Aris approached the old woman and bent his knee so that his gaze would be equal to hers. He did not pretend to look at the goods, but placed his hand directly on the Demon Mask, while his eyes were still staring into the eyes of the old woman, who in turn watched him with her sunken black eyes, her face covered in wrinkles like a map of an ancient time.
It seemed as if she could see farther than anyone else. The old woman smiled, and the wrinkles on her face deepened with age and roughness, while the smell of burnt old herbs rose from her breath.
"I see you still possess eyes that can distinguish gold from garbage," her voice came calm, heavy, as if transcending time.
"Yes, and that alone makes me classify everyone into two categories. And you still possess both gold and garbage." Aris replied in a steady voice, unaffected by anything in the world, like a piece of stone.
The old woman's smile widened, and her eyes narrowed with cunning. "Truly, young man, then where do you place me in your eyes?"
"Sorry, no one can be in my eyes without value." Aris smiled coldly at the old woman. For a moment, the world around them seemed to vanish; only two remained: one who had seen much and knew time well, and one who had seen much and did not care.
"Good young man, it seems you've chosen your own path."
"Indeed, but we are not friends to speak of my path. Now, how much for this mask?" The sun was behind him, casting long shadows over his face, but his eyes glimmered with a sharp violet light that cut through the darkness.
When the old woman saw that, a shadow overlapped behind Aris, showing nothing but a pair of glowing violet eyes beside him, like a glimmer from another world.
"Three silver coins."
Aris pulled the silver coins from his pocket, hearing their cold metallic ring in his palm, then took the Demon Mask in his hand. He turned and set off with calm but heavy steps, as if leaving an imprint on the ground.
The old woman watched his slender back, her smile never fading until Aris vanished into a dark alley filled with the smell of dampness and mold, where she gathered her belongings swiftly and disappeared like a ghost.
"Hehehehe! Our young master has grown, and soon he will return to his lair." She laughed loudly as she faded like smoke dissolving in the air. None of the passersby noticed the old woman's disappearance.
In the dark alley, Aris walked quietly, the mask in his hands. He raised it slowly until it covered his face. It was a little larger than his features, but when he directed Chaos Energy toward it, the mask began to soften and morph until it took the shape of his face, adhering to it with a cold smoothness like damp metal. The curves of the Demon Mask, resembling the petrified trunks of an ancient tree, shimmered with a dim reddish-gray glow like glowing ashes.
–––
At the Heart Academy, a discussion was being held about the distribution of students into classes. After the meeting ended, only two people remained in the headmaster's office: Alan and Ayla. The atmosphere in the room was quiet, except for the smell of old paper and ink mingled with the antique wooden furniture.
"So, what do you think?" Alan was the first to break the heavy silence with a dry voice.
"About what?" Ayla asked with a mysterious smile, folding her arms.
"Don't pretend to be ignorant, I know you know."
"Haha, you are still the same, Headmaster." Ayla laughed lightly, her laugh like a breeze yet carrying something of mockery. "Well, he is special and seems to have great talent."
"I see that, but this uniqueness may not be good for those around him, especially since there are two rare elements." Alan's tone was heavy and full of concern, while his eyes gleamed with sternness.
"Yes, light and darkness. Two elements that haven't appeared in at least a hundred years, and now they appear in two students of the same age."
"So what have you decided? Will you take Rian as your disciple?"
"No." Ayla answered without much thought, her voice firm.
"Why?"
"He pretends to be pure but is a fraud, and it seems his focus is not on the sword."
"Very well, I suppose so. As for me, I've grown old and need an heir to carry the banner after me."
"Are you thinking of taking Aris as your disciple?"
"I don't know, maybe yes, maybe no."
Both of them smiled at each other at the end of the conversation, as if hiding more than they said.
–––
Aris reached his home quickly. As soon as he entered, he slowly removed the mask from his face and tossed it onto the wooden table, where it struck the surface with a muffled sound. Then he pulled from his pocket a phoenix egg the size of his fist, warm to the touch and exuding a strange scent like ashes mixed with dew. He carefully placed it on a cushion on the table, then sat on his chair, gazing at the system interface that appeared before him.
The update was simple, adding the ability to see the values of loyalty and hatred.
Though it seemed like a small function, it played a great role in managing a team without suffering betrayal.
A shop was also added where items could be exchanged for points:
[Shop: Locked (Can be opened with 100 points)]
[Points: 0]
"So what's the use if it's locked after all this time waiting for the update?" Aris muttered in annoyance, his features tense.
He felt the system was still unreliable, just like when it hadn't revealed all its functions to him.
"So… how do I gain points?"
After some searching through the information provided by the system, he found that points could be gained by killing any living creature.
Aris placed his hand on his chin, thinking for a while, his eyes narrowing as if devouring the thought.
"This is logical and easy to understand… Kill, and be rewarded with points."
It was a simple, straightforward, easy-to-understand update.
After comprehending the system's new function, he decided to take a bath first, then sign a blood contract with the phoenix egg.
Aris stood and began walking with calm steps toward the bathroom. He entered and closed the door behind him. Steam filled the place with the scent of warm water mingled with damp stone. He stripped his clothes piece by piece, until his taut muscles appeared under the dim light seeping from a small opening in the ceiling.
He opened the water tap, and hot streams of water poured onto his body, making him breathe deeply and feel a delicious relaxation before letting the water flow endlessly. Water droplets slid down his gray hair, falling onto his shoulders and then running down his chest like glimmering glass threads.
He stretched his hand and slowly wiped his face, feeling refreshed as though a heavy burden had been lifted off with every drop falling onto the stone floor, producing a faint echo. The bath was silent except for the sound of falling water, but inside him was a storm of restless thoughts.
He finished bathing quickly, dried his body well, then wrapped a towel around his waist and stepped out. He wore simple light cloth clothes and headed toward the phoenix egg, taking it carefully in his hands before climbing to the second floor where he entered an empty room.
The blood contract, as was clear, required blood. But not just a drop falling on the egg; it required using blood to draw a magical sigil to complete the contract.
Aris placed the egg in the middle of the room, then pulled a sharp dagger from the system's storage. The screech of metal trembled in the air as it cut his finger, and a hot drop of blood with a strong metallic scent flowed out. Aris began drawing the sigil on the ground with precise movements, each line leaving a dark red trace as though he was painting with a brush of blood.
First, he drew a complete circle surrounding the egg, then began forming strange shapes resembling tendrils. The sigil was unknown in this world—or rather, in this era—because its history went back ten thousand years.
"Back then… I discovered it by chance in ancient ruins, when I was in training seclusion." Aris muttered, his eyes gleaming with the spark of a distant memory.
Those ruins bore witness to the advancement of that age, especially in the arts of beast taming. There were two types of contracts: a Master-Servant Contract, and an Equal Contract.
"If it were an ordinary beast or a simple spirit, I would have chosen a Master-Servant Contract… But this egg is different."
The reason behind choosing an Equal Contract was that on his way home, he had used the King's Eye on the egg, and the information appeared to him:
[Name: Phoenix Egg]
[Bloodline: Legendary Grade]
[Title: None]
[Description: This egg will not reveal its true power until after hatching]
[Advice: Feed it your own energy and you will be surprised]
Aris smiled faintly as he read.
"Some may see it as just a special egg, but those who understand the meaning of Legendary Grade… will know its true value."
An Equal Contract had unique properties: shared power, dual growth – meaning Aris's growth in strength raised the phoenix's strength and vice versa – in addition to easy spiritual communication, and synchronization in battle. Everything in it was positive except for one flaw: the creature could disobey the contractor's orders if it wished.
The room's floor had now turned into a web of intertwined red lines of blood, exuding a strong metallic scent mixed with a mysterious magical aura.
"Now… the final step."
Aris approached the phoenix egg and dropped a bead of his blood on it. Then he placed his hand upon it, channeling his energy into the magical sigil.
"Come on, little one… answer me, for the sake of spreading your wings in the high skies."
As if responding to Aris's call, powerful magical energy began leaking from within the egg, glowing with a burning warmth. It merged with Aris's energy, flowing through the blood sigil, which shone with a brilliant red light.
Aris felt a mysterious call emanating from the egg, a faint but sweet voice, like the whisper of an unborn child:
"I want…"
"I want…"
"To come out…"
Aris smiled softly, his eyes half-closed as if soothing the call:
"Don't worry… you will come out. But you must grow first."
Suddenly, the egg fell silent after his words, and the attempts to break free ceased, as though it had responded to Aris's voice. A faint light remained glowing in the sigil's lines, while the smell of blood mingled with magical energy filled the room.
_____
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