Chapter 50: Origin Treasure [ 1 ]

Neither of them answered.

Jet stood with one hand wrapped around the Vorpal Blade’s hilt, body angled so he could move in either direction without exposing his back.

Beside him, Frey’s twin curved swords remained drawn while five Vritra Coils floated around his shoulders like enormous spectral serpents waiting for permission to strike.

The newcomers stopped several meters away. There were seven of them in total, all equipped for extended travel, and none looked particularly bothered by the blood, severed trees, or gigantic headless Stonehide Blood Ape dominating the clearing.

That alone told Jet they weren’t inexperienced Walkers.

The man at the front immediately raised both hands, palms visible. He looked somewhere in his mid-thirties, with bronze skin, short dark hair threaded with premature silver near the temples, and a neatly trimmed beard following a hard jaw.

A faded scar crossed the bridge of his nose and disappeared beneath his left eye. His equipment was practical rather than flashy: a dark field coat over layered leather-and-metal protection, reinforced trousers, heavy boots, and a broad single-edged sword sheathed across his back. There was something relaxed about his posture, but not careless. His eyes had already measured Jet, Frey, their weapons, the Ape, and the harvested materials before his smile appeared.

"Easy. We don’t mean any harm," the man said. "My name is Cassian Rook. First Generation Awakener, though I suppose the face doesn’t advertise the mileage very well. The people behind me and I are part of an expedition Raid Team. We noticed the aftermath of your fight while moving through this section and came over because we have a proposition, nothing more."

Raid Team was the Beyond’s common term for temporary combat parties formed specifically for an expedition, hunt, escort, ruin exploration, or other operation outside a Citadel’s protection.

Unlike Guild membership, a Raid Team didn’t necessarily imply permanent loyalty. Independent Walkers could join one for a single objective, agree beforehand on command, risk, payment, and loot distribution, then separate once the operation ended.

Some teams lasted years. Others existed for three days and never saw one another again.

Jet glanced at Frey. One of the Vritra Coils loosened slightly, but neither of them relaxed completely. Jet drew his hand away from the Vorpal Blade without moving far from it. Frey lowered his swords until their tips pointed toward the bloodied ground, leaving all five coils manifested. The other Walkers seemed to understand the message. Nobody complained.

"What do you want?" Jet asked.

Cassian lowered his hands. "Help killing a group of monsters."

Frey’s eyes moved past him and counted the people behind him again. Seven stood here, and Cassian’s wording suggested there were more elsewhere.

Their equipment was better than what most Second Generation newcomers could afford, and several carried the quiet confidence of experienced combatants.

"What kind of monsters are too much for a Raid Team like yours to handle?" Frey asked. "And before we get carried away discussing heroism, what’s in it for us?"

Cassian gave an approving nod rather than taking offense. "It’s a pack. More than thirty Lesser Monsters from our last count, and they’re organized around two Greater-ranked leaders."

Jet’s expression hardened.

They hadn’t fought a Greater Monster yet. The Stonehide Blood Ape had been a Lesser Monster despite possessing enough raw strength to smash trees apart and crater the earth with its fists. Two Greater Monsters accompanied by more than thirty Lessers wasn’t an opportunity two 1-Star Walkers should approach casually.

Jet looked over the group once more. "If there are that many of you and you still backed away, what makes you think adding the two of us changes anything?"

"Because our Raid Team isn’t only the seven people standing here," Cassian replied. "Our leader and the rest are at camp. She’s a Second Generation Awakener and already a 3-Star. She can occupy the two Greater Monsters long enough for them to be killed, but that leaves the rest of us dealing with more than thirty Lessers while trying to keep the leaders isolated. We don’t need someone to defeat the Greater Monsters for us. We need enough capable fighters to stop the pack from collapsing on our formation."

His gaze shifted deliberately toward the enormous corpse behind Jet. "Considering what happened to that Stonehide Blood Ape, I think the two of you qualify."

Jet and Frey exchanged another look. This time the conversation happened almost entirely through expression. The request was dangerous, but Cassian’s explanation made tactical sense. Numbers mattered when thirty monsters could surround the people responsible for containing something stronger.

Jet returned his attention to Cassian. "My friend asked another question. What’s in it for us?"

Cassian smiled. "We found an Origin Treasure."

Jet’s eyes widened.

Beside him, Frey’s expression changed instantly.

For several seconds neither spoke. The name alone was enough. Origin Treasure.

Cassian noticed their reaction and continued, "A tree bearing fruit. It’s inside the pack’s territory, which is why we haven’t touched it. The fruit is mature, and our assessment equipment confirmed an extremely dense concentration of usable Mana. We don’t know the exact quality without harvesting one, but it isn’t something we’re willing to abandon. If you join the operation, you receive an agreed share of the harvest in addition to your portion of the Lesser Monster Cores and materials from whatever you personally contribute to killing."

Jet’s thoughts accelerated. They had come into the Outer Hunting Belt expecting Cores, materials, and combat experience. An Origin Treasure had never entered the calculation. Even Frey, who normally had something immediate to say, remained silent.

Jet finally nodded toward the trees behind them. "Give us a minute."

Cassian stepped back. "Take your time."

Jet and Frey moved several meters away, stopping beside the Blood Ape’s severed head where they could speak quietly without losing sight of the group. Frey kept the Coils active.

"I don’t trust them," Frey said.

"Neither do I."

"Good. I’d have been worried if a mysterious man walked out of the forest, said magical fruit, and you immediately followed him home."

Jet ignored the wording. "But if they wanted to ambush us, this is a stupid way to do it. Seven of them already approached while we were crouched over a corpse. They had the initiative and gave it away by announcing themselves."

"They could want us alive until the monsters are dead."

"That’s the bigger risk."

Frey looked toward Cassian’s group. "Or the fruit doesn’t exist, and their camp has twenty people waiting to rob anyone stupid enough to follow them."

"Possible. But look at their gear. They aren’t desperate beginners, and they approached us after seeing what we killed. Robbing two unknown combatants for beginner equipment and a day’s harvest would be unnecessary risk unless they’re complete idiots." Jet said.

Frey’s eyes narrowed. "People are frequently complete idiots."

"True. That’s why we don’t hand them our packs, don’t reveal our full abilities, don’t sleep without taking watches, and don’t let ourselves get surrounded at camp." Jet said whike shooting a quick glance at Cassian.

That earned a thoughtful nod. Jet continued weighing it. Refusing was safest in the immediate sense, but the Beyond would never become safe simply because they rejected every uncertain opportunity. Valuable resources existed in dangerous places. Cooperation with strangers was part of expedition life, especially when targets exceeded what a small party could handle. The sensible response wasn’t blind trust or blind suspicion. It was controlling as many risks as possible.

"We need terms before we go anywhere," Jet said. "Exact headcount, who their leader is, where the camp is relative to our route, how the Origin Treasure gets divided, and what happens with Cores. We keep our own equipment and harvested materials. If the story changes when we reach camp, we walk."

"And if they don’t let us walk?"

Jet glanced at the five spectral coils. "Then they made an expensive mistake."

Frey’s gold tooth appeared briefly. "Now we’re communicating."

They returned to the group. Frey didn’t sheath his swords yet. "Let’s say we’re interested. How exactly are we supposed to trust you? We don’t know you, your leader, your team, or whether this Origin Treasure exists.

Following armed strangers to a camp because they promised us valuable fruit is the kind of decision people describe after saying the victims should’ve known better."

Cassian actually laughed softly. "Fair. You shouldn’t trust us. Not yet." He reached slowly toward a pouch at his belt, waited until Jet saw the movement, then removed a rectangular identification plate and tossed it across.

Jet caught it. "That contains my registered Walker identity and Raid Team declaration. You can verify the local signature through your interface. Our expedition was logged at Zenith before departure, including our current leader and member roster. I’ll give you the camp coordinates now, not after you agree, so you can confirm they’re inside the mapped hunting territory. You keep your weapons, supplies, Cores, and sleeping arrangements under your control."

Jet checked the plate. The verification returned valid.

Cassian continued, "As for tomorrow, nobody moves until the terms are recorded between all participating Walkers. Loot shares, responsibilities, withdrawal conditions, everything. If you reach camp and dislike what you see, leave. If our leader changes the offer I just gave you, leave. If you want proof of the tree before committing to the attack, one of our scouts can take you to an observation point at first light. I’m asking you to cooperate, not surrender common sense."

That was considerably better than reassurance.

Jet handed the plate back and looked at Frey. Frey finally dismissed three of the five Coils, then gave a small nod.

"We’ll come," Jet said. "We verify everything before agreeing to the hunt."

"That’s all I’m asking." Cassian secured his identification plate and looked toward the darkening canopy. "Our camp is about forty minutes northeast. It’s getting late, and moving around after nightfall gains us nothing. Come back with us, meet everyone, eat, rest, and tomorrow morning we’ll show you exactly what we’re dealing with."

Jet retrieved his backpack from beside the Blood Ape while Frey finally sheathed his swords.

They checked the clearing once for forgotten equipment, secured their harvested materials, and followed Cassian’s Raid Team toward the trees.