[Vol. 1] Chapter 20: Shadows and Undercurrents
"Mmm… it seems like it worked."
Violet finished her skill and opened her eyes to inspect the patient on the bed. Although there had been a significant transformation, his facial features still revealed that he was the same person as before.
The recovered Leyton appeared to share a striking resemblance to Rekt, with around 70 to 80 percent similarity.
However, he had a more robust, mature, and weathered look with a square face, radiating a unique charm and dignity that only an older man possessed. It was likely to make quite a few young ladies dizzy and infatuated.
Unfortunately, Violet had no interest in men.
The veteran general, who had guarded the border for decades, was now staring at Violet with his spirited copper-colored eyes, as if he had seen a ghost. He kept glancing between Violet and his own body, as if his mind was struggling to accept this…
"A miracle… This is a true miracle… How fortunate… Who on earth are you?"
"Just call me Violet. I'm just a traveler driven by curiosity. Currently, for some reason, I'm serving as Princess Lilya's guard… something like that?"
"Princess's… guard?"
Leyton wanted to say something more, but Rekt, who was filled with excitement, had already pounced on him and hugged him tightly.
"Father! This is wonderful… Thank the spirits… Thank the goddess… It's amazing, truly amazing!"
The young officer in white armor gazed at the completely restored, even more youthful and robust elderly man, tears streaming uncontrollably down his face. He turned to express his gratitude to Violet but seemed hesitant, perhaps worried about offending the "divine messenger" who had brought about the miracle, making him appear somewhat at a loss.
Unconcerned with these matters, Violet simply made way for him and stood to the side, reflecting on her experience of using this skill.
Indeed, [Blessing from the Skies] had taken on a different effect in the real world. No, it wasn't that the effect had changed, but it seemed to have been enhanced and made more complete and rational.
This skill was part of the "Holy Light" skill tree and could only be unlocked at level 80. It had strict prerequisites, including proficiency in several healing skills.
In simplified terms, [Blessing from the Skies] was equivalent to a 9th-tier spell. Its effect was to keep the user in a high-speed full recovery state for a prolonged period and remove all abnormal effects.
In the context of the game, "full recovery" referred to HP, MP, and usually less important stamina points, plus an additional stat, SP, that only appeared after reaching level 100.
However, in the real world, it appeared to encompass a much broader sense of full recovery. Violet could feel that Leyton's muscles, organs, blood, and spirit had all been revitalized significantly. The Weakening Curse had been cleared, just as she had anticipated.
Moreover, speaking of it…
In [Illusory World], "Blessing from the Skies" was actually quite a comical skill. Despite the awe-inspiring scenes created by the light beam, this skill had inherent tracking capabilities during its duration.
In other words, if you activated this skill in battle, a spotlight-like beam of light would continuously follow you, much like a stage spotlight, making it quite amusing, especially in the dark of night…
What's even more intriguing is that, although this is clearly a single-target skill that can only be cast on oneself, it has an effective radius of up to three meters. Any unit within this range can enjoy the same full recovery effect.
Yes, it doesn't discriminate between friend or foe.
When Violet first learned this skill, it caused quite a shock to Rekt. However, considering its impressive recovery effect and its status as one of the prerequisites for the ultimate Light Mastery, she ultimately decided not to get rid of it, keeping it until now.
"I have a feeling there's quite a commotion outside… Anyway, it's not my concern."
The noise outside the stone house was growing louder. Before Violet could say more, Lilya rushed over and grabbed her sleeve, urging her to come outside.
"Come with me!"
"Hey, hey, what are you doing? Don't pull my clothes!"
"Shh! Be quiet! Don't make a scene!"
......
The capital of the Human United Kingdom, the Courage City.
In a lavish and noble sleeping chamber, a man dressed in regal attire was playfully frolicking with two beautiful young women, engaged in some unspeakable game. However, at a certain moment, his expression changed.
"Suddenly, something has come up. You both should go back."
"Huh? ~"
The two young women looked quite puzzled, their resentment almost overflowing from their faces. However, they didn't dare to disobey the man's wishes and quickly got dressed. They left through a side door.
"What's going on? At a time like this, you're disturbing me. As a man, you should understand that I'm quite angry right now. There better be something important."
The man sat alone on the bed, casually popped a fruit into his mouth to relieve his emotions, as if speaking to the air.
"Leyton's curse has been lifted by someone, and the method used was very skillful. I couldn't trace any information back to its source."
The palace resonated with a deep voice, creating echoes that reverberated from all sides.
"…Incompetence."
The man's tone, once relaxed and leisurely, suddenly turned icy.
"Apologies, we made a mistake this time."
"Don't talk nonsense, you should know the role of Leyton in the Western Front. Once he's back, our agreement with the Beastman Emperor will become very difficult."
"I understand, but if that's the case, why didn't we just kill him from the beginning?"
The man's expression became somewhat impatient, "Kill him? What good would that do for me? Besides, if we did that, the entire kingdom would know the next day that the Marshal of the Western Garrison was assassinated. Would my clever sister still fall for it? Now you come to question me only after the assurance that the curse was foolproof and absolutely unbreakable?"
"…I have nothing to say. I didn't expect that even the power left by the gods could be broken. The reports say that not long ago, there was a huge beam of light that reached the sky and earth for hundreds of miles at Wanhe Fortress, and then Leyton appeared. I suspect that someone used the divine remnants to save him, and the scale of that power is probably at least pseudo-god level."
"Are you suggesting that there are skilled individuals helping my sister?"
"Not necessarily skilled individuals, but there is definitely some connection to the ancient gods."
"Gods…"
The man toyed with a peculiarly shaped ring on his finger, remained silent for a while, then waved his hand, "Never mind, since it's a divine miracle, I suppose it's beyond your predictions. This time, I won't hold you responsible, but Lilya must be defeated or killed in the Western Frontier, as for the beastmen, you'll have to figure that out yourselves. Otherwise, I don't need to emphasize the consequences, do I?"
"…I understand."
The dark aura lingering in the bedroom quietly dissipated, leaving only the expressionless man on the bed.
"Tsk… they're all fools…"
"If it weren't for having to rely on you to overthrow our big brother, I wouldn't even bother… I didn't expect our fifth sister to be this difficult to deal with. It seems the assassination plan has failed, is it related to that Crimson Flame?"
"Just in case, let's prepare some backup plans."