- Be Careful

Right then, Anya's eyes widened. She had been wondering what Leonel was doing, but when she saw the result, her golden irises were completely filled with shock.

At that moment, a lily manifested around Leonel, a strong surge of Light Elemental Force causing the surrounding winds to pick up and surge.

The sound of delicate chimes resounded, the golden bells dancing above Leonel's head. Every time they swayed, a sprinkle of golden light fell upon him, attaching to his skin and sinking into his body.

Without a word, Leonel cast this spell 17 times before he finally exhaled a breath and gripped his fists, his body finally feeling light again as he expelled the last of the black ash that had been inside of him.

'It took 17 casts and 70% of my stamina just to heal from one split second usage. This Innate Node of mine is really the bane of my existence.'

Leonel shook his head and chuckled. Though he had seemed fine all this time, he really only had about half his usual strength. He could only function normally thanks to Dream Sense dulling his pain.

'This [Twinkling Lily] series of Mage Arts I've come up with aren't bad. The [Bell's Blessing] only has about 20% of its max healing potential but it still did so well. Should I find some Star Force healing herbs that could be used with my Vital Star Force…?'

Leonel thought for a moment before he shook his head. His Vital Star Force was too precious and took too long to replenish after he used it. It was best to reserve it entirely for using [Star Fusion] at a critical moment.

As for why Leonel had only used [Bell's Blessing] and not the full version of [Twinkling Lily], that secret was rooted in the hidden carnivorous nature of the Force Herb. He felt it wasn't appropriate to test the of the Mage Art's capabilities here.

Leonel moved on without a word after Dream Sculpting the three Fourth Dimensional Force Herbs. He had already decided which Fifth Dimensional Ores he would use for his Metal Body so he didn't need to think about it.

Though his merit points weren't enough to trade for a ton of Fifth Dimensional Force Herbs, Ores were a bit different in this regard since they were sold in quantities of kilograms. At the very least, he should be able to get enough to take a first step into and solidify his stance in Tier 1.

Anya was so stunned she forgot to follow for a second.

'Did he just…'

She looked from the Twinkling Bell Lily to Leonel's disappearing back and back again. She was certain, that spell… It had given her the same feel of the plant right before her. How had he done that? How was that even possible?

It took him… Ten minutes? Maybe? To create a technique that could be passed down in Bronze Organizations for generations to come…

"Ah…!"

Anya picked up her dress and dashed after Leonel, catching up quite quickly considering he wasn't exactly sprinting. She continued to look at him as though he was some sort of monster, following closely behind.

'Fifth Dimensional Star Core will still be my foundation, upgrading from Fourth Dimensional. I'll replace Refractive Gold with Dancing Lantern Ore and I'll replace Blazing Night with a more volatile Fuel Type Ore in Devil's Shavings Ore.'

Leonel still felt the Star Core was the best foundational Ore for him. Dancing Lantern Ore worked similarly to Refractive Gold in that it could consume and concentrate the Light Elemental. But, whereas Refractive Gold was dangerous and could turn even a benign ray of sunlight into a deadly attack—a property that made Leonel's sniper rifle especially dangerous—Dancing Lantern Ore was very docile.

Dancing Lantern Ore could accumulate the Light Element to the point of saturation. Once it reach that point, its internal structure would begin to move and shift, thus the 'dancing' part of its name. This dancing wasn't just an optical illusion, though. Once it reached this state, it was possible to choose one of two paths.Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

The first was a steady output of power and the second was an immediate and violent burst that would put even Refractive Gold to shame. This made this ore quite good for armors, shields and the exterior of vessels, or the body of weapons.

Finally, Devil's Shavings Ore was like a nuclear bomb in comparison to Blazing Night Ore. However, much like its weaker counterpart, it was able to maintain a steady and relatively safe form in its complete form. Only after it was chipped, and its shavings were introduced to flames would it cause a catastrophe.

It didn't take long for Leonel to find what he needed. He wasn't stingy and directly spent all million of his points and was even lucky enough to gather enough Ores to enter Tier 3.

Of course, he would need to be patient and couldn't enter it directly. However, it was possible to use the silver tablet to loosen and erase his bottlenecks before moving forward. But, something told Leonel that he couldn't casually bring that tablet out just anywhere. So, he would need a secluded place first.

Anya remained silent as Leonel picked out his herbs, but the light in her eyes seemed to dim somewhat as she did. If Leonel had been paying attention, he might have even been able to notice that she sighed as well. But, he had grown accustomed to ignoring her completely so that he could focus his mind. Only after he was finished and stored his things away did he finally look at her again.

"Where will you go now? It can't be that you'll follow me home, right?" Leonel asked with a smile.

Anya pouted. "What would be wrong with me doing that? Are you trying to get rid of me?"

Leonel's lip twitched. He was indeed trying to get rid of her. He had things to do, he couldn't drag someone he barely knew around with him. Though, he had to admit, she was a pretty good shield. Thanks to her, things had gone far more smoothly than he thought they would.

Just as Leonel was thinking of something to say in reply, a light lit on Anya's wrist, causing her playful expression to come with a touch of cold.

"It seems I have to go," she said lightly.

Her voice was just as enticing as it always was. But, for some reason, she seemed ten years older without aging a single second.

"Oh." Leonel blinked. "Be careful, then."

Anya's brows rose at Leonel's choice of words. She opened her mouth to say something before hesitating.

"You… You be careful too." She finally said. "This galaxy isn't as simple as you think it is. Your ambitions might let you down."

Leonel's brow furrowed. "What do you mean by that? My ambitions…?"

"… The birth of just a single planet of a certain caliber is enough to change the destiny of an entire galaxy. I'm sure you're smart enough to understand what that means."

Leonel's pupils constricted. But, before he could ask more, Anya seemed to vanish right before his eyes. It was like he was both aware and unaware of what was happening at the same time… As though she had both always been there and never been there.

'What…'

Leonel suddenly realized that he had no idea just how strong Anya was. Before he could even think any further, he felt several strong auras sweep through his surroundings. He didn't even have a chance to figure out what was going on before they all locked onto him.

Leonel realized in an instant that their intentions weren't kind, but at the same time, he was confused. He was still in the Guild, how could he be targeted like this? And for what reason?

[Author's Note: … Oops… It seems that I'm bad at predicting chapter lengths as usual, lmao. The action starts tomorrow… I guess… dkm.]