Percy watched with curiosity as Kassorith’s new pin projected a glowing, circular screen, hovering a few metres in front of them. It was taller than a person, countless flashing colours swirling chaotically within it. They only lasted for a moment, before settling into the familiar image of Syrreneth’s chamber, still thick with mist like the last time Percy saw it.

The process reminded Percy of the portals to the Vault of Magic he could summon through Metatron’s Decree, but the colourful screen only allowed light and sound to pass through – it wasn’t a gateway to a different world. He and Kassorith had picked up the device not long after claiming their fourth prize from the treasury. They’d sought out the privacy of one of the rooms available to the contestants during the intermission so that they could contact the elder.

“Well, well… If it isn’t my most prized disciple…” the Violet mused, meditating atop his coiled tail as always, not even bothering to open his eyes.

The man’s pin glowed brightly on the side of his tunic, just like their own. Percy had no idea if regular elders had access to the same premium devices as the elite disciples, or if Syrreneth’s was only capable of receiving calls but not initiating them.

Either way, he couldn’t help but feel a little envious of the Thess’kalans’ advanced technology. With a few enchanted pins like these, Percy would have been able to contact Nesha or Elaine whenever he wanted, without having to keep clones stationed in their bodies.

Not that they didn’t have anything similar on Remior, but the artifacts Jason and Deimos had used to communicate weren’t widespread. Even worse, they seemed to require a very specific combination of affinities to function – one of them being among the rarest in existence. Needless to say, they wouldn’t be usable by the general public unless House Etna made some major improvements to their design.

Percy would have considered grabbing a couple of pins before leaving Thess’kala, but he knew his spatial seal couldn’t contain other storage devices. If he wanted his own, he would have to study how they were made in the Vault, or commission Metatron to incorporate that functionality into the seal.

‘It’s probably a bad idea,’ he thought, instantly deciding against it.

The darn thing was already a risk. While he had made the titan craft it slowly in front of him, there was always a chance that Metatron had secretly tampered with the artifact. Giving the god explicit permission to add communication features to it would be the dumbest move imaginable.

In any case, Percy had more important matters to worry about than the convenient pins.

“You’ve been following the tournament closely, I take it?” he asked, cutting straight to the point.

Syrreneth nodded. “Naturally. The event is pretty fun to watch even when I don’t have a subordinate participating. I have to admit, you’ve surprised me more than once. The second domain wasn’t unexpected – given your circumstances – but I still have no idea how you outlasted the woman with the toxic steam or overpowered the lava mage. Even getting rid of the plasma user’s shadows was something I only understood after watching the match twice.”

Percy noticed that the elder was being mindful of his words, pretending to speak to Kassorith while avoiding mentioning Percy directly. He’d only talked about their situation in implicit terms. Perhaps, these communication devices weren’t as secure as they would have liked.

“What can I say? I live to entertain,” he replied with a shrug.

He saw no reason to explain how his Insomnia trait worked. As for his runecrafting, it would become a lot more obvious when he inevitably went all out during the finals. But Syrreneth would have to be patient like everyone else.

“I hope you haven’t forgotten our deal though,” Percy said, giving the elder a pointed look.

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Syrreneth’s eyes finally opened, a faint smile forming on his lips – one that didn’t quite reach his slit pupils.

“Of course not!” he exclaimed in the most faux amicable tone Percy had ever heard. “You’ve delivered as promised, so you can rest assured I’ll honour our agreement!”

The man’s forced enthusiasm rubbed Percy the wrong way. He could practically feel the barely concealed contempt hiding beneath Syrreneth’s words, but he wasn’t sure what to say.

Oblivious to his thoughts, the Violet summoned something from his spatial pin, seemingly eager to demonstrate his sincerity. It was a crimson cushion embroidered with intricate, golden patterns. A strange object rested atop the cushion, somewhat resembling an oak leaf. However, it looked more like it had been carved out of the finest piece of jade than harvested from an actual tree. It was flat, its perimeter full of bumpy curves, the veins on its surface shimmering in a vibrant green light that pierced through the fog with ease, illuminating the dim chamber.

Percy’s eyes widened at the sight – and not only because of the artifact’s otherworldly beauty, or its importance to his mission. It only took a single glance for him to realize how closely it resembled something he had seen before – and at the most unexpected place to boot. Granted, the object sitting in front of the Thess’kalan elder was several times larger than its counterpart – about thrice as wide as a man’s palm – and shone with far greater intensity.

Percy had several questions about it, but he stuck to the most important for now.

“Was it difficult to get your hands on it?”

It would probably be a good idea to know if a bunch of angry demigods would come looking for the leaf later.

The Violet chuckled. “I didn’t steal it, if that’s what you’re asking. There was

some pushback when I requested it, but not as much as I expected. Apparently, your success in the tournament has turned you into a star within the sect. The higher-ups seemed quite willing to accommodate you. Granted, they did ask why you want a second leaf, so I told them about that low-born relative of yours who needs it.”

Percy nodded. “You look rather pleased yourself. Are they treating you better than before?”

Not that he cared much about the elder’s status – hell, he couldn’t care less about Kassorith’s either – but he figured that maintaining a good relationship with the Violet might improve his odds of getting what he wanted.

“As a matter of fact, they are!” the man replied, his smile widening. “I’m essentially a grand elder in everything but name. Keep the good work up and they might even make it official.”

“Everything’s fine then? Can I come back to the sect and collect my leaf right away if I want to? No tricks?” Percy asked again, finding this a little too easy.

“Most certainly – the leaf is yours!” Syrreneth exclaimed. “Ah, but I would advise you to take the next few days to rest, instead of travelling. There’s no reason to ruin your chances in the tournament – your prize isn’t going anywhere. You have my word.”

With that, the elder pressed his thumb against the pin to end the transmission, not even waiting for a response.

Percy sighed. He still wasn’t convinced things would go smoothly. On the surface, Syrreneth had been nothing but polite and helpful, but the Violet’s gaze left a pit in Percy’s stomach – the coldness in the elder’s eyes making him feel like he was being stared at by a hungry beast rather than a person. No wonder Kassorith had seemed so terrified of his master when they first met. Despite the Violet’s assurances, there was a good chance he had no intention of handing Percy the leaf.

‘I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it… Let’s grab everything I can from this place first.’

Perhaps, it would have been more prudent to return to the sect right now and use his participation in the finals as leverage to demand the leaf. Threatening to drop out of the competition might force the Violet to keep his promise. The problem was that Percy wanted the tournament’s sweet rewards as much as Kassorith and his master did – and they knew it too. He didn’t want to get into a fight with the elder and end up fleeing Thess’kala empty-handed. Depending on how much these people valued the leaves, they might be willing to sacrifice everything else to keep them.

Turning his attention back to his host, Percy focused on something else.

‘You never explained where these leaves come from, or how they work.’

Kassorith had told him that eating one would permanently extend his lifespan, but not by how much. It was important information, as it would determine what grade it would allow him to reach – how much closer to his lofty goal of attaining godhood it would bring him, and how many more greater springs he would need to visit.

More importantly, Percy had noticed something strange during the meeting. The leaf looked nearly identical to those adorning the jade tree his family possessed!

Obviously, the two couldn’t have come from the same place. Their sizes were too different, and the Divine Order would have never gifted something that precious to House Avalon – not even to compensate them for producing a Green-born. Still, the resemblance was uncanny. Too much so to be a coincidence.

Kassorith answered with a question of his own. ‘Have you heard of the World Tree?’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep