Jonn sensed the shape of a bracelet around the wrist of the red-haired enemy.
The Village Elder felt the mana surrounding it, recognizing the form of the metal object even before he laid eyes on it.
Jonn moved to take the enemy’s silver bracelet into his hands, unconcerned about what the enemy might think.
The red-haired man paled at Jonn’s reaction. He would have preferred to die with his Enchanted Artifact, but his adversaries seemed more capable than he had anticipated.
As he cursed Jonn in his mind, the white-haired boy noticed new message boxes appearing in his view.
{You have received: Wildheart Talisman}
[Wildheart Talisman]
[Characteristics: The user has their mental attributes improved by 3 points as long as they have it on their body. The bearer has their [Luck] attribute increased by 2 points when it is attached to their body. The chances of mentally connecting to an animal or beast are increased by 90% when using the artifact—limited to one animal or beast at a time.]
[Durability: Indefinite]
[Item Class: Common]
[Quality: Average]
[Weight: 0.7 kg]
Jonn finally understood how a normal person had controlled a group of wolves.
I see… He had the support of the Wildheart Talisman. He used the bracelet to connect to the pack leader and thus gained control of the entire pack.
Jonn grasped the nature of the Enchanted Artifact on his right wrist. He was examining the silver item through the Celestial Magnifying Glass, using [Analysis] without paying attention to the enemy’s angry gaze.
But he wasted the artifact’s potential. This is the kind of item that provides advantages based on the user’s ability. This red-haired man failed to make the best use of the item because he had no mana of his own. But I’ll be able to do much more.
Jonn didn’t smile, even though he had gained valuable loot. Two members of the village had died that night, and he wasn’t in the mood to appreciate this gain, as he might have in other situations.
{Name: Jonn Irondoom}
{Age: 16}
{Level: 1 (13%)}
{Reputation: Level 4 “Elder of the Eternal Village!”}
{Stats:
[Health: 118] [Mana: 113 (143)] [Stamina: 107]}
{Attributes:
[Strength: 10.8] [Agility: 10.3] [Dexterity: 10.4]
[Constitution: 11.8] [Endurance: 10.7] [Intelligence: 11.3 (14.3)]
[Wisdom: 10.3 (13.3)] [Charisma: 10 (13)] [Luck: 10 (12)]}
{Resistances: None}
{Skill: [Analysis]; [Essence of Life].}
{Artifacts: Wildheart Talisman}
Jonn looked at his status out of curiosity, noticing that the system had already computed the altered values because of wearing the bracelet.
Curious. My available mana has increased. I can feel mana entering my body to fill this limit, but my progress to level 2 hasn’t changed at all.
I believe that level advances only come if the mana base itself improves.
Putting away his magnifying glass and momentarily ignoring the item, Jonn turned his attention to the wounded man, who was bleeding after the brief torture he had administered so far.
“If you prefer to suffer a painful and slow death, that’s your choice, stranger. But there is no escape for you. You killed two of our villagers tonight. If you don’t give us anything in return, we’ll ensure that every member of the village makes you suffer before you leave this wicked world.”
Jonn’s words sent shivers down Lance and Wy’s spines, but neither disagreed with the Village Elder.
Wy even wished for a moment that the enemy would remain silent, while the white-blond-haired man sighed.
Old Lance didn’t want brutal acts in his tribe, even after the deaths of Tedric and Adie. But he wouldn’t stop Jonn and his fellow villagers if they wanted to torture the enemy. He didn’t have that right.
The red-haired enemy, still crying in pain from the cuts moments ago, looked at Jonn and realized this person would not back down from his threats.
He really would be tortured until he satisfied the village’s desire for vengeance!
He trembled in uncertainty, feeling his will falter at the sight of the man who now possessed his most precious item.
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But the enemy didn’t give up quickly. Jonn continued to cut the red-haired man’s body in sensitive areas until he got the information he wanted.
“All right! I’ll talk! I’ll talk, just don’t torture me anymore!” he shouted amidst his screams, which by now had reached the most distant houses in the village, alerting everyone to what was happening.
Only five minutes had passed since Jonn and Wy’s arrival when the enemy was ready to talk.
“Tell me how you intended to use the mana crystals,” Jonn pressed.
“My wolf… he told me he sensed something… something powerful coming from this direction. We saw that there was a village here and stopped to familiarize ourselves with the area.
I didn’t have time, not really, to think about how to use the Aether Tears. I… I just worried about how to get my hands on them, man…
They’re precious among mages!
Mages say they can refine them, absorb the concentrated mana of the Aether Tears, raise their strength… but I don’t know how. I don’t even know if I could use it on myself.
The pain… it blinds me.
All I know is that I would sell them, keep some. I swear, that’s all I know!
The pain… it’s unbearable. Help me, please. No more!”
Narrowing his eyes, Jonn watched his enemy in silence for 10 seconds straight, while Wy and Lance observed him expectantly.
Jonn moved in, using the same dagger, already soiled with enemy blood, to slash the red-haired man’s neck, striking the jugular with one swift, precise blow. This surprised both the enemy and the two members of the village.
“Thanks for the answer. That’s your prize.” Jonn watched as the nameless man lost the gleam in his eyes.
The red-haired man, still tied up and unable to stop the blood pouring from his neck, lost consciousness and died in front of Jonn, Lance, and Wy just seconds after the tribe leader’s strike.
Jonn didn’t hesitate to wipe the blood off his dagger after seeing his enemy die, remaining silent in his thoughts.
Aether Tears, huh? If what he said is true, then I’ll be able to absorb those crystals… However, I don’t know how to do that. Just eat them? That wouldn’t be pleasant. Even though I’ve cut some crystals, they’re quite hard. Also, when they explode, they can cause injuries.
I’ll see how they work on animals first. Maybe I’ll get a hint on how to use them on myself.
Sighing, Jonn shook his head from side to side.
But that’s not for now. The priority is to feed the village. We don’t have enough resources for me to think about wasting them on animals at the moment. I’ll revisit this in the future.
“Remove his body and bury it in an unmarked grave, 4 kilometers from the village. There’s no need to have an enemy among our dead." With those words, Jonn left the barn and headed towards the wounded villagers.
In the morning, they would have another farewell, but for now, it was time for him to visit his injured comrades.
----------------------------------------
Two hours after Jonn and Wy arrived, the women, children, and villagers unable to fight, left their homes and gathered to hear what had happened.
Eliot and Asher had returned to the village along with Beri and Petyr, and now all 41 survivors were assembled to hear the account of events.
Petyr and Wy were the first to speak, with Beri saying a few words while his daughter stood beside him, relieved that her father was still alive. Next, Jonn, Asher, and Eliot spoke about the challenges they faced, with Lance concluding the explanation.
“… Fortunately, young Eliot was heroic and saved not only my life but the lives of three other comrades tonight,” Lance said, pointing to the boy next to Jonn, the great hero of this terrible incident.
Those who hadn’t seen Eliot in action looked at him with surprise. Eliot had always been a simple young man, good-natured and willing, but rather mediocre, unable to learn more complex skills.
The villagers hadn’t thought he could fight until the morning before.
But Jonn and everyone who witnessed him fight that night now had new expectations for the young archer.
Following the salutes for Eliot, Jonn glanced at Lance and Elie, and they respond with slight nods. He had already spoken to both of them, and Wy, about what the enemy had revealed and what they knew. They had all agreed to keep the secret about the Aether Tears from the rest of the village for the time being.
Jonn preferred transparency, but it was better to keep the truth hidden for now to prevent unnecessary worry among his companions. If everyone became fearful of using the mana crystals, they wouldn’t solve their food problems and might face starvation or even resort to robbing travelers.
Jonn addressed his fellow villagers, “The danger has passed for now, but we have more concerns to address. We’re vulnerable, and we can’t ignore that. I’d like to work with you not only to resolve the issues we’ve been dealing with, but also to create an armed group specialized in combat.
Additionally, we need to redesign the village as soon as possible. We need to enhance the defensive capacity of our houses and critical areas, such as the greenhouse and the outside planting area. Our priority is to fortify the village against malicious enemies.”
Elia agreed, supporting Jonn. “We don’t know exactly what today’s enemy wanted. However, once we have green fields yielding significant crops, vicious people will eventually discover us and want to take this land from us.
We must be prepared to stop their advances, either with men who can fight or with walls and buildings that are difficult to breach. I will take the lead in fortifying the village alongside Petyr’s work with the armed guard and Jonn’s with agriculture and mining.”
No one questioned the plans of the tribe’s two young leaders. Each person, regardless of their role, understood the importance of the projects Elia had outlined. Redesigning the village and its defenses would be laborious. They lacked materials and manpower. However, after losing two friends and family members, they were more than willing to make the effort.
‘What happened tonight cannot be repeated.’ Wy held his wife’s waist as he thought about how to help.
Alise had similar thoughts, never wanting to experience the fear she felt earlier, when she felt unsure if she would see her father alive again.
Jonn took the floor again and concluded the meeting. “After we say goodbye to our two comrades, I will announce the new orders for each member of the village. We’ll change roles and add more responsibilities to all of you. And I must say that it’s time for the children to take on roles and help out. Every available force will need to contribute starting tomorrow.”
Even the mothers of the youngest among them didn’t object. It was indeed time for the few youngsters who hadn’t yet contributed to start learning skills that would be useful to the community.
“Some of us will keep watch in case any of wolves return. Apart from those who will prepare Tedric and Adie’s burials and deal with the wolves’ meat, everyone else should return to their homes.
Rest well. We’ll start new routines for everyone in the village tomorrow. I feel it will be difficult at first, but I’m confident we’ll overcome the odds.”
More than half the group dispersed after Jonn’s words. Only those truly needed to handle the most urgent matters stayed behind.
A group of four took on the task of processing the wolves’ bodies to separate the meat, skin, bones, and unusable parts. Two individuals were assigned the task of preparing Tedric and Adie’s farewell.
Jonn left Eliot with Asher and Lance to watch over the village while he met with Elia and Petyr. The village hunter was eager to help them organize the necessary changes quickly, despite his injuries.
They wouldn’t sleep that night. They planned to talk until dawn, deciding on additional roles for specific tribe members and outlining the steps needed to achieve their goals. Petyr would need a few days to start training the warriors, but in a week or two, he should be ready.
It wasn’t the ideal time, but it was what they had to work with under the current circumstances.
While some kept watch over the village and others worked, a new day gradually dawned, chasing away the darkness of the night, with the first rays of light brightening the horizon.