28 Integration
Aaron was just as puzzled as the former Chief. He had followed the man's instructions to the T, but the moment he had concentrated on the feeling of the Cores pressing into his skin, he had felt something in his mind connecting to them in an instant.
That was when he felt that rough feeling between his knuckles disappear, as the Cores had gone into his skin followed by a momentary feeling of pain.
A little bit of blood was visible on the velvet pouch, as small holes had had to appear when his body had pulled in the Cores.
After that, he could feel them, hiding underneath his skin, and he knew, for sure, that he could control them just as easily as he controlled his fingers to move.
Also, just as the former Chief had said, two glowing balls had appeared in his mind, which seemed…empty.
Yet, now, even as he saw the former Chief scream that and take deep breaths to gather his bearings, he was focusing on the images of those globes in his mind.
They were slowly…filling up with some sort of substance that looked like a gas, and, just like the globes, the substance was also glowing, giving off light in the empty cavern that was his mind and allowing him to gaze on them in his inner vision.
He couldn't see where that gas was coming from, but watching it billow around the globe was mesmerizing.
As for the process of letting out the Cores, again, it had felt like an activity that was as simple as breathing. All he had had to do was…push them, outward, and they had appeared between his knuckles, pressing against his skin on the sides and causing a slightly uncomfortable sensation to reach his mind.
It looked like the former Chief had finally calmed down, as Aaron had just heard him say something.
Even though his eyes had been open, Aaron had been completely focusing on the balls, so he had to look at Ernst with a puzzled expression and wait for the man to repeat what he had just said.
Gesturing with his hands wildly, the Chief repeated himself with a loud tone.
"The A.A? What does it say?!"
"Er… Nothing," Aaron replied honestly, as the female voice really had said nothing in his mind since that moment when he had asked it to tell him what it could do.
"Ask it your status, dammit!", the former Chief screamed again, as if this were something so simple and obvious that Aaron should have known it.
Still not understanding why the Chief was so agitated, Aaron chose to play along, as this man really had helped him a lot till now.
"A.A, show me my status."
"Name: Aaron
Age: 18 Years, One Month
Body Potential: C+
Location of Registration: Skystead Hamlet
Credit Balance: 50"
"it says… That my body potential is C+."
As soon as Aaron said this, he didn't know what he had expected, but he could really never have imagined that the former Chief would have this sort of reaction.
After a pause during which delight instantly spread across Ernst's face, he clapped his hands and threw them in the air before dancing a little, merry jig around the small room.
It was quite amusing to watch, so although Aaron was even more puzzled than before, he waited for the man to finish.
Of course, such an intense display of happiness was something that Aaron was seeing for the first time, too, so it got imprinted in his memory while he even smiled unconsciously in response.
After a few seconds, Ernst even walked forward to catch his hands, saying, "Dance with me, boy! Come on! If this isn't an occasion to celebrate, then I don't know what is!"
Although Ernst said this, Aaron was more interested to find out the reason behind this man's revelry.
So, he shook his head and said, "What does C+ Body Potential mean?"
Realizing that he should reprise the role of an elder and explain what the kid wanted to know, Ernst put aside his intense joy for now and put both his hands on Aaron's shoulders before saying, "C+ Body Potential. A grade that only the sons and daughters of top grade families in towns and cities are born with. This means that you really will tread far on the Path to the Stars! Us Hamletfolk and those from villages are usually born with D to E grade potential, which means that we have to struggle to even reach the second or third level of power without external assistance. But you… You'll have such a smooth path! I wasn't wrong to bet on you! Yes! We'll have a feast tonight, and you are the chief guest! The Gods have blessed my Hamlet with good fortune! I need to go tell everyone!"
The words spilled out of Ernst's mouth one by one, which indicated, again, just how excited he was.
Saying so, he immediately made a beeline for the door, but right before he exited, he turned around and said, "One word of caution, kid. I'll not tell anyone what your exact Body Potential is, as that might bring you a lot of harm. There are some organizations which seek to kidnap innocent kids like you and brainwash them so that they can use you to their purposes. That is a fate that should never befall anyone, but even the World Government can sometimes be helpless. It is better to be safe than sorry. All that the Hamletfolk will know is that you have high Body Potential, and that it is really a cause for celebration. You, too, should keep this a secret, and never tell anyone that you don't trust about it. Got it?"
Hearing Ernst say this with a tone of extreme seriousness the likes of which he hadn't seen before, Aaron furrowed his eyebrows and nodded.
So, these kinds of dangers existed in this world, too?
When he thought about it, he realized that he shouldn't be too surprised, as there were extremes in every species. Hence, it wasn't remarkable that it was the same in humans.
One thing had become clear: in this world, just like in the forest, it was best if he acted cautiously, especially in matters like these which concerned his life and future. He should definitely not state his Body Potential to anyone else.
On that thought, Aaron decided to hear it again, as it really was a cause for joy that he had talent on this Path, which would help him to tread it faster. He would not have been discouraged even if he had the bottom-most Body Potential, as his determination to climb it and reach the top wasn't something that could be dissuaded by anything.
"AA, show me my status again."
As soon as he said this, A.A repeated his status, but as he heard it, he saw that something was wrong.
Just to be sure, he asked it to repeat it again.
"Name: Aaron
Age: 18 Years, One Month
Body Potential: A+
Location of Registration: Skystead Hamlet
Credit Balance: 50"
Why was it saying that it was A+, when it had been C+ before?
As he asked the A.A this, the answer he got made him stare into space in a daze.
"Body Potential has been updated based on data collected subsequently. The measurement of 'C+' before was incorrect."
