CHAPTER 48: ANOMALY

Hadrian’s smile faltered. As his vessel observed Baruch, his brows pinched harder and harder, surprised by Baruch’s reaction.

Why isn’t he panicking? Trying to run away or fight me? And why is he looking at me like that?

Baruch was now at the edge of the bed, the blanket completely fallen off of him, with a childlike wonder expression on his face.

I’m bound to meet all sorts of people.

Hadrian thought and willed himself through the intense rash, calling at the essence more aggressively.

When his grasp reached full control, however, Hadrian’s lips parted. This wasn’t like any other vessel before.

Baruch still remained in that wonder posture, not by Hadrian’s control.

Hadrian could perceive the world through Baruch, but he could sense he wasn’t alone in the vessel. In fact, it felt like he occupied only a small space of the consciousness.

"I can feel you in me." Baruch said with a lick of his lips. "In my mind, my soul, I know you’re there. What’s your name?" He spoke fast with excitement, mumbling over pronunciations.

Hadrian found himself now the one slightly panicking.

"It’s not you." Baruch pointed at the vessel, his sharp eyes narrowing.

Hadrian found himself at a loss of words, not knowing how to handle this.

They’re supposed to die.

Perceiving the world through Baruch wasn’t all. Hadrian had access to his core and essence.

This time, unlike the other cores and essence, it felt like something innate to him. Something he wouldn’t need time to assimilate nor train on the abilities.

To check the core’s mystical information, however, he would need to enter that space. He didn’t plan to do that in front of Baruch.

Another strange thing, and maybe not the last one, was that the essence merged with the vessel who was sitting in front of Baruch.

It was strange because that vessel currently had the two rank two cores that he would have used to suppress Baruch if he tried to escape.

If Baruch’s essence had been that of the elemental path it wouldn’t have been surprising for the seamless merger, however, by the effect of the essence on him, he could tell it was of a different path.

There was a simple solution.

The Hadrian vessel cleared its throat.

"You’re a mage?" he asked.

"You know?" Baruch’s brow furrowed.

The vessel uncrossed its legs and leaned forward. "He" told me." The vessel said in a whispering voice.

Hadrian chose to play along.

"So, it’s a "he" Baruch said as he relaxed back onto the bed. He didn’t lie back down, just sat on it, still uncovered. "I can feel him in there." Baruch tapped his left temple with his index finger.

I heard you the first time. You don’t have to repeat it like that.

The Hadrian vessel stood up. "He’ll acknowledge you soon."

"All this time.... " Baruch said with a chuckle, "to think I thought you were an idiot. Yet you know such an existence. I’ve never felt anything like that, not even women have made me feel like that. How long shall I wait?"

Outside, Hadrian shook his head.

"I don’t know. But when he does, we’ll find you." the standing vessel said as it walked to the door. Baruch was left in the room, eyes struck.

Hadrian didn’t walk the vessel far, just outside and in the dark alley of the building, he entered that space.

In that dull white space above, he couldn’t see a Baruch vessel. However, his core was there. Sending his intent out into the space, the mist like tendrils rose and formed into textual information next to the core.

"Flesh Path.... " Hadrian muttered out loud.

That wasn’t all. The core was tied with a string of fog into the fog below.

Having already descended into the fog before, Hadrian didn’t hesitate and followed the fog string.

As he’d expected, he found himself in that second layer with the tiny starlike fog masses.

The string’s other end was one of them.

Hadrian looked at it, not sure if he should stimulate it.

I need to know more first.

Thinking this, he sank back out of that space.

Through his perception of Baruch, he saw Baruch put on his clothes.

Hadrian made an attempt, sending out his intent into Baruch. Baruch’s body came to a stop.

Baruch’s heart jumped to his throat. He’d lost control of his body. Hadrian felt his stressful emotions, but after a short while, Baruch slowly calmed down.

I can control him like any other vessel, but "he" is still there.

Hadrian’s face had a contemplative look.

It wasn’t only Baruch’s emotions he could feel, his thoughts too.

If I can hear his, can he hear mine ?

Hadrian panicked for a moment, but looking through Baruch, it didn’t seem to be the case.

Baruch’s thoughts were mostly shock, excitement and back to the moment when his essence had been grasped.

Well, this is rather strange.

Thinking this, Hadrian channeled Baruch’s essence.

Baruch’s abilities were body and bone softening, Hadrian coiled his hand backwards and watched it bent as if he had no bones. There was no pain.

Previously, he’d achieved something similar, but Baruch’s abilities didn’t require any substitution of bone and tissue to another vessel.

He also had some kind of infectious disease as an ability. He could choose to infect someone or not.

If I hadn’t gone through what I have, I imagine I would have thought this path’s abilities are disgusting.

Baruch, now clothed, sat at the end of his bed, rubbing his sweaty palms together restlessly.

I can kill him if anything goes wrong.

Hadrian entered that dull white space once more and went into the second layer.

He hesitated at first but eventually sent out his intent to the tiny dog ball mass tied to Baruch’s core. He made the mist around him denser, and the place became more hazy and vague.

He chose to exist only as sight and without a vessel form.

Stimulated by Hadrian’s intent, the tiny fog ball mass let out steam like smoke.

That smoke slowly took shape and as Hadrian watched, Baruch formed in front of him.