Gift X Aura

Early morning

The sky had only just begun to brighten, and the Rising Sun had yet to rise over the mountaintops.

Leaves in the forest still hung with misty dew, while a thin white fog spread through the Dense Forest's lush branches and foliage.

Even in the height of summer, it made one feel chilled to the bone.

Kevin shook the dew from his raincoat and sat cross-legged on a mat of weeds, looking ahead.

"Hey, little brat, don't run. Let me check you over."

With a smile, Jin caught a wolf cub that had darted past his legs. After giving it a few rubs, he began parting its fur and even tugged on its Tongue, seemingly checking the cubs' health.

Though the inspection made the wolf cubs whimper, the two-headed wolf pair did not seem to mind. They simply lay quietly beside Jin.

Kevin curled his lip at the sight.

Damn it, you two weren't like this last night.

"Grrrowl~"

The sudden sound made Jin and every living creature present turn to look at Kevin.

Kevin was not embarrassed in the slightest. He merely nodded calmly. "Looks like I'm hungry."

"It is time to eat. Let's head back, then." Jin stood and dusted off his hands.

"Woo, woo."

The two-headed wolf pair seemed to sense that Jin was about to leave. They circled around him, whining continuously.

They really understand people, Kevin could not help thinking.

But when he saw their two heads, one of which bore a sharp horn, it no longer seemed so strange.

"Haha, I'll come back to see you again after a while."

Just as they were about to leave,

the larger of the two-headed wolves approached Kevin with a pitch-black sharp horn in its mouth and set it down by his feet.

"For me?" Kevin pointed at himself in confusion.

The wolf's horned head nodded.

Kevin picked up the black sharp horn and held it in his hand. It was incredibly light, with spiral patterns visible on its surface. Its broken end was perfectly smooth, and it was hollow inside.

Holding it felt strange. It was as if he truly needed this thing, and a faint craving welled up from within his body.

Could this be...

"That's right. It's one of the horns on their heads. It didn't break off—it was a sharp horn shed as they grew.

"Two-headed wolves shed their horns four or five times in their lives, with roughly fifteen to twenty years between each shedding."

Jin explained from the side. Seemingly noticing Kevin's confusion, he added, "Take it. It's his Gift to you."

His expression then turned smug. "You only got to benefit from this because you came with me, you know. Don't underestimate its value. At major auctions, a sharp horn shed by a two-headed wolf is worth around fifty million Jeni.

"If it were a complete horn cut off from its head, it could be worth more than ten times as much. That's why they were nearly driven extinct."

As he spoke, Jin glanced outside the cave toward the few people tied up beside the large tree.

They were the poachers from last night. Jin had not killed them. Their hands and feet were bound, and socks had been stuffed into their mouths.

Kevin did not quite understand how much purchasing power tens of millions represented, but the amount and Jin's reaction made it clear that this was no small fortune.

Yet that was not why he kept staring blankly at the sharp horn in his hand. The instant he had picked it up, he had sensed something from it.

Was it... muscle memory? Kevin could not tell, but when he held it, he truly felt a certain craving within himself.

Why did he feel that way?

"Looks like you really are satisfied with that Gift. Let's go."

When Kevin came back to his senses, all he saw was Jin's departing back. He silently followed after him.

Dragging the four poachers along the way, they returned to the campsite.

An off-road vehicle that had not been there when they left now stood there.

A burly man in a camouflage vest, camouflage military pants, and combat boots leaned against the vehicle, smoking.

His face was unkempt, marked by scars, and he carried an icy, imposing air.

"You went to see them?"

That was what the man asked.

Jin nodded, patted the man's arm, and casually kicked one of the poachers at his feet. "They're yours. You came after them, didn't you?"

The man merely nodded, then turned his attention to Kevin.

His gaze was sharp and openly appraising.

He then looked back at Jin, his eyes clearly questioning.

Jin merely gave a slight nod.

"Beagle Raghor, a Conservation hunter."

Beagle gave that simple introduction, nodded to Kevin, then dragged the four poachers into the vehicle without waiting for Kevin to say anything.

As the four poachers were dragged away, they stared wide-eyed at Kevin and made muffled noises, as though they wanted to say something.

Only after the rear of the vehicle had vanished from sight did Jin turn around to look at Kevin, who seemed lost in thought.

"Looks like you have a lot of questions. We can talk while we eat. Yesterday's deal still stands—ask me anything you want."

Before long, simple self-heating food had been set out on a portable table.

Kevin filled his stomach while thinking carefully over his words.

At last, he asked, "What was that power you used during yesterday's fight? I vaguely saw something coming off you and that leader. It was very blurry, but I don't think I was mistaken."

He had finally asked the question he most wanted answered: the extraordinary power that clearly set this world apart.

After thinking for a moment, he added, "There are some fragments of memory in my head, but... they're incomplete. Something is still missing."

Jin explained while eating canned food, "What you saw was probably Aura. It's energy that escapes from living beings. Every living thing possesses that kind of power."

Then why had he only vaguely seen it on Jin and that leader last night?

"Ordinary people—or rather, ordinary living beings—cannot sense Aura escaping from them. It naturally leaks out and dissipates.

"But Nen users, or those undergoing training, can sense and control it. In battle, they explosively release far more than the slow trickle ordinary people give off, so it's easier to notice."

The energy of life? Aura? Nen users?

Those terms gathered in his mind, as if awakening memories that still remained within Kevin. Fragmented bits of information flowed through his thoughts.

All at once, he gained a certain understanding of Nen. It was not systematic, more like a collection of practical experience.

"Looks like you remembered something. Look carefully at my palm. Can you see anything?"

Jin suddenly opened his hand and asked.

Hearing that, Kevin looked over and frowned as he examined it intently.

He could vaguely see it, though it was still blurry. But it was much clearer than last night, as if the memories in his mind had triggered some sort of muscle memory.

He was very good at this kind of observation.

He could sense something emerging from within his body. Was this what Jin called Aura?

That Aura flowed to his eyes.

He saw it more and more clearly.

"5?"

"That's right. The number five. You've already learned to use Ren."

What was this strange term now?

This word did not stir any of the residual memories in his mind.