The leader remained silent for a moment after hearing my answer, as if allowing the words to settle in the room. Then he slowly turned his head slightly and spoke a single name.
"Sylva."
At once, Sylva straightened and stepped forward without hesitation.
The leader made a small gesture with his hand toward the wooden table placed beside his chair. It was a simple movement, but clear enough that Sylva understood immediately. Without needing any further explanation, he gave a small nod and walked toward the table.
Sylva reached for the item carefully, almost as if handling something valuable, and picked it up with both steadiness and familiarity. Then he turned and walked back toward me, stopping right in front of me with the object still resting in his hand.
When he stopped in front of me, Sylva extended his hand and carefully placed the item into mine.
The moment it touched my palm, I instinctively looked down.
It was small and smooth, fitting easily in my hand, and it shone with a deep blue glow that immediately drew my attention. At first glance, it looked like a polished jewel, almost like a small blue diamond, clear and beautiful in a simple way.
But there was something more to it.
The light inside it did not feel like ordinary reflection. It was faint, yet strangely alive, as if something was quietly moving within the crystal itself. It carried a subtle charm that ordinary jewels could never have, making it feel far more valuable than its size suggested.
I stared at it for a second, and then recognition struck me.
An Azure Core.
My eyes widened slightly in surprise as the memory returned immediately.
I recognized it at once.
When I had first met Rokar and Vaela, they had been searching for one of these. At that time, I had not fully understood why it mattered so much, but I clearly remembered how important it had seemed to them. Even during the tournament two years ago, the final prize given to the winner had been an Azure Core.
That alone was enough to tell me its value. I knew it was important... that much was obvious.
Yet despite hearing about it before and seeing how valuable others considered it, I still did not fully understand what it actually was or why it held such significance.
The leader spoke from his seat, his voice calm and steady.
"That is your reward."
I looked up again, still holding the blue core carefully in my hand. Even its small size felt heavy now that I understood what it was.
Before I could ask anything, the leader continued.
"It contains my ability stored within it."
For a moment, I simply stared at him, unsure if I had heard him correctly.
It stores ability?
My eyes shifted back to the Azure Core resting in my palm.
And this one was stored with the leader's ability?
The thought alone was enough to make me tighten my grip slightly. This was no ordinary reward. If what he said was true, then this small blue jewel contained a part of the power of the strongest person in the village.
I looked down at the Azure Core again, feeling its weight resting in my hand. This was not something I had expected to receive, especially not something that contained the Leader's own stored ability.
After a brief moment of hesitation, I spoke honestly. "I do not think I deserve this, Leader."
The Leader looked at me and gave a faint smile, one that carried more certainty than amusement. "You clearly do not understand how valuable a high level beast truly is," he said calmly.
His voice remained steady, but there was enough firmness in it to make it clear that this was not something open for discussion. To him, the reward had already been decided.
A high level beast was not something that could be measured lightly, even if it had already been heavily injured. Bringing one down carried far more value than I fully understood.
Without explaining anything further, he simply said, "Take it and leave. You will be informed later when it is time for the mission."
There was no room left to argue. I closed my fingers around the Azure Core and lowered my head respectfully.
"Thank you, Leader," I said.
With that, Charlie and I stepped back from the room. We gave one final respectful bow to the Leader before turning and leaving the house, with Sylva quietly standing aside near the wall.
As soon as we stepped outside and began walking back through the village, I noticed the villagers looking at me again with the same shocked and impressed expressions as before.
But now, I understood why.
The news of the high level beast had clearly spread throughout the entire village. What had felt like a difficult and dangerous hunt to me had become something much bigger in their eyes. I was no longer just the outsider living under Elder Thryssa's protection or the strange person from outside the forest.
I had become the one who helped kill a high level beast.
That realization somehow made it worse.
Now that I knew the reason behind their stares, every glance felt far more embarrassing. The whispers around me seemed louder, and every surprised expression made me feel even more uncomfortable. I found myself avoiding eye contact and simply continuing forward beside Charlie, hoping we could reach home quickly.
After walking in silence for a while, I let out a quiet breath and glanced toward Charlie.
"Charlie, what do you think this mission could be about?" I asked.
Charlie continued walking beside me calmly, thinking for a moment before replying.
"I do not know for sure, young master, but if you have to leave the forest, then it will be dangerous for you."
His answer made me look at him for a moment.
He was right.
If I left the forest, there was a real chance I could be found by the enemies who were searching for me. This village had been a place to hide, protected by distance and isolation, but once I stepped outside, that safety would disappear.
I had no idea who was still looking for me or how far their reach extended, but I knew one thing clearly. If they found me, there was a very real chance I would be killed.
I gave a small nod.
Charlie's answer did not tell me what the mission was, but it reminded me of something far more important.
After that, I remained quiet.
As we continued walking home, my thoughts kept drifting between the unknown mission waiting ahead and the Azure Core still resting safely in my hand. One carried uncertainty, and the other carried value I did not yet fully understand. Both felt heavy in different ways.
By the time we reached home, the sky had already begun shifting toward evening. The warm light of the setting sun filtered through the branches above, casting long shadows across the ground and giving the entire place a quiet, peaceful feeling after the events of the day.
I walked inside and sat down beneath the great tree, finally allowing my body to relax. The exhaustion from the day's training, the meeting with the Leader, and everything that followed seemed to settle all at once now that I was home.
Camose was sleeping there.
Earlier, we had left for the Leader's house directly from practice, and at that time, the little serpent had already been sleeping near the roots of the tree, so we had left it behind.
Even now, it remained curled up quietly in the same place, its small body coiled comfortably near the roots as if it had not moved at all.
I leaned down slightly and gently petted its head.
Then I took out the blue jewel again and held it carefully in my hand.
The Azure Core looked completely normal at first glance, almost like a beautiful blue diamond polished to perfection. Its surface reflected the evening light softly, and the deep blue color gave it a quiet elegance. Anyone unfamiliar with it might mistake it for nothing more than a rare and expensive jewel.
But the longer I looked at it, the more I could feel that there was something different about it.
There was a strange charm hidden inside it, something subtle yet impossible to ignore. The faint glow within the crystal did not feel lifeless like ordinary stone. It felt as if something was resting inside it, silent but present.
It was simple in appearance, yet it carried a quiet weight far beyond its size.
How can they store someone's ability inside something this small?
And this particular one carried the Leader's ability.
I had heard before that the Leader also possessed a strengthening ability, one that made his already overwhelming presence even more frightening.
If I used this Azure Core… would I be able to use that strengthening ability temporarily?