"Brat, I told you to call me just Aria and not Auntie."
She held Harold under a headlock until he tapped out and both of them laughed.
"Is that a homunculus? But I already have a battle homunculus."
"This one is not a simple battle homunculus; it is Warmonger's equivalent."
Harold's eyes widened in shock. Warmonger was the key to destroying the bigger savages.
Savages were of seven tiers, each one more powerful than the previous one.
They also had multiple classes and varied in form and abilities based on it.
The only mythic savage of Tier-5 ever defeated by humanity was the Trembling Bard — an impish-looking being with enough power to sink an entire island.
There were sub-tiers inside each tier, divided as Lesser, Minor, Greater, Mythic, and Titanic Savages.
Its true power was not even its destructive force; it emitted a strange frequency that caused aggression and fear among humans.
It took Warmonger everything to defeat it.
"Forget about this homunculus for now, where is my sister?"
"Mother is waiting for you inside."
Aria went into the house while Harold came near Edoran.
"I am Harold Faulkner. Come inside, it's my birthday today. Do you want some cake?"
Edoran looked at Harold apprehensively, then silently walked in with him.
'This is my life now. Let me at least try to make it better by acting along.'
Edoran was shocked to see the interior of the mansion.
It was thrice as large inside as it appeared outside — grand and majestic like a king's castle.
"Surprised, huh? This house is made out of the wood of a Greater Savage. That's why it can bend space and grow bigger inside."
Many servants were preparing the grand hall and decorating it.
A man with grey hair was giving them instructions.
"Gideon, this is my new homunculus. How does it look?"
The man inspected Edoran briefly and smiled.
"It is wonderful, Master Harold. Your grandfather is arriving shortly, so I ask you to guide it to where the other battle homunculus is."
Harold nodded and took Edoran to a nearby room. A boy with black hair and glowing red eyes sat there.
"Harold, you're back! I have attuned my core more with my body now. I should at least be able to defend myself against Tier-1 Savages."
"That's really good. I even got a partner for you to practice with."
The boy looked at Edoran and smiled.
"Hey, I am Jake. I'm a battle homunculus just like you. How strong is your core? Has it reached Tier-2 yet?"
"Hah, no Jake. He just got developed now. His core has been activated only once. You guys catch up; I'm heading back."
Jake nodded and asked Edoran to sit beside his bed.
"What's your name?"
"I am Edoran. Are you not a homunculus? Don't they treat you like a slave?"
"No. Harold is a good man. He supports me well and never speaks harshly. Even though my core is less than 15% made out of a Savage core, he still helps me develop."
'It's no good. This boy has been completely brainwashed by this family. He doesn't know he has to go and fight those Savages out there.'
"Edoran, how about we check the efficiency of your core? Come with me to the training room."
Edoran didn't argue and went along with Jake.
They reached the training room — a clean hall filled with weapons and armor.
Jake took a deep breath, and his hand started glowing, forming a small hexagonal structure.
"This is a subspace. You can store items in it. Humans need to be holding a core to create subspace, but we homunculi can do it naturally."
Edoran noticed Jake's subspace was much smaller than the one Aria had made.
"You should summon it too. Just focus on creating a space."
Edoran stretched out his arm and focused.
A huge red hexagonal structure formed, vastly overshadowing both Aria's and Jake's subspaces.
'This Edoran's core is really powerful. To make such a big subspace... I wonder how much of his core is Savage.'
They heard someone clapping behind them.
An old man in a blue-striped suit and matching hat walked in, clapping enthusiastically. His wrinkled face beamed with a smile.
"Ohoho! Look here. A homunculus creating such a large subspace. You must be the one I commissioned from Orion Labs."
Jake bowed instantly upon seeing the man.
The man casually waved his hand and asked him to rise.
"I am William, grandfather to your owner. You are stronger than I anticipated. Would you like to spar with my friend here?"
Edoran didn't want to spar.
Jake gave him a dark, warning look implying he had to accept William's offer.
Edoran's heart sank.
(They know what is best for you. You should trust them. Refusing them would be disloyal.)
He accepted.
A tall, heavily built man stepped forward.
He had a bit of armor on, and though his build was rough, his face looked kind.
"This is my guard, Leon. He's a human, so he needs to use the core in his armor. You should just use the energy in your own core to augment yourself. Focus on strengthening your body."
Leon stepped forward and shook Edoran's hand firmly.
He pressed his thumb onto his chest plate, making it glow orange.
Leon took an attacking stance.
'Fuck. This man is serious. I need to guard myself properly.'
Edoran focused on his core, letting the surge of strength flood him.
Leon rushed at him with inhuman speed.
Before Edoran could dodge, a fist smashed into his face, sending him flying.
Blood trickled from his cut lip as he winced in pain, slowly standing up.
'Shit. That felt like a sledgehammer ramming into my face.'
Leon rushed again, raising his hand for a devastating hammer fist.
Edoran lifted his forearm just in time to block, gritting his teeth through the pain.
He retaliated with a vicious punch to Leon's body.
The armor cracked as Leon was sent flying back.
Leon landed on his feet, coughing but smiling.
"You are powerful. Let's see how you handle this."
Leon slammed his fists together, the orange light around them intensifying.
Edoran knew he had to dodge.
He bent under Leon's next punch — but Leon anticipated it and tripped him.
As Edoran fell, Leon uppercutted his chin brutally.
Edoran screamed in pain.
His chin felt like it was burning. His legs trembled as he stood up.
Gritting his teeth, he rushed Leon.
Leon prepared another uppercut — but Edoran curved around it mid-motion and struck the core in Leon's chest.
Leon gasped, stumbling back as the glow in his armor dimmed.
Leon kicked Edoran away and reactivated his core, ready to finish it — but William's voice rang out:
"That's enough. Good job, Edoran. You actually managed to land two hits on my guard."
Leon pulled Edoran up and patted his back.
"You really surprised me with that dodge around my second uppercut."
'It hurts so bad. My chin feels like it's been ground into pieces.'
Edoran massaged his chin.
"Don't worry. Your regeneration speed is immense — on par with the Warmonger."
Harold rushed into the training room, checking on Edoran.
"Grandpa, I told you not to go so far during friendly spars. You should've stopped when they got hurt."
William just raised his head proudly.
"Ohoho! It's not like they are hurt badly."
Harold sighed deeply and asked everyone to come up to celebrate.
"Edoran, go change into the dress I left for you upstairs — the one in the room I showed you earlier."
Edoran nodded and left.
The hall was lavishly decorated.
Many nobles and distinguished guests stood around in fancy clothes.
Edoran rushed to the room and found a neat and crisp suit laid out near Jake's bed.
He quickly changed into it and stepped outside again.
Everyone turned to look at him, their eyes filled with various emotions.
(They all love you. They are your family now. You must become stronger to protect them.)