Kelvin paused, his sharp eyes flickering toward Walker. He studied him for a moment, then gave a small nod of approval.
"Good."
The single word carried weight, an acknowledgment of the resolve in Walker's voice. He didn't need to hear any more.
Then, without another word, Kelvin lifted his hand and opened his palm.
Hope's eyes widened as a soft glow appeared, tiny specks of light swirling into existence above Kelvin's skin. The air seemed to vibrate with a quiet hum, and within seconds, the twirling particles coalesced into a single, round sphere of pale golden light. But that wasn't all. More spheres materialized one after the other, forming a neat row hovering above his hand.
Eight of them.
Hope inhaled sharply.
He had seen Kelvin summon and dismiss his armor before, had witnessed the strange particles of light dissolving into his body—but this was different. This wasn't a piece of armor forming from nothingness. These spheres were completely new.
He wasn't the only one caught off guard. Even Walker, usually indifferent to most things, glanced at the glowing orbs with mild curiosity.
Hope finally found his voice. "What are those?"
Kelvin glanced at him before shifting his palm slightly, making the spheres hover just above his fingertips. The light reflecting off his face made his features seem even sharper.
"These are soul cores of the corrupted fiends I've killed," Kelvin explained. His voice was calm, almost clinical, as if he were stating an obvious fact.
Hope frowned. "Soul cores?"
Kelvin nodded. "When you kill a corrupted fiend, its essence doesn't just vanish. If you're lucky, you can harvest its soul core. These cores are remnants of the creature's power, crystallized into a form that can be absorbed or traded."
Hope's fingers twitched. This was something the government never spoke about in the brief, censored knowledge they gave the public about the Veil. The idea that slain creatures left behind something tangible—something valuable—had never been mentioned.
"So they can be harvested?" he muttered, mostly to himself.
Kelvin smirked. "Yes. But only by those who have been marked by the Veil. These cores are useless in the hands of normal people."
Hope's mind raced with possibilities, but he kept his expression neutral. He knew better than to reveal his thoughts. Instead, he simply nodded and kept listening, his eyes fixed on the glowing soul cores hovering over Kelvin's palm.