"Bang!" Elara Stonefield clenched her small fists tightly, then slammed one of them hard onto the rough wooden tabletop, producing a dull thud.
"Use a tool to smash this damned phial open!" This was the decision Elara finally made after repeated, intense internal debate.
Adopting this simple and crude method, attempting to force it open, was a desperate measure she had thought of much earlier, when she could find no other better way.
This approach, though it seemed simple, straightforward, and directly effective, made Elara's heart ache as if pricked by needles whenever she thought that such a peculiar and beautiful mysterious little phial, if truly smashed by her, would no longer be able to maintain its original, complete, and undamaged exquisite appearance. It was an extreme reluctance stemming from the bottom of her heart. If there had been any other, slightly gentler method to open it, Elara would never have resorted to such a crude and reckless approach.
Perhaps asking the stronger senior apprentices in the Outpost for help might have allowed her to open it smoothly. However, deep down, Elara had unknowingly come to regard this accidentally obtained little phial as her own unique and precious treasure. She was utterly unwilling to let any other outsider know this secret. Besides, anyone on this mountain could potentially be the phial's original owner. What if the true owner found out the phial was now in her hands and came to reclaim it? This little phial was so beautiful and interesting, full of mysterious unknowns; she was absolutely unwilling to easily return it now.
Elara's entire mind was now completely and firmly captivated by the unknown object that this mysterious little phial might contain. Although she also knew clearly that it might just be an empty, beautiful phial with nothing inside, she was still willing to take the risk, to gamble—she gambled that what the phial contained would be even more interesting and precious than the phial itself.
The more she thought this way, the more Elara felt an unbearable itch, as if countless little insects were crawling inside her heart. She felt that if she didn't solve the mystery of what was inside this phial today, she probably wouldn't even be able to sleep soundly tonight.
Having made this decision, Elara no longer hesitated. She stealthily slipped into the secluded utility hut in Quietstream Valley used for storing various tools and sundries. Then, from among the many assorted tools, she carefully selected a small hammer that was relatively heavy but just the right size for her to use, and cautiously brought it back to her own little wooden hut.
After returning to her hut, she first found a half-broken, hard bluestone slab from an inconspicuous corner of the room, discarded there by who knows whom. Then, she carefully selected a relatively flat and solid depression on the floor of her small room and placed the bluestone slab flatly there. Finally, she steadily placed the mysterious little phial horizontally in the center of the bluestone slab.
Elara gripped the small hammer tightly in her right hand and raised it high. The small hammerhead paused slightly in mid-air, then, with a hint of determination, it decisively and heavily fell upon the most protruding and most force-receptive part of the little phial—its round, bulging belly.
"Thwack!"
Fearing that her first blow might be too forceful and accidentally destroy any precious contents inside the phial, Elara had actually used very little strength in this first strike, mainly intending to test the phial's hardness. When she saw that the surface of the phial showed not even a single fine crack after being struck, Elara couldn't help but feel secretly relieved. It seemed she could use even more strength to smash this stubborn phial.
"Thwack!" She used fifty percent of her strength."Thwack!" She then used seventy percent of her strength."Thwack!" She used almost all her strength."Thwack!" She even used a strength she had never exerted in her life, far exceeding her full capacity!
The force Elara used grew increasingly stronger, and the arc of her swinging forearm became correspondingly more exaggerated. The speed at which the heavy little hammer fell from the air also became swifter and fiercer with each blow. So much so that, with the final blow delivered with all her might, she actually embedded more than half of the phial's body deep into the hard bluestone slab beneath. Yet, the mysterious little phial still maintained its completely intact appearance, its surface as smooth as before, showing no sign whatsoever of being about to shatter.
Elara was completely stunned. Still somewhat disbelieving, she reached out and gently touched the spot on the little phial that had been fiercely struck by the hammer. However, not even the slightest dent had been left there. The phial's body was still just as greenish, and its entire surface remained as astonishingly smooth and lustrous as before.
This was truly far beyond Elara's expectations! She had never imagined that this seemingly small and delicate phial would be so incredibly hard!
Only at this moment did Elara truly, one hundred percent, become certain that this mysterious little phial was definitely an extraordinary and remarkable treasure! It absolutely could not have been deliberately and casually discarded here; most likely, its original owner had accidentally lost it here. Now, perhaps that owner, burning with anxiety, was searching all over the mountains for this lost treasure! If she wanted to keep this accidentally obtained peculiar item, she absolutely had to carefully store it away properly and never let any outsider see this phial's existence again.
In Elara's simple understanding, as long as something wasn't obtained through theft or robbery, then anything picked up from the ground for no reason should naturally belong to her. If this were just an ordinary, worthless item, then perhaps after figuring out the situation, she would try to return it to its owner. However, this little phial was so mysterious and extraordinary; it clearly looked like no common item. Elara guessed that this was probably a precious object that only those profligate sons of wealthy families, or those influential figures with certain status and position on this Stonefist Outpost mountain, could possibly possess. And Elara didn't have a very good impression of either of these two types of people.
Elara's family had been very poor since her childhood. The whole family toiled hard all day long, yet often couldn't even afford a full meal. And after entering Stonefist Outpost, she often saw how those children from wealthy families, the first category, extravagantly squandered money and luxuriously enjoyed exquisite food (apprentices at Stonefist Outpost, if they didn't want to eat the simple and coarse common meals, could pay extra for the kitchen to specially provide better, more expensive food), spending money as if it were nothing. Whenever she saw these scenes, Elara always felt a little uncomfortable. Moreover, these wealthy children always put on a superior air in their daily lives, ostracizing and looking down upon poor disciples like them from remote, impoverished areas, and frequently using all sorts of harsh words to mock and insult them. So much so that several minor conflicts and frictions had erupted between these two types of children from vastly different backgrounds, and children from different groups had fought several small-scale brawls because of it. Elara herself had unfortunately participated in one of these fights. Regrettably, that time, she was beaten black and blue by those wealthy disciples who had practiced some rudimentary martial arts since childhood, ending up in a wretched state, and was even too ashamed to go out and see people for several days. Later, only after resting in bed for several consecutive days did the injuries on her face slowly return to normal.
As for those figures on Stonefist Outpost mountain who held some prominent status or special identity, they hadn't left a very good impression on Elara either. From Guardian Alrin unashamedly accepting the bribe money her Third Uncle Hobbes handed over in Greystone Town, to the boy named Roric Stonehand being directly recommended into the coveted "Hall of Seven Arts" merely by relying on the power of his cousin-in-law who was a Deputy Commander. Although Elara herself hadn't actually met many of the so-called "important figures" on the mountain, in her originally naive and childish mind, the grand image of "important figures" being upright and virtuous had long since shattered into near worthlessness.
Therefore, regarding items that these two types of people might accidentally lose, Elara not only had no intention of returning it, but also, due to a childish rebelliousness, wanted to mischievously hide it away so they couldn't find it.
Thinking of this, Elara immediately took off the small leather pouch that had always hung around her neck. This small leather pouch had been specially hand-sewn for her by her mother with a piece of soft animal hide when she left home. It was said that this specially treated animal hide was not only sturdy and durable but also effectively waterproof and moisture-proof. Her mother had given it to Elara at the time specifically to hold a protective charm meticulously carved from a wild boar's tusk, which was said to bring good luck, hoping this charm would bless her with safety and protect her from illness and disaster while she was away.
Elara carefully loosened the thin cord used to tighten the mouth of the leather pouch and then gently placed the mysterious little green phial inside, along with the protective charm. She once again carefully tightened the cord at the mouth of the pouch, then re-hung this little leather pouch containing her secret around her neck, carefully tucking it inside her somewhat thin tunic, keeping it close to her body.
After doing all this, still feeling uneasy, she glanced around warily again, confirming that no one nearby had noticed her actions. Only then did she slightly puff out her small chest, gently patting the spot on her chest that was slightly bulging due to the hidden leather pouch, secretly feeling that this way, it shouldn't easily attract others' attention anymore.
Only at this moment did she finally feel much more at ease in her heart. She no longer had to worry about any unexpected situations that might lead to this mysterious little phial being accidentally found and forcibly reclaimed by its original owner.
Elara quietly returned the small hammer to the utility hut where it belonged, trying hard to act as if nothing had happened. She then wandered aimlessly around Quietstream Valley for a short while. Only after the sky outside had completely darkened did she drag her still somewhat painful injured foot slowly back to her simple little wooden hut.