The moonlight cast a soft glow over Avalon's quiet streets, the only sound being the gentle rustling of leaves in the breeze. It was the kind of peaceful night that made Leonard feel as though the world was slowing down around him. He had just finished his work for the day, a modest but rewarding routine that left him satisfied with the simplicity of life. The lantern in his hand flickered slightly as he walked home, its warm light casting long shadows on the cobblestone streets.
It was a serene moment, one that should have been uneventful.
But the silence was shattered as a figure darted from the shadows, appearing suddenly in front of him. Leonard stopped short, heart racing in surprise. The figure was cloaked in dark rags, the worn edges of their clothing blending into the night. Their face was obscured by the hood, but their eyes—wild with fear—met Leonard's with a frantic intensity.
Without a word, the thief shoved something into Leonard's hand. The item was wrapped in cloth, its shape unfamiliar and strangely heavy, yet it felt oddly cold to the touch, as though it held a power all its own. The thief didn't say a word. They didn't need to. The urgency in their eyes spoke louder than any words could.
Leonard barely had time to react before the figure vanished, disappearing into the darkness of the alley with a swift, fluid movement. The suddenness of it all left him standing there, bewildered, with only the strange wrapped object in his hand. He stared at it for a moment, unable to comprehend what had just occurred.
He didn't have long to think. The unmistakable sound of footsteps echoed in the distance. Heavy boots. The soldiers from Narita Kingdom were closing in, their armor rattling with each hurried step. The thief had been running from them, but the encounter had left Leonard with nothing more than confusion—and a strange object that he couldn't bring himself to discard.
Without thinking, he slipped the wrapped item into his satchel and continued walking, trying to act casual. As the soldiers approached, they slowed down and eyed him suspiciously, their hands resting on the hilts of their swords.
"You there," one of them called, his voice gruff and commanding. "What are you holding? A thief just passed through here. Did you see anything?"
Leonard looked at the soldier, his mind racing. He had no idea what just happened or what he had been handed. But he wasn't going to risk getting caught up in whatever mess this was. "The situation looks to me like that the thief had stolen something from capital, no! he stole it on the roadway which is between two capital of Narita, two capital city are quite far after all, but why are there fewer knights pursuing him, the item must be just a rabbish which not even worth a battalion, I see, I don't want to get caught up in whatever,..." Leonard analysts.
"I don't know, I didn't see anyone" Leonard replied, his voice steady despite the unease stirring in his chest.
The soldier squinted at him, his expression unreadable. After a moment, he nodded curtly. "Stay out of trouble, then," he muttered before signaling to his companions, and they continued their search down the street.
Leonard exhaled slowly, his heartbeat still thumping in his ears. He continued on his way home, not once looking back, the wrapped object still heavy in his pocket. He didn't know what it was, or why it had been pressed into his hand. But something about the whole encounter felt… important.
For now, though, it remained just another mystery in the quiet, unsuspecting life of Leonard, the alchemist in Avalon.
When Leonard reach his destination, his home, he throw the wrapped things on to the desk where his mechanism are placed and doing the thing as his routine.
"Fine, tonight, I will work on that project,"Leonard thrill. Siting on his desk, taking a tube shape thing which was made from Bamboo and refined step by step. And then he took a paper roll out of the cube. He pin the paper roll onto his desk and started drawing with his slim finger, he placed pencil according to their blackness and hardness , so once he put his slim finger on pencil, he already know which pencil is the one he need to use, after a long period of drawing, Leonard stretch his hand, Detailed Section of moisturizer is captivating even to people who know nothing about it. Leonard smile with excitement, and them "with this moisturizer, I can cure people with lung problem, I need only to put my Medicinal potion into this flush, and then pull the lever which is connected to source box" [Source box : Wet Battery type according to Leonard which he named source box]
Then, Leonard laid onto his bed, feeling exhausted after a full time concentration of work. And then He totally forget about the thing the thief shoved into his hand.
Three days had passed since the strange encounter in the alley. Life had returned to its normal rhythm in Avalon, the days blending together in a comfortable monotony. Leonard had resumed his usual routines, his alchemical potions flowing smoothly, and his herb-based remedies selling well to the local merchants and adventurers.
The dagger, wrapped carefully in cloth, had remained tucked away in his workshop, forgotten in the hustle and bustle of his everyday life. Leonard had no reason to think much about it. It was an odd, mysterious thing, but it wasn't as though he had any time to dwell on the strange happenings of that night.
That night, however, was different. The soft click of the workshop door echoed through the quiet room as Leonard stepped inside, the lantern in his hand casting shadows against the stone walls. The faint scent of herbs mixed with the lingering smell of alchemical mixtures. It was familiar and comforting.
He set the lantern down on the counter, his eyes scanning the cluttered workbench. He had a small stack of ingredients to prepare for a new batch of healing salves and potions. The usual tasks—nothing out of the ordinary.
His gaze fell on the wrapped object—the dagger—resting in the corner, partially obscured by some scattered vials and parchment. It seemed to call to him, as though it had a presence of its own, silent but insistent.
Leonard walked over, curiosity tugging at him. Without fully thinking, he reached for the cloth, unraveling it slowly. The cold metal of the dagger felt heavier in his hand than it had before. He turned it over, examining the intricate markings on the hilt—symbols he didn't recognize. He'd never taken the time to study it, but tonight, it seemed important, as though something were shifting.
He sighed, placing it carefully on the counter. The flickering lantern light cast shadows over its surface, and for a moment, Leonard simply stood there, his fingers brushing lightly against the blade. A careless motion—a slip of his hand—and suddenly, he felt a sharp sting on his index finger.
The cut was small, but it stung deeply. Blood welled up around the tiny wound as Leonard recoiled in surprise. He hadn't meant to cut himself. But there was no time to think further. The pain seemed to dissipate almost immediately, replaced by something else—a strange, overwhelming sensation that swept over him in an instant. "No, I am so careless, I got cut by a metal, even though it is not in a decaying position, I need to treat my wound before my chin start acting up, if I got Tetanus, there is no healing to be done." Leonard murmur to himself, turning toward his shelf where a lot of vials are hanging in wooden frame, and he about to took out one for curing Tetanus.
It was as though his mind suddenly expanded, as though he could see the entire room, every minute detail, with perfect clarity. His gaze flicked across the workshop, and for the briefest of moments, he saw beyond the physical—beyond the surfaces of things. His eyes landed on the pile of ingredients, and he knew exactly which were fresh, which had been used most recently. He could even sense the faint, almost imperceptible life force of the dried herbs.
He blinked, disoriented, and looked down at his own hands. His finger still throbbed, but the sensation of clarity lingered, sharpening his senses in a way he couldn't explain. He felt… aware. Acutely aware.
Turning his gaze to the workbench, he stared at the scattered papers. Words and symbols leaped out at him, as if the parchment itself were alive, each letter standing out with a distinct vibrancy, each equation clear as day.
Without meaning to, Leonard's eyes drifted over the dagger once more. The symbols on the blade seemed to shimmer faintly, reacting to his gaze, as though the weapon itself had awakened in response to his touch.
A ripple of unease ran through him. He didn't understand what had just happened. He didn't understand this feeling. But there was no denying it—the dagger, somehow, had done this to him.
He took a step back, instinctively clutching his injured finger. The strange sensation seemed to fade for a moment, but the lingering awareness didn't. It remained, like a second sense, always there, humming beneath the surface.
Was this the dagger's power? What had he just unlocked? And why had it happened now, with such an insignificant injury?
He shook his head, attempting to focus. There were no answers—just questions, swirling in his mind.
As the night wore on, Leonard couldn't shake the feeling that something had changed, deep within him. Something that would alter the course of his life forever.
But for now, there was only silence. And the strange hum of awareness that lingered in the quiet workshop, waiting to be understood.
After he treat the wound with potion and bandages, he laid on the couch and started thinking, " So, the dagger can heighten one's senses, no, this feel more like my intuition is heightened, I see why the king Clovis III Narita wanted it for himself. That shitty father of mine, no, I can't called him that, he is a king and also my father, this explained how a little bit of soilder knight was sent out that night to capture the thief, that mean, this dagger is a confidential information, likely the king and some other corporal of two or three only know about this. I see."