Lady Callista took a deep breath as she allowed her newly acquired Martial Technique, Death's Embrace, to circulate inside her body.
It had been six months since Hans had given her a potion that was supposedly able to cure her condition.
This wasn't the first time Hans had done such a thing. Over the years, her Butler had met with the most prestigious Healers, Alchemists, Herbalists, and a few other noteworthy individuals who were said to be able to cure any diseases.
Unfortunately, none of them succeeded in the end. But Hans didn't give up.
Lady Callista only drank the potion because she believed that her Butler, who was also her best friend, wouldn't hurt her in any way.
After drinking the potion, she didn't feel any changes aside from feeling less fatigued. In the end, she thought that this was just another fluke and felt sorry for Hans for wasting his time and effort for the umpteenth time.
However, the Butler only smiled and assured her that she was on her way to recovery.
Not wanting to make him feel bad, she just nodded her head and sighed internally.
But as the days passed, she felt that her health was gradually improving.
Even Trisha was surprised because Lady Callista was now able to stand up on her own for short periods of time, allowing her to go to the bathroom on her own.
A month later, the old lady sensed that her Rank, which had been constantly deteriorating, had not just ceased to decline but had also begun to show hints of recovery.
On that same day, Hans handed her a purple Jinn Core while Trisha was making her regular reports to the Patriarch.
The Butler said that the Jinn Core contained a Martial Technique that would allow Lady Callista to use the power inside her body as an offensive ability.
Of course, she half-doubted Hans' words, but since the potion that he had given her seemed to be working, she thought that she had nothing to lose if she tried.
The moment she held the Jinn Core in her hand, it immediately dispersed and turned into particles of light.
There were several symbols that appeared in front of her, which merged with various locations of her body.
Suddenly, Lady Callista entered a state of enlightenment and fell into a trance.
Hans guarded his Mistress for nearly two hours before she broke out of her daze.
Immediately, the old lady started to circulate the Martial Technique inside her body and was surprised with the results.
The poison that had made her suffer for many years followed her will, and it washed over her body, enhancing its abilities.
Her strength rose a little, making her recall that she hadn't been training for the past few years of her life.
Back then, she used to train every day. However, after the poison had spread inside her body, the mere act of stretching her muscles hurt her so much, so she stopped training altogether.
But now, things had changed and, according to Hans, it would change for the better.
Taking a deep breath to stabilize her condition, Lady Callista ended her morning routine.
When she opened her eyes, it was filled with life and vitality, making the butler in front of her smile faintly.
"Hans, have you prepared the car?" Lady Callista asked. "I don't want to keep my grandkids waiting."
"It's ready, My Lady." Hans bowed.
"Good." Lady Callista smiled. "Trisha, let's go."
"Yes, My Lady," Trisha replied.
Since the first time that Lady Callista had visited Thirteen's family, she adjusted her schedule and went to see them twice a week.
To her surprise, Arthur didn't make any move to stop her, which made her wonder what her husband was up to.
She was not aware that after the Patriarch saw Mikhail's and Shasha's potential, he decided to let his wife visit them on a regular basis. This way Trisha could check their progress and report it to him.
Also, he knew that after a few back and forths, he wouldn't be able to stop his wife anyway, so he decided to just let her do what she wanted as long as she didn't visit them every single day.
There was also the matter with the Assassin Organization, Death Wish.
Arthur didn't know if they were targeting Gerald directly or if their targets were the entirety of the Leventis Family.
In order to check whether Gerald was their sole target, he paid extra attention to what was happening in Solterra.
Fortunately, none of his other family members nor any of the members of the Branch Family received any reports of any assassination attempts.
Arthur had sent a few Grandmasters to protect his disowned son's residence due to Michael's proposal.
Michael stated that as long as Gerald was under threat, Lady Callista would not leave his side, which would complicate things further.
In order to avoid that, he assigned a few bodyguards to keep their family safe, at least until they were certain that no one in Pangea was targeting them directly.
It took only half an hour for Lady Callista, Hans, and Trisha to arrive at their destination.
The moment she entered the gates, an adorable little girl immediately appeared in their vision.
Remi walked toward her grandma with a wide smile on her face and her arms spread wide.
The old lady then waited until her grandchild neared her wheelchair before she gave her a gentle hug, and placed the little girl on her lap like she always did whenever she was in their residence.
"Where's Gerald?" Lady Callista asked Alessia, who was taking care of Remi a moment ago. "Is he still in the Smithy?"
Ever since her son recovered from his injuries, he started trying his hands at blacksmithing.
Lady Callista welcomed this change because as long as Gerald stayed home, he wouldn't have to worry about being targeted by the Assassin Organization, Death Wish, which only operated in Solterra.
Although she didn't have too high of an expectation that Gerald would succeed at his new hobby, she decided to support him financially, which irked her husband.
"How about Zion?" Lady Callista asked. "What is he doing now?"
Aside from Remi, the old lady paid extra attention to the five-year-old, who made her feel at ease.
It was a weird feeling, especially since she was stronger than the boy. But whenever she was around Thirteen, she felt as if she was talking to an equal who possessed the same strength as her.
"He's with his father in the Smithy," Alessia replied with a bitter smile on her face. "Aside from training in the mornings, he joins his father in the Smithy until dinner time. It seems that he is also interested in blacksmithing."
"Is that so?" Lady Callista nodded. 'Maybe I should talk to my connections and look for someone who would train Zion as a blacksmith apprentice. He's still young, and if he starts training now, he will definitely become an expert when he grows up.'
If Thirteen only knew about Lady Callista's thought, he would probably snort in disdain.
Him a Blacksmith Apprentice?
Is that a joke?
All the Blacksmiths in the world would bow down and kiss his feet the moment they found out that he could give them a Divine Skill that would allow them to craft Mythical and Legendary Weapons.
The Five Monarchs and the Head of the Central Government were the only six people who were able to gain Mythical-Ranked Equipment.
They had gained those from Laplace Demon and The One as a reward for conquering the Tier-9 Gate, where Thirteen's Host had died.
Aside from them, there was no one else who was able to even see a Mythical Ranked Weapon, which was a rank lower than the Legendary Rank.
Thirteen was busy training his father so that he would, at the very least, be able to craft Mythical Ranked Equipment before Mikhail's time to start his First Wandering came.
Away from the eyes and ears of people, the two worked hand in hand to hammer the precious metals in their collection.
Both of them had failed many times, but they didn't give up. Thirteen had already calculated their expenditures, as well as the time needed to hone their craft to the point where they could create Mythical Ranked Equipment for the Patriarch of the Leventis Clan, Arthur.
The moment they succeeded, they wouldn't have to worry about money and resources again because the Patriarch would surely commission the black sheep of his family to produce Mythical Ranked Items exclusively for him.