Leonidas stood over Anabel’s sleeping form.

It was inconvenient to wash and clean her for now, as that would only ruin her rest. But the result of that was her body and face still being covered in soot and grime.

Her round face was scrunched up and her button nose was covered in beads of sweat along with her forehead.

The faint lingering scent of vomit hung in the air even though Lady Eve had cleaned it up, making Leonidas realize that Anabel’s condition was, indeed, bad.

Leonidas placed his palm on her forehead, taking a breath.

There was a simple way to help Anabel, and that was by Promoting her to Paladin. Even if the Promotion didn’t expel all of the toxins, it would help by strengthening her body manifold.

“Be Enlightened beneath the Halo of Goddess Yves. Shed yourself of sin and bathe in the light of Healing. Become the Paladin of I, Level 3 Missionary Leonidas.”

A warm light enveloped Anabel, causing the air to clear up and the dirt and grime that covered the petite woman to be whisked away.

Leonidas, though, didn’t see any of these things as his own eyes were closed. Instead, what he saw was a panel.

He had once again entered a familiar foggy world, but this felt different.

There was a new sort of connection forming within his body and this world happened to have a small and naked form of Anabel floating in space.

It only took a moment for Leonidas to understand that this must be some sort of interface for Apostles to help strengthen their Paladins. In fact, he could see all the information about Anabel right here.

Anabel’s weight was actually much heavier than what you might expect for such a petite woman. But, her lean muscle mass added heft to her frame where there otherwise wouldn’t be.

As for the rest, it was pretty much expected. There was a much longer list of things Leonidas could check, but they were pretty much all like her bloodline, nothing special.

However, Leonidas wasn’t concerned about this. Bloodlines could be bought, talent could be extracted, and foundations could be improved.

What couldn’t be procured in the same fashion was the same loyalty and gratefulness Anabel would have.

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Paladins cost just as much as Apostles to Promote, and unlike Apostles, even if they had talent, they didn’t gain any discounts.

At the lowest Levels, all Paladins were basically Fighters. As such, they had the same progression paths, the only difference being the prefix ‘Paladin’.

This was to say that the cost for Promoting a Knight to a Paladin was 100 Blessing Units, just the same as a Clergyman to an Apostle. However, there was a greater option as well.

A Paladin was only as powerful as how much you invested into them. Beyond just the strength, speed and sensory boost you could gain by Promoting, you would still need to provide Blessings, weapons and armor.

Likewise, the foundation and future of a Paladin were only worth as much as you put into their Promotion.

With 100 Blessing Units, Leonidas could Promote her and be done with it. But, with more, he could excavate her potential and lay a more solid foundation.

Leonidas shook his head. Even just to max out the bare minimum, her strength, speed, reflexes and Breath Pool, he was short. As for these Bloodline Talent Fragments, they were even more out of reach.

‘I need 25 Blessing Units. Not too difficult.’

Leonidas pulled out a sword.

While Apostle Maw was going wild with her hysterics, believing herself to be blind, he had managed to snatch it away.

It wasn’t anything too impressive or imposing, but it was still a Level 3 weapon worth anywhere between 80 and 100 Blessing Units.

After trading it in, Leonidas gained 87 and flooded it into Anabel.

…

Leonidas didn’t hesitate to choose Paladin Swordsman, this suited Anabel best for now. In addition, it seemed that her strength was much higher than it should be, taking only 7 Blessing Units to maximize. She clearly had talent in this regard, so Leonidas thought of giving her a heavier sword.

‘Hm?’

Leonidas expression shifted.

<241 Blessing Units Remaining>

That shouldn’t have been possible. The only way was if…

‘I get a 50% discount here too?’

Leonidas let that sink in for a moment. If this was true, could he possibly allow Lady Eve to benefit as well?

The message came from nowhere and astonished Leonidas more than anything before it.

If he wasn’t certain before, he most definitely was now.

Goddess Yves was most definitely responsible. There was no other explanation. She was helping him.

It almost felt as though Goddess Yves had read his mind before. He had said that she was just giving him back what he had earned anyway, but who knew she would make up for it like this?

Leonidas calmed his mind and tapped forward.

Since it didn’t specify which fragment, he might as well unlock the most expensive one, right?

In the real world, Anabel’s body convulsed.

The dirt and grime on her body had been erased by the golden light, but it had returned in full force as her pores pushed out what looked like toxic fumes, sweat and even beads of blackish blood.

During the Bloodline Talent Fragment unlocking, the effects were even more exaggerated, her mouth spilling over with vomit and her body oozing out with impurities.

It was just a fragment, and yet the changes were all so profound.

The bad news was that Leonidas found himself dirtied only marginally less than his bed.

The good news, however, was that it seemed this forced awakening was enough to push the last bits of toxin out of her system.