When Ethan returned to the ship, he saw Angelina and Aphrael chatting happily. Seeing this, he felt relieved and joined them, subtly asking for more information about the knight. However, he didn't learn anything new, which left him somewhat disappointed.
Sensing Ethan's troubled expression, Aphrael asked, "Lord Ethan, are you worried about that knight?"
"A bit," Ethan admitted. "I believe he will come soon, perhaps even tonight. With his Gold Rank 7 strength, I'm concerned..."
"Do you need my help?" Aphrael offered.
"No," Ethan smiled. "Although he is powerful, knowing his strength gives me confidence to defeat him. My concern is preventing him from escaping, which is a headache."
Aphrael laughed softly. "Lord Ethan, you are quite interesting. Although I don't know your true strength, we elves can judge a person's strength by their aura. Comparing your auras, unless you're hiding your true strength—like being a Grand Swordmaster—I think you might not be a match for him. Yet, you're worried about him escaping, which surprises me. So, you are a Grand Swordmaster, right?"
"If I were a Grand Swordmaster, do you think I'd worry about him escaping?" Ethan retorted.
"That's true," Aphrael laughed awkwardly. "So, you must have a secret weapon, right?"
Ethan smiled. "You could say that. My Origin Force is special, allowing me to briefly fight above my rank. So, although I'm not as strong as him, I'm not afraid. But as I said, my ability to fight above my rank is brief. If I can't kill him or if he escapes within that time, I'll be in trouble."
"Your Origin Force attribute is impressive! Though it has obvious limitations, it allows you to challenge those above your rank," Aphrael commented.
"Yes! That's why I'm troubled. If he comes, what should I do?" Ethan was actually hoping for Aphrael's help but knew he couldn't offer anything in return.
"If—only if—you can severely injure that knight, I could use a magic arrow to prevent his escape. Since I'll be staying here, I don't want constant attacks either," Aphrael offered, despite her reluctance to get involved in human conflicts. She could help if it meant preventing disturbances to her stay.
Ethan was tempted but quickly dismissed the idea. He needed to kill the knight himself for the Origin Force gains. "Thank you for offering help, but I must handle this myself. I hope you won't intervene. However, if he brings comrades, I'd appreciate it if you could help defend the ship. I'll compensate you accordingly."
"No need. If he brings weak comrades, I'll handle them to protect my home. Also," Aphrael paused, thinking seriously, "if you're confident in defeating the knight, I might have a way to prevent his escape. But it's dangerous, and you must pay an equivalent price. Interested?"
"Of course!" Ethan was eager to hear any solution to prevent the knight from escaping.
Aphrael removed a bracelet from her wrist and held it up. "This bracelet is a magical artifact called the 'Duel Cage.' Once activated, it forcibly pulls someone into a small, circular magic barrier. The space inside is tiny, just slightly larger than this cabin. The barrier won't break unless one person dies."
Ethan was ecstatic. This artifact seemed tailor-made for him. "This is perfect for close combat! What do you want in exchange?"
Aphrael, seeing Ethan's excitement, said, "I want your hawk training method. Do you agree?"
Ethan's excitement faded. His second talent was too important to risk sharing with an outsider. After some thought, he replied, "Can we negotiate another exchange?"
"No," Aphrael firmly replied. "I only want your hawk training method. You should understand the value of this artifact for close combat. A magic swordsman once used it to trap me. Despite underestimating my strength, he still gave me a tough fight. It took another magical artifact from my teacher to kill him. Such a valuable artifact for enhancing close combat—exchanging it for your hawk training method is fair, especially since you're a close combatant."
Ethan knew the artifact's value and had to get it, but not now. "You misunderstand. I meant borrowing it. In return, I'll provide you with a year's supply of nuts."
Aphrael was speechless, almost shocked by the concept of borrowing. Humans inventing borrowing in trades was foreign to her.
Seeing her hesitation, Ethan pressed on, not giving her time to rethink. "You know that knight might destroy this ship. I must kill him to avoid losing our home and possibly our lives. Please lend me the artifact for everyone's benefit. You don't want to live outside in the cold, do you? I'm happy to exchange, but my training method was taught by my teacher, who forbade sharing without his consent. So, I need time to get his approval. For now, let's borrow the artifact. Once I get his consent, we can make the exchange. How about it?"
Ethan's reasoning covered all bases, urging Aphrael to lend the artifact and leaving room for future exchanges. This left Aphrael no room to hesitate. She nodded, "I'll lend it to you, but you must immediately write to get your teacher's consent and provide me with three years of nuts."
"Deal!"