Mordecai smiled at the three young people who were waiting patiently for their well-earned prizes iherwise empty main hall. "You all did very well, and I am proud of all of you. I am happy to say that I give you everything I had been pnning inally, and more besides. Let's begin with Fuyuko."

  The first thing he handed her appeared to just be a rge patch of leather. The bemused girl stared at it for a long moment before Mordecai prompted her, "Put it on your armor, the rest will take care of itself." She did so, applying the patch through one of the gashes in her outer shirt's sleeves. A ge in her armor rippled out from there as the leather thied and shifted, then ged into a matte texture that looked simir to velveteen, though a very close examination would reveal a sub-yer with a tiny scale-like pattern. Then the armor rippled and her current clothing was absorbed while the armrew a loose, knee-length skirt of simir material, in addition to the armor's legs.

  "Sometimes I fet that some things be issues that I don't normally care about," Mordecai admitted a little sheepishly. "This seems to be more the style you prefer, though the previous form is still avaible and there are a few other options you should experiment with ter, including the ability to hide itself as a choker if you want to have it avaible while wearing something else. But there is also an important new feature: You have your armor absorb up to three outfits of your choice. Once you have done so, it assume any of those forms while still providing you with prote. While this might seem simir to what your hat does, there are a few key differences. Your hat is very flexible but uses purely illusion. Your armor will actually ge its physical form, but the ge is only semi-real thanks to the application of the proper shadow and dream magics. So it exists as both the armor and the clothing simultaneously. But be careful about the clothing you pick; while you always add a new outfit, it has to repe of the existing three outfits, and you don't get that outfit back. Any materials or workmanship will be gone. Entments are a little more uable, but I certainly wouldn't risk anything I really wanted or needed."

  He gave her a moment to examine herself before he gave her the part of her prize, a pair of bracers. "These are based on my own and store ons in addition to summoning a shield of force as hey are already keyed to ygers and bow. Additionally, there are a pair of longer swords and a pair of very special guns already stored ihis does put them at their limit, so y for obfusg carried ons might still be useful iure. Now, put them on and summon the guns."

  Fuyuko strapped the bracers into p her forearms, and her daggers immediately disappeared, leaving her with a pair of empty sheathes. But she could sort of feel their presence, along with the presence of neons. It took a little bit of practice to get right, but once she tched onto the mental sensation correctly, the two guns appeared in her hands. She frowned as she looked the strange ons over. She had seen guns before even if she'd ouched one, but there were several bits missing.

  "Now," Mordecai said, "acc to some of the research papers we've been gifted, there have been several attempts to make guns ented to automatically load themselves as they are fired, but there were several difficulties that made it impractical. I went a different route, though it had the difficulty of being able te metal able to withstand the intense pressures." And that had been quite the challeo find a steel alloy that could work. Adamantine would do the job eveer, but he couldn't produce that much adamantine for dungeo, let alone enough as loot to make a on out of.

  "Ihe gun is a small portal to a high-pressure area of the elemental pne of water. Pulling the trigger jures a small bit of the water into the bad of the barrel where it is frozen into a bullet before the pressure of the chamber is released. While the ice bullet doesn't have the peing power of a metal bullet, its primary purpose is to serve as a solid head to the high-pressure water stream. At the pressures released wheriggers are pulled, the water stream pierce metal and stone. Additionally, the ons have been sanctified and any creatures struck by the water will suffer the effects of both normal on sanctification and holy water. They have a greater rahan ygers, but fall far short of how far your longbow fire, so they cover a nice mid-range."

  As a wide-eyed Fuyuko dismissed the dangerous ons, Mordecai presented a quiver to her. "Any arrows you store in here for at least a full day will be imbued with an aura that will let them act like both cold iron and silvered ons. The aura only sts for a few seds after you fire them, so only draw them when you o. Additionally, it store a lot more arrows than it should, and several times per day it imbue an arrow with a minor utility entment, such as being a grappling arrow, produg a magic light where it strikes, or creating a trip lihere are a few others, the full list is in a pocket on the side of it."

  The expressions the three of them wore made him happy, but Mordecai wasn't doh Fuyuko quite yet. "And finally, I have a bit of jewelry for you. There are multiple forms I might be able to make it in, but I think an earring will work best. Do you mind having your ear pierced?"

  Fuyuko shook her head, "No, that's fihink."

  Mordeodded. "This will be easier if you kneel." While the tall girl dropped to one knee, dungeon mana coalesced into a pattern that he and Kazue had been w on for a while. The earring was a deceptively simple ptinum loop inid with a single line of crystal. But that crystal urple and gold Core crystal, specifically desigo resoh their actual core. He felt a bit of relief wheended entment snapped into p the matrix, and Fuyuko only winced slightly as he used a jured needle to pierce her ear before affixing the earring.

  "This earring has a unication entment much like the rings you three share, but uhe rings, it only hold one link. It is ected to our core, and will allow you to send messages from a great distance if needed." He shrugged before tinuing. "It's teically a gamble as you have not formally agreed to bee our tractor, but I think if you did choose otherwise you would be willing to trade it back to us for something of suffit value."

  Fuyuko rose slowly and her hand twitched as she forced herself to not touch the fresh pierg. "I, um, thank you. That seems like somethin' very important, even if it's not as powerful the way that the others are."

  "You are correct. And it's something we want to give to both Bellona and Kazue's avatar. It's nowhere near as powerful as our link to Moriko, but we wao be able to speak with you when you are training elsewhere as well and we've seen how useful it has been to be able to unicate with Moriko. Oh, and while the e is only to the core, that's where our tie to Moriko resides, so you will be able to talk to her directly, though not without us hearing it as the e runs through us. The same will apply to Bellona and Kazue's avatar if we figure out how to get earrings to them." He caught their puzzled expressions and answered the question before they asked, "It's made using atrix crystal to attu a link from a very long distance. I 't y that entment on normal materials and expect it to work nearly as well, so it's a dungeon-make-only item and not something I craft manually."

  That was the st of the prizes for Fuyuko, so now it was time for Shizoku. "Your first prize is for Bip, I think he'll like it." He presented peared to be a strangely slick piece of crystal, despite it being dry to the touch. The kitsuook the crystal while watg him through narrow eyes, but he simply smiled. He wasn't going to tell her beforehand, he wao let her be surprised. She k wouldn't be anything bad.

  She eventually gave in ahe weird crystal to Bip, who made happy burbly noises for a moment before suddenly freezing. The slime's skin fshed several different colors as a crystalliure hardened on that surfad then liquefied again. After that, he extended a small pseudo pod that hardened into a crystal structure befing with a , clear note.

  While Shizoku gaped, Mordecai expined, "This gives him some of the abilities that Kstoria has, though he still won't be able to grow bigger. It won't make him much more powerful, but given how much he seemed to be enjoying making music with you, I thought it would be appropriate."

  While she was examining the ges to her familiar, Mordecai produced a bundle of cloth. "I think these will make appropriate adventuring clothes for you. These are made of a blend of spider silk and mithral thread, and iweeer yer and in the lining there is a hidden third yer of tiallic scales. I have noticed that you prefer robes uhe enviro makes them difficult, so that is their base form, but they also have the ability to transform into a one-piece outfit with a split skirt that ends a little above the ankle. Like Fuyuko's armor, it has a ste form of a choker. Also, it has pockets."

  The kitsune looked happy to receive the clothing but looked suspicious when he added that st line. "What sort of pockets?"

  "Yes."

  That obtuse aook her a few moments to process before her eyes widened with the realization of what he could mean. "How many?"

  "A minimum of thirteen, if you are st very rge items. But if you want to store a bunaller items like alchemical ingredients, you subdivide them as much as you want. The only limits are that it always has the same capacity, and you have to have a slightly different spot assigo each pocket."

  She looked delighted at the idea but set it down with the rest of her gear for now since she couldn't ge into it immediately. By the time she came back, he had her prize ready. "This is a rifle designed using the same cept as Fuyuko's smaller guns, but with several ges to make it very useful for you. The size alone means that you will have a greater range, and there are some entments to help with that. But the on's own damage isn't its maihis se of crystal on the side here is desigo be charged with a spell, and it will el that charge into the bullet fired. It 't hold that charge for very long, but it is long enough for you to set up a shot. It will deliver that spell charge to wherever it hits, allowing you to effectively extend the range of some of your spells. Simirly, this port is desigo accept an alchemical vial, and when closed it will teleport that vial into position to be encased in the bullet and will operate simirly. It does have a safety to not allow both to operate at the same time as magically charging ice with a spell while the ice tains an infused alchemical bomb sounds like a recipe for disaster."

  He might be willing to create a less safe version for himself eventually, but only after he'd spent a few years exteesting different binations.

  "I have no idea how to use this," Shizoku muttered even as she began carefully examining it.

  "Which is why I will give you some training starting tomorrow. But we aren't dowo more items for you. The first is a pair of bracers," which appeared on top of her new robes. They looked more oral than protective, with dark bronze bands that around the forearm. "The left one be attuo hold your staff, and the right one is already attuo your new gun."

  Shizoku put her neon down carefully with her ear and then turned back to find Mordecai holding a cube of a cloudy white crystal. She stepped forward to exami but it was clear she didn't know what to make of it.

  "Unattuned, unliving atrix," Mordecai said when she reached for the crystal. He made sure to maintain his grip on it until she recovered from her surprise. "No entments, no special purpose. Yours to experiment with and craft into whatever you design."

  "Sun and Moons Mordecai," Shizoku swore, "that's just crazy. Did you hand this out as prizes before?"

  "No, but I hought to do so before. And I have good cause to trust the heir apparent to the Azeria ." Mordecai said, and wheher two turo stare at Shizoku he ily added, "Oh, did you not mentioly who yran gran is?"

  Shizoku scowled at him even as she made sure to hold the crystal close. "I'd have told them. Eventually. And what do you mean?"

  "Well, don't you think I should be able to trust my own bloodlieically it was Aia's right to decide when to tell Shizoku, but Mordecai didn't really want to hold on to this secret. Traxalim made his retionship to Mordecai semi-public already, and this was signifitly more private than that had been. And this too rize, a gift of knowledge.

  Ohat came with a small side be for him. This robably the best series of expressions he'd yet seen cross the emotionally spiky teenager's face as she pulled together a bunch of different facts. Then about the time she was beginning to recover, he added, "Oh, and when you alk to your patro Norumi know that her father sends his love."

  While the kitsune recovered her equilibrium, Mordecai took the time to briefly cover an expnation of what he was talking about for Fuyuko and Derek. Shizoku sighed when she finished processing it all. "I assume Gran Gran already knows? And that's why she was so fident about ing here?"

  "Correow, are you satisfied with your prizes?"

  When she nodded, Mordecai moved on to Derek. "I had to modify my pnned prize for you, but I think the additional entments should work." A small crate appeared o Derek's ear. "Inside of that, you will find some special armor and a shield. It's a blend of mycelium and spider silk that protect you as well as mail , and the main body reinfort is equivalent to a chest pte. The shield is made of the same material but crafted to be rigid. Additionally, it's all beeed and ented to resist fire, and there are crystals embedded in the armor and shield that are too small to be seen, along with some splinters of the elemental wood you summoned earlier. If you summon your wood armor and shield, it will be partially absorbed, leaving only a thin yer of wood over the armor. The absorbed portion will go to repairing this armor."

  As he tio speak, Derek opehe crate to examihe armor. "There is also a helmet that goes with the set. It has a core of metal and crystals and uses the substrate and silk blend as both padding on the inside and to cover the metal core oside. While it does protect about as well as any other helm, that was something I was able to add to the base design. Its primary purpose is to act as an amplifier for eling your powers. A small portion of that amplification is effectively free, ing from the entments themselves, but you also push the amplification and use it to draw more power from you at ohan you normally could. This is dangerous, so I don't want you to even practice it without supervision by somebody who intervene if you draw on your stamina too much. Do you uand?"

  After Derek aowledged the warning, Mordecai let him know about some additional abilities of this outfit. "The helmet transform to appear as a simple steel circlet with a quartz in the front. It will still be fully funal in this form, though it o transform back to protect your head properly. Simirly, the shield transform into a left bracer, and the armor transform intht bracer. The armor is desigo fit over most clothing, though some things like cloaks will be pushed out instead."

  Mordecai would have liked to give Derek a direct on, but if the boy couldn't use his powers he probably didn't have the strength to wield a normal oher, so he figured it would be best to let the boy focus on practig with his jured on.

  "Now, I also have some utility items for you t yhly up to par with the gear that these two have. One cloak, ented tainst most weather and to keep yetting too hot or too cold. One haversack with plenty of handy expanded space pockets and that is already loaded with survival gear and some really good rations. Boots with basic utility enhao protect your feet and keep your footing, and also desige with your armor when it is out. And a bandoleer desigo hold potions and alchemical items ahem readily accessible. I've also stocked it with a set of some of our most potent healing aorative potions and elixirs. These are something you should be prepared to have avaible."

  Derek looked a little troubled, and at Mordecai's encement asked, "Sir, these are very nice, and I uand that I should learn to use my powers so I don't make any mistakes with them. But I wasn't pnning on being a merary or anything like that."

  "Well," Mordecai began thoughtfully, "That's ly the only reason why you might his sort of equipment. For ohing, if yoing to start doing proper delves on the bat path, you will his gear." Now, how to phrase this right without pushing things. "And I think you like spending time with Shizoku. It will be a long time before she possibly takes up the mantle of Matriarch, and I have no doubt that Aia will have iing training or tasks for her in that time. If you think you might want to travel with her and help out, yoing to hese exact same supplies. It is always good to be prepared after all, and it certainly won't hurt to have it avaible."

  The boy was able to accept that expnation, so Mordecai had a bunkin show Shizoku and Derek their rooms for this stay. Fuyuko still had the same one. "Go, take baths, get sleep, e out for food. Try out and show off your new gear. Have fun, you've all ear and more." There were also letters from Shizoku's and Derek's families waiting for them, but he felt it best to not annouhat in front of the girl without any such letters.

  Zagaroth