After deliberating, Halo made his way back to Boss's jewelry shop.

Walking aimlessly through the streets was enough to give everyone the impression he wasn't fulfilling his Purpose. Though the truth would eventually come to light, this facade would buy him some time.

Back at the shop, everything continued seamlessly, as though his absence hadn't been registered. At one point, he doubted whether Boss was even real.

He'd been gone for days without explanation. When he returned, Boss showed zero hostility, just pointed him toward work, and told him to handle the few customers who'd come through.

When things quieted in the shop, he managed to escape Boss's attention and return to the source of his troubles. The library.

As expected, Aeliana looked completely bewildered when she saw him. Her eyes darted over him rapidly, mouth hanging open slightly, as though she couldn't quite process his presence.

"Uhm… it's been a while, Halo."

She lowered her book and adjusted her glasses. Her face grew increasingly wary the nearer he came. Halo might be terrible with people, but he understood how to play this.

"You don't seem like yourself, Aeliana."

He took his usual seat, affecting nonchalance. Going straight to her would've telegraphed that she was his only reason for returning. That would be too risky. Better to let the conversation unfold organically while keeping up his normal behavior.

"Uh, I'm fine, really. I just haven't seen you in a while, that's all."

"Oh, about that… I ran into a bit of trouble with the inn I was staying in, so I had to step out for a while."

Her expression darkened.

"Really?"

Halo gestured positively without sparing her a glance.

She adjusted her seat toward Halo.

"Would you mind telling me about it?"

Halo held her gaze for a long moment. This was exactly what he'd been angling for. Even though it had come more easily than expected, he couldn't drop the pretense now. She needed to think he was protective of his privacy.

His stare alone made Aeliana uncomfortable, prompting her to speak again.

"It's fine if you don't want to talk about it."

Halo let out a sigh.

"It's not like there's anything to hide…"

With careful deliberation and a guarded look, he recounted the events… his encounter with Silas, the chef from Never Again Inn, and how his rejection of the meal had resulted in the man's transformation and death.

"Honestly, I had no clue what I was getting myself into. Once it was all done, I had to leave the land for a bit."

Aeliana's expression saddened slightly.

"Silas was a good person, and we all loved him. I can only imagine how hard this must have been for you too."

She exhaled deeply.

"The locals can be impossible to understand sometimes. Don't lean too much into their opinions."

The spark in her eyes as she spoke told Halo everything he needed to know. Aeliana had clearly been waiting for him to return. Maybe he was the only civilized person she'd had the chance to speak with.

"What made you come to this land? You could have gone anywhere else, considering the constant threats that StoneHaven faces."

Halo took in her words for a moment.

"My Purpose is connected to jewelry, and out of all the safe lands around here, this is the only one I know for sure has it."

Aeliana accepted his explanation readily, her warmth evident. The truth was, he had no idea if polishing jewels was even real work. To this day, he still doesn't understand how jewels came to exist in this world.

He latched onto two details to build his lie around: rocks and Sinners. The land had both in abundance, which lent his words enough authenticity that even he started to buy it.

He spoke little, mostly listening, and yet their conversation extended well beyond what he'd planned. It was like Aeliana had been hoarding words for when they'd meet again.

Her loneliness saturated each sentence, paired with constant reassurances that she wasn't making him uncomfortable.

At points, he nearly accepted Iris's assessment that Aeliana was oblivious to the Chaos Eater conspiracy. But instinct had been his lifeline countless times. He wouldn't discard it because of some lonely girl's sad expression.

The conversation stretched on for hours. Halo found himself genuinely engaged as she talked about her encounters with Silas and how the locals had treated her like an abomination since the day she'd set foot here. She didn't understand why, but something about her triggered that reaction.

This interested Halo too, though it offered no direct value to his mission. He listened anyway, treating it as groundwork for the trust he needed to build.

Before nightfall, Halo made his excuses. The visible disappointment in Aeliana's expression said everything. She'd wanted more time with him.

But he couldn't risk staying after dark, Purpose or not, even though the Chaos Eaters posed little threat to his disciplined mind.

He left without giving in to Aeliana's loneliness.

He'd gleaned considerable insight into Aeliana, which threw into relief how little he knew about his actual partner. Iris.

They were pursuing this Purpose together, he was living under her roof, a home she'd sacrificed dozens of Sin Fragments for.

Spending that many Sin Fragments on a house seemed wasteful to him, especially for something impermanent. Even with thousands of fragments to his name, he wouldn't do it.

The Purpose's duration was unknown. Though he couldn't yet think of Iris as a friend, not like he had with Liam and Seraph, learning more about her made sense.

Their relationship shouldn't be purely utilitarian, existing only because they needed each other for this mission.

The more he considered it, the starker his ignorance became. She was brilliant and probably the only person whose mind rivaled Dark Saint's, despite their different specializations. But beyond that sharp intelligence, what else was there to her?

He needed to know her better. He might be cold, but not heartless.

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