Alison put everything away, walked over to Elrianthe, grabbed her hands, and waited.

“Why did you do that?” Asked Elrianthe, surprised.

“That's what you do,” replied Alison with determination.

According to tradition, when one went to the oracle, one should kneel before her and wait with his head lowered. By placing her hand on the kneeling person's head, the oracle had insight into his soul. The very act of kneeling symbolized respect, while making it easier for the oracle to interact.

Only physical contact was required. Alison wasn't lying, but she changed this custom slightly to get closer to her goddess.

“Taygeer didn't have to touch me,” Elrianthe replied.

“Taygeer is influenced by your magic,” remarked Alison.

“Actually. That makes sense.”

Elrianthe looked at Alison's statistics. She was 298 experience points short of reaching level six, but even if she wanted to give her some of her experience, she only had 150 points. Instead, she found one unused development point.

'We'll see what it draws,' thought Elrianthe, selecting a random effect.

[ Alison Roseberg received the < Magical Subsidy > skill.]

< Magical Subsidy > (Class A, Manipulation) - A mana manipulation skill that allows you to enhance your body or objects.

The description was not comprehensive, leaving plenty of room for her own interpretation. Elrianthe read it aloud and asked Alison if she could try testing her new skill. Of course, both were curious about the results.

Alison decided to take this opportunity in the process of brewing potions. After a few minutes, she handed Elrianthe two vials.

One of the concoctions was prepared under standard conditions, while with the other, Alison applied < Magical Subsidy > in the final stage of production. Elrianthe examined both vials, and her jaw dropped from the impression.

The regular concoction healed 200 health points in 60 seconds. The second one, on the other hand, restored as many as 300 points in just 30 seconds and further reduced exhaustion by 5%.

“I can't get out of amazement sometimes when it comes to your genius. How did you come up with that?”

“Well, I thought that if magical items gain their properties from being infused with the enchanter's mana, then a similar method should also work for potions. I simply infused it with mana at the right moment,” Alison explained her thinking.

“You have a unique talent for finding ways around, you know? Couldn't you just try to create some kind of protective barrier around your body, or strengthen your hand enough to crush metal bars?”

“I could, but why would you want to test something obvious?”

“Well, yes, but it doesn't hurt to discover as many uses as possible.”

The two spent the rest of the evening researching their options.

Four days until the meeting with the Marquis...

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Carl and Jim were hanging around the table, preparing breakfast for the rest of the group. Suddenly, Elrianthe, accompanied by Taygeer, rushed into the room and turned toward them.

“You two. Follow me,” she called out.

Slightly surprised, they put everything on the table and followed Elrianthe. She led them to the dungeons and then, standing in front of one of the cells, opened the door.

“Inside.”

Jim didn't think much about it, he simply followed the order. Carl, on the other hand, hesitated.

“Why? What did we do wrong?” He asked.

“Did you really ask me that question? I could understand if it was Jim asking it, but you? You've done me enough harm that I could kill you on the spot. Get inside!” Said an annoyed Elrianthe and her voice was full of hatred.

Carl went inside as Taygeer stood behind his back. Elrianthe closed the cell door behind him and then deactivated the magic controlling their minds, restoring their freedom.

“Oi, what is the meaning of this?” Carl shouted as he regained full control of his body and mind.

“Oh, well, there you go. Are you finally back to your senses, you pathetic twit?” Elrianthe mocked.

Carl clenched his fist but did not answer. He knew that if he got carried away by his emotions again, it would not end well for him.

“Don't worry. Soon you'll be my dog again and I'll take you out for a walk,” Elrianthe said with a fake smile.

Elrianthe left the dungeon and Taygeer followed her. He didn't question her decision, knowing that she always had a reason for it.

In this situation, one reason was obvious. Elrianthe now had two free spots for new puppets who would do better in battle than Jim at level three and Carl at level four.

Less obvious was the opportunity to earn free development points. By 'free' she meant one point, which belonged to Jim.

During yesterday's session with Alison, Elrianthe discovered that not only can she exchange development points for others, but she also has the right to take them away. The same is true of skills. Since Jim was a puppet, she could take away a development point from him without his permission. The only requirement was adequate control - from 60% she could take away points, and from 80% she could also take away skills.

For this reason, she did not take points away from Carl, as her control over him was below 60%. Elrianthe had no intention of wasting time. After using < Domination > again in the future, his control would surely reach 100% without any problems.

Taking away points had no risk, but taking away skills had serious consequences.

Sooner or later she would take everything away from him. And not only him. The whole group was going to contribute to Elrianthe gaining even more power.

She exchanged the dev point gained from Jim for an additional 30 points of magic, raising her limit to 290.

“I guess it's time for another hunt,” she said to herself.

Despite being near death yesterday, Elrianthe was in great shape thanks to Alison's help. She wasn't going to give up or slow down, at least for a while.

At the moment, she resembled an impassioned gamer taking on a difficult challenge in her favorite game. She had a goal, a plan, and the right skills. Her determination ensured that she was going to use everything she had to finish this challenge with the best possible result.

[ Level: 9 (850/25600xp) +150 ]

'It's time to finally hit that level 10.'

Elrianthe went hunting with the rest of the group. To increase their combat capabilities, she took control of two level 6 wolves and a level 8 bear along the way.

This time they took the direction south, toward the rocky hills. From her gamer experience, she was convinced that she would meet stronger creatures there than those in the green forest.

And she wasn't wrong. Raven quickly located the target, and the group moved to the indicated location. To their surprise, the monsters they found there were already fighting among themselves.

On one side stood a creature that could be described as a mixture of ogre and minotaur. It was about 3 meters tall, wore two thick horns on its head, and its heavily muscled body was covered with black fur. His legs stood out in particular, resembling those of a bull.

On the other side stood a huge lizard with brown scales, resembling a Varanus from Komodo. Its long and sharp claws posed a deadly threat to anyone who dared to oppose him.

'We'll wait and see who is stronger,' thought Elrianthe.