Suho Manor—just as Suna was sulking at home, an unfamiliar priest suddenly appeared at the door:
“May I ask if you are Miss Suna? The Holy Maiden wishes to invite you to the church as a guest.”
“The Holy Maiden? Which Holy Maiden might that be?”
“Of course, our very own Holy Maiden of Deya City!”
……
Before long, Suna pushed through the fervent believers crowding the streets and arrived at the church.
Even now, the church was still frequented by nobles and officials, some clutching what looked like extremely rare materials.
Dodging the towering piles of offerings, Suna followed the priest to the rear of the church, where Truth had been waiting for quite some time.
Truth immediately picked up an Extraordinary Magic Staff resting on a nearby table.
“The Hermit told me to give this to you.”
Suna barely glanced at it before her whole body trembled with excitement.
Wasn’t this Ariel’s Fire Pattern Staff? How did the Hermit manage to retrieve it so quickly?!
Hurriedly, she stepped forward and carefully examined the staff. It was genuine.
Although she had never revealed anything about the Fire Pattern Staff, the Hermit had still managed to recover it for her.
So that guy had been spying on me all along!
“Remember to keep it hidden. It carries a forbidden aura. If anyone from the church discovers it, they’ll confiscate it,” Truth said, pulling out a cloth to wrap the Fire Pattern Staff for Suna.
“Th…thank you.”
The feeling of having something lost finally regained was surprisingly pleasant, but Suna had no desire to go through that again.
Besides, now that she had the staff, she needed to leave for Snowveil City as soon as possible!
Otherwise, the demons would surely say something like, “Taking a walk in the park with me was just the deposit for agreeing to retrieve your staff.
Now that you have it, you owe me some gratitude,” and other disgusting remarks!
Just thinking about it made her dread being dragged into some unspeakable situation again, so she had to escape quickly!
Still, she was a little reluctant to leave Truth behind.
After a moment’s thought, Suna planned to sit next to Truth and say some kind of farewell. But before she could utter a word, Truth interrupted her.
“You’re leaving today? Perfect timing. Wait here!”
Truth hurried off and soon returned with bundles of supplies.
“Look, these are materials that can enhance your magical talent. Wait a moment; I’ll prepare a Gifted Potion for you now.”
With that, Truth began mixing the materials. Though she called it “preparing,” it was really just blending some strange plants and rare monster ingredients with water.
“Unfortunately, mid-tier materials are scarce here in Deya City. For now, this will have to do. But don’t worry, by the time you reach the intermediate rank, I should have gathered enough!”
“Enhance magical talent?!”
Suna immediately peered over Truth’s shoulder and saw the pestle grinding a thick, dark purple liquid. It looked like some creation not of this world. Just looking at it gave her goosebumps…
Could this really improve magical talent? Or was it just some folk remedy Truth had heard somewhere?
Countless people in the world get stuck at low ranks because of talent limitations, yet Truth spoke as if enhancing talent was as easy as pie.
Come on, if boosting talent was that simple, King Rank mages would be everywhere!
Though it did seem like King Rank mages once were common five hundred years ago…
“Done!”
After a few more stirs, Truth handed over the finished potion—“a potion specially designed to enhance the magic talent of half-elves with human blood.”
“Uh…”
Suna recoiled several steps after sniffing the indescribable scent.
“Is this even drinkable?”
Technically, it wasn’t meant for humans; it was usually given to pets. But since Suna was now considered a pet by Contract, it should be fine… probably.
Even if the potion didn’t suit her, the worst case was losing her talent and becoming useless. Truth still had many ways to save her. So—
“I’ll drink it.”
“Wait, wait, wait… hold on! Where did you get this recipe? You didn’t buy it from the Black Market, did you?”
If something like this was sold on the Black Market, it was ninety-nine percent fake.
Given Truth’s straightforward nature, Suna found it hard not to trust that she hadn’t been deceived.
“No, it’s the Hermit who gave me the recipe!”
“The Hermit? Really? I find it hard to believe he’s that kind-hearted…”
“I asked for it myself.”
Good grief, even drinking medicine had to be coaxed. If this little dog refused to drink, I’d have no choice but to force it!
“Eh? Really?”
Suna was shocked that Truth had actually asked that demon herself.
Could it be that she had been forced to take off her underwear or taken for walks in the park for her sake…
Just thinking about it made Suna feel so sorry for her!
“How could you do that for me?”
Suna placed both hands on Truth’s shoulders and questioned loudly. Sacrificing her own dignity just to get a questionable recipe wasn’t worth it!
But Truth just shrugged, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Isn’t it only right that a master treats her pet well?
“Natural…”
Hearing those four words made tears well up instantly. So… so Truth cared about me—and was willing to do so much for me!
So touching…
Suna took the so-called “Gifted Potion” and took a deep breath.
Okay, though she had no idea what exactly the demon had given Truth, she knew the demon wouldn’t poison her so easily.
Besides, even if she refused now, the demon would probably find another chance to make her drink it later.
And rejecting it now would only make Truth sad.
Alright, I’ll drink it!
Holding her breath and closing her eyes, Suna swallowed the thick liquid in one gulp. There was no “glug-glug” sound—the entire potion slid down her throat at once.
“Ugh…” Suna bent over, clutching her stomach and retching. Her mouth was full of that indescribable taste. It took a while before she calmed down.
“Good girl.”
Truth stroked Suna’s head in response. Now she could head off to Snowveil City to continue her studies.
Over the next few days, her magical talent would steadily strengthen to the peak level for half-elves.
It was like when same-rank mages were still using E3-1220V2 processors, Suna would already be multitasking with a 5700X3D.
A complete dimensionality reduction strike…
Meanwhile, outside Deya City, a black shadow slipped silently from beneath a humble fruit vendor’s feet and leapt to the shadow of another passerby.
The shadow moved swiftly toward the city’s main gate, bypassing layers of defenses to infiltrate the Deya Magic Academy. After a search, it headed toward the Church of the Goddess of Life.
“That historian isn’t in town today. Then I’ll just look for his student.”
After several days of reconnaissance, aside from confirming the Ninth Saintess’s identity, the Shadow Demon had also learned there were two scholars in Deya City responsible for studying ancient scripts.
But their minions had been too noisy, alerting the city. Now a large group of Demon Hunters was rushing their way, forcing the Shadow Demon to act quickly.
After waiting near the church for a while, a black-haired girl with waist-length hair and a short woman in a blue gown emerged from the rear door, seemingly bidding farewell.
“Once I finish the work here, I’ll come find you. The Goddess just gave me a divine revelation to boost faith here and eliminate the increasingly active demons. Looks like I’ll be very busy.”
“Also, this is for you. It’s an Extraordinary Space Pendant. I don’t need it—take it for yourself.”
“Ah? No, it’s too valuable! And with my current strength, wearing such a pendant makes me an easy target. You should keep it yourself… By the way, I write to you every month. Please wait for me.”
“Alright, Snowveil City should have plenty of mid-tier materials. If so, you can make your own mid-tier Gifted Potions. Wait here; I’ll write up a recipe for you now!”
“Eh?!”
Before Suna could refuse, Truth dashed back inside the church. Sighing, Suna hugged the Fire Pattern Staff and quietly waited outside.
Though the potion was unpleasant, it was at least a kind gesture from Truth.
And it had been quite some time without her body showing any adverse effects.
At least the recipe had no side effects. She just didn’t know what tricks the demon was up to this time.
“I hope Truth hasn’t completely fallen before I can stand against the Original Demons…”
Suna silently vowed to work hard in Deya City and gain the power to fight the Original Demons.
“That Hermit demon… I’ll definitely…”
“Ugh!”
Before she could finish the thought, a writhing black shadow suddenly erupted from beneath her feet, wrapping tightly around her entire body and silencing her mouth.
The next moment, under gravity’s pull, Suna was dragged into her own shadow.
She vanished from within Deya City…
Two minutes later, Truth emerged holding a small white slip of paper, but there was no sign of Suna.
“What? She ran off just like that? The potion only tasted a bit bad; was it necessary to be so scared? Oh well, I’ll just wait until the little dog reaches intermediate rank and then fly to Snowveil City to force-feed her!”