Arianne stared at the notification.
[Trust Level: 1%]
One percent.
Just one.
She looked at Leon.
Then looked back at the screen.
“Seriously?”
The system gave no answer.
Arianne sighed.
She had expected many things.
A difficult quest?
Yes.
A dangerous enemy?
Probably.
A hidden legendary ability?
Maybe.
But she did not expect her first mission to be:
Make a traumatized child trust you.
She wasn’t prepared for this.
She was not a therapist.
She was not a teacher.
She was not even good at raising plants.
Her farming dream mostly involved watching videos and saying:
“One day.”
And now the universe gave her a child.
Arianne looked at Leon.
Leon looked back.
Both of them were silent.
This was awkward.
Very awkward.
Finally, Arianne spoke.
“So…”
Leon waited.
“Do you come here often?”
The moment the words left her mouth…
Arianne wanted to disappear.
That was the worst conversation starter in history.
Leon looked confused.
“Sometimes.”
Arianne nodded.
“Good.”
Another silence.
Amazing.
She was doing great.
The system probably regretted choosing her.
Then Leon spoke quietly.
“This is the only place where nobody bothers me.”
Arianne’s expression changed.
Only place?
She looked around the garden.
It wasn’t abandoned.
But it wasn’t somewhere people visited.
A hidden corner.
A forgotten place.
Somehow…
It suited him.
“Why does nobody bother you?”
Leon looked down.
For a moment, Arianne thought he wouldn’t answer.
Then:
“Because I’m weak.”
The answer was simple.
Too simple.
Arianne frowned.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
Leon looked surprised.
“It doesn’t?”
“No.”
She crossed her arms.
“Being weak doesn’t mean people should ignore you.”
Leon stared.
Like he had never heard that before.
Arianne immediately understood.
This kid really had no one.
“Are you an Awakener?”
She asked.
Leon hesitated.
Then nodded.
“Technically.”
Technically?
That was an interesting word.
“What does that mean?”
Leon looked embarrassed.
“I awakened.”
A pause.
“But my ability…”
He looked away.
“It failed.”
Arianne blinked.
Failed?
That wasn’t something she expected.
In this world, awakening was everything.
A person’s future could change overnight.
An F-rank ability could make someone poor.
An S-rank ability could make someone famous.
And a failed awakening?
That sounded even worse.
“What happened?”
Leon was quiet.
Then he answered.
“When I awakened, nothing happened.”
Arianne frowned.
“Nothing?”
He shook his head.
“No fire.”
“No strength.”
“No special skill.”
“Nothing.”
Arianne stared.
That was strange.
Every Awakener should have something.
Even the weakest.
Even F-rank.
The system suddenly reacted.
[Analysis Available.]
Arianne froze.
Finally.
Something useful.
She focused.
A screen appeared.
[Target: Leon]
[Status: Unstable Awakening]
[Ability: Locked]
[Reason: Insufficient Growth Conditions]
Arianne blinked.
Locked?
Not nonexistent.
Locked.
That was different.
She looked at Leon.
He didn’t know.
He probably spent years believing he had nothing.
Arianne felt a little angry.
Not at him.
At the situation.
Because she knew exactly what happened to people like this.
The world judged them before they had a chance.
“So…”
Leon looked at her.
“Am I useless?”
The question was quiet.
Too quiet.
Arianne froze.
Because that wasn’t a question about his ability.
That was a question about himself.
She remembered the original Arianne.
The ignored child.
The child who thought nobody loved her because she wasn’t talented enough.
Arianne looked at Leon.
“No.”
The answer came immediately.
Leon looked surprised.
“No?”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“You’re not useless.”
“But my ability…”
“Is locked.”
Leon blinked.
Arianne realized what she said.
Oops.
Too much.
“How do you know?”
Arianne paused.
Good question.
Very good question.
She needed an excuse.
She looked at her hands.
Then at the garden.
“I have a feeling.”
Amazing explanation.
Absolutely suspicious.
But Leon didn’t question it.
Because people who had been ignored for too long often wanted to believe someone.
Even a little.
The system appeared again.
[Trust Level: 3%]
Arianne stared.
She actually increased it.
By two percent.
Progress.
Slow.
But progress.
She smiled.
Then the system changed.
[Spirit Gardener Tutorial Available.]
Arianne immediately focused.
Finally.
Her actual ability.
A new screen appeared.
[Spirit Gardening]
[A growth ability that nurtures potential through connection, guidance, and evolution.]
Arianne blinked.
Connection?
Guidance?
Evolution?
That sounded…
Actually pretty powerful.
Then another line appeared.
[First Requirement: Identify the Seed.]
Arianne looked confused.
Seed?
She looked around.
The garden.
The plants.
Then Leon.
Her eyes widened slightly.
Wait.
The system didn’t mean an actual seed.
It meant…
Him.
Leon.
Arianne slowly smiled.
“You’re my first seed.”
Leon immediately looked uncomfortable.
“…That sounds strange.”
Arianne froze.
Fair.
Very fair.
“Okay.”
She cleared her throat.
“Bad wording.”
Leon almost smiled.
Almost.
And Arianne noticed.
A tiny change.
A tiny crack in the wall around him.
The system chimed.
[Trust Level: 5%]
Arianne smiled.
Small.
Very small.
But growing.
Just like a seed.
Arianne stared at the screen.
[Trust Level: 5%]
Five.
A whole five percent.
At this rate, she would finish the quest sometime around retirement.
“System.”
No response.
“Do you have a speed-up package?”
Silence.
“What about a beginner discount?”
Nothing.
Arianne clicked her tongue.
Rude.
Very rude.
Leon watched her from the garden bench.
“…Who are you talking to?”
Arianne immediately straightened.
“No one.”
Leon blinked.
“You were definitely talking.”
“I was thinking out loud.”
“Oh.”
He accepted that surprisingly quickly.
Arianne decided not to question it.
The fewer people who knew about the system, the better.
Especially since she barely understood it herself.
The notification window remained floating in front of her.
[Spirit Gardener Tutorial Available]
Arianne focused on it.
A new panel opened.
[Spirit Gardening is the process of identifying, nurturing, and guiding Seeds toward their optimal growth.]
She continued reading.
[Every Seed possesses dormant potential.]
[Growth conditions vary.]
[Proper nurturing accelerates development.]
Arianne frowned.
That sounded less like a combat class…
And more like being a full-time caretaker.
She wasn’t sure how she felt about that.
Then another line appeared.
[A Seed’s growth influences the Gardener’s growth.]
Arianne froze.
Wait.
She reread it.
Then reread it again.
Her eyes widened.
“Hold on.”
Leon looked up.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
Everything.
Absolutely everything.
Because if she understood correctly…
She didn’t grow stronger by defeating monsters.
She grew stronger by helping Seeds grow.
Arianne suddenly had a horrifying realization.
This wasn’t a hunter class.
This was a management class.
She had escaped her office job.
Only to get promoted into another one.
The universe hated her.
Leon looked concerned.
“You look upset.”
“I’ve discovered something terrible.”
“…Should I be worried?”
“Probably.”
Leon immediately became nervous.
Arianne sighed.
Poor kid.
He probably thought she was talking about monsters.
If only.
The true monster was paperwork.
And apparently her class was built around it.
The system chimed.
[Seed Analysis Available]
Arianne focused immediately.
Finally.
Something useful.
A window appeared.
[Seed #001]
[Name: Leon]
[Status: Dormant]
[Growth Rate: Extremely Low]
[Growth Condition: Unknown]
Arianne blinked.
Unknown?
That wasn’t helpful at all.
Then again…
This was the same system that thought “future disaster” counted as an explanation.
Her expectations were already low.
Leon shifted slightly.
“Can I ask something?”
Arianne looked at him.
“Sure.”
“Why are you talking to me?”
The question caught her off guard.
Leon lowered his gaze.
“Most people don’t.”
Arianne felt something twist in her chest.
Because he wasn’t being dramatic.
He wasn’t fishing for sympathy.
He was stating a fact.
Most people really didn’t talk to him.
Not because he was rude.
Not because he was unpleasant.
But because nobody saw a reason to.
A failed Awakener.
A child with no future.
A disappointment.
At least, that’s what the world had decided.
Arianne hated that.
Maybe because the original Arianne knew exactly how that felt.
Or maybe because Arianne herself had spent years watching people value results more than effort.
Either way…
She hated it.
“Then they’re stupid.”
Leon blinked.
“What?”
“They’re stupid.”
Arianne shrugged.
“If you ignore everyone who looks weak, how are you supposed to find hidden talents?”
Leon stared at her.
Like she had spoken another language.
Which was fair.
Most eight-year-olds didn’t talk like middle-aged office workers.
Arianne coughed.
“I mean…”
She quickly corrected herself.
“People shouldn’t decide your worth that quickly.”
That sounded better.
Slightly.
The system chimed.
[Trust Level: 8%]
Arianne almost smiled.
Progress.
Slow progress.
But progress.
Then something unexpected happened.
A faint green light appeared.
Just for a second.
Arianne froze.
The light came from her hand.
No.
Not her hand.
The bracelet on her wrist.
The one that appeared after awakening.
The Spirit Gardener mark.
The glow was weak.
Barely noticeable.
But it was there.
The system immediately reacted.
[First Nurturing Attempt Detected.]
Arianne blinked.
Attempt?
She hadn’t done anything.
Another notification appeared.
[Positive reinforcement supplied.]
“…”
Positive reinforcement?
Was that really the requirement?
She looked at Leon.
Then back at the screen.
Then back at Leon.
Surely it couldn’t be that simple.
The system disagreed.
[Growth Condition Partially Fulfilled.]
Arianne stared.
Wait.
Wait.
WAIT.
The condition wasn’t training?
It wasn’t combat?
It wasn’t some rare treasure?
It was encouragement?
Arianne looked horrified.
Because if that was true…
Then Leon had gone years without receiving even the bare minimum.
The realization made her unexpectedly angry.
Not at Leon.
At everyone else.
The adults.
The teachers.
The guild recruiters.
The people who took one look at a failed awakening and gave up.
Idiots.
All of them.
The system chimed again.
[Growth Condition Updated.]
A new line appeared.
[Requirement Identified: Recognition]
Arianne froze.
Recognition?
That was his condition?
Not power.
Not resources.
Recognition.
Someone had to acknowledge him.
Someone had to believe he wasn’t useless.
Arianne slowly looked at Leon.
The boy was quietly watching the flowers nearby.
As if he had already accepted his place in the world.
And somehow…
That made it worse.
Because children weren’t supposed to look like that.
Children were supposed to dream.
Not give up.
The green light flickered again.
This time it lasted longer.
Leon frowned.
“…Did you see that?”
Arianne immediately looked innocent.
“See what?”
“The light.”
“There was light?”
Leon looked uncertain.
Then shook his head.
“Maybe not.”
Good.
Let’s keep the mysterious magical gardening powers a secret for now.
Arianne wasn’t ready to explain them.
Mostly because she couldn’t.
The system suddenly flashed.
Arianne’s eyes widened.
A new notification appeared.
[Hidden Ability Reacting.]
Both children froze.
A faint pulse spread through the garden.
Like a heartbeat.
Soft.
Gentle.
But real.
Leon slowly grabbed his chest.
“…What was that?”
Arianne swallowed.
Because for the first time…
The system didn’t look calm.
It looked excited.
[Dormant Ability Detected.]
[Estimated Potential: S-Rank ]
Arianne nearly fell off the bench.
S-Rank what?!
She looked at Leon.
Then at the screen.
Then at Leon again.
This kid?
This quiet, awkward, abandoned child?
The one everyone ignored?
The one sitting in a forgotten corner of the garden?
An S-Rank?
No.
The screen didn’t say S-Rank.
It said:
S-Rank
Arianne suddenly understood why the system cared.
And for the first time…
She realized she might have accidentally picked up something far more troublesome than a farm.