The news spread quickly.
By the following morning…
Nearly everyone in the Rowland estate had heard the same rumor.
A Hunter Association evaluator had disappeared.
Some dismissed it as idle gossip.
Others quietly wondered if another Gate had appeared nearby.
The servants, however…
Loved to speculate.
“I heard they found his phone.”
“But not him.”
“They’re saying he simply vanished.”
“…”
Arianne quietly spread strawberry jam across a slice of toast.
The dining room felt unusually peaceful.
Lady Rowland had already left to oversee Fiona’s preparations for the Capital.
Fiona herself was nowhere to be seen.
For once…
Breakfast passed in complete silence.
She almost enjoyed it.
Almost.
The familiar blue screen appeared.
[Daily Objective]
[Observe.]
“…”
Arianne stared.
“Observe what?”
No answer.
“…Of course.”
She sighed.
“I suppose that’s today’s lesson.”
Figure it out yourself.
The System disappeared.
A servant approached her table.
“Lady Arianne.”
“Yes?”
“Master Conrad asked if you would visit the greenhouse after breakfast.”
“The greenhouse?”
“Yes.”
“He said there was something he’d like to show you.”
Curiosity immediately won.
The Rowland greenhouse stood beyond the eastern gardens.
Although she had wandered the estate several times already…
She had never entered it.
The moment she stepped inside…
She stopped.
“…Wow.”
Warm sunlight filtered through the towering glass ceiling.
Countless flowers bloomed beneath it.
Medicinal herbs.
Spirit flowers.
Rare vines.
Fruit trees.
Plants from every season somehow coexisted beneath one roof.
The air itself smelled alive.
A quiet chuckle echoed nearby.
“I thought you might like it.”
Master Conrad stepped out from between two rows of flowering shrubs.
Simple work clothes.
Old gardening gloves.
The same gentle smile.
He motioned for her to follow.
“I’ve been waiting.”
Together, they walked deeper into the greenhouse.
The colorful flower beds gradually gave way to quieter corners.
Eventually…
Master Conrad stopped before a plain stone planter.
It was almost empty.
Almost.
At its center rested a single seed.
Small.
Brown.
Unremarkable.
“What do you see?”
“A seed.”
“What else?”
Arianne leaned closer.
She studied it for several moments.
“…Nothing.”
“It isn’t producing mana.”
“It isn’t sprouting.”
“It just looks…”
“…ordinary.”
Master Conrad nodded.
“Tell me.”
“If I left this seed here for a hundred years…”
“Would it be dead?”
Arianne frowned.
“…No.”
“Why not?”
She looked at the tiny seed again.
Because…
It hadn’t rotted.
It hadn’t broken apart.
It was simply…
Waiting.
“…”
“It still has the chance to grow.”
Master Conrad’s smile widened.
“Exactly.”
“Most people only see what something is today.”
“They rarely think about what it could become tomorrow.”
His words settled quietly in her mind.
Potential.
Without warning…
The System appeared.
[Potential Detected.]
Arianne’s heartbeat quickened.
Another notification followed.
[Spirit Gardener Resonance: Active.]
The tiny seed trembled.
Just once.
“…”
Arianne’s eyes widened.
“It moved.”
“It did.”
For the briefest moment…
A gentle warmth spread through her chest.
Her burgundy hair shimmered.
Soft ash-green.
The glow lasted only a heartbeat.
Then…
It vanished.
Her hair returned to its usual color.
Master Conrad quietly watched her.
His expression never changed.
“…Interesting.”
Arianne instinctively touched her hair.
“…”
“You noticed.”
“I notice many things.”
He smiled.
“Occupational habit.”
She couldn’t tell whether he was joking.
Or telling the truth.
Master Conrad looked back at the tiny seed.
“You didn’t make it grow.”
“You simply gave it…”
“…that growing was still possible.”
Arianne slowly lowered her hand.
For some reason…
That explanation felt exactly right.
Not stronger.
Not faster.
Just…
One small step closer to blooming.
Master Conrad carefully covered the tiny seed with a thin layer of soil.
His movements were slow.
Deliberate.
Almost reverent.
Arianne watched quietly.
“…Can I ask you something?”
“You just did.”
She laughed.
“…A proper question.”
“Go ahead.”
“How did you know?”
Master Conrad looked up.
“Know what?”
“That I’d understand.”
He chuckled.
“I didn’t.”
“I was simply curious.”
“…Curious?”
“I’ve watched many people stand in front of that planter.”
“Hunters.”
“Scholars.”
“Nobles.”
“They all saw the same thing.”
“…A dead seed.”
He gently brushed the soil from his gloves.
“You were the first to see tomorrow.”
Silence settled between them.
Arianne lowered her gaze.
She hadn’t thought of it that way.
To her…
It had simply seemed obvious.
Master Conrad walked deeper into the greenhouse.
“Come.”
“There are more things I’d like to show you.”
This section felt different.
The flowers were fewer.
The air carried a faint scent of damp earth.
Several plants appeared healthy.
Others…
Didn’t.
A blue flowering herb drooped against the edge of its planter.
Its leaves had begun turning pale.
“…It’s dying.”
Master Conrad knelt beside it.
“Is it?”
Arianne frowned.
“…Isn’t it?”
He smiled.
“Look closer.”
She stepped nearer.
Nothing seemed unusual.
Then…
The familiar blue window appeared.
[Spirit Sight Activated.]
“…”
Again?
She hadn’t activated anything.
The world around her subtly changed.
Thin streams of soft green light spread beneath the greenhouse floor.
Like roots.
Like flowing rivers.
Mana.
The entire greenhouse breathed with it.
Her eyes followed one glowing stream.
Then another.
Eventually…
She found the problem.
“…”
“The mana isn’t reaching it.”
Master Conrad remained silent.
Encouraging her to continue.
Arianne crouched beside the planter.
One thick root from a neighboring plant had grown across the underground mana channel.
Not enough to stop it completely.
Just enough…
To slow it.
“It’s being blocked.”
“For too long.”
Master Conrad smiled.
“What would you do?”
“…”
She thought carefully.
Cutting the root would only damage another healthy plant.
That wasn’t the answer.
Instead…
She gently loosened the surrounding soil with her fingers.
Just enough.
Then she carefully guided the larger root slightly aside.
It shifted.
Only a little.
The green stream immediately flowed freely once more.
The blue herb trembled.
Its drooping leaves slowly lifted.
Not dramatically.
Just enough.
Enough to remind her…
It had never stopped living.
The System chimed.
[Growth Recognized.]
Master Conrad laughed quietly.
“You chose the gentlest solution.”
“I didn’t want to hurt either plant.”
“Exactly.”
He nodded approvingly.
“A gardener doesn’t decide which life has more value.”
“He simply helps each one find room to grow.”
Those words lingered in Arianne’s mind.
Spirit Gardener…
Wasn’t a class built around power.
It was built around balance.
Helping.
Guiding.
Never forcing.
Suddenly…
Rapid footsteps echoed outside the greenhouse.
A young servant hurried through the doorway.
“Master Conrad!”
He looked up calmly.
“What is it?”
“The Hunter Association is here again.”
“They’re asking everyone who spoke with the missing evaluator yesterday.”
Arianne’s expression stiffened.
Already?
The servant swallowed.
“They’ve brought investigators this time.”
Master Conrad slowly removed his gardening gloves.
“…Very well.”
He looked toward Arianne.
“It seems your quiet morning has come to an end.”
The investigators were already waiting in the drawing room.
Unlike yesterday…
They weren’t here to evaluate talent.
They were here to investigate a disappearance.
The atmosphere was noticeably heavier.
No polite smiles.
No compliments.
Only questions.
Lady Rowland sat across from three Hunter Association investigators.
Each wore a dark suit with the Association’s silver insignia pinned neatly to the lapel.
The eldest among them looked up as Arianne entered.
“Lady Arianne.”
She offered a polite bow.
“You wished to see me?”
“My name is Inspector Han.”
“We’re investigating the disappearance of one of our evaluators.”
Arianne quietly took her seat.
“I’ll answer what I can.”
Inspector Han activated his tablet.
“You spoke with him yesterday.”
“Yes.”
“What did you discuss?”
Arianne answered honestly.
“He injured his hand while loading equipment into his car.”
“I helped him.”
“That was all.”
The investigator nodded while taking notes.
“You treated his injury?”
“Not exactly.”
“It wasn’t serious.”
“I only helped him.”
That wasn’t entirely a lie.
Gentle Hands had eased the pain.
It hadn’t erased the injury.
Inspector Han looked up.
“Did anything unusual happen afterward?”
For the briefest moment…
Arianne remembered the ash-green glow.
“…”
No.
She couldn’t tell them that.
“I don’t think so.”
The investigators exchanged glances.
None of them appeared suspicious.
If anything…
They looked exhausted.
One of the younger investigators quietly spoke.
“We recovered his phone.”
“So did his Association identification.”
“But…”
“There were no signs of a struggle.”
“No mana residue.”
“No witnesses.”
“It’s as though…”
“…he simply disappeared.”
Silence settled over the room.
No mana residue?
That didn’t sound like monsters.
Or a Gate.
Inspector Han closed his tablet.
“Thank you for your cooperation.”
“If you remember anything…”
“No matter how insignificant it seems…”
“Please contact the Association.”
“I will.”
The questioning was over.
As the investigators prepared to leave…
The youngest among them suddenly stopped.
He turned back toward Arianne.
“…Lady Arianne.”
“Yes?”
“I heard…”
“…you like gardening.”
She blinked.
“I do.”
A faint smile appeared on his face.
“So did he.”
“The missing evaluator.”
“He spent almost every weekend volunteering at the Association greenhouse.”
“He always said…”
“‘Plants are easier to understand than people.'”
The investigator chuckled quietly.
“We used to tease him for it.”
His smile faded.
“…I hope he’s safe.”
He quietly followed the others outside.
The drawing room fell silent once more.
Gardening.
Master Conrad.
The greenhouse.
The missing evaluator.
Why did it all feel connected?
The System appeared.
[Main Quest Updated.]
[The Second Seed]
[A seed has begun to wither.]
[Seek the place where life quietly gathers.]
Arianne read the message twice.
Life quietly gathers…
The Association greenhouse.
If the missing evaluator truly loved plants…
Then perhaps…
That wasn’t merely where he volunteered.
Perhaps…
That was where his trail ended.
Or…
Where someone else’s story was about to begin.
Arianne slowly stood.
“…Looks like I’m visiting the Association.”
Outside the mansion…
Dark clouds drifted across the afternoon sky.
Far away…
In a forgotten corner of the city…
A little girl sat quietly beneath the broken roof of an abandoned greenhouse.
She gently cradled a tiny wilted flower in her hands.
“…Don’t worry.”
“I’ll keep you alive.”
The flower gave the faintest tremble.
END OF CHAPTER 15