After the murderous glare, Milla responded to Nolan with a disdainful tone:
"You've become quite the joker, haven't you, Deserter?"
"Heh… I've always been like this, it's you who doesn't know me well enough, Miss Milla…"
"It's just a coincidence that we're going to the same city… But since this happened, I decided to travel with you. Besides, I don't like owing favors to anyone, so I'll repay you with information you need, such as knowledge of the region, maps, and I'll even help you again if you are drafted into the army again."
"Oh… Was my help in the last battle that valuable?"
Nolan asked another question, smiling cheerfully.
"Humph, don't get too cocky. For starters, did you know you're going in the wrong direction? Rahh! If I weren't here, what would become of you?"
Nolan's smile faded; he wanted to provoke this angry woman a little more, but she actually had a lot of information he might need…
"Can you explain, Miss Milla?"
"I don't consider myself a noblewoman, so stop calling me Miss."
"Of course, could you guide us with your immense wisdom, Milla?"
"You're not wrong about the location of the city of Áster being west of Blackwood Village, but following a straight line will make you lose a lot of time when you encounter the obstacles in the direction of the city, such as rivers, mountains, and swamps…"
Nolan, understanding the complexity and his lack of experience, nodded for her to continue.
"Taking detours in advance will allow us to choose easier routes to traverse. Going straight ahead will throw you into places like dense forests, mountains impossible to climb, and swamps difficult to cross. There are also some smaller villages where we can stop during this 3-week journey to replenish our supplies and have a comfortable rest in a Bronze Tavern."
Despite disagreeing with the stops in the villages, Nolan knew that the two ladies in the group wouldn't want to go without a decent bath for long periods.
Lunch was over soon; despite the simplicity of just a piece of bread and soup, the main meal of the day would be dinner. Then all four continued their journey.
Since Milla had offered to be his guide and provide information, Nolan decided to take advantage of the opportunity and continue his questions:
"My first question is: Why are there Scars that people can't use?"
At that moment, everyone was running at a moderate pace, but both Luna and Thyr adjusted their steps to get closer to Milla and hear her answer.
"You already understand White Scars well, right? Since they are quite common everywhere…"
"Yes, there are 5 types. They are all passive and enhance the human body by raising our attributes. The more they accumulate, the stronger someone becomes. Among the effects are Enhanced Agility, Enhanced Strength, Enhanced Intelligence and Senses (Mental), Enhanced Internal Resistance, and Enhanced External Resistance. The last one being the most desired by Scar Bearers."
"That's right Luna, you're correct. But when we get into the subject of Bronze and Silver Scars, there are no limits or restrictions on the abilities when it comes to these scars. Each scar can do something incredible that far surpasses the White Scars. And their only limitation is the usage time or daily activation limits."
"Is it normal to only be able to use a scar once a day?" Nolan asked.
"For Bronze and Silver scars, yes, normally someone can only use them 1 to 3 times."
"You said there are no restrictions on the types of scars, but there's still a differentiation between the types, right?" This time, it was Luna who asked again.
"Exactly, I was just about to explain that. The types can vary from individual Enhancement (Strengthening), Group Enhancement (Blessings), Manipulation of Energies and Forces of Nature (Control), Enhancement and Manipulation of objects (Artisans). These four are the most common, and among them, there may be passive scars similar to the white ones. An example of a Strengthening-type passive is Luna's scar, which increases her sense of smell to a level that far surpasses what a bearer of several White Scars of the intelligence/senses type might have."
"Artisan… Could that be the type of scar my mother had?"
While Nolan reflected, Luna also seemed to better understand one of her own Bronze Scar, while Thyr continued to just listen.
"You said these are the four most common types; are there others that aren't so common?" Nolan continued.
"Yes, there is the Abnormal type, also called Temporary Scar. This type of Scar possesses a great power above the initial 4 types, but because its power is so great, it becomes limited to a certain number of finite uses. That is, when someone reaches all the uses of the ability, it will disappear along with the Scar from the wielder's body."
That was exactly the type of scar his mother had!
Nolan understood immediately why some people didn't know how to activate their abilities. His mother certainly had a Temporary Artisan-type scar. But she only learned about this effect when she created her first item. After that, each item she created was limited until she no longer had the Scar! That's why only Zack's father's black belt, his father's scarf, and his left glove existed…
"Could my mother's limit be three items? Or did she create another one that I don't know about, and it was sold to someone outside the Village?"
"The last two types are called Uncommon and Lethal. The first cannot be explained; these scars are strange and difficult to understand even for the Bearers themselves. While the last type, which is also called Forbidden Scar, its name makes it quite obvious, right? They are scars capable of instantly killing or causing great harm to all kinds of life. But don't lose hope, despite the general prohibition, it is still possible to use them if you follow the Kingdom's registration procedures."
"I still don't understand why some scars can't be used…" Luna murmured, a little embarrassed.
Nolan was the only one who had already concluded that answer, but only because he had already seen his mother's case. But Milla calmly explained to Luna and Thyr, who, despite remaining silent, had moved even closer due to curiosity:
"If your Scar doesn't activate, it can only mean that it's a passive type and is already activated all the time, giving you some effect that you haven't yet understood or discovered. If it's not that option, then you must have a Lethal or Uncommon type. For the Lethal type, what works to activate your Scar is your intention to harm the victim; it usually requires visual confirmation, reach, and perhaps a gesture. For the Uncommon type, only an evaluator can help you understand what it does."
"Evaluator?" Nolan and Luna asked at the same time. The mysterious Thyr also breathed a little more agitatedly, silently thanking Luna and Nolan for not having to ask as well.
"In every big city, there's an item or a person capable of assessing the power of the Scars. Of course, provided you pay the price. But I must warn you, if you have any Lethal (Forbidden) scars, they might forbid you from using them…"
Nolan understood that Milla's final warning was directed at him; his Silver Scar on his left heel shouldn't be assessed, or he would lose the ability to use it freely. Worse still, this could even lead him to be the number one suspect in the death of Zack Blackwood's father.
"And the Gold Scars? You didn't say anything about them…" Luna said, somewhat disheartened.
Nolan unconsciously moved even closer to Milla, and Thyr did the same. But nobody seemed to notice…
"That's because even the nobles don't know the details about the Golden Scar Bearers. All I know is that they are very powerful, and even in the Kingdom of Scarmith, where we have millions of humans, there must only be 100 people with this type of scar. And they are all important people who work for the churches, the royal family, or are renowned adventurers. There's even a rumor that you can become a prince or princess if you have a Golden Scar!"
"According to the church's teachings, Lord Tallos had four Golden Scars!" Luna said, somewhat admiringly and religiously.
Nolan ignored Luna's comment about the human hero's church for now; he decided to ask more about this religion later. At that moment, he was quite disappointed that he still didn't understand the power of his own Golden Scar.
Soon, the subject of scars ended, and the group continued their journey.
***
A week later, the four travelers arrived at a crucial point in their journey. It was a large river with extremely strong currents. Swimming across was impossible. And before Nolan could ask, Milla said:
"I know where we are; there's a bridge in that direction. The problem comes after the bridge. Due to our proximity to the Secondary Scar, monster sightings won't be uncommon, so we need to travel more cautiously…"
Meanwhile, while Nolan and the others were completing their first week of travel, a group of three important people arrived at Blackwood Village…