While Julius examined the vein, Ren's mushrooms pulsed detecting something unusual. A different mana pattern emanated from a nearby crack at the edge of the bowl.
Ren descended the slope as far from the pure mana geyser as possible and approached cautiously, taking advantage of the prince being distracted with his inspection at the bowl's center.
The crack was narrow, barely visible in the penumbra, but there...
His heart skipped a beat. Two cores rested in the hollow. One still had the weaver's thread tied to it, his mantis core. And next to it, another core that hadn't been there before.
The mushrooms pulsed with excitement while Ren extended his hand toward the crack. If he could reach them quickly and hide them...
"What are you doing?"
Ren jumped, his hand freezing midway. Julius was right behind him, his eyes fixed on the cores in the crack.
"So this is it," the prince murmured, leaning to better examine the discovery. "You've found a way to generate eggs?"
Ren's initial panic mixed with resignation.
"Something like that," he responded carefully. "I have a bug egg..."
Ren's mushrooms pulsed nervously. With the prince's ability to detect lies, there was no point trying to deny it.
Julius's eyes momentarily gleamed while verifying the truth in those words. "I see. Experimenting with basic eggs to sell in the market, eh? Though they're not very popular... But with your family's situation I can understand a bit..."
The prince's assumption was convenient for Ren, but there was something more in his expression. As if he were connecting invisible dots.
Then, something seemed to occur to the prince. His expression changed subtly.
"You know, Ren," Julius spoke slowly, his tone changing too. "I wonder... were you the one who caused the incident with the hydra?"
The mushrooms in Ren's hair pulsed erratically while the boy tried to find a way to respond that wasn't a direct lie.
"Ah right," he said softly. "That it followed you by bad luck when you came doesn't imply you're the culprit I'm looking for... Would it be, who brought it here. or who took it up...?"
The prince noticed his hesitation.
"No, let me rephrase that," Julius raised a hand. "Did you bring the hydra here? For brooding a core or for some other reason?"
"No," Ren responded immediately, grateful to be able to tell the absolute truth in this.
The prince kept his eyes fixed on Ren for several seconds, studying every micro-expression, his Qilin illuminating the scene with its golden radiance.
"Interesting," he finally murmured. "That last response was completely true."
He approached the crack, observing the cores more carefully. "I wonder what other secrets you keep about this whole incident. Because I'm starting to suspect you know much more than you appear to."
Ren's mushrooms pulsed with concern.
"You know what's most fascinating?" Julius continued, his voice casual but his eyes sharp. "That a student with the supposedly 'worst beast' has managed not only to survive at these depths, but also experiment with cores and eggs. That requires knowledge not found in common books."
He turned to fully face Ren. "The question is: where does that knowledge come from? And what other secrets are you hiding?"
How much could he reveal without getting into more trouble?
"Take your cores," Julius smiled slightly. "If you don't want to share your specific method, you don't have to."
Relief flooded Ren while he carefully collected both cores from the crack. Upon closer examination, he noticed the second one also seemed to be from a hydra. It could be useful for something different if he applied his method... though he would need parts of the beast he wanted to get.
Julius had moved to another sector of the cavern, his eyes fixed on the ground.
"There are traces here," murmured the prince. "From the agent, probably." He turned to Ren. "What do you think? Should I follow the receding abyssal corruption trail, or these footprints?"
Ren considered the question while his mushrooms analyzed both patterns. "Not the corruption trail," he finally responded. "If I were the intruder, I'd think that's good bait."
'Besides,' he thought to himself, 'this second core must be related to the intruder. It wasn't here before so maybe he still has something to do with the hydra egg.'
"You're probably right," Julius nodded. "You should return for now."
"I agree," Ren responded, grateful for the suggestion.
The prince took out 3 more medicine vials and offered them to Ren with a wink. "For when you think of doing more interesting things."
Ren took the vials, hesitating a moment before making a decision. The prince had treated him well, it seemed his suspicions toward Ren were simple protocol. So he could return some kindness...
"Your highness... there's something that might be useful for the kingdom." The mushrooms in his hair pulsed while organizing his thoughts. "Deep killers don't brood at this depth, but..." he paused, making sure to explain correctly. "If you have a part of the monster, a carcass or any other part, you can put it surrounding the core, along with 10 days of the specific bug cultivation in this case, and..."
Ren proceeded to show him the correct mana circulation pattern in the core. It was a complex symbol that followed the reasoning of the creature's mana circulation in life.
"...You can revive the egg without needing its own species to brood it."
Julius observed him with surprise, clearly processing the implications. But the pattern's complexity was too ridiculous to be a coincidence... When could people simply happen upon such a discovery by chance... How...?
Suddenly, an amused smile crossed his face.
"Wolverine," he called, manifesting his massive beast. "I need you to shake yourself. And scratch, a lot."
The beast seemed confused for a moment, but obeyed. It began an intense session of scratching and shaking, spreading hair and mineral fragments across the ground.
"Are these useful to you?" Julius asked, pointing to the remains.
"I-I can at least sell them," Ren responded, surprised by the gesture. "Thank you."
"Good," the prince smiled. "Wolverine, could you take our friend up?"
Before Ren could protest, Julius had lifted him and placed him on the beast's back. The mushrooms in his hair barely had time to pulse with surprise before the wolverine moved.
A minute later, Ren blinked under the light at the cave entrance, still processing what had just happened.