The old man held the earring delicately in his wrinkled hands, his brows furrowing as he focused, eyes narrowing in deep concentration. For several long moments, silence stretched between them.
Just like with the sword… nothing appeared.
No data. No rank. No signature. Not even a trace of mana classification.
He stared at it a while longer, flipping it over once, twice, as if the answers might suddenly etch themselves into its surface. Finally, he let out a long, tired breath and handed it back to her.
"I can't appraise it."
Rie took it carefully, cradling it in her palm. She didn't look surprised—only nodded slightly, as if she'd already expected the answer.
"It's the same as the sword…" she murmured under her breath, her voice barely a whisper.
But then, just as she was about to tuck it away, the old man spoke again.
"…But there's something strange about it."
She paused and looked up. "Strange how?"
He rubbed his temple. "It's hard to explain but… it's like…"
His voice dropped lower.
"…Blood," he said.
Her breath caught.
"Blood?" she repeated, disbelief and confusion threading her voice.
He nodded slowly. "Yes blood… There's blood in it. I can sense it it's faint, but there."
Her fingers clenched around the earring, an odd tension building in her voice. "Can you extract it?"
He shook his head. "Not right now. It's… sealed in deep."
"I see"
She looked down, slightly dejected.
Seeing her expression, he clicked his tongue and grumbled, "Tch. Don't make that face, dammit… I'll try. Give me a week or two."
"Hmm? Really?" she asked, eyes lighting up as she looked up at him—big, shining eyes like a hopeful child.
"Hmm," he nodded, turning his face away, avoiding her gaze.
"But don't expect much. I said I'll try, but I might just forget about it. I'm a busy man—I don't have time for little things like this."
She smiled.
A genuine, soft smile.
"Thank you."
He coughed. Loudly. "Ahem! Alright, we're done here. Now scram—I've had enough of you for one day, brat."
She laughed, quietly, and followed him.
With a small flick of his hand, the portal shimmered open once again.
They stepped through together.