Late into the night, the crescent moon hung itself high above what was left of the village, dreadfully staring down like the cold sickle of death itself. The horrendous atmosphere unnerved Velia little by little. She slowly walked up to Jack and started questioning him.

“Can’t you do it any faster?

Jack didn’t respond, his eyes rolling around with the estimations and calculations in his head. The pair had been conducting their search for over six hours, but all they could find was a bunch of “potential places” and useless essence splinter. It was now obvious why such a common type like Earth Essence was so hard to find, let alone the others.

After a moment of contemplation, Jack opened his mouth.

“We should split up!”

“Split up?” Velia exclaimed. “Are you nuts?”

“You should check these locations,” Jack pointed at the map on a magical stone surface that he had recorded down after a couple of terrain scans using the Essence Tracer.

Velia unconsciously received the map, her mind still confused by Jack’s intention.

“We’ll meet at the village’s entrance,” Jack didn’t allow his guide a chance to talk back. “Be careful!”

Then, he immediately left, heading to the west of Wildwatch, where the Monster Den had been reported to be.

Velia, at a loss for words, bit her teeth and moved. Her instinct told her to finish this quest as soon as possible. It was smooth and quiet in the beginning, but a strange uncertainty had been building up in her as the mission progressed.

Jack took a deep breath and continued traveling east while keeping an eye on his Essence Tracer. As much as he had been avoiding it, eventually, he accepted the fact that most of the signals were pointing him toward the Monster Den. The field of energy there was so great that even outside of its usual two-hundred-meter radius, the machine still caught a glimpse of its sign. Jack also couldn’t help but notice the unusual density of its power. For safety purposes, he had chosen to separate from Velia since he could always rely on his Nightblade skillset for a quick escape. His companion should stay out of this.

The area surrounding the Monster Den was barren with devastation, both by the monsters and the adventurers who had come to clean them up. The soil and stones were all stirred up into a mess. On the far end was the forest, silently watching in the wind.

As soon as his eyes caught a glimpse of the strange mound of land, Jack frightenedly activated Presence of the Night.

How is it still there? Jack’s confused thoughts called out inside his head.

The Essence Tracer violently shook in his hand. An extremely bright spot appeared on the map.

His instinct rose, telling him to turn back. Instead, the boy quickly found himself frozen, his limbs shaken, his back full of sweat. A moment later, he collapsed to the ground, unable to breathe as if he was in a vacuum. His Nightblade skill deactivated, his mana stopped flowing, and his body was no longer his.

Jack struggled to raise his head up to look at the entrance of the burrow. From there, a shadow in the shape of a man slowly walked out. The pair of eyes underneath the hood glanced at him. With only a gaze, Jack saw death standing before him.

Archon? Jack thought, biting his teeth. No, even more than that. Legend?

Having had multiple occasions of fighting against Crusaders, Jack reckoned an Archon would be able to overwhelm him with aura but not to the extent of being unable to move his mouth.

The mysterious person slowly walked toward Jack. Each step touching the ground felt like a hammer on his heart, heavy, oppressive, and despairing.

His artificial arm was provoked, unwillingly turning into a firearm.

“Oh,” the man in the cape busted out with a deep manly voice. Still, his gesture remained calm and composed.

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The pressure around Jack was relieved a bit, letting him find some air into his lungs. His head and body shook with waves of pain. The man’s aura alone had left Jack one step through death’s door.

“Are you an Artificer?”

Jack tried to open his mouth but found something blocking his throat. He used his mana and mental strength to summon the Artificer badge from his inventory ring, dropping it on the ground.

“One star?” The man’s voice had a subtle expression of interest. “With such a good Spirit stat?”

It wasn’t until now did Jack feel the pressure on his body finally dissipate. He started coughing uncontrollably, put his hand on his gas mask, and threw it away, trying to recover as much air as possible after that one painful minute.

Then, he looked at the men in the black cloak. His face was hidden beneath the hood, his frame and height nothing out of the ordinary. Should he stand in the crowd, it would be impossible to notice.

“Kid,” he said with a mocking voice. “Give me a reason not to kill you!”

“I can help you,” Jack’s eyes were unwavering.

It wasn’t the first time Jack had to lower himself. That disgraceful event was long ago, too long that it got buried in the flow of the history of World 146. Experiencing it again made him feel ashamed of the confidence he had built all those years. Still, he couldn’t show his discontent to avoid any more provoking to an entity far superior to him.

“Me? Needing your help?” The man burst out a laugh hearing Jack’s words. “What can a Herald insect do for me?”

Another brief wave of pressure blew at Jack. Biting his teeth, he stood his ground against the threat.

“Not now,” Jack opened his mouth in struggle, “but I can do it in the future.”

A small wind passed by, lifting the man’s cloak. He stayed quiet as if signaling Jack to keep talking.

“I’m only ten years old, but already am a one-star member of the Artificer Guild.” Jack raised his wooden arm up. “This is my invention. You must know the real deal when seeing one. If you don’t, I would be dead by now, right? I can assure you that I will assist you in all your bidding regarding Artificer.”

The mysterious person slightly nodded his head. Indeed, he had seen potential in Jack, enough so to play the game of words with him. However, he still put his hand up and, with a swipe, pushed Jack down even harder. Jack could hear the cracking of bones inside his body.

I’m gonna die, a horrifying thought flashed through his mind.

Recalling how he had died in the past, it turned out to be not much of a problem to him. He was just worried about how mother Sophie would feel, and Abraham too. As for Emily or Elle, whether they were in this world or not, they wouldn’t even remember him to mourn.

He squinted his eyes at the man with a sudden burst of rage.

Feeling the gaze, the person increased the pressure, pushing Jack flat to the ground. Still, Jack’s eyes were still on him, half threatening, half pleading.

Out of nowhere, the man stopped, leaning his head to the left like he was talking to someone behind him.

“Alright,” he suddenly exclaimed.

Then, he tossed his arm up, throwing a small black orb the size of Jack’s finger in front of him.

“You know what to do with it, right?”

Without hesitation, Jack grabbed and swallowed it.

The man laughed out loud.

“Decisive! That confirms my decision to let you live.”

Jack tried to get back on his feet, kneeling before his opponent, signaling his gratitude. He didn’t even try to bite his teeth or anything to let his anger be known.

“Good,” the cloaked man said, tossing a badge of a snake slithering around a pole, much like the Rod of Asclepius in ancient Greek mythology.

“In the next three years, try to find me with that symbol. What you’ve just swallowed is a poison that will take effect every month, a reminder that you belong to me. Should you prove yourself insufficient to my expectation or incapable of reaching me in time, you know how it will end. Its last repetition won’t give you an easy time leaving this world. Remember, I’m the only one who can give you the antidote here, in Dessotor. Make sure you handle my bidding well in the future.”

The man then turned around, facing the Monster Den. He raised his hands out in front of him. A force then radiated from his palm as if pulling something up from the ground. Afterward, a murky green light shot out from the cave. Slowly, a crystal of the same color rose up and floated toward his hands. With one swift move, the crystal disappeared along with the mysterious man.

Jack exhaled, lying on the ground and looking up at the sky. Never before had he felt so small and weak. With just one thought from his opponent, he had almost been turned into ashes. He had already highly estimated the power of the pinnacle existences in this world, but only now did he realize it was far superior to what he had imagined. In comparison, Jack the Great Sage of his previous life was nothing more than a plaything.

With both fear and insecurity in his heart about the road ahead, Jack yearned for more power. He couldn't stop an unnerving fact that was more problematic than the poison spreading through his body.

What is a Legend doing here?

From the way he acted, Jack reckoned his opponent was a Maester. Reflecting on the capability of this faction, he couldn't help but think whether the recent incidents were related. Especially that green crystal, which gave him a feeling that disaster was about to be upon all of them.