

"I know, this is probably my most ambitious project yet," Nioh acknowledged as he moved to the biocore station, initiating the stabilization process. A lattice of bio-conductive filaments extended from the containment pod, piercing the biocore's surface. The material hummed softly, a sign that it was bonding with the synthetic nervous system embedded in the workstation.

"Biocore conductivity is stabilizing at 97%," Ekoh reported. "You'll need to fine-tune it for the sonic feedback loops."

"Already on it," Nioh replied, his fingers dancing across a holographic console.

"Good. Now for the crystal lattice array," Nioh said, picking up a fine soldering tool that emitted a focused plasma beam. He meticulously connected the Lumiglass veins to a micro-reactor embedded in the base of the weapon.

"Let's leave it at that for now," Nioh said, picking up the weapon. "It's heavier than I anticipated!" he exclaimed. He swung it a few times. "The conductivity is good, but the sound is very low," Ekoh observed.

"How about adding some sound chimes? I have a few in the drawer over there," Nioh suggested, reaching for the drawer and adorning the blade with the sound-making objects.

"Better," Ekoh replied, finally satisfied. "I can attract more sound waves now." Right that instant the whole building trembled.

"What the hell are they doing in there?" Nioh asked stabilizing his sensitive materials before heading toward the training room.

 As soon as the door flung open, he saw Kol and Sol in their partial mecha form shooting beams of lights from multiple positions. The rate of fire and precision had drastically improved, as well as their coordination and tactic understanding. X who was on the receiving end was expending more effort to defend against them.

'They have improved' Ekoh said. " Yeah but they are still a long way from beating him" Nioh replied. The next moment, X retaliated with a swing of his flaming sword sending to room ablaze. Kol and Sol, jumped into the shadow dimension with the help of Kol's ability, effectively dodging the attack but the location, they reappeared to was already under the control of X.

"You guys still lack the battle instinct." X said before blasting them away with his aura. He continued "Your patterns are too predictable. You need to think three steps ahead of your opponent"

"Brother, nobody can beat you. You are a frontier war veteran and a four-star core binder. I don't think we could draw your partial mecha form with all of us combined" Cryo spoke from the side.

"Speak for yourself, there are different kinds of beast in your generation. I have encountered them while at the frontier, they are called anomalies; Born with ungodly talent, in all fields, and they could fight against opponent level higher."

"I have seen the gap between You and a monster like Pax. I don't think he can fight you on the same playing field."

"Pax is very talented, In ten years he might be a force to recon with. But when it comes to the anomalies, he is far, behind." X said before looking at the recently closed entrance door.

"Beside we also have our own, little demon" he said looking at Nioh standing at the door with a weapon in hand.