It's been a week since Lia used the cauldron of enchantment. In just a short amount of time, her abilities as a magic weaver had increased exponentially.
Even if her first time ended up with the suit of armor being destroyed, that was because her mana put too many spells in the item. When an object is subjected to several magic effects and enchantments, its risk of being destroyed increases. Only garments and objects made with resistant materials and in the hands of an expert tailor can withstand the process of multiple spells. In just a week, Lia was reaching new heights.
She was working on a scarf that could change in size and had a protection spell. The more she practices, the more her mana increases. She opened her eyes and, with a proud expression, took the scarf from the cauldron.
"It's ready, Sir Yohann." Her forehead was sweating. Expending mana always makes one tired.
Yohann took the scarf and could verify that it could change size according to the wearer's will. The defensive spell was also perfectly woven. "Congratulations! You have mastered the art of weaving multiple spells into the same object. It took you only a week."
"Well, that's because you're a really good master. Lady Anna also offered me advice. You two are amazing. Thank you for accepting me." She bowed with the utmost respect to her teacher. Just like when she learned the art of tailoring from her mother, Lia discovered the work necessary for another type of clothing. Her world and capacities had increased much more than before.
"Your talent is not insignificant, but don't get arrogant. The limit of our skills is how much we perfect them. I have already taught you the techniques from our family. The rest depends on you. If you want to take your talent to an even higher level, then you must keep practicing."
"Yes, Master!"
"Tomorrow is your final exam. I want to take everything I teach you and make something unique. I don't care if you pass or not, make something as if it was the only thing you could make for the rest of your life. Put everything into it. Take the rest of the day."
Lia returned to her parents' mansion to think about her final project to present. She was sketching things in her room, trying to come up with something special. She already had the materials she was going to use. She had them resting in her bag. It was thanks to Adel that she could take them with her. These weapons were powerful, and Lia wanted to use them to make something even more incredible. In the middle of her brainstorming ideas, a knock on the door and a voice interrupted her.
"Still working on your craft as always."
"Brother!" Lia's face changed into a big smile. Her older brother, Donat, was standing at the door. "You came back from doing business, right? How have you been."
She ran to hug him. Donat did the same and hugged his little sister. They hadn't seen each other in months. "How about we talk outside? The day is beautiful. Let's go to the park. I haven't been there in a long time."
They went to the big park in the center of the Capital. They sat down in the grass and talked about the things that had happened since the last time they saw each other.
Donat was the second son of the Comtes family. Since his older brother, Aubin, was a captain in the army, the responsibility of being the successor was on his shoulders. Although he was only twenty-four years old, he had already learned the business from his father. He had spent the last few months doing business with partners and associates throughout the Republic.
"I have finally got some free time and, to my surprise, mother said you were here. I thought you were in the city of Raind, father and mother said they gave you a store because you wanted to increase your abilities as a tailor. What are you doing here?"
"I was doing business, nothing more. I still have the store, and my work is better than ever. You should see them. I know I'll make something for you. I can't remember the last time I made you clothes." She said, with a delightful expression. She wanted to show him how much her skills had improved.
The confidence of Lia hadn't gone unnoticed. Donat knew his sister; she was kind but also a crybaby. The memories of this park emerged in his mind. When Lia was little, she used to come here and play with her brothers.
She was a sweet child, although a bit spoiled, because she was the only girl and the youngest. Donat had to spend a lot of time playing with her. The gentle nature of Lia, combined with how much they spoiled her, turned her into a very sensitive woman. He felt a bit guilty about it.
Lia only had confidence in her tailoring abilities; in everything else, she was timid and insecure. But something had happened to Lia. The way she talked and the things she talked about were different.
Lia spoke about several people, friends of hers. She had spent the last few months hanging out with them.
"Adel is very serious, but he has a kind side. He tries to hide it. Eric is abrasive and headstrong, so he tends to get into trouble. Neo is very honest. Sometimes it comes off as uncaring, but she worries a lot. Thanatos is funny and caring. He's a natural leader. Sometimes he's very confrontational and I get worried, but he does it for good reasons. He's also very smart and strong and…"
The way Lia talked about these new friends made it clear to Donat. She had grown up as a person thanks to them. He felt a bit ashamed because he wasn't the one to help his sister, but that jealously disappeared as soon as he saw the way Lia smiled. A genuine smile.
"My, my, it appears I'll have to buy some gifts for those friends of yours."
"Is fine. They are not the type to ask for gifts. Believe me, they only accept things from me. They're stubborn."
"Hahaha, it is true. The one who should be thinking about gifts is the suitor, not the brother."
"Suitor?"
"See, I was correct, your face is red like an apple, haha."
Lia blushed as the word 'suitor' came out of nowhere. She didn't mention that she liked Thanatos, or that they were 'dating' and yet, Donat uncovered her relationship without even trying.
"I-I DON'T LIKE-"
"Lia, you're a bad liar. I'm not so heartless to expose your feelings in the open. But tell me one thing. Is he from an influential family?"
Lia knew what that question meant. Her family wouldn't let her marry a commoner. She had her family's reputation and connections to uphold. She knew that she could never marry him...
"No, he's not." She spoke the truth. Even if her feelings for him were real, she knew in the bottom of her heart that she could never have a family with him. That was the cruel reality. Her heart sank into a dark abyss...
"Then, introduce him to me. If I consider he's good enough for you, then I can help him set up a store or some other business. No matter what mother or father says. I'm the one who is going to become the leader of the family. If my sister likes him, then he only needs my blessing." He gave Lia a thumbs-up and a wink.
"Brother, are you serious? Do you really accept him?" Lia's eyes were filled with tears as she spoke.
"I told you, it depends if he is good enough. I'm not going to give you to a drunk good for nothing or someone like that."
Lia hugged Donat as she put her head in his chest. The tears made his clothes wet as he heard the weak voice of his sister.
"He is good, I promise. Thank you, brother…"
He patted her sister's head gently. "At the very least, he needs to love you ten times more than I do."
They hugged for a while, happy to have each other as a sibling.
"Are you ready?" Yohann asked before the final test.
"Of course she is. Show this dumb old man how it is done." Anna was beside her father, cheering for Lia.
"Yes, Master. Thank you, Lady Anna. I plan to use this for my creation. Is that okay?" Lia opened her bag and pulled out something that left Yohann astonished.
"This… How did you get this?"
The rainbow daggers After the attack by the assassins from the Hand, Adel retrieved the rainbow daggers from the dead Jakov. Although one of them was broken, the rest were in good shape. Adel wasn't sure what to do with them. Thanatos said he didn't need them. Eric and Neo preferred to fight with their hands. Adel was the only one who could use them, but he wasn't very good with daggers, and to juggle so many different weapons, each one with a different ability, was something that would take months to learn properly. He wouldn't be able to use the daggers in a proper fight in a long time.
Lia saw them and asked for them to use the spells from the daggers in her creations when she learned enchanting techniques. She explained that she wanted to make something useful for battle. Adel understood her intention and gave her the daggers.
"It's a long story, but can I use them?"
"The effect of combining so many magical effects into a single object is going to take a lot of work. You may fail if you try now."
"You said to make something as if it was my last creation. Then I want to try to make the best thing possible."
"Very well. Go and see if your talent is enough for that."
She grabbed the daggers and threw them into the cauldron. She grabbed a roll of enchanted cloth and a scroll containing the spell [Animate]. She plunged deep into the cauldron, and a multicolored light shone for several minutes. Yohann and Anna watched closely to see the result. Lia spent all her mana trying to fuse the daggers and the cloth into a single object.
When the light stopped, Lia opened her eyes and grabbed her creation from the cauldron. "Uff… Uff… Is done. Master Yohann... Anna…"
[Level obtained: Magic weaver 2]
"If you need anything, you can ask us. You're basically an honorary member of the family now." Anna said with a smile.
"Thank you, Lady Anna, and thank you, Master. I'll keep working to become an even better magic tailor."
Lia said her good byes and went back to her parents' mansion. After that, she would return to the city of Raind and back to Underworld.
After she left in her carriage, Yohann began to tremble like he was in a blizzard.
"D-Dad, are you okay?"
"Talent is the result of our persistence and hard work, but this is the second time I've met a talent that causes a shiver down my spine."
The image of a man turning people into music notes as he killed dozens appeared in his mind.
"I hope I didn't end up dooming us all, hehe."