“Master…” Though he was inwardly glad to find out that his conclusion had turned out to be correct, Valyr still had a visceral reaction to his spear’s words, slightly shuddering for a brief moment as a bitter smile appeared on his face. “That definitely isn’t something I could get used to so easily.”

“In any case, I guess this is the first time we’ve properly talked with one another.” Deciding to leave the matter of how he was called be for now, Valyr began to walk once more, continuing to make his way in the direction of the restaurant he had in mind as he moved what he considered to be a long conversation with his spear to his mind. “You can hear my thoughts, right?”

“I can, Master.” A soft voice resounded in his mind in response. “I also find it delightful that I am finally able to talk you, Master. After all, you’re the one who has made me the way I currently am.”

pαпdα`noνɐ1`сoМ “For some reason, I can’t help but feel like you’re blaming me, even though the emotions I’m sensing you say otherwise.” Valyr inwardly chuckled in response to his spear’s words. “Anyways, you don’t mind if I ask you a few questions, right?”

“That would not be a bother at all, Master.” Feeling as if the spear had shook its head in response to his question, Valyr faintly nodded as a response to the answer, stopping for a bit to reorient himself to where the restaurant was before returning his attention back to the conversation he was having.

“Alright,” said Valyr. “Before I begin, do you have a name you came up with that you would like me to call you or something?”

“I do not,” answered the spear in response, giving Valyr the feeling that it had shaken its head. “If Master has a name that he would like to give to me, then I would gladly accept it.”

“I’m not really that good with names, but let me see what I can come up with.” Feeling a wry smile creep up on his face as he responded to his spear’s words, Valyr continued to walk along the streets of Algerie City as he pondered over a suitable name for it. By the time he had arrived in front of the restaurant, which was still fortunately open at this hour of the night, he had come up with a name for the spear, seating himself and having his order taken first before proceeding to continue his conversation.

“Hmm… since your color is a darker shade of blood red, I’ve been thinking about words that have relation to the word ‘blood’,” Valyr said to his spear. “In the end, I’ve thought about naming you Sanguine, or Sana in short since you first responded to my words after I suggested upgrading you with Sanguine Mithril. Then again… are you fine with that kind of name?”

“Sanguine…” the spear, whose name was now Sana, muttered the word a few times as its voice resounded in Valyr’s mind for a while. After some time, a feeling of delight radiated from the spear as Sana replied to his question not long after.

“How could I turn down such a beautiful name, Master?”

Ding!

Your weapon ‘Spear of the Prodigious Tidemother’ has now changed its name to ‘Sanguine, Spear of the Prodigious Tidemother’.

“Well, I’m happy that you find it beautiful.” Taking a look at the notification he had just received from the system, which caused a faint smile to appear on his face for a brief moment, Valyr went ahead and asked Sana the question that had been lingering in his mind even before he had proven his conclusion to be true.

“Your name aside, mind telling me why you told me to choose another metal to use for your upgrade?”

“That would be due to the fact that the material you suggested would be incompatible with me, Master.” Hearing these words from Sana, Valyr went silent for a bit as he allowed the spear to explain itself. Concurrently, the meal he had ordered had finally been served, allowing him to start eating as he listened to the spear’s explanation.

“Although Sanguine Mithril would be a great material for upgrading equipment related to blood, the type of blood that I have absorbed has a different property when compared to the blood Sanguine Mithril is leaning towards,” explained Sana to him. “To be more exact, the Lesser Tidemother Blood you’ve made me absorb is considered cold-type blood, while Sanguine Mithril improves anything that involves hot-type blood.”

“Should I use something else like Frigid Crimson Essence to upgrade you, then?” asked Valyr after Sana was done explaining, his body gradually relaxing the more food he ate. “Or would it be better to give you something like Refined Cold Bloodsteel?”

“Both of them would definitely upgrade my capabilities to the next level, but neither of them would be something I’d consider as the best path to take.” Hearing Sana’s response to his suggestions of other materials, Valyr briefly raised his eyebrow in curiosity as he allowed his spear to talk once more, finding it somewhat refreshing.

𝑶𝔳𝗅xt.𝑪𝓞𝓂

“Compared to the items you just mentioned, there’s one item that would allow me to obtain the best possible upgrade, Master. In fact, that item comes from a source that you have no problem in dealing with.” At these words, Valyr had a hint of confusion on his face as he wondered what his spear meant by that. Though, with the help of his currently enhanced mental capabilities, it did not take long for him to put two and two together and realize what Sana meant.

“How could I forget about the Tidemother…” Slapping himself on the forehead as he briefly shook his head, Valyr let out a faint sigh as he swiftly finished the remainder of his meal before proceeding to make his way back to the inn.

“You’re talking about the Tidemother, right?”

“I am, Master,” Sana replied. “To be more specific, fortifying the material that makes up my entire body with parts from the Lesser Tidemother would be enough for me to upgrade to the next level.”

“And after that?”

“I’m sure Master has already thought about that. Naturally, the blood and the parts of a Greater Tidemother would allow me to improve even further.”

“It feels like I’m upgrading the Half Wyvern Armor all over again.” Finding the upgrade materials of both his weapon and his armor set similar in the way that they both utilize parts from strong creatures, Valyr let out a brief chuckle as he found the thought amusing. “In any case, I find that a great relief.”

“I’ll be heading back to Astarto Village to help the village defend against the monster tide, after all.” In response to the words that Valyr said to Sana, the latter radiated a feeling of expectation and delight. Though, not long after, these feelings were swiftly replaced with contemplation as Sana’s creator asked the spear a question.

“Now that I think about it, it’s quite odd,” Valyr said to Sana through his mind. “The level of our bond is currently at Level 2, yet we’re already talking with one another, which is only something that could be done once our bond has reached Level 3.”

“With that in mind, how are you talking to me right now?”

“To be honest, I don’t know the answer to that question either, Master.” Responding to Valyr’s question, Sana radiated a bit of a glum feeling towards its creator. “However, if there’s one thing I’m certain of, it’s that there’s something within your memories that prompted me to wake up and be able to converse with you, Master.”

“What memory?” Confused, Valyr went ahead and asked Sana as to what memory it was pertaining to, only for the expression on his face to become solemn as the latter responded not long after.

“The specific details of the various memories are quite hazy, but I’m certain that they mention the same thing.”

“Something about the Age of the Grand Tide…”