Haiko and Kalter approached, coming to a stop a few meters away from the two of them. August turned, now forced to hold the [Efkini Core] by one of its longer protrusions. The runes on its surface were covered now, in that same black sludge, and entirely out of sight. At the ends of the mushroom-like tips, a hit of red fur was visible.

“Did it work?” Kalter said, frowning down at the thing.

“Not enough mana to check, but I’ll be able to check in a few minutes,” August repeated before pausing. “Actually, hold on—[Assign Role].”

[Select Target]

[Select Role]

August opened the [Target] option.

[Ladybug]

[Rittan]

[Neptune]

[Efkini - Lv8]

Being able to assign it a role meant that it had, in fact, worked because the only names on that list were people or monsters who had joined the faction.

“It’s safe,” August confirmed, relieved that it had worked out. “It shows up in the faction list, so it’s definitely been tamed.”

“Good,” Kalter said, crossing her arms. “If we come across any more, we kill them and collect the cubes.”

“Easier said than done, but I agree with you,” August said, nodding. “Judging by how much it regenerates each time I give it my mana, It’s probably got two or three left until it’s back to normal—I’ll finish that after we do the summoning.”

“Will we be bringing someone here now?” Haiko asked.

“As soon as I have enough mana, we can go ahead and do it,” August said before immediately dropping all of the responsibility onto someone else. “Rittan wanted to do a group meeting about who we’re going to bring back this time—the floor is all yours.”

Rittan looked amused at being put on the spot.

“Up until now, the choice of who we summon had fallen to the last person to arrive,” Rittan admitted when the two turned to look at him. “August chose me. I chose Kalter. Kalter chose Haiko. If we were to continue following this pattern, it would, of course, fall to Haiko to make the final decision.”

Haiko hummed at the words, bringing a pair of her hands forward tor est against her sternum.

“What are the requirements for summoning?” Haiko wondered.

“To summon a specific Voithos, I need a description of what they look like and some stand-out traits,” August said, speaking up, “Rittan knew about Kalter because she was well known, and Kalter knew you because you knew each other personally.”

“Is the pattern you’ve been following integral to the summoning?” Haiko asked, tilting her head to the side. “If someone else were to make a choice, would it interfere?”

Haiko’s hair followed the movement, sweeping out from behind her hip before catching on the edge of the leaf that was hanging there.

“I do not believe so,” Rittan said in answer. “August has simply been kind enough to allow each of us to make a choice about who to bring back.”

August glanced away from the attention the comment brought on him and folded his arms across his chest.

“I think I’m starting to see another pattern,” Haiko wondered before tapping a finger against her chin. “Well, not to denigrate this long-standing tradition that you’ve all been cultivating, I have a suggestion—why don’t we all choose someone and then vote on the winner?”

“You’re going to throw away your choice?” Kalter said, frowning.

“Are you struck by my unwavering self-sacrifice?” Haiko said with a knowing smile. “It’s okay for you to be impressed.”

“Forget it,” Kalter said, scrunching her face up. “I don’t care anymore.”

“I was originally going to offer a name I thought you might agree with,” Rittan said, amused. “But I suppose this works just as well—August?”

“Voting is the better option,” August said without issue, “Haiko is right.”

“Kalter?” Rittan asked.

“Fine,” Kalter said, frowning. “Who were you going to suggest?”

“Boko the dancer,” Rittan said.

The name meant absolutely nothing to August, but both of the others seemed to recognize it immediately.

“Boko?” August asked.

“I mentioned earlier that a group of Voithos were released a decade before the rest of us?” Rittan said, turning to face him. “Boko is perhaps the most well-known member of that group.”

“I’m guessing he’s another entertainer?” August asked, glancing over at Haiko. “Like you and Haiko?”

Haiko looked amused at the question, but Kalter was the one who spoke.

“He was a cleaner for the Automaton Array and one with the highest number of complete assignments.” Kalter said, “The dancing thing was a rumour that started later—something about a Gaian woman who died.”

“Okay,” August said, “So he has a lot of experience fighting?”

“All cleaning assignments contain some level of combat, so by that metric, I am inclined to say yes,” Rittan said before pausing. “I’m afraid I don’t know what he looks like, however.”

“I met him once,” Haiko admitted, closing her eyes for a moment. “The day the Magnus tried to disconnect the 87th finger—he was part of the combat force that was sent to stop them.”

“Then our first option is Boko,” August said, nodding. “More suggestions? Bob the painter? Dwayne the rock?”

The three looks of expectation he got in return were enough to tell him that he shouldn’t have bothered.

“Don’t worry about it,” August sighed, “Haiko?”

Haiko clearly had a name prepared because she spoke up without issue.

“There was a Gaian scientist who frequently visited me, Junil Eltis,” Haiko said, glancing over at Kalter. “She was a sympathizer and one of the people who owned the buildings I gave you the security codes for.”

Kalter looked uncomfortable with the topic but managed a nod.

“Junil had an assistant who accompanied her wherever she went,” Haiko said, glancing back to August. “A Voithos named Melon; I think she would make a good addition to our group.”

“A scientist’s assistant?” Kalter frowned. “Why her?”

“Junil was a leading mind in runic systems, and while it is forbidden to teach the Voithos runes, structured learning isn’t the only way to learn,” Haiko said, smiling. “There is a lot someone in Melon’s position might have picked up through osmosis—and having access to someone with that kind of knowledge would likely increase August’s ability to learn.”

August watched her for a moment, feeling a bit strange at having been included so fundamentally in her reasoning. Despite her previous effort to brag about her self-sacrifice, he was impressed that she’d put the group’s ability to make the decision above her own—especially considering she’d clearly had this person in mind already.

“I hadn’t even considered something like that,” Rittan admitted, “But that is also a fantastic option.”

Haiko was still watching him, and he spoke up in an effort to direct her attention elsewhere.

“Kalter?” August asked, “Did you have someone else you wanted to summon?”

“We can do Melon next time; Boko is the better choice,” Kalter said without even having to think about it. “I’ll throw my vote behind him.”

“Betrayal,” Haiko said, feigning hurt. “Have I not been paying enough attention to you, my pet? Is this a cry for help?”

“Don’t call me that,” Kalter said, flustered. “Just—vote already before I get mad.”

“I’ll stick with my original decision,” Rittan said after a moment, “I vote for Boko.”

“My vote goes towards summoning Melon,” Haiko said, “August? Shall we join forces to ruin the vote?”

“No politics at the voting table,” August said, well-aware of the irony. “I like both options, but I’m voting for Boko.”