“No,” Rufus said. “If anything, I suspect the structure we’ve given him is what’s propped him up for this long.”

“Then what do we do?” Farrah asked.

“What we have been doing,” Rufus said. “The stronger he becomes, the more in control he will feel. You both know what I’m talking about—that feeling of power as your abilities grow. Normally you have to stop people from running off like they’re invincible, but hopefully it makes Jason feel more secure.”

“Maybe we should start showing him around a bit,” Gary suggested. “Let him see this world isn’t all cultists and monsters. Remember the villages we passed through? He seemed a lot more relaxed around normal people, so maybe a little dose of ordinary is exactly what he needs.”

“Are you saying we aren’t normal?” Farrah asked.

“I’m normal,” Gary said. “You two can be kind of intense.”

“It’s a good idea,” Rufus said. “I’ll be administering the field testing for next month’s Adventure Society intake. I’ll need to start preparing in a few days, and then I’ll be gone for a week. Relax the training while I’m gone.

“Done,” Gary said.

“Not too much,” Rufus said, “but give him time to explore the city. This island is surprisingly impressive for a provincial city.”

“If you have the money,” Farrah said.

“Which he does,” Rufus said.

“You did give him a cut from the blood cult job, right?” Gary asked. “If it weren’t for him we would have failed and died.”

“I did,” Rufus said. “The church of Purity made some noise about the completion bonus, after how things went with Anisa. The contract was through the Adventure Society, though, and the job did get done. They paid up.”

“Wait,” Gary said. “Did I get a cut? I don’t remember getting the money for that.”

“Because I gave it to Farrah,” Rufus said. “You know, the person who stores all your money?”

“Oh, yeah.”

Because they were on the balcony, they were able to hear a sudden commotion from outside the other side of the building. There was a yell of surprised panic, followed by a crashing sound and the shouts of several people.

Unable to see the source of the commotion, the three left their own suite and entered Jason’s unlocked room across the hall. The balcony he should have been practicing on was empty. Going to the edge and looking down, they saw the outside dining area of the eatery across the street. The evening patrons had been disturbed by Jason landing heavily on a table in their midst, collapsing it to the ground. All the customers had stood up, while Jason still sprawled out in the remains of someone’s supper.