There was a brief silence after Kael finished speaking.
Jonas didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he seemed to organize his thoughts before finally looking Kael in the eyes.
"To answer your first question, the reason is actually quite simple."
He folded his hands together.
"Only Hunters below the age of twenty are allowed to participate in the tournament. The same restriction applies to entering the Treasure Rift itself."
His gaze remained fixed on Kael.
"And among everyone who meets that requirement, you’re the strongest."
"You aren’t just talented, Kael. You’re an anomaly."
"An irregular."
"I’ve watched countless geniuses rise over the years, but I’ve never seen anyone whose growth speed comes anywhere close to yours. If anyone has the highest chance of completing the President’s request..."
Jonas smiled faintly.
"...it’s you."
Kael didn’t say anything, allowing him to continue.
"As for your second question..." Jonas said, his smile gradually fading. "The truth is, I don’t know."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"The Association President believes the Treasure Rift contains an item capable of helping him comprehend Laws. As for why he’s so certain..."
Jonas slowly shook his head.
"I honestly don’t know."
"He never explained his reasoning to me."
A moment later, Jonas continued.
"Your third question was how you’ll recognize the item even if it really exists."
He chuckled helplessly.
"I don’t know that either."
Kael looked at him strangely.
Jonas spread his hands with a bitter smile.
"The President anticipated you’d ask that. Before I left, he specifically told me not to worry about it. He said that when the time comes, he’ll personally provide you with a way to identify the item."
Kael fell silent.
His expression remained calm, but his thoughts continued turning.
Jonas, on the other hand, became slightly nervous.
Seeing Kael remain quiet made him wonder whether the young man was considering refusing.
"Of course," he quickly added, "the Association isn’t asking you to do this for free. You’ll be properly compensated."
Kael finally looked at him.
He didn’t speak.
He simply waited.
Jonas understood the meaning behind that gaze and continued.
"You recently established a guild, didn’t you?"
Kael wasn’t surprised in the slightest.
Creating a guild required official registration through the Hunter Association. Since he had registered Mothlight Guild under his own name, he never expected information like that to remain hidden from people at Jonas’ level.
He simply nodded.
Seeing that, Jonas smiled.
"Then you should know better than anyone that Rifts are the backbone of every guild."
Kael nodded again.
That was an undeniable fact.
In the current era, the strength of a guild wasn’t measured solely by the power of its members.
The number and quality of Rifts under its control were equally important.
Rifts generated an enormous amount of wealth every single day.
Hunters paid entry permits.
Guilds purchased monster materials directly from returning Hunters before reselling them at a profit.
Merchants rented stalls near Rift entrances to buy and sell equipment, potions, and resources.
Even those temporary stalls required fees, with vendors paying the guild for permission to operate there over a fixed period before renewing their permits once they expired.
Those were only the most basic sources of income.
The higher the rank of the Rift...
The greater the profits.
Likewise, powerful Hunters naturally preferred joining guilds that controlled numerous high-ranking Rifts. It gave them easier access to hunting grounds and resources, making recruitment significantly easier.
Although there were exceptions, none of that changed the fact that Rifts were the foundation upon which every major guild was built.
Jonas waited until Kael finished processing everything before revealing the Association’s offer.
"If you agree to the President’s request..."
"The Association will transfer the management rights of two A-Rank Rifts..."
He raised another finger.
"...five B-Rank Rifts..."
Then another.
"...and twenty Rifts below B Rank to Mothlight Guild."
"What do you think?"
Even Kael couldn’t hide the flicker of surprise that crossed his face.
The offer...
Was astonishingly generous.
He knew exactly how valuable Rifts were.
Some guilds earned millions every year from permit fees alone, and that was only one portion of their income. Once merchant leases, resource trading, service fees, and countless other streams of revenue were added together, a single high-ranking Rift could support an entire guild.
Yet now...
The Association was offering him seven high-ranking Rifts.
Along with twenty lower-ranked ones.
With that many Rifts under its control, Mothlight Guild would immediately possess the foundation of a respectable mid-tier guild despite having only just been established.
The reward far exceeded his expectations.
Could he negotiate for more?
Perhaps.
Judging by everything Jonas had revealed today, it was obvious the Association President desperately wanted his cooperation.
If Kael pushed harder, there was a chance he could extract additional benefits.
The thought flashed through his mind.
Just as quickly...
He dismissed it.
There was no need.
Sometimes knowing when to stop was more valuable than squeezing every possible benefit out of a negotiation.
If he became greedy now, the relationship between himself and the Association could easily deteriorate. Even if he succeeded in obtaining a little more, the long-term consequences wouldn’t be worth it.
Besides...
He couldn’t deny the curiosity growing inside him.
A Treasure Rift.
A place capable of making four surviving human civilizations wage war against one another.
A place the Association President believed contained treasures related to the comprehension of Laws.
No matter how he looked at it...
It couldn’t possibly be an ordinary Rift.
Somewhere deep down, Kael had the feeling that there was a far greater secret hidden inside that place.
Without any further hesitation, he nodded.
"I accept."
The moment those words left his mouth, Jonas unconsciously let out a long sigh of relief.
Only then did he realize just how tense he had been.
Before sending him here, the Association President had given him only one instruction.
Do whatever it takes to secure Kael’s cooperation.
That was precisely why the reward had been so generous from the very beginning.
Fortunately...
Everything had gone according to plan.
Jonas smiled.
"Good."
"Then that concludes our discussion."
Kael, however, shook his head.
"Actually..."
"I have one more question before we finish."