Two days until the meeting with the marquis...

First thing in the morning, Elrianthe again went to the dungeons to assess the effects of her actions. As usual, Taygeer accompanied her as a bodyguard, but this time, his presence seemed unnecessary.

There was a grave silence in the dungeons. Already on the stairs, they smelled a repulsive odor, and the scene that unfolded before them below was even more disgusting. The floor looked worse than a barn, covered with liquids of various colors and consistencies.

Jim was shaking, huddled in a corner of the cell. Carl lay unconscious against the bars, in torn clothes, and next to him slept an orc. They were both covered in the same mix that had been present on the floor.

Elrianthe, covering her nose from the stench, approached the bars to check the orc's condition.

[ Shaman Urguluk ]

[ Level: 11 ]

[ Status: Deep sleep. Very happy to finally be able to satisfy his needs after many years of forced abstinence. ]

'I am convinced that this much is enough. I won't even wake him up,' she thought, reaching between the bars to the orc's head.

< Domination >

[ Using < Domination > successfully ]

[ Successful acquisition of a new puppet ]

[ Urguluk Shaman Level 11 ]

[ Control: 93% ]

Her eyes momentarily shone when she was allowed to grab a new skill. This is another huge step forward.

[ Would you like to take away the < Illusory Aura > skill from the ''Shaman Urguluk'' puppet? ]

“Yes,” she replied.

[ Calculating... ]

[ The action you are undertaking has an 80% chance of success. To continue? ]

“Yes.”

[ There is only a 16% chance that the puppet will survive the process. Continue?]

“Yes.”

[ Puppet: Shaman Urguluk has been killed ]

[ A new skill < Illusory Aura > has been obtained]

“YES!” She shouted exultantly, not caring one bit about the orc's death.

< Illusory Aura > (Class S, Illusion Magic) - A skill that allows you to create illusions using the host's magic aura. The effectiveness and quality of illusions depend on the density of the aura and the host's magic power, which also affects their short range.

Elrianthe immediately wanted to try out the new ability. Placing her hands side by side, she imagined that a flame was being born inside them. At the same moment, the aura gathered around her hands began to form sparks that shot in all directions, transforming into small flames that extinguished, falling to the ground.

“Amazing, although difficult to control,” she said under her breath.

Without hesitation, she used all her free experience points to upgrade her new skill. With 9,000 more points at her disposal, she developed it all the way to the fourth level.

[ The skill < Illusory Aura > reaches level 2. Mana intake has been halved. Illusions are more stable and require less concentration. ]

[ The skill < Illusory Aura > reaches level 3. The range of maintaining illusions has been increased. Illusions beyond the host's range can hold in place for up to 3 seconds. ]

[ The skill < Illusory Aura > reaches level 4. Illusions created can cover the entire space within the host's range, provided the host is able to power their maintenance. Illusions created close to the host's body have a reduced maintenance cost and are more stable. ]

She decided to try again. The flame in her hands burst into a bright glow. Elrianthe, unprepared for such a realistic effect, was frightened, as if she were about to burst into flames herself.

“Now that's something!” She exclaimed with joy.

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Continuing to play with the flame in her hands, she managed to transform it into a flaming bird that began circling around her and then flew deeper into the corridor, dissipating more and more until it disappeared completely.

'I won't say it out loud, but attacking this orc settlement was probably the best decision of my life so far,' she thought, delighted with her new abilities.

'Something must be done about these two...'

“Jim,” she called out, after cutting the bonds on Carl's hands.

Receiving no response, she looked in his direction. He was sitting there further away, shaking like a jelly.

“Jim!”

“Ah!” Moaned Jim, jumping up nervously.

“Wake up your friend and clean up the cell,” said Elrianthe.

“...”

“You can sit in the mess, too, if you like,” she reflected at his lack of response, then left the dungeons, and Taygeer followed her.

When they got a bit further away, Taygeer, intrigued by Elrianthe's actions, decided to ask.

“Was that in your plans too? To take away his power?”

“Of course,” said Elrianthe.

“I thought you just wanted revenge on Carl,” he replied surprised.

“Revenge was just a bonus. Remember how that shaman tricked Gaz during the duel? I want to do the same with the Marquis,” she explained.

“But... won't he gain absolute power over you? You won't be able to resist his orders once the pact is signed,” Taygeer wondered.

“That's why we won't sign the pact,” replied Elrianthe.

“I don't understand,” he said, pausing.

“See this?” Elrianthe asked, showing him the inside of her right hand.

Taygeer looked closely and saw a string of illuminated letters that made a circle. They looked like tattoo, hidden under the skin, the contents of which came out as light.

“It's a ‘slave mark.’ Gaz mentioned it to me when we talked about ways to falsify the pact. This mark only becomes visible when imbued with magic and reveals information such as the name, age, and current owner. This data is entered at the time of signing the pact, based on its contents. This means that my tattoo should change when I confirm the pact with my blood. This is where my new skill comes in,” she said, again showing him the tattoo, which now bore the name Taygeer Breezetail in place of the owner.

“That is, you will continue to be a slave, but he will have no power over you. All you have to do is pretend to obey.”

“Yes. I will be a slave without a master, just like now. Traders don't sign any pacts with us, they only brand us with a mark. The pact will be false, the blood will be false, and the mark will also be false. All thanks to this skill,” she replied with a devious smile.

“Haha. In that case, I guess I have nothing to worry about. Nice plan, boss lady,” laughed Taygeer. “By the way... How did you master it so quickly? Me, it took me a whole day to learn to use the skills I got from you.”

'Damn. I can't tell him that the system does it for me,' she thought.

“Well,... maybe... it's because I'm an elf? I think I have a natural talent for magic,” she replied uncertainly.

“That may be so. I've never met an elf before, so it's hard for me to judge,” replied Taygeer, accepting her explanation.

“Okay. I'll see you later. I'll look in on Alison now,” she said, heading toward the bedroom.

As she approached Alison's room, a thought occurred to Elrianthe. Is she capable of completely changing her appearance to fool someone's eyesight?

The door opened and a man entered the room. Alison, absorbed in her experiments, did not notice someone approaching her from behind.

*Grab*

The man's hand firmly grabbed her buttocks, causing Alison to instantly jump away, grabbing a short sword.

“Matt! What are you doing here? What do you want?” She called out, shielding herself with the blade.

Matt did not answer, but slowly began to approach, staring at her with a smile that did not bode well.

“I warning you! Don't come near me and get out of this room!” She warned, filling the sword blade with her aura.

The sword began to glow gently, emanating a bright radiance. This was her last warning before using it to cut off Matt's hands.

“It's okay now, Alison. Relax,” Elrianthe called back, dispelling her illusion.

“Elrianthe! What's that supposed to mean?” Alison asked, surprised by the situation.

“I was testing a new skill. Now I know it works just fine,” she replied.

“Eh. Did you have to do it this way? I almost used that sword against you...”

“Who would be a better target than the most intelligent and cunning person in this hole? The surprise was my only advantage,” replied Elrianthe.

Alison sighed deeply, not being a fan of surprises. Elrianthe, however, was not about to stop at pranks.

“Watch out!”

An arrow came from the direction of the open door, heading straight for Alison.

*Cut*

The arrow vanished into thin air. With one clean sweep, Alison cut it in half.

“Wow, you can do something like that?” Asked a shocked Elrianthe.

“I learned a few things recently. Please don't do it again,” replied Alison, putting the sword down against the wall.

“Fine, fine. I won't anymore,” replied Elrianthe.

Just then Matt rushed into the room. Out of breath and scared, he took a moment to catch his breath.

“Miss Elrianthe! We are under attack! It's bad,” cried Matt.

Alison looked at Elrianthe with a new measure of suspicion.

“Are you still playing with your new magic?”

“No. It's real,” she replied with considerable shock.