"Let's go outside, give them some time to say goodbye," Jin said, getting up and walking toward the cave entrance.
Kevin glanced at the dying two-headed wolf, then gently reached out to touch its head.
As if sensing Kevin's touch, the head with the horn bent slightly, nuzzling against the back of his hand and even licking it twice before its head drooped weakly again, quietly awaiting the arrival of death.
"So human-like," Kevin murmured as he stood up and walked outside, leaving the wolf family with some peace and quiet.
At the entrance, Jin leaned against the stone wall.
Kevin stood by the mouth of the cave and looked into the distance. Several large trees had holes bored through them, yet they still stood strong, refusing to fall.
"You've probably been researching all sorts of exotic beasts, magical creatures, and rare species online recently, right?" Jin asked.
Kevin nodded. "Yeah, ever since I started practicing Nen, I've been really drawn to them."
"So, what's your impression of these creatures?"
Kevin didn't hide anything. "They're incredible. I never expected to learn about beings that seem like they've stepped out of a fantasy story in this modern world."
After all, in his past twenty-some years of life, he had only lived in an ordinary, mundane world, with nothing even remotely like this.
"I see." Jin muttered softly, then after a moment, suddenly tossed something toward Kevin.
Kevin caught it reflexively.
It was about as long as his forearm and had a certain heft to it. It was tightly wrapped in oilcloth and bandaged with white fabric.
What caught his eye was the pattern on the bandages—complex and orderly symbols that, with his growing mastery of Nen, Kevin could sense faint traces of aura flowing through them.
"That's a Divine Script," Jin explained. "It's something created using a combination of knowledge, special written patterns, proper Nen techniques, and very refined control of Nen."
Hearing that, Kevin immediately lost interest. It clearly wasn't something a regular person could learn.
"Aww, don't get so discouraged. Sure, few people can master it, but if you give it a shot, who knows? You might be able to pull it off." Jin smiled slyly, like a scammer selling dreams.
"How long did it take you to learn it?"
"I'm still learning."
"Heh." Kevin scoffed. So what's the point of even trying?
Still, if given the chance, he might give it a go.
Anything fantastical or extraordinary—Kevin wanted to experience it firsthand.
With that in mind, he carefully unraveled the bandage. Faint aura began leaking from the oilcloth, causing him to frown slightly.
Once he peeled off the oilcloth, an even denser wave of life energy—or "aura"—rushed out.
What lay before him was a slender, emerald-colored bone. Through the translucent surface, one could vaguely see a crystalline structure inside.
Just in terms of appearance, it could easily be a prized collectible.
But the aura it emitted was no joke. This meant its original owner had been an incredibly powerful being—so strong that even in death, its remains still radiated pure life energy.
That explained why the oilcloth and wrappings were used—to contain the aura, preventing it from dissipating and reducing the bone to an ordinary object.
Even more shocking was the powerful desire welling up in Kevin's body. Stronger than anything he'd felt before, even surpassing the time he encountered that discarded horn.
"Whew…" Kevin exhaled slowly, struggling to suppress the intense urge.
Jin watched him carefully from the side.
"The aura in your body… never mind, we'll talk about that later. What do you think of that material?"
"It's powerful. That's the only word that fits. So powerful that there's no way I could use it as crafting material right now."
Kevin had his own system for grading materials, much like potion classification.
Not all ingredients in a potion had to be of the same grade, but the key component—the anchor—had to match the potion's overall rank.
No doubt, this item far surpassed what you'd expect from a Class C material.
Was it Class A? No, not quite. In Kevin's system, Class A should be even more astonishing.
This one was clearly Class B—yet likely the highest tier of Class B.
Given his current potential aura capacity, he had no chance of working with it.
"Damn it, this is just cruel temptation. I can see it but can't use it."
"Then I'll give it to you."
"…Huh?" Kevin looked up at Jin, confused.
"It's useless to me now—more of a decorative piece, and I've never been one for collecting stuff like that." Jin shrugged. "So I'm giving it to you as a little gift."
He clapped his hands and added, "Consider it a token to help you gain the power to protect yourself."
"Come on, that excuse is clearly made up on the spot."
"Alright, alright, don't get hung up on the details." Jin waved his hand, then his gaze grew sharp as he looked to the sky in the distance. "As a Ruins Hunter, I've always followed my own interests these many years."
"In the process, I've uncovered many secrets. That bone you're holding? It's just a single finger bone… from an infant."
"…How massive was this creature?" Kevin murmured, gazing down at the jade-green, crystal-like bone he'd rewrapped.
"Most of the fascinating creatures you've read about actually came to this continent over the past thousand years. They crossed oceans from the true world beyond what we call the 'Known World.'"
Kevin frowned at Jin's words.
He was already beginning to suspect it—Jin was talking about a world beyond this world.
After all, in this world, no one had ever clearly defined its boundaries. There had to be undiscovered lands out there.
For top-tier Hunters like Jin, they definitely had access to intelligence sources that hinted at such truths.
With current technology so advanced, yet none of the most powerful factions organizing large-scale colonization missions, there could be only one reason: those so-called new continents posed dangers that far outweighed their potential rewards.
Otherwise, habitable lands and unexplored territories would be far too tempting for major powers to ignore.
These were all logical conclusions Kevin reached based on what he knew about the world.
And now it seemed Jin was finally about to reveal the truth.
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