Wearing the free replacement clothes that you could get at ruin sites, a plain grey sweat suit, I returned home while pondering a few things.

“Hi, Hope,” I greeted the girl who was tending to the patch of dirt just outside the apartment.

“Hello, Casper!” Hope waved to me eagerly.

“Have the flowers said anything today?”

“No.” Hope pouted. “Just whispers.”

“Well, maybe they need time.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right. They sure were talked a lot when it came to you though,” she grumbled under her breath.

I smiled before heading up. I collapsed onto the couch and ran through what I’ve learned.

The key thing is that the effect of the art of sanguina wasn’t reliant on my imagination. So, whether I pictured a giant explosion of a small one, the end result would be like a firecracker.

I tried creating other elemental effects like poison, burning, freezing, things like that. Most of my attempts ended in failure, falling short of what I imagined. Instead of flames rising up from my blood, it boiled. Sure, it hurts the imp covered in blood, but it was hardly deadly unless I covered them from head to toe and spent a few minutes waiting.

My blood didn’t freeze but turned into a thin layer of ice that melted almost as quickly as it appeared.

The poison aspect was more of an allergic reaction rather than poison. I was disappointed to see that attempting to poison the imps led to them only being slightly irritated.

So, it seemed that the strength of the effects was dependent on the quality or quantity of my lifeblood. I didn’t know of any ways to increase it so I looked for the next best thing, artifacts.

There were a lot of “vitality-boosting” artifacts that went unsold due to the lack of a solid market. The most expensive artifacts were the ones that could add years to your lifespan, so the ones that added a week or two at most went unsold.

I browsed through a catalog of artifacts on sale and found that most were useless, but there was saying about trash and treasure. I went through buying options and found that there was leasing, rental, and installment options for the grand total of 100,000 dollars. It was hardly cheap, but if I could artificially boost my vitality until I figured out how to increase it, I’d be able to make greater use of my sanguina.

Since the purchase had to be made in person with my identification ready, I reserved the item ahead of time and went back to figuring what else I could do.

Using my blood to control other beings was off the table for now as once it was away from my body, it was much harder to control.

“Now for this thing,” I lifted my shirt and stared at the black ring surrounding my navel.

It gobbled up all of my souls without reserve and left me with nothing. If I didn’t get it under control, then I wouldn’t be able to grow in other areas. It was bad enough the skills and abilities I lost weren’t refunded. I poked at the black ring, hoping to get some sort of reaction, but nothing happened.

Meditation, using runes, speaking to it, there was nothing that worked so I was forced to put it off again.

The last thing on my list of stuff to do was to try and contact Penelope. The time of a full moon was coming around in a few days so I made sure my schedule was clear. If I could get any sort of wisdom or techniques from her then it would be incredibly valuable. There was the possibility that she wouldn’t want to talk to me, but I had a feeling she would.

…

I headed to purchase the vitality ring the very next morning.

“Ah, I should get a car or something at some point. Maybe I should call dad too,” I mumbled as I entered the shop.

Locked behind reinforced glass cases with special locks, probably artifacts themselves, were tons of rings, bracelets, antique pens, and all sorts of things.

“Can I help you?” A man greeted me as a glass orb floated above me, hovering in place before retreating.

Was it a surveillance artifact?

“Uh– I’m Casper Clay, I put in a reservation order for a vitality ring.”

“Oh, no problem. Do you have your order ID number and the correct identification? If you don’t meet the basic requirements for purchase then I’m not allowed to sell you anything.”

“No worries, I have it all sorted,” I handed over two different cards as well as the number for my reservation.

After going through some info on the computer next to him, the store clerk nodded with a smile before moving toward a set of cabinets and retrieving a box.

“Here we are,” he said as he placed the jewelry box in front of me. “Now, these items do come in a set. If you purchase them all together, I can give you about a twenty-five percent discount.”

“What are the effects?” I opened the box and looked at the ring first. It was made of silver with a bright green gemstone attached. Next to it was a smaller ring with a red gem, in addition to a bracelet, necklace, and a small hand mirror. The items certainly had a very Victorian feel to them.

“Now, all together, these are technically grade-c items. As you can see from the certified measurements of the ruin energy signature. The main piece is exactly what you selected, a ring that may add up to a month onto your lifespan as well as make you more energetic and refreshed.”

The clerk put on a show, but I carefully listened and nearly laughed at him when I realized his choice wording.

‘Up to a month.’

I found that funny since it actually meant that the actual range was somewhere between 1 and 31. Still, I wasn’t looking to extend my life with the item, rather I wanted to boost the strength of my sanguina, so I listened.

“This hand mirror offers increased mental clarity. The ring with the red gemstone helps with respiratory functions. The bracelet helps filter impurities from your diet. The necklace, on the other hand, improves airflow between your lungs and brain.”

“I see,” I gave a less than enthusiastic reaction. “How much in total?”

“As I said, the set comes at a discounted price, so it will be no more than three hundred thousand dollars before tax.”

I simply nodded but the inside of my head was practically on fire. To be honest, I wasn’t completely prepared to spend 100k, but hearing the total price was three times the ring. I couldn’t think of accepting. There were still other options for me–

I felt a static sensation around my navel and was shocked. The penumbra had finally responded when I was about to refuse the offer.

‘So there’s something!’ I held back the glee which threatened to burst out of my body before accepting the deal.

“I’ll take them,” I said.

The store clerk showed a look of relief, probably just as happy as I was. He could empty his useless inventory and I could get the penumbra to open up, so I’d say we both were satisfied.

…

The jewelry box was safely packaged and handed over with a temporary effect applied to it from a charm. Apparently, if I said a certain word, the box would be locked for 72 hours and a tracking effect would activate, in case it was stolen. It was apparently free service offered by the store so I didn’t complain.

I rushed home, forgetting about the steep price of the jewelry and opened the box once I was safely inside.

“Ok, now what do you want me to do?” I carefully laid out each time in front of me, waiting anxiously for the penumbra to show me a sign.

As time went on, my mood started to wane. If it had nothing to do with the penumbra and it turned out I was actually hungry I’d be pissed. I lifted my shirt and looked at the black ring encircling my navel but was shocked to see it was slowly being filled in.

The ring tattoo became a fully colored circle that began to stir. I watched in shock as the circle began to gain a sense of depth to it and I nervously reached toward it, but my hand didn’t go into it.

“Weird,” I muttered.

It felt like there wasn’t an empty hole in my abdomen when I touched it, but it definitely looked like it.

“What the fuck?!” I cursed as something began protruding from the black circle.

A hand began emerging from my stomach under my astonished face and reached toward the jewelry. It collected each piece with a swipe of its dark hand and retreated back into my abdomen.

“Seriously, what the fuck?!” I poked at my stomach but it still felt solid. “Holy shit, that’s fucked up.”

I couldn’t help but curse.

A few seconds later, the hand reemerged and stretched forward before uncurling its onyx-like fingers and revealing a silver ring.

“Is this for me?”

I sheepishly reached for it, quickly retrieving it. The moment I did, the hand was sucked back into my body and the black circle faded, reverting back to the previous ring tattoo.

Feeling as it was obvious, I placed the newly acquired accessory onto my finger. In response, the silver ring shifted into a mercurial substance that clung to my skin before being completely absorbed into me.

And… pain.

Bulging veins appeared on my left arm as my muscles forcibly contracted as if protesting the strange substance that entered me. I suppressed my groans and waited for the moment to pass, feeling relieved once it did.

The adrenaline running through made me a little numb so I quickly brought out the grimoire to see if it could offer some insight into my situation.

The Endless Penumbra is currently sated and has become dormant. As long as it is well-fed, all the souls you collect will be kept in your possession.

The greater the nourishment, the more effects will develop for the penumbra. Be warned, the nature of what is consumed may affect how your penumbra develops.

Your exchange with the penumbra has permanently increased your vitality.

The Endless Penumbra is still immature, feed it well and it will grow.

Bingo!

The value of those items was laughable when compared to unlocking the penumbra. Was it a living thing? Or a sentient thing? I wasn’t sure, but it digesting artifacts helped it grow, I would be more than ready to do so.

I was full of questions, such as what sorts of artifacts would alter the penumbra?

Could the developmental effects be both negative and positive?

Was I able to absorb the benefits of any artifact or would they all increase my vitality?

“I guess I’ll need to experiment when I get the chance.”

I smiled contentedly as I used my sanguina. The difference became clear straight away.

Not only did the drawing the blood out feel lighter, but I felt as if my level of control advance. I formed a clump of blood into a sphere which floated above my palm and then manipulated it into other shapes.

I was hardly close to ‘unlocking the secrets of my lifeblood,’ but the fact that I could achieve basic manipulation meant the beginning stages were now easier. As a testament to that, I directed the blood to its armor form and it transitioned smoothly. The pressure and strain I felt before were gone and it didn’t feel as stiff as it covered my body.

In fact, the blood stuck to my skin so tightly that it almost felt as if wasn’t there. In addition, I managed to make it dense enough that it didn’t stain my clothes.

I checked the mirror and felt strange seeing how the blood-covered my face. It sort of looked like I painted my face red since it followed the shape of my facial features. I made some minor alterations and ended up with a smoother mask-like covering rather than a 1 to 1 recreation of my actual face.

Satisfied, I absorbed the blood back into my body. My first significant step into the art of sanguina made me feel giddy, so I chose to celebrate with a drink.