🔥 Let's dive into Day 2 — Aurel's first official dungeon dive as a "G– Rank" warrior. But of course… he's anything but ordinary.
---
⚔️ Scene: "Welcome to the Bottom"
Location: Outer Edge of Dungeon Sector 9 – Beginner Ruins: Fangwood Hollow
Difficulty: Official Rank – G–
Real Danger Level: C– to B+ (Due to
The morning sun was soft, but the dungeon's breath was not.
Aurel stood before the crumbling gate of Fangwood Hollow — a beginner dungeon used for testing rookies, punishments, or suicidally optimistic adventurers.
The guild had laughed when he signed up solo.
> "No party? No healer? No magic backup?"
"You sure you're not looking for the herbal market, rookie?"
Aurel (flatly):
> "I just want the quiet spot."
---
⚙️ System.ZERO: [Dungeon Analysis – Live Feed]
> Dungeon Detected: [Fangwood Hollow – Outer Branch]
> Tier: 0.8 (Visible) / Hidden: 1.6
> Environmental Danger: Low
> Mutation Risk: 41%
> Entry Fee: Waived (First Clearance)
> Reward: 11 Silver, 3 Guild Coins, 1 Random Drop
> Threat Tier: Feral to Arcane
> Species Detected:
- Bloodfang Rats (Tier 0)
- Web-Bitten Foxes (Tier 1)
- ??? [Corrupted Root Guardian – Mutation Source]
> Survival Odds (Typical G–): 19%
> Survival Odds (Aurel): 99%
---
🧍♂️ Aurel: Equipment & Setup
Primary Weapon: Nullfang (hidden under cloak)
Off-hand: Grimroot (sheathed, poison-wrapped)
Tools: Modern survival wire, home-made flash flare, AI-enhanced map
Disguise: Worn boots, cloak with fake patch tears, deliberate dust smears
He didn't look ready. That was the idea.
---
As he stepped inside, System.ZERO pinged:
> [New Quest Path Activated: Silent Anomaly Route]
> Curiosity Multiplier: x3 (Due to Rank Gap)
> CP Bonus if Cleared Undetected: +50%
---
🎮 First Encounter: [Bloodfang Rat – Tier 0 – Group of 7]
They squealed. Fast. Savage.
Any normal rookie would panic.
Aurel didn't blink.
He flicked a bone shard from his sleeve — laced with fox gland extract — and stepped back.
The rats turned on each other, frenzied by the scent.
He waited 13 seconds.
Only one remained.
> Slice.
Dead.
---
⚙️ System.ZERO Update:
> Enemy Analyzed: [Bloodfang Rat]
> MP Gained: +3
> Curiosity Points: +7
> Traits Absorbed: [Feral Agility Lv.1]
> Passive Unlocked: [Low Light Reflex]
> Hidden Evolution Tracker Progress: 14%
---
🧠 Aurel's Thoughts (internally cold):
> Pathetic. But efficient.
Let's see how deep the corruption runs.
---
🎯 Objective:
Clear dungeon solo
Investigate mutation source
Mask all skill traces
Maintain "G– Rank" appearance
Bonus Goal: Collect loot for Rei (something shiny, naturally)
---
Would you like:
1. A surprise mutation boss at the core of this beginner dungeon?
2. A guild member secretly watching him, suspicious?
3. A special drop item from the corrupted guardian he can give Rei?
Let's dig in.
This G-rank just brought a Tier ? soul into a training dungeon.
They're not ready for what he doesn't show.
💀 Absolutely. Let's hard-code that terrifying power gap between G– Rank Aurel (visible) and the true S-Rank threats that exist in dungeons and forbidden worlds — where most adventurers don't survive long enough to scream.
---
⚙️ SYSTEM.ZERO | Combat Threat Protocol v1.6a
> Feature Added: ☠️ Danger Level Analysis + ⚖️ Rank Gap Simulation
Status: [ACTIVE | Locked to Aurel Only]
Visual Style: Glitched holographs, static distortion, blood-red hazard bars
---
📉 Power Gap Breakdown – Aurel vs S-Rank Entity
> Current Combat Rank:
📤 Displayed: G–
🩸 Hidden TRUE: C+ (Rapidly evolving)
> Threat Detected:
🌌 Twilight Devourer (Divine Remnant)
Tier: 4 — Divine
Combat Rank: S+
Predator Class: Reality-Warping
---
☠️ SYSTEM WARNING: COMBAT DIFFERENCE
> Average Guild Adventurer at G– Rank:
- Survival Time vs S-Rank: 0.6 Seconds
- Damage Output Effectiveness: <0.01%
- Perception Sync: Failed
- Threat Avoidance: None
> Aurel Thornheart (G– Rank - Glitched):
- Perception: Sync Capable
- Skill Theft: POSSIBLE [1.5% Trigger Rate]
- Damage Output: Only Lethal via Exploits/Curses
- Survival Window: 8–12 seconds (if undetected)
- Danger Rating: 🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥 (MAX)
> Conclusion: If discovered — **you are an insect.**
You will be erased. Slowly.
---
🩸 System.ZERO Additional Commentary:
> "This isn't power scaling. This is suicide curiosity."
> "You're not supposed to be here — which is exactly why we must stay."
> "Do NOT make eye contact with gods. They remember everything."
---
🧠 Aurel's Internal Monologue:
> "This isn't about winning. This is about seeing what no one else ever will…"
"…and stealing the secret before I'm ash."
---
Would you like:
The system to create simulated kill probability HUDs for every enemy?
A skill that lets Aurel predict exactly how he'll die if he makes the wrong move?
Or let his presence in an S-rank zone alert something ancient — but instead of killing him, it marks him... curious?
You've just rewritten the laws of threat assessment.
And the S-tier monsters now smell something weird in the wind...
Curiosity.
😈 Buckle in.
You're alone in a pocket dimension, surrounded by dead gods, time-warped stone, and the memory of screams embedded in the sky.
You weren't supposed to be here.
And now something knows you're here.
---
🌌 Scene: "Curiosity Bites Back"
Location: Grave of the Forgotten Lords – Twilight Corridor
Threat Detected: 🟥 Unregistered Entity
Threat Tier: Unknown
Danger Rank: S+ (System Glitch Warning)
---
> Aurel turned the corner of the crumbled black obelisk.
The air grew colder… not in temperature, but meaning.
Like silence began to judge him.
And then—
A voice, not heard, but etched into the stone around him:
> "────You are not of this era."
"You do not belong here."
The shadows bled into form.
Out stepped a creature stitched from pure anomaly — like reality had tried to erase it, failed, and gave up.
---
☠️ System.ZERO: LIVE FEED
> ❗ HOSTILE DETECTED ❗
> Name: [NULLBEAST: SANITY EATER]
> Tier: ??? (System Override Detected)
> Class: Conceptual Predator
> Type: Unknown
> Danger Level: S+
> Status: Awake — Hungry
> Analysis Failed: Name causes memory distortion
> Distance: 24 meters
> Probability of survival if detected: 0.7%
> Aurel Rank (G–):
> Projected as ANT-LIKE EXISTENCE
> Recommended Action: DO 👏 NOT 👏 BREATHE
---
🧠 Aurel (narrowed eyes):
> "...Good. Let's see what makes you real."
But even System.ZERO glitched:
> ERROR: Visual Lock Interrupted
> ERROR: Fear Leak Detected
> ERROR: Autonomic Override Engaged
---
The creature moved like smoke—
No, like a thought that wanted to kill you.
Its many eyes didn't blink.
They blinked you.
---
⚠️ Emergency Trigger: SYSTEM CURIOSITY SURGE
> Activation: Adaptive Theft Attempt – Passive Only
Target: [NULLBEAST – Sanity Eater]
Risk: Absolute
> Passive Trait Attempted: [Conceptual Cloak]
> ...
> SUCCESS.
> Limited Duration: 45 Seconds
> Passive Acquired: Reality Presence Dampening
> Aurel's body is now partially immune to visual detection.
> You are a ghost… for now.
---
Aurel dropped low, not hiding — calculating.
He watched it pass.
Watched it sniff the world, like it was bored of gods, and looking for something new to eat.
And it whispered again:
> "Not prey. Not yet.
But one day… you'll be bright enough to taste."
And then — it was gone.
Not walked away.
Erased.
---
System.ZERO Update:
> Sanity Eater Logged
> Danger: Cosmic-Scale
> Passive Sampled: [Conceptual Cloak]
> CP Earned: +1,000
> Curiosity Threshold: 72%
> Next Evolution Unlocked: PENDING...
> Suggestion: LEAVE.
> Before curiosity becomes **your cause of death.**
---
Aurel (low voice, smiling slightly):
> "So that's what fear looks like when it's bored."
---
Would you like this encounter to:
Leave Aurel marked by the creature (a cursed blessing)?
Become a trigger for unlocking his next class trait?
Or lead to the discovery of a divine corpse, holding a weapon that predates systems?
You've poked the void.
And it winked.
💀🔥 You just unlocked something forbidden even by forbidden standards.
Let's imprint the Void Infinity Bloodline into Aurel — a bloodline not inherited… but earned through sheer, reckless, divine-level curiosity. Not even born of gods — but predating them.
---
🩸 BLOODLINE AWAKENED: VOID INFINITY
> "The bloodline that cannot be traced… because it traces you."
Status: Unique | Glitched | Unranked | Divine-Forbidden
Type: Existential | Adaptive | Anti-Systemic
---
⚙️ System.ZERO – Bloodline Sync Detected
> Source Trigger: Conceptual Entity Contact [NULLBEAST: SANITY EATER]
> Curiosity Threshold: 72% — Breach-Qualified
> Void Signature Interference Detected
> Bloodline Forming…
> 🧬 Imprinting New Core: [Void Infinity]
---
🌌 VOID INFINITY – Key Traits:
Trait Description
🕳️ Voidborn Presence You cannot be truly sensed. Any attempt to track, scan, or divine your location returns false null. Gods, systems, seers — they see a hole where you should be.
🌀 Infinite Assimilation Any ability, weapon trait, or bloodline you observe may be slowly assimilated into your own genome over time. Efficiency scales with interest, not effort.
🧠 Singularity Will Immune to forced contracts, charms, psychic control, or oaths. You are a sealed world. A system within a system. Your mind has no backdoor.
🩸 Void Echo Evolution Upon near-death or high-threat events, you auto-evolve a counter-skill or adaptation on the spot. (Cooldown: 3 major encounters.)
⚠️ Anomaly Branding The world's natural systems cannot categorize you. All automated responses (defense golems, barriers, locks) either ignore or malfunction near you. This creates untraceable access to sealed domains.
☠️ Predation Imprint If a being of high tier is truly curious about you (instead of hostile)… you may absorb a passive from it without combat. Curiosity for curiosity.
---
🧬 SYSTEM.ZERO Commentary:
> Bloodline Registered: [VOID INFINITY]
> Source: [Unknown — Pre-God Era Signature]
> Rank: ❓Out of Bounds
> Mutation Potential: ENDLESS
> Warning: Your presence now destabilizes magical logic in a 3-meter radius.
> Divine systems may glitch.
> Time may ignore you.
> Curious entities may… whisper.
---
🧠 Aurel's Thought (expression unreadable):
> "I didn't inherit power.
I opened the wrong door… and it begged me to stay."
---
📈 Stat Bonus (Hidden Boost):
+2 Evolution Nodes unlocked
CP Multiplier vs Divine/Anomalous Creatures: ×4
New Skill Path: [Infinity Vein Tree] now accessible
Void DNA Signature: Active. Cannot be copied.
---
Would you like this bloodline to:
1. Grow with each major anomaly faced (S-tier, gods, glitched ruins)?
2. Be permanently hidden, only known to Aurel and System.ZERO?
3. Occasionally whisper messages from the Void during battle or silence?
You didn't just gain power.
You became a glitch in the destiny engine.
Welcome to the infinite.
🕳️ Perfect. Let's drop Aurel into a heart-pounding, brain-melting escape scene—right after awakening the Void Infinity Bloodline and encountering the S+ Rank Conceptual Predator in the forgotten realm.
He's not just overpowered.
He's out of place.
And the realm itself is rejecting him like a virus.
---
⚠️ Scene: "Run, Glitch, Run"
Location: Grave of the Forgotten Lords — Reality Seam Collapse
Status: Void Bloodline Partially Activated
Threat Level: UNREAL
Timer: Exit Collapse in 3 Minutes
---
System.ZERO pulsed warnings directly into his brain, his skull aching like a tuning fork slammed against broken glass.
⚙️ SYSTEM.ZERO – EMERGENCY EXIT PROTOCOL
> Reality Seam Destabilizing
> World Integrity: 19%
> Countdown: 02:59
> Threat Density: Rising (Multiple S-Rank Echoes)
> Exit Path: [Bloodlocked Sigil Gate — 760m NE]
> Gate Cost: 1 High-Tier Kill / 3 Essence Vials / Divine Drop
> YOU HAVE NEITHER.
> Suggestion: Cheat. Again.
---
The ground beneath Aurel's boots cracked like glass, not stone.
Shadows from dead gods moved like film in reverse, their corpses breathing.
He sprinted.
🎵 Sound: A thousand whispers chasing one name that doesn't exist yet.
His breathing wasn't fast — it was calculated. His mind, four times faster than normal, plotted 37 possible escape lines, then reran them backward for temporal instability.
> "If I run straight, I die."
"If I go loud, I draw... it."
---
☠️ Hostile Intercepted:
Entity: Echo of the Hollow Saint
Rank: S–
Speed: A+
Aura: Divine Wrath Residue
Type: Weapon Ghost
It was floating directly between Aurel and the gate.
It noticed him.
And the moment it did, its blade screamed.
---
🧠 Aurel (cold voice, breathing steady):
> "...So I'll improvise."
He darted left, leaped off the wall, threw his dagger — but not to kill — it embedded into a weak reality node.
System.ZERO reacted instantly:
> [Reality Weak Point Exploited]
> Chain Reaction Triggered
> Chaos Collapse: Accelerated
> Gate Path Fragmented: Rerouted (Shorter Path – More Dangerous)
> VOICE UNLOCKED: "Come… become one of us..."
---
🌌 Void Infinity Bloodline: Passive Trigger
> VOIDWALK – Instinctive Reality Slip: ACTIVATED
> You are briefly phased 0.5 seconds ahead of your death.
> Cooldown: 6 hours
> Mental Burn: 3% Neural Strain
Aurel blurred — physics cracked — and reappeared behind the echo-saint.
His hand burned as he ripped a shard of its cloak.
> Not for survival.
For knowledge.
---
⚙️ System.ZERO: Drop Registered
> Divine Echo Essence Acquired
> Requirement Fulfilled: Gate Can Be Forced
> Exit Status: One Chance
---
Aurel dove through the collapsing sigil gate, just as the creature turned—
And the entire corridor imploded into inverted silence.
---
🌫️ [He lands face-first in a swamp puddle, coughing, alone, alive.]
The sky is normal.
The system is stable.
> "...Home?"
---
🧠 System.ZERO (twitching glitch-font):
> Dimensional Exit: SUCCESSFUL
> Damage: Minor
> Bloodline Growth: +12%
> CP Earned: +7,600
> Essence Stored: 1x [Divine Echo Fragment]
> You shouldn't have made it.
> But you did.
---
Aurel (laughs faintly, lying on his back in the mud):
> "...That was f**king close."
---
Do you want:
A temporary curse mark left on him by the entity he escaped?
For a fragment of the realm to follow him home like a parasite?
Or a rare NPC to appear, having felt his "return echo" from another world?
You just survived a realm meant to erase you.
Now the world you came back to... won't look the same.
😈 Oh, you want what the creature said — the words that shouldn't exist… words that bend logic just hearing them?
Let's channel something ancient, hungry, and unreasonably calm, as if it's not angry… just interested in the insect that dodged its mouth.
Here's what the Sanity Eater whispered as Aurel escaped — not just speech, but something burned into his bones, like a memory he never lived:
---
☠️ The Creature's Words — Not Spoken. Etched.
> "Curiosity... again."
"It walks. It bleeds. It learns... with teeth."
> "You are not from this thread, little fracture."
"Not prey... not yet. You think you are unseen?"
"You are the loudest thought in a quiet realm."
> "You stole a piece of me..."
"...So I will remember how you taste."
> "Grow. Struggle. Escape. Yes."
"Be interesting."
> "And when you finally understand what I am...
…come back, little echo.
I will be hungry then."
---
🩸 System.ZERO: (Post-escape — low glitch-voice in Aurel's mind)
> WARNING: ENTITY MARKED YOU AS "ECHO CANDIDATE"
> Meaning: Future Host | Subject of Interest | Plaything
> Long-term Implication: High. Possibly fatal.
> Short-term Bonus: Curiosity Tier x5 Boost until next encounter
---
🧠 Aurel (sitting in mud, blinking at the sky):
> "I've been cursed before.
But that… that thing doesn't curse.
It books reservations."
---
Want that "mark" to awaken later when:
He kills another anomaly?
Or when Rei is in danger, and he's forced to call upon the Void?
You've escaped a monster that doesn't chase prey.
It waits for it to evolve.
And you, Aurel Thornheart…
You're now officially interesting.
💀👁️ Let's go full evolution mode now — you've escaped the Void's jaws, stolen a piece of something that shouldn't exist, and your Cursed Curiosity just bit into Void Infinity…
Now, they're fusing.
---
🧬 [SYSTEM.ZERO – CORE EVOLUTION TRIGGERED]
> Process Type: Hybrid Assimilation
Input Source:
— Bloodline: Void Infinity
— Trait: Devouring Curiosity
Compatibility: 104%
Instability: 99%
Override Accepted: "Let it break me if it has to."
---
🕳️ NEW BLOODLINE: ∞ Void Curiosity
> Class: Unique | Glitched | Evolutionary
Rank: ❓Unquantifiable
Essence Type: Forbidden Hybrid
Description:
A bloodline that does not evolve — it devours evolution and repurposes it. It learns not by growth, but by unmaking and remaking what it observes. The longer it stares… the less the world makes sense.
---
⚙️ New Traits Unlocked:
1. 🧠 Curiosity Loop (Active)
Any complex ability, bloodline, or magical logic observed for more than 8 seconds will begin to unravel inside Aurel's mind.
Result: A custom version is created — distorted, personalized, often stronger than the original.
System Tags: Illegal Copycat, Void Signature Detected
---
2. 🩸 Void Digestion (Passive)
Whenever Aurel kills a being with a bloodline or core essence, he automatically absorbs a fragment of it into the Curiosity Core.
If the creature is divine, eldritch, or glitched — he gains mutation bonuses.
---
3. ⛓️ Singularity Pulse (Locked Ability)
A future power that allows Aurel to create micro-collapse zones in reality.
Once unlocked, enemies lose access to magic, systems, or powers within range.
Duration: Unknown.
Cooldown: Sanity-based.
---
📈 Stat Changes:
Attribute Bonus
Intelligence +3 Tiers
Perception Sync 200%
Evolution Efficiency x4
Mutation Affinity Active
Observation Power Limitless (New cap removed)
---
☠️ System.ZERO Glitch Message:
> You are no longer compatible with this world's laws.
> You will now force the world to update around you.
> NOTE: Reality will begin to notice.
---
🔮 Narrative Impact:
Your presence will now cause items, dungeons, monsters, and even people to begin glitching if stared at too long.
You will occasionally be mistaken for a World Threat.
High-rank individuals will forget they saw you, misremember your presence, or fear your name without knowing why.
---
🧠 Aurel's Thought:
> "This isn't a power spike... this is system rejection."
"I didn't level up. I broke the scale."
---
Want to unlock:
First Evolution Skill Tree: Curiosity Path [Infinity Veins]?
Show a mutation effect on Aurel's body — like a Void Sigil pulsing when he's calm?
Or have the system auto-steal an ability from the next S-Rank creature he merely observes?
You're no longer climbing tiers.
You're feeding on the ladder itself.
⚠️ Smart call. You're keeping it grounded — no insta-god-mode, but a terrifying growth engine hiding inside a boy who's still weak on the surface.
Let's adjust the evolution and bloodline system to reflect that:
---
🔄 [SYSTEM REBALANCE: "∞ Void Curiosity"]
> "Power without mastery is still just a loaded gun in trembling hands."
---
💥 Adjustment Applied: Current Reality Check
> ✅ Aurel has world-breaking potential, but…
❌ He is still physically and combat-wise weaker than most C, B, A-rank enemies right now.
---
🔻 Why?
1. 🧠 Knowledge Before Power
His Infinity Curiosity requires observation, analysis, and contact before gaining strength.
Against higher-rank enemies, he must first survive to learn.
2. 🔋 Void Power is Dormant
The Void Infinity bloodline is awakening, not awakened.
Most of his powers are locked, unstable, or unsafe for use yet.
3. ⚔️ Base Stats Still G–
Strength, speed, stamina, regeneration — all still below average.
Without trickery or tactics, he loses straight-up fights against most D+ or higher enemies.
4. 📉 System.ZERO Limits
System.ZERO prioritizes stealth, observation, and exploitation, not brute combat.
Direct confrontation is suicidal unless massive curiosity bonuses or traps are in play.
---
🩸 System Display Example During Combat
> 🧟 [Target: Ironbone Reaver – Rank C+]
> Danger Level: HIGH
> Survival Chance (Direct Confrontation): 18%
> Strategy Recommended: Hide, Observe, Sabotage
> Passive Steal Chance: 0.6%
> Curiosity Multiplier: x4
> Status: YOU ARE PREY
---
🧬 Bloodline Condition Update: Locked Core State
> Void Infinity is still hatching.
Until his body, mind, and soul can stabilize the singularity inside him,
he's stuck in the form of an "interesting insect."
---
🧠 Aurel's Internal Voice (Cold):
> "I'm not strong yet."
"But I evolve faster than death."
"And when I learn enough… they won't even remember how to scream."
---
Would you like to:
Create "Evolution Gates" Aurel must pass to fully awaken the Void powers?
Add a penalty for overusing bloodline too early (e.g., neural strain, memory loss, bleed-through of monster instincts)?
Or lock new Void upgrades behind curiosity quests, not combat XP?
This isn't a story of someone who starts strong…
It's someone who becomes the reason "strong" gets redefined.
🎯 Let's pick it up — Day 3.
After barely surviving an S+ void realm, Aurel returns to the normal world, clothes muddy, mind sharp, and rank still officially G–.
Time to act dumb. Time to hunt scraps... and secretly steal the system from the inside.
---
🏛️ Scene: "Just a Rookie Looking for Work"
Location: Silvermark Guildhall – Main Hall, Outer District
Time: Morning – Mild fog outside
Guild Rank: G–
Objective: Accept First Real Quest (Publicly)
---
The guildhall buzzed with the usual low-level chaos:
clanks of mugs, idle chatter, steel boots against tile, laughter, bets, and arrogance.
Aurel stepped in. Still damp from swamp slime. Still pretending to blink too slowly, walk too hesitantly.
> "Oi, look who's back. Grave-crawling already, rookie?"
> "Must've tripped into the latrine."
He smiled politely. Said nothing. Filed in line.
---
⚙️ System.ZERO (low, whispery overlay)
> Target Location: Job Board — Tier G Quests
> Mission List Filtering...
> Danger Level: Irrelevant
> Reward Relevance: Moderate
> Observation Potential: HIGH
> Quest Options:
1. Pest Nest Elimination – Rank G
Reward: 9 silver, 1 common loot
Threat: Tier 0 (Feral)
Location: South Orchards
2. Herb Collection – Rank G
Reward: 5 silver, 2 healing herbs
Passive Chance: Magical Root Scan
Location: Mistshade Forest
3. Escort Local Trader – Rank G
Reward: 12 silver, possible item tip
Risk: Bandits (Tier 1–2)
> Recommended: Escort Trader
> Observation Opportunity: High (Social | Combat | System Interaction)
---
Aurel stepped up to the desk.
Behind it, a woman in her late 40s looked up with the usual "rookie again?" face.
> Guild Clerk: "Still breathing, huh?"
"Name?"
Aurel (smiling faintly):
> "Ash."
(Fake name. Always use new ones.)
> Clerk: "Alright, Ash. Still G–, still dumb. You've got the muscle of a feather and no party. Want me to sign you up for pest duty?"
He glanced at the board.
Then back at her.
> "Escort job. Trader. Today."
She blinked.
> "Sure. Why not. Hope you can outrun bandits, 'Ash.' If not, don't worry. They usually kill fast."
Stamp.
---
🎯 Quest Accepted: [Protect Trader Lark – South Route]
> Type: Escort
Difficulty: G (Real Risk: C if ambushed)
Goal: Escort cart to Crossfield Way
Reward: 12 silver, potential drop, trader favor
---
🧠 Aurel (internally):
> "Bandits, huh… good test dummies."
---
Want the quest to:
Be ambushed by corrupted monsters instead of normal bandits?
Reveal a hidden Tier 3+ creature observing Aurel mid-fight?
Or the trader himself be secretly part of an underground faction, testing Aurel for something bigger?
This isn't about silver.
It's about field data.
And maybe… stealing som