My head is splitting like somebody has taken a saw through it. Even now thinking is something that I am struggling with. Well, it has been two weeks since the damn vampire has been killed by me.

  I am almost fully healed, but my wounds, especially the one on my chest is still stinging. Well, if it was paining it would have been better, honestly. Right now the sting is more itchy than painful and I am struggling to stop myself from scratching. Everytime that I do end up scratching it leads to more stinging in my chest, which devolves in to more itching. It is becoming a pretty vicious cycle now.

  Let's speak about what I have been doing during the time that I have been stuck to my room. Well, my run through the fort has ended up attracting the ire of our enemies. Right now the bloodfire gang is ripping through the city looking for me and they are doing a very bad job of it.

  Well, the fact that they are doing such a bad job is the problem, it seems. The organisation knows how to hide itself when the other side acts more like a hunter. Right now the bloodfire gang is like a berserk bull attacking and destroying everything that comes in their sight. For every organisation hideout they destroy, ten legitimate merchants are attacked without reason. At least that's what trevor tells me.

  Well, this is not a good thing for obvious reasons. Even I can see that the organisation is struggling to protect their interests. Quite a few of their outposts above the ground have already been raided and destroyed. They have yet to shift their attention down here into the sewers but that is going to be a matter of time.

  The main cost of this has been faced by trevor. He has been in the city for the last couple of weeks doing some kind of extra work for the organisation. This is payment for my protection after the chaos I have caused in the city a couple weeks ago. He has been careful not to mention too much of this job to me. Well, that is the reaction he has for everything related to the organisation to be honest. He hasn't even mentioned to me what he is planning to do in the heist.

  I have yet to meet him for a while now. he has been busy with his work for the last couple of weeks. This is to the point that I don't think that I have even seen him sleeping. Well, I guess that I could have missed the man as well. I haven't exactly been wasting time as well. I have been sitting down and working on the fusion spell in this period. I have never really meditated like this after all, with it being the only thing that I am doing.

  I have something or the other to keep me busy at home. With the number of projects that I have entering into focus for meditation is one of the hardest thing that I can do there. It is not like I can just enter into meditation that easily. It requires a focus that is impossible to achieve when every few seconds your brain goes to the next formation you can be working on.

  It is fascinating if I am honest. I can see why people get so addicted to meditating. It is a interesting feeling to see yourself grow stronger like this. By the way, I have finally completed the major bond on my second formation slab. Again, I don't really know how to describe the major bond.

  It brings a sense of durability to the link between my sword and my mana core. If before the bond between my sword and me was like a string, which would have snapped if enough force was put to it. Now it feels like rubber band, which can be stretched for quite a while.

  By the way, I have started work on my third slab as well. Well, the third slab is not going to be as painful to complete as my second slab. That is because I will be able to incorporate the fusion spell into the slab from its creation. That is going to take a while though. Incorporating the fusion spell into a new foundation slab is harder than I expected.

  Still, the second slab and the benefits that it has given me is enough motivation for me to keep working at this. Well, I guess that I should describe what is happening in my mana core once I have completed the second slab. I think it is called as integration, the process in which the slabs merge with the walls of the mana core, becoming a part of the mana core. It allows you to absorb more mana into your core. It is supposed to strengthen your soul as well.

  In my case, I get even more benefits from this integration. The foundation slab also acts as the tether for the connection between the sword and myself. It integrating and becoming a part of my mana core has benefits that I don't think even my master would have predicted.

  With the slab integrating, the rejection that I have felt with blood mana is decreasing. For how much I use it, blood mana is still an external mana. If before, a part of my vital mana was converted into blood mana, now a part of my mana core has become able to store blood mana.

  This means that the concentration of blood mana in my mana core is going to increase. I will be able to drag more blood mana through my body as I cycle my vital mana. I wish there was a better way of controlling blood mana, but this all that I can do.

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  Vampires are able to pull of some pretty amazing things with this mana of theirs. If I can pull half of the things that they are able to then all of this work would have been worth it. All of the passive benefits that I have with blood mana is just growing. I am becoming stronger, faster and my senses are getting more sensitive with each passing day. The problem is that it really increases my dependence on my sword.

  If the sword does not taste blood every few days, it will consume my vital mana to power itself. Well, that was something that I expected would happened. My master has very clear notes on it for me.

  There is another problem. It is that I will have to achieve the major bond with the foundation slab for the process of integration to begin. Normally, the foundation slab integrates as it is created. Due to this a cultivator gets a steady increase in their mana storage as they complete their slab. In my case, my mana storage is going to increase in a few days, now that I have achieved the major bond. So that means that my mana control is going to take a hit for a while. Thankfully, this should not effect my work with inscribing.

  (After half a day.)

  The first thing that I think while looking at trevor is that the man looks exhausted. If anything the man looks like he could do with a massage. Well, I won't be the one to say that to him. That is going to end up in a lecture lasting at least an hour about the softness of the youth of this generation.

  "Well, you look at me like I am about to drop dead in the next few minutes, kid.", he speaks, completely breaking my track of thoughts. "I am not that fragile, but I need you to focus. I need your help."

  "Well, as long as it is not fighting I should be able to manage it.", I reply. "I just need a couple days to recover from the damage that I have been inflicted. After that I can fight."

  "Weren't your kind supposed to have advanced regeneration?", trevor asks.

  "Well, firstly I am not a vampire, to be their kind. Secondly, all of that requires me to make use of blood mana.", I reply. "With a vampire of the court up there that is a risk that I don't want to take. If I were to fully activate my sword they will attack here within the hour."

  "Well, that's good. We can make use of that.", he speaks.

  "Well, I can pull of something like that I think. As long as the other side does not have more vampires stationed there.", I reply. "For all the benefits that my sword gives me, fighting against vampires of the higher rank is going to be very hard. Especially one that is of the court."

  "Well, that is fine. I have a plan that might need bait.", he speaks. "If what you say is true, then push comes to shove, you will be able to attract the attention of the enemy."

  "Fine, what am I supposed to do?", I ask.

  "Well, you are going to the inn, kid.", he speaks, looking at my confusion. "And before you ask, that is one of the few bases of the bloodfire gang left in the city. One of two to be precise. They are making use of the inn as a temporary prison. It holds all the people that they have kidnapped, mainly merchants and the remaining guards of this town."

  As he speaks, the man sits down on a chair getting comfortable. This is going to take a while, it looks like.

  "Well, let me tell you the task I have been given. We are to engineer a mass jailbreak from the inn.", he continues.

  "Well, why are they involving us? Isn't this something that they would like to do themselves.", I ask.

  "Well, that is true with most groups. The organisation is pretty different. You can say that they are more profit driven. Right now is business season for them. It would be more economical for us to do the rescuing so they will make us do it. It also allows them to make the most use out of the present situation.", he speaks. "Anyway, where was I, we have been tasked to save them and let as many prisoners out as possible."

  "What is the plan? You are not the kind to be without one.", I ask the man.

  "Well, I have already scouted the location for you. I already had a plan, but the bastards caught me at the last moment.", he continues, his voice receding to agitated mumbles. "I had reached the second floor as well. That bastard of a guard detected me at the last moment."

  "So that must mean that they are going to be alert for another attempt.", I reply, "well, since you have come to me, you must have a plan."

  "Well, not exactly a plan but I can get you the map of the place so you can have a plan of attack, but the problem is that somebody strong has been stationed there. It is not a captain, but they have been stationed there after my attempt", he replies. "It would be unwise to make a plan on old information, but I feel like we can risk it. They are not particularly smart, the people of this gang. The only thing is that we need to get a point of entry for you. Well, how confident are you with the disguise of a porter. I have heard that you already used it."

  "Well, I can't be anything that obvious. The porters are going to be the first people that they will search through. The damn bastards have my posters stuck everywhere.", I reply. "And regardless of how carefully I try to hide my mana. The other side will only need to look at me with a bit of focus and they will be able to detect my blood mana."

  "Well, then we just need to make sure that the other side does not give you another glance.", he speaks. "I just need to get you into a couple of rags, I can make you a half decent beggar. The only problem is that you have such smooth hands. You really have let go of combat practice haven't you."

  "Well, beggars are going to be even more searched than the porters.", I reply. "I have seen it happen so many time in my missions with the legions."

  "While you legioners are adept at the art of disguise, we at the guard corps are true master's of it." He replies. "You don't need to worry about that."

  "Well, we are hunted at every city that we visit.", I reply, a bit smugly "If our disguises are not perfect then we will be swamped with enemies."

  "Well, for you disguises are a matter of convenience. It is meant to stop you from having to fight at every city that you visit. There is no real cost to getting caught other than one more fight", he speaks. "For us at the guard corps, if our disguises are caught then it will be our death. We are not as strong as you guys."