[Enlightenment Arts Alchemy — Unlocked!]
When that line of cold golden text finally settled in Helos’s consciousness, an indescribable flood of vast knowledge completely overwhelmed her mental barriers.
Those distorted runes she once couldn’t understand in the fragmentary texts, those mysterious theories about “Will Guidance,” that forbidden knowledge of “Metal Activation” and “Biological Modification”…
At this moment, it was as if an invisible giant hand forcibly poured them into her mind, every detail becoming crystal clear.
She finally understood.
So “Will Guidance” wasn’t simply mental manipulation, but a higher-dimensional “concept” imposition.
The guide was not a craftsman, but a “definer.”
They forcefully imprinted their will—whether it be “sharpness,” “sturdiness,” or “hatred,” “fear”—onto matter, causing it to undergo a reality-twisting mutation.
She even “saw” the four brand-new alchemy skills representing “Will” itself unlocked after [Enlightenment Arts Alchemy] was unlocked.
Just as she was looking forward to examining these new abilities in detail, suddenly, deep within her sea of consciousness, a pair of eyes flashed without warning.
Those were blue pupils devoid of any emotion.
They were like a god high above, coldly gazing down at this insignificant mortal who had “stolen” forbidden knowledge.
“Ahhh—!”
Helos’s brain felt as if it had been struck.
An unbearable, soul-tearing pain instantly erupted from within her consciousness!
It wasn’t physical pain, but a complete mental crush from the spiritual level.
She felt her thoughts being forcibly invaded and rewritten by a cold, massive power.
The forbidden knowledge that had just become clear now turned into countless blazing daggers, madly churning in her mind.
Thump.
Helos couldn’t even let out a complete scream. Her body instantly lost all strength and fell stiffly backward from her chair.
The moment Helos’s body went out of control, Gavi, who had been quietly waiting beside her, moved.
Her movements were lightning fast. Almost simultaneously with Helos’s fall, she dashed forward in one stride and steadily caught her petite frame.
Gavi’s faintly glowing eye sockets, upon seeing Helos’s face instantly turn deathly pale and twisted in agony, burst into glaring crimson light!
A strong danger signal blared inside her core.
She tried to wake Helos, gently tapping her cheek with her cold metal palm.
But Helos’s body was trembling uncontrollably, her jaw clenched tight, and deep, agonized moans came from her throat. Her expression was unbearably painful.
Gavi stopped.
She could judge that this was not physical damage, nor any magical attack she understood.
Her core program, set to “maid” and “guardian,” fell into unprecedented chaos at this moment.
She couldn’t help her master.
Just as Gavi laid Helos steadily on the bed and was about to rush out the door to find Agatha, Eleanor, or even Professor Graham for help, suddenly, a change occurred!
Several magical chains flickering with blue light shot out from the air without warning.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Like living pythons, they instantly coiled around Gavi’s limbs and torso.
Crackle!
The chains carried a peculiar energy that erupted into strong mana interference upon contact with Gavi’s metal body.
Gavi felt as if all her joints were instantly welded shut. The strength that could pierce steel was powerless against these chains.
She was tightly bound by this force and heavily fell beside Helos’s bed, unable to move.
Then, a figure draped in a blue cloak slowly materialized like a phantom in the dormitory room.
The newcomer was none other than the strange old man who had gifted Helos the “Dark Star Iron” in the mysterious shop—the Enlightener.
He leaned on his withered wood staff, his eyes under the hood emitting a blue glow.
He first glanced at Helos, lying on the bed, suffering from the impact of the vast knowledge flood, then at Gavi, lying on the floor with burning red eyes, struggling desperately to break free.
A satisfied smile spread across his wrinkled face.
“Hehehe… As expected of the [Saintess].”
His hoarse voice sounded in the quiet room.
“Having already been exposed to so much ‘Enlightenment’ knowledge, and now suddenly receiving the complete ‘Mark’ inheritance, her spirit still hasn’t collapsed.”
“Mhm.”
The old man stroked his beard with his bony fingers, his tone playful as he muttered to himself:
“Although I’d like her to bear the full blessing of this mark, after all, she’s our cute little Saintess. If I really broke her, that girl Lilith would be angry.”
“So, I need to take a little care of her.”
As he spoke, he walked to Helos’s bedside.
Ignoring Gavi’s threatening gaze, he raised his staff and gently touched Helos’s forehead, covered in cold sweat from pain, with the magic stone emitting a blue glow.
A stream of cold yet pure mana instantly surged from the staff’s tip, like the gentlest spring, slowly pouring into Helos’s mind that was about to boil.
The excruciating pain that seemed to tear her apart subsided as if meeting its nemesis.
The agony on Helos’s face faded. Her tense body slowly relaxed, her breathing gradually calmed, and she finally fell into a deep, unconscious sleep.
Seeing this, the flame-like red light in Gavi’s eyes also receded.
But she remained vigilant.
She stared at the mysterious old man who had suddenly appeared, her glowing eye sockets full of hostility.
The Enlightener seemed indifferent to her threat, just chuckling twice.
He turned and walked in front of Gavi, looking down at this puppet golem that had tried to resist.
“You are… a very interesting creation.”
“You actually fused with a fragment of ‘Resentment’ and were activated by the [Saintess].”
The old man studied her with interest, then raised his staff again.
He lightly touched Gavi’s forehead with the end of the staff.
“You are the [Saintess]’s companion. Since that’s the case, I’ll give you a small gift as well.”
A mana completely different from the one that had soothed Helos instantly invaded Gavi’s core.
“And as the price for this gift—”
The old man’s voice became ethereal.
“From now on, you cannot reveal anything about me to anyone by any means. Of course, that includes Lilith and Graham.”
Gavi’s body shook violently.
She could feel an irresistible command being forcibly written into her core.
That command did not conflict with her prime directive of “protecting master,” but it was like an unbreachable shackle, completely sealing all content related to the old man before her.
“Well, how about it?”
The Enlightener withdrew his staff, satisfied with his “work.”
The blue chains binding Gavi also turned into specks of light and gradually dissipated in the air.
“A good deal, right?”
The old man let out a final hoarse chuckle. His figure blurred again and slowly merged into the shadows of the room.
The moment the old man disappeared, Gavi’s bindings were released.
She stared blankly at where the old man had vanished.
Suddenly, a strange itching sensation appeared on Gavi’s arm.