Four Split Personalities

Cole shook his head honestly. Even the most cunning thief wouldn’t choose to lie at this point, but his gaze was gradually becoming more eager. After all, such an obviously significant item could not possibly be something just anyone could casually produce.

"Of course you wouldn’t know~" Motan shrugged his shoulders: "To tell you plainly, this thing is called a Spirit Summoning Vase, its uses are varied, and it’s simple to operate. One of its functions I find quite useful is... for instance, to store a soul that hasn’t had the chance to dissipate, allowing it to one day bask again under that annoying sunlight."

Cole was quivering from the surge of joy and excitement. Of course, there might have been a bit of pain from his wound involved as well, but that was not important. What mattered most to him now was...

"I’m just a humble thief apprentice, but if you can help me..." Cole knelt in front of Motan, his voice low: "I can pay any price, even my own life!"

[Such familiar words, yet somehow different...]

Motan suddenly recalled Meddie’s final words. The situation before him was so eerily similar, except this time he didn’t have any tasks that would harm Cole. Moreover, if he used the Spirit Summoning Vase now, the soul of this girl named Rona would undoubtedly be preserved relatively intact, unlike the hopeless remnant of a soul that resided within Meddie’s ring.

So now, he didn’t mind giving this lovelorn human lad a little help.

"Remember your words." Motan’s voice suddenly turned cold. He pointed the Spirit Summoning Vase at Rona’s body, and said slowly, "I’m no philanthropist."

A hazy white light emerged from the corpse in Cole’s arms, then rose about half a meter. It hovered once around Cole before being drawn into the vase in Motan’s hand with a ’whoosh’ sound. After emitting a ghostly murmuring sound, it disappeared.

The system prompt sounded in Motan’s ear:

[A new soul has been drawn into the Spirit Summoning Vase. Its integrity is at 94%]

It seemed to have been a success...

"What did you do?" Cole also noticed the distinct change. The fleeting white light had stirred an inexplicable thrill in him, as if Rona had come back to life and was whispering something in his ear. But when he looked down, the lifeless corpse still lay quietly in his arms, showing no sign of life.

Motan gestured to the Spirit Summoning Vase in his hand and put it into his backpack, saying leisurely, "I preserved her soul for you, leaving a ray of possibility. Whether this possibility can become a reality depends on you... Don’t ask me too many questions, I’m under no obligation to tell you everything, nor do I possess the noble patience to endure..."

"Yes!" Cole responded quickly, then rose and gave Motan the deepest respect he knew. Although it was somewhat awkward for a thief to place a dagger against his heart and bow ninety degrees, this awkward knight’s salute nevertheless conveyed his feelings at the moment very well.

Motan nodded approvingly, found a relatively flat spot nearby to sit, and beckoned Cole to stop standing stupidly there. He then asked, "Now tell me, who are you, and why were you attacked in this place? You can elaborate a bit more."

"My name is Cole Shuren, and I am a student at Pudding Knight Academy." Cole immediately replied, then looked at the elf girl’s corpse in his arms, and continued hoarsely, "She was my classmate, Rona Moonlight, from the same year as me, a member of the Warm Sun Team like me, we..."

Motan interrupted him with a sigh, "Put her down first. The corpse in your arms now is nothing but an empty shell. If you wish, you can bury her here later."

Cole reluctantly laid Rona’s body aside, forced himself to calm down and continued to tell Motan the ins and outs of this accident...

Through Cole’s explanation, Motan finally learned what had happened, and from it, reaped an unexpected gain~

Every year, the Mist Month and Star Month were the examination periods for comprehensive testing at Pudding Knight Academy. These assessments encompassed written tests on corresponding subjects and team combat tests. And it was on their way back from completing a combat test that the Warm Sun Team was attacked.

Two Redback beasts, which would never appear in such a place, had targeted the Warm Sun Team and didn’t even leave them a chance to escape. The team tried every trick from noise distraction to leading the enemy away, but they were unable to shake off these two monsters and were driven from the wilderness to this forest...

Then, the Wind Mage apprentice, Rona, lost her life. The other three members, under Cole’s cover, were fleeing as fast as possible towards the Pato City where the academy was located. As for what happened next, Motan, who had been observing from the darkness for a while, basically already knew.

[Side Task Activated: Save the Warm Sun Team. Reward: 200 optional experience points]

[Hidden Task Activated: Revive Rona Moonlight. Reward: ???]