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The Scorpicore blinked.
That was not the reaction she had expected.
Ash continued.
"Just let me study the pendant until I leave the forest."
"If you want, you can even order your underlings to stop holding back."
"Tell them to attack me with everything they've got."
He thought for a moment before smiling.
"Actually..."
"Let's make this more interesting."
"I'll be staying in this forest for another five days."
"During those five days, you can send as many of your underlings after me as you like."
"If I survive until the end of the examination, you lend me your pendant until I leave the forest."
As he spoke, Ash reached into his storage ring and took out a small bowl filled with vanilla ice cream.
The Scorpicore tilted her head.
"What is that?"
Ash smiled.
"It's called ice cream."
"It's a dessert."
"One of the best foods I've ever tasted."
To prove it wasn't poisoned, he took a spoonful and ate it himself.
Then he offered the rest to her.
The Scorpicore hesitated for only a second before lowering her head.
With a single lick, she cleaned the entire bowl spotless.
She froze.
Her eyes slowly widened.
The cold sweetness spread across her tongue, unlike anything she had ever tasted before.
After several seconds, she finally looked back at Ash.
"Ahem..."
She cleared her throat, trying to hide her excitement.
"What exactly do I win if I beat you?"
Ash smiled.
"If I lose, I'll give you the recipe for ice cream."
The Scorpicore's ears immediately perked up.
"And if you lose," Ash continued, "I get to borrow your pendant until I leave the forest."
The Scorpicore stared at him for a long moment.
Finally, she nodded.
"Deal."
She paused before adding in a completely serious tone,
"But after that..."
"You are teaching me how to make this ice cream."
Ash chuckled.
"I have no problem with that."
The two of them shook on the wager, officially sealing their unusual agreement.
"Alright then," Ash said. "The pendant."
The Scorpicore reached up with one of her claws and removed the pendant from around her neck.
It was not an ordinary pendant.
It was a single glass monocle attached to a thin silver chain.
She handed it to Ash.
"Don't even think about running away with it," she warned.
"It's already imprinted to me."
"Without my permission, you'll only be able to use a small part of its abilities."
Ash nodded as he carefully accepted the artifact.
"I know."
"I'm only interested in studying it."
He placed the monocle safely inside his storage ring before standing up.
"Anyway, I'll be leaving now."
"And remember our deal."
"Starting tomorrow morning, send your underlings after me."
"I'll defeat them, but I won't kill them."
The Scorpicore gave a small nod.
"I'll hold you to your word."
Ash smiled before taking to the sky.
Using Air Magic, he quickly disappeared into the darkness.
As he flew away, he once again distorted the air around his body.
The shifting currents bent the surrounding light, gradually making his figure vanish from sight.
The Scorpicore narrowed her eyes as she watched him disappear.
"Hmm..."
"That's an interesting spell."
Even with her sharp eyesight, she could no longer clearly follow his movements once the distortion fully surrounded him.
She lay back down inside her den.
"I'll let you rest for tonight, human pup."
A grin slowly spread across her face.
"But tomorrow morning..."
"I'm sending every suitable underling I have after you."
She licked her lips as another thought entered her mind.
That ice cream...
I definitely want another bowl of it.
With that pleasant thought in mind, the ruler of the forest slowly closed her eyes, already looking forward to both tomorrow's hunt and her next taste of the strange frozen dessert.
With that pleasant thought in mind, the ruler of the forest slowly closed her eyes, already looking forward to both tomorrow's hunt and her next taste of the strange frozen dessert.
Meanwhile, Ash quietly returned to the mountain where his team was resting.
Before entering the cave, he used Darkness Mist once more to erase his tracks and scent.
He then restored the Earth Magic covering the cave entrance before slipping inside.
The four students were still asleep.
Ash nodded to himself.
Good.
He walked to a quiet corner of the cave and sat down cross-legged.
After making sure no one was watching, he took the monocle out of his storage ring.
The artifact looked ordinary at first glance.
A single crystal lens was fitted into a silver frame, with countless tiny runes engraved across its surface.
Ash carefully picked it up.
"Raphael."
"I'm already analyzing it," Raphael replied.
A blue screen appeared before Ash's eyes.
Scanning artifact...
Analyzing structure...
Comparing with Menadion's records...
Ash quietly waited.
Several minutes passed.
"Interesting," Raphael finally said.
"The Scorpicore was telling the truth."
"The artifact is soul-bound to her."
"If you try to activate its higher functions by force, the imprint will reject you."
Ash nodded.
"I expected that."
"However," Raphael continued, "the information stored inside the artifact is not protected to the same degree."
Ash's eyes narrowed.
"So we can still access it?"
"Possibly."
"The data appears to be stored passively."
"It was designed to record everything its wielder sees."
"The Scorpicore simply never learned how to retrieve those memories."
Ash smiled slightly.
"Then that's enough."
He slowly placed the monocle over his right eye.
Nothing happened.
Just as he expected.
He wasn't trying to activate the artifact itself.
Instead, the rainbow light returned to his eyes.
His Eyes of Wisdom began observing the artifact while Raphael analyzed every rune engraved upon it.
Hours passed quietly.
Neither Ash nor Raphael attempted to force the artifact open.
Instead, they carefully studied its construction, memorizing every magical circuit and every rune without damaging them.
By the time the first rays of sunlight entered the cave, Raphael had already completed a basic blueprint of the artifact.
"Analysis complete."
"Current understanding: Twenty-three percent."
"Estimated completion after five days of observation: Over ninety-five percent."
Ash carefully removed the monocle and returned it to his storage ring.
"That should be enough for today."
He stood up just as the other four students began waking one after another.
None of them noticed that their healer had spent the entire night studying one of the world's greatest magical artifacts instead of sleeping.