Another day went by and when it was finally the fifth day, a figure wearing a leopard mask walked casually down a narrow street.
A long coat covered his body and his face was completely hidden.
And just as planned… Garret and his associates spotted him.
"THERE!"
The group immediately rushed forward.
"HEY!"
The masked figure paused, slowly turning his head.
Garret approached quickly.
"We need to talk."
The masked man tilted his head slightly.
"My time is expensive. Pay up if you wish for me to expend even a second of it..."
The masked man proceeded to unreluctantly resume his journey forward.
Garret gritted his teeth and yelled.
"How much?"
The masked figure extended two fingers.
"Two hundred credits."
Garret's eyes widened.
"For a conversation?"
The masked man shrugged.
"Every second of my time is precious."
Garret exchanged looks with the others. Two hundred credits was a lot of money in the slums but if this information was real, it would be worth far more.
Garret reached into his pocket and handed over the payment.
The masked man accepted it calmly before gesturing toward the warehouse.
"Let's talk somewhere quiet."
---
Minutes later, the masked man stepped inside the warehouse while Garret and his associates followed closely behind.
The moment the door closed, Garret spoke.
"We heard you have information."
The masked figure slowly removed his gloves.
"What kind of information?"
Garret stepped forward.
"We want to know how to awaken as a Rare-Type Ascender."
The masked man remained silent for several seconds before responding calmly.
"…That information is extremely valuable."
Garret frowned.
"Name your price."
The masked man tilted his head slightly...
Then said quietly:
"That…"
"…will cost you."
Garret and his associates stood across from the mysterious man wearing the leopard mask with a look of suspicion in their eyes.
Garret's gaze hardened.
"How do we know you're not playing us?"
A murmur spread among the others as Rook leaned against a crate with narrowed eyes.
"Yeah. For all we know, you're some scam artist wearing a mask."
Another one added.
"Yeah we ain't ever heard of you before. Not until recently."
Garret stepped forward slightly.
"You want us to just take your word for it?"
The masked man remained quiet for a moment before chuckling softly.
"You're not the first people to ask that question."
His gloved hand moved casually as he leaned against a nearby pillar.
"If I were a scam artist," he continued, "I wouldn't still be alive in the slums."
Garret frowned.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
The masked man slowly raised a finger.
"Let me ask you something."
His voice lowered slightly.
"When you search for Crimson Root Crystals in the wilderness… where do you look first?"
The group blinked while Rook frowned.
"…What?"
The masked man tilted his head.
"The crystals usually form in areas with heavy mineral runoff."
Garret said nothing while the masked man continued speaking.
"But most scavengers waste their time searching the surface."
He tapped his finger against the pillar.
"The real deposits form beneath collapsed shale beds near acidic streams. Especially in areas where mutated burrowers have hollowed out tunnels."
Silence filled the warehouse as Garret's expression slowly changed.
Because what this masked man said was true.
The masked man continued casually.
"And if you're looking for Aether Bloom Moss, you don't search near sunlight."
He waved his hand slightly.
"It grows in shaded canyon walls where the temperature remains stable. Usually near mutated insect nests."
Rook straightened slightly.
"How do you know that?"
The masked man shrugged.
"Because I've walked through more wilderness zones than any of you."
He turned slightly.
"And let's not even get started on Veinstone clusters."
The group exchanged uneasy looks because the things he was saying were extremely specific.
Not the kind of knowledge ordinary scavengers possessed.
In fact, it reminded them of someone...
The kid who had always been ridiculously smart when it came to wilderness information.
He had helped them locate multiple rare resources before... only that he was probably dead now... eaten by the mutated beasts in the wilderness.
But this masked man… sounded just as knowledgeable.
The masked man sighed lightly.
"I've helped many folks locate Ascension minerals."
He folded his arms.
"You think you're the first people to seek my information?"
Garret's suspicion began to crack.
The masked man clearly knew what he was talking about.
Far too much to be some random liar.
Garret exhaled slowly.
"…Alright."
He stepped forward.
"How much?"
The masked man raised one finger.
"One thousand credits."
The room exploded immediately.
"WHAT?!"
"You're insane!"
"That's robbery!"
Even Garret's eyes widened.
"Are you serious?"
The masked man shrugged.
"You asked for the secret to awakening as a Rare-Type Ascender."
He leaned forward slightly.
"Did you think it would be cheap?"
Garret grinned his teeth together.
One thousand credits was an enormous amount of money in the slums.
Most people didn't even see that much in an entire year.
However, if the information was real…
If it truly allowed someone to awaken as a Rare-Type Ascender, then it was priceless.
Garret looked at the others.
"We pool everything."
They all hesitated but eventually started digging through their pockets...
Hidden stashes... Emergency savings...
Some even left briefly to borrow money from nearby contacts.
Nearly an hour passed before Garret finally placed a thick stack of credits on a nearby crate.
"One thousand."
The masked man counted the stack calmly and with a satisfied "hnm" he slipped the money into his coat.
Inside the mask, Will Ravencliff was sweating...
His heart was pounding so hard he was afraid they might hear it.
One thousand credits…
He had never seen that much money in his entire life... but to the best of his abilities, he kept his voice calm.
"Good."
Garret stepped closer.
"So what's the method?"
The masked man spoke calmly.
"In the eastern wilderness, there is a mountain ridge."
He traced a shape in the air.
"One side of the mountain has a deep dent in its base. So deep that it almost resembles a cave."
Rook frowned.
"I think I know that place."
The masked man nodded.
"That location lies near the edge of the Yellow Zone."
The Yellow Zone was dangerous but not the worst wilderness area…
But far from safe regardless.
Mutated beasts often roamed those regions.
The masked man continued.
"At the base of that dent… there are clusters of identical plants."
Garret frowned.
"What kind of plant?"
"A thin vine plant with pale silver leaves."
He paused.
"The problem is… there are dozens of them."
Garret crossed his arms.
"So how do we find the right one?"
The masked man leaned forward slightly.
"You bring the Awakening Trio minerals with you."
Garret blinked.
"What?"
The masked man continued calmly.
"When the trio minerals come near the correct plant… they will react."
"How?"
"They will resonate with the plant."
He tapped the pillar again.
"That plant absorbs a certain type of energy... it glows in the presence of the minerals."
Garret's eyes widened slightly.
"And when the reaction happens?"
The masked man smiled faintly beneath the mask.
"You perform the awakening there."
The group erupted with excitement.
"That's insane!"
"That means the plant boosts the awakening!"
Garret's girlfriend Lysa suddenly jumped forward excitedly.
She grabbed Garret's face and kissed him right on the lips.
"We're going to do it!"
Garret laughed loudly.
"We're really going to do it!"
Inside the mask, Will nearly collapsed from nervousness.
'This is insane! They're actually believing it.'
His hands were damp with sweat inside his gloves but none of them noticed.
After all, the mysterious leopard-masked man looked completely calm... the mask hid everything that would have seemed suspicious.
Finally, Will turned toward the exit.
"Our transaction is complete."
But just as he reached the door, Garret spoke.
"Wait."
Will froze and slowly turned back around to see that Garret's expression had changed.
"I trust that only we get this information… right?"
The others slowly began moving, forming a loose semicircle around him and blocking the exit.
Will's heart nearly stopped.
'They're going to kill me.'
He seemed to have initially forgotten that this was the slums... People killed over far less than valuable secrets.
The Stronghold enforcers rarely cared about crimes down here... and even if they did, they'd never arrive in time.
Garret stepped closer.
"We wouldn't want any… competition."