Many Awakened in Garet's position made the same mistake he did — they were too excited about their first mission.
Sure, he became an Awakened, passed the test, received a fairly high Tier, and even found the target of his mission.
But could he handle the Stone Groug?
Garet thought about it before, but until he saw the Stone Groug with his own eyes, he didn't understand the full extent of the problem.
This wasn't the red beast or the Azure Bull that Korona killed, it was a Second Order Monster, a real ordeal for a novice Awakened like him.
"Damn, he's huge." Garet gulped.
Korona smiled confidently. "Don't worry, there are two of us and only one of him. We'll manage somehow."
"T-Two?"
"Of course, do you really think I would miss such an opportunity? But let's make a deal. I'll help you defeat the Stone Groug, but most of the Spiky Moon Fruits are mine, good?"
She held out her hand, waiting for his answer.
Garet smiled bitterly. In his situation, he would be willing to accept much worse terms.
"I agree. Although, how can I refuse a girl who hunts bulls like rabbits?"
"Damn, look at him, he's flattering me. Don't think that will improve your terms. I take deals very seriously, especially the ones I offer."
They exchanged a handshake as Garet shrugged.
Immediately, Garet was about to rush into battle, but before he could reveal himself, Korona pulled him back by the shoulder.
"What are you doing?"
"Hmm? Shouldn't we attack him?" Garet nodded toward the monster.
Korona rolled her eyes. "You really are a rookie. Tsk. Let's say we attack and kill him right now, then what? Do you know how to use this artifact to get the Spiky Moon Fruits?"
Garet had no answer. He didn't even hold an Artificial Artifact in his hands, he only saw how one worked, let alone a Natural One.
"I thought so. It's impossible for me, too, but not for him. So..."
Her voice dropped to a whisper as the Stone Groug approached.
"We'll wait until the Spiky Moon Flower absorbs all the energy that the Stone Groug gives to it. As soon as the bud opens and the bracelet loses all its energy, that's our signal to act."
Garet just nodded and said nothing more.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
With muffled steps that shook the ground, the Stone Groug approached the blue bud, patiently waiting for the moonlight to fall on the flower.
Suddenly, Garet's eyes widened as he remembered one important thing:
"Korona..." He whispered. "My mission is to return the bracelet. Won't the Stone Groug consume the entire artifact for the fruit?"
She frowned. She didn't know about that.
'Shit, I should have guessed earlier! Of course, he needs to return the artifact! That's the whole point!'
Garet showed only a determined expression.
"Don't worry. We'll notice it by the artifact's aura. If the Stone Groug decides to go all the way, we'll stop him."
No one said anything else, watching the giant in silence as they waited for the bud to open.
The beam of light shifted only slightly, and that was enough.
With a tremor, the great bud opened in a hurricane as wide petals forced even the Stone Groug to step back.
As Korona said, the bud was empty, but in the very center lay several empty sockets, three in total.
Now, everything depended on whether the Stone Groug had enough energy for the Spiky Moon Flower to grow three fruits during this short night.
Step.
The Stone Groug stepped forward, holding the bracelet between two fingers like a ring. With a slight tremor, green streams flowed out as the flower greedily absorbed all the energy from the artifact.
With each passing second, the crystal of the bracelet grew paler, making Garet nervous.
He clenched his fists tightly, ready to pounce on the Stone Groug at any moment.
But as soon as the three sockets were filled with bright light, the Stone Groug put the bracelet away, not letting it break.
Artifacts were not unbreakable. They could be destroyed either by external forces or by running out of energy.
In the first case, depending on the severity of the damage, it was sometimes possible to restore the artifact, but if the artifact used up all of its energy to the last drop, it simply shattered into pieces, disappearing from the world forever.
It was one thing if it was an Artificial Artifact, with enough resources and the right blueprint, it was possible to recreate it, but with Natural Artifacts, it was different. If a Natural Artifact disappeared, there would never be another one exactly like it.
Garet sighed with relief.
'Damn, a little more and I would have failed my mission.'
Many Awakened, upon receiving their powers, completely forgot that hunting monsters was only part of the mission and not always the main requirement.
For example, Garet's mission clearly stated that he had to return the Green Flower Bracelet, but whether or not to kill the Stone Groug was his decision.
It was entirely possible that by going into the Bloom Forest, Garet could have simply stumbled upon the bracelet, picked it up, and returned to the Iron Gate. In that case, he would receive his reward because he fulfilled the mission requirements.
Sure, this was rare, because for this to happen, the Stone Groug would need to somehow lose the bracelet, but from time to time, such lucky missions happened, and the Awakened received the full reward without doing practically anything.
But did Garet want such an easy bounty?
No, his eyes were burning with fire.
"Now?" He asked, staring intently at the Stone Groug, who didn't notice the two humans yet.
Korona nodded, removing her blades from her waist.
"Yeah, you get the artifact, I get the fruits. Just don't die. The Second Order is no joke."
At her command, they simultaneously rushed forward as Garet grabbed the hilt of his sword for the first time, ready to break into battle.
Unfortunately for them, the Stone Groug was ready for someone else to claim the fruits besides him, even if it was two young Awakened.
Lifting his foot high, the Stone Groug brought down a powerful stomp with a shockwave, causing stone pillars to burst out of the ground.
Garet was clearly not ready for this in his first battle.