"Is something the matter?" I asked as I examined the chief's expression.

Considering how the village chief was already quite close to the shack for him to approach the moment I exited, it wasn't hard to guess that he has been already waiting for me out there, after all, while he might be a semi-mind reader, he obviously wasn't a future predictor, it wouldn't make sense that he would precisely target the time that I finished my short seclusion at...

'Although it doesn't seem to be something very urgent judging from his expression…'

Adding that to the equation, it made sense that we both managed to luck out that he came to see that I finished just a few minutes before I coincidentally finished my preparations.

"It's nothing too big, but the young man that you brought with you had already awakened, his attitude indeed seems a bit quirky but he didn't behave too strangely aside from his talk about how he was an old resident of this village… but most importantly, he seems to recognize you as his benefactor who returned him home and asked if you left or not… I mainly came to ask if you wanted to check on him," the village chief said as he seemed to be slightly concerned, although he already seemed to have got his answers without my help.

Hearing the village chief's report allowed me to let a slight sigh of relief deep inside as the results of my advanced 'reformation' didn't deviate much from what I intended and exprected, this meant that I no longer needed to worry about my information source's mental status for the time being…

'I can't say that my mental manipulation technique is perfect yet after all…'

"No need, I will be leaving now… As you already know, he has been subjected to some positive reformation which is why his memory is a bit hazy, me meeting him before it got consolidated might cause a negative effect, sorry for troubling you to take care of him, you can keep him busy as much as you want!"

"You are leaving already? I understand, there is no trouble for me taking care of him, the more the merrier! You can always bring those who might receive your help in the future and are in need for a place to call home, the village is always open for you as well!" the village chief's slightly concerned expression changed from being slightly serious to a welcoming warm one, I could already tell that he got some more answers to other questions he may have had…

'I guess he decided to trust my sense of judgement…?'

To most people, the way I used my mental energy, or what have recently evolved into mental force to manipulate certain memories and add suggestions would seem like an evil brainwashing technique, but the village chief whose warm expression was very sincere seemed to believe in my way of using it, even though he should only have minimal information regarding this topic which he got using his innate ability...

'That's good then.'

It felt slightly reassuring to have someone who trusted you and supported you in this game world where I had to worry about my every move and hide my steps, in fact, the Green Earth Village had already become a somewhat important place in my mind.

"I will be off then," I casually said as I only bothered to give a small wave before I disappeared from my position, I wasn't planning on making a touchy scene out of this.

'It wouldn't take me that much time to come back anyway…'

"Meow!"

Little Light who was hiding inside my clothes started moving around a bit, as if he was getting a bit energetic, slightly tickling me with his fur.

"You want to get out…?"

I somehow got the feeling that this was what he wanted just by the small gesture of him moving around, it felt slightly strange as I wasn't an animal lover back in reality…

"Meow meow!"

Grabbing the opening of my shirt slightly to allow Light to get out, I pondered if this was caused by the 'Blood Companion' skill's effect as I wondered why I only started feeling the comprehensible mental bond that visibly now…

'Could it be caused by the increase of both his Intelligence and Wisdom stats? And the reason for their increase to begin with…?'

While his age was only one month he already had more intelligence than normal human adults, and these were normally stats that didn't simply increase by absorbing essence, it had to happen as one grew in age or used a cheat method like the stat assignment method provided by the system…

So the only viable reason behind this increase would be that the old Thunder Lion might have implemented some of his Intelligence and Wisdom for his child before his death! Just like he did to me back then.

Thinking about it in a deeper sense, why would an infant who was just born sleep that much only after a day of his true birth, it only made sense that he might have been receiving the 'Mental Inheritance' of the Thunder Lion which needed time and focused concentration, only for the superior supplements of the 'Blood Nourishment Beast Pearl' to help in completing the process in a much swifter way, to the point of even allowing the inheritance to continue being passed on while Light is awake!

'It's a reasonable theory…'

If that was indeed behind the special stat increase, then it wouldn't be weird for the other thing that was left behind by the Thunder Lion, the 'contract' which later evolved to the 'Blood Companion' skill to actually work as the connection pathway between our minds to understand each other even without the need of a language once Light's Intelligence and Wisdom reached a certain threshold!

'Did he really plan that far for his descendants' future…?'

Poof!

Just as I was thinking about these possibilities, Light who just got out jumped out as another light smoke exploded in front of me…

"Meow!"