Hearing movement behind her, Aeris quickly turned around and saw someone approaching.
More precisely…
Someone who looked just like Piccolo.
"A Namekian?" Aeris watched the Namekian carefully as he came closer. Luckily, she didn't sense any malice from him. Otherwise, she wouldn't have needed to hear him coming at all—she'd have been dead already. She was still in a weakened state, after all.
"Um… are you okay? I feel like you might need help…" the Namekian asked cautiously.
Aeris looked at him with a speechless expression.
Did she look okay?
Still, she answered patiently enough.
"Yeah, I do need a little help. Don't worry, I won't let you help me for free."
The Namekian carefully walked over and crouched beside her.
"I can feel that you're very weak right now. Let me help you recover a little first. It might hurt."
Aeris watched as a gentle energy began gathering in his hand. It looked just like the healing technique she knew herself.
Too bad she couldn't use it right now.
Honestly, this was pathetic.
Being so weak she couldn't even use the most basic healing technique…
"That body of yours is strange… You're clearly weak in every way right now, but at the same time… you also feel very strong. It's contradictory…"
"Yeah… for certain reasons, I can't use my strength at the moment," Aeris said helplessly.
After receiving treatment from the Namekian, Aeris finally stopped feeling like she was half-dead.
"Thanks. My name's Aeris. What about you?" she asked.
"My name is Dende," he said happily, introducing himself.
Seeing how completely unguarded Dende was made Aeris a little speechless. If she'd wanted to kill him and silence him, he would've already been dead.
Dende seemed to understand what that look on her face meant, so he explained, "I can feel your aura. Your aura is very pure. There's blood on it too, yes… but I can tell you don't have any bad intentions right now."
Aeris looked at him in surprise. That kind of ability was genuinely useful.
But if he ever ran into someone skilled at hiding their energy, that habit of trusting it so casually would get him killed.
So she warned him.
"You still shouldn't trust that ability too much. If you meet someone who's good at controlling their ki, acting like this could get you into serious trouble."
After saying that, Aeris gave him a demonstration on the spot.
Dende stared at her in disbelief, his eyes full of shock.
"You're lucky you met the current me. If you'd run into me from two years ago, you probably would've already been robbed blind."
After chatting with Aeris for a while, Dende warmly invited her to visit their village.
Aeris hesitated a little.
But seeing how genuinely enthusiastic he was, she couldn't quite bring herself to refuse, so in the end she agreed.
Once she got up, she picked Dende up in her arms and told him to point the way while she carried him back to his village.
After arriving, Dende cheerfully introduced her to the place and showed her around. He also introduced Aeris to his friends.
The Namekians, hearing Dende's introduction, were openly friendly toward her. Some of them even brought her food.
That made Aeris extremely happy.
She was genuinely starving right now.
Grass did not fill you up.
So she ate while glancing around at the Namekians nearby.
They really were a simple, honest bunch.
Though when she saw the Namekian called Nail, she almost thought he was Piccolo at first glance. The resemblance was ridiculous.
When Nail noticed Aeris staring at him, he looked back with some confusion.
"Is something wrong, Miss Aeris?"
"Ah, sorry. You look a lot like someone I know, so I ended up staring a little without thinking."
Aeris said that rather awkwardly.
When Nail heard that Aeris had met other members of his race before, he seemed surprised and immediately asked,
"Miss Aeris has met other Namekians?"
Aeris nodded.
"Yeah, I have. But out of all the Namekians I've met, your aura is the strongest. The others I met either didn't know their own origins, or they had already joined other planets."
Nail nodded in understanding. He had heard some things himself about Namek's past.
After chatting with them for a while, they were invited inside by the Grand Elder.
Aeris looked at the Grand Elder sitting in his chair. He looked incredibly old, and by the look of it, he was already nearing the end of his life.
Still, Aeris could tell that in the past, he had once been a powerful warrior.
A very powerful one.
Possibly not weaker than her at all.
Maybe even stronger.
"Thank you for bringing Dende back. That child is playful and often sneaks off on his own," the Grand Elder said kindly.
The first thing out of his mouth was gratitude, and that made Aeris a little embarrassed. After all, she hadn't originally planned to get involved at all. She only came because Dende had invited her so warmly.
Still, she answered politely.
"Not at all. Thanks to Dende, I recovered far more quickly."
After talking for a while, she gradually became more familiar with the Grand Elder.
Then he said, "Child, come here…"
Aeris stepped forward until she stood in front of him.
When she got close enough, the Grand Elder slowly raised a hand and rested it on top of her head. While his hand remained there, a soft glow spread from it. After a while, he lowered it again.
"Child, your talent is excellent," the Grand Elder said with a smile.
Aeris looked puzzled. "Grand Elder… what was that…?"
"Cough, cough… ah…" He let out a tired breath. "I helped unlock some of your potential. But your natural potential was already extremely good, so what I did was only adding flowers to brocade."
His voice was noticeably weaker now.
Before Aeris could refuse, he continued.
"Don't rush to decline. I only did this to form a good bond. I have a feeling that someday in the future… we may need to ask for your help."
Feeling the strength inside her body rise by at least ten times, Aeris almost felt like she was dreaming.
Was she actually dreaming?
That thought came and went in an instant, and she hurriedly responded.
"Please don't worry, Grand Elder. If the day ever comes when you need my strength, I'll do everything I can."
Hearing that promise, the Grand Elder smiled kindly.
"Cough, cough… if such a day really comes… I won't make things difficult for you. I would only ask you to protect, or take away, a few Namekians. As long as our kind's flame is preserved, we won't truly be wiped out."
Aeris nodded seriously.
"Alright. Please rest assured, Grand Elder… I will. Then I'll take my leave now, so I don't disturb your rest any longer."
After saying that, she respectfully stepped out.
Right now, she desperately wanted to test her new power.
After her potential had been unlocked, Aeris could clearly feel that the shackles inside her had loosened. It even felt like raising her strength had suddenly become much easier than before.
"What a strange power…"
Then her expression dimmed slightly.
"But if that day really comes… will I actually be able to protect them?"
That thought left Aeris feeling a little conflicted.
She flew to an open area and carefully checked her surroundings first.
She was honestly worried that if she failed to control this new power properly, she might accidentally blow one or two people to hell.
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