“That’s the whole story... so it really wasn't my doing.”
Leon explained the entire sequence of events from beginning to end. He then pulled a lollipop from his pocket, unwrapped it, and popped it into Alicia’s mouth.
He didn't hide a single detail. He told Alicia everything—the reincarnation, the inherited memory, and the existence of Big Alicia.
This was Alicia’s destiny; she had the right, and the necessity, to know her own origins and responsibilities.
Leon didn't want to be like those “it’s for your own good” parents who made decisions for her and took it upon themselves to keep everything hidden.
After listening to the explanation and accepting the lollipop bribe, Alicia finally stopped staring at Leon with that look of indignant grievance.
Her intuition told her that Leon wasn't lying.
However, as Alicia looked at the pink hair falling over her shoulders, she found it very hard to get used to no matter how she looked at it.
It was like an orange-flavored lollipop suddenly turning into grape; even though it was still sweet, it wasn't the flavor she was familiar with.
Noticing her gaze, Leon took a step forward, gathered the hair falling over her shoulders, and twisted it into a bun at the back of her head.
“If you really can't get used to it, just tie it up. You won't feel so out of place if you can't see it,” Leon said with a smile.
Alicia realized he was right. Oh, as long as she couldn't see the pink hair herself, she wouldn't feel uncomfortable!
“Besides, Alicia, haven't you noticed that you've advanced to the Silver rank?”
Leon added.
Upon hearing this, Alicia sensed that the arcane power within her had reached a new level compared to before she slept, as if a lollipop had transformed into a giant lollipop.
“Silver... rank.”
Alicia thought to herself. Now that she had reached the Silver rank, could she help Priest Leon again?
When dealing with those invisible monsters and turret monsters before, she was supposed to be Priest Leon’s guardian, yet she was the one who ended up needing his protection.
But now...
Alicia chanted softly under her breath, and a strange power radiated from her. Leon recognized this as a manifestation of the God of Thieves’ divine power.
Once she finished the incantation, her form seemed to melt like a shadow, merging into Leon’s own shadow.
Leon watched this scene with curiosity. This rogue technique of diving into shadows seemed different from the one she had used during their sparring matches.
‘Priest... Leon.’
Suddenly, Alicia’s voice rang out. It didn't come from the room or from Leon’s shadow; it sounded directly inside his mind.
‘Alicia?’
Leon was startled. He didn't speak aloud but asked the question in his mind.
‘Yes... it’s... me... Priest... Leon.’
Alicia’s voice echoed in his mind once more.
She could communicate directly in his mind?
As Alicia explained further, Leon understood the new ability she had mastered after her advancement.
This ability was called 【Shadow Watch】. It allowed her to dive into someone’s shadow, attach herself to them, and communicate telepathically. Its concealment was extremely high.
While submerged in the shadow, Alicia could manipulate it to provide protection for the person she was watching over, or she could emerge at any moment to catch an opponent off guard.
‘Holy cow, this ability is really sneaky!’
‘Sneaky... what... does... that... mean?’
“Er, Alicia, come out of my shadow first...”
Leon said, feeling a bit of a headache coming on.
At his word, Alicia jumped out of Leon’s shadow and returned to her original form.
Leon looked at her. While 【Shadow Watch】 was undoubtedly powerful, this direct mental communication was a bit embarrassing.
If he ever had a stray thought complaining about her in his head, she would probably hear the whole thing...
Fortunately, Alicia wasn't the quickest on the uptake. Even if he grumbled about her, she probably wouldn't realize it immediately.
Furthermore, mental speech was not the same as raw thought. As long as Leon intended it, he could communicate via mental speech without leaking his inner musings.
Still, he’d better not let Alicia crawl into his shadow too often in normal times...
“Sneaky... what... does... that... mean?” Alicia asked Leon with a face full of curiosity after emerging from the shadow.
Leon explained, “It doesn't have a bad meaning; it just means your ability is very impressive.”
Alicia nodded in understanding, then said seriously, “Priest... Leon... you... are... very... sneaky!”
Leon: “...”
Forget it, he wasn't going to argue with this airheaded pinkette.
“Is 【Shadow Watch】 the ability you gained from your inherited memory?” Leon asked.
Alicia took on a thoughtful expression—she needed to search through the complex information in her mind, which was wrapped in memories of various ways to eat lollipops, to identify exactly what other abilities she had mastered after advancing.
After a moment, she finally found the ability she had gained from the 【inherited memory】.
Alicia shook her head at Leon. “No... not... Shadow... Watch. It... is... this.”
As she spoke, she held her hands out as if grasping something, and two phantoms suddenly appeared in her palms.
As Alicia continuously infused arcane power into the phantoms, they became increasingly solid, finally manifesting as a pair of short daggers emitting a strange, cold light.
The hilts of the daggers were a dark red, while the blades were stained a deep black more profound than a black hole.
When Leon’s gaze fell upon the edges of the blades, a violent tremor shook the depths of his mind. A brutal intent pierced his consciousness like a sharp spike, screaming frantically in his head:
“Hungry! So hungry! Devour... devour everything!”
Clang!
At the moment that massive intent of hunger pierced his mind, a resonant chime like a tolling bell immediately rang out in Leon’s head, giving him a sharp jolt and allowing him to quickly break free from the hunger that wanted to consume all.
【Divine Art Casting Grade: Average】
【The Will of the Gondor Empire EXP +5】
【The Will of the Gondor Empire Lv0 (0/1) → The Will of the Gondor Empire Lv1 (4/100)】
The newly acquired 【The Will of the Gondor Empire】 rose from Lv0 to Lv1. His willpower bonus and resistance to mental attacks both increased.
But what horrified Leon the most was not the level-up of the divine art, but the power carried by the pair of daggers in Alicia’s hands.
That was the power of 【Hunger】!
“Priest... Leon... what’s... wrong?”
Seeing Leon suddenly tremble all over with saliva uncontrollably escaping the corner of his mouth, Alicia asked with concern.
As she asked, she began to approach Leon while holding the two daggers.
“Stop, stop, stop!” Breaking free from the 【Hunger】, Leon hurriedly called for Alicia to stop approaching.
“?” Alicia didn't understand, but she stopped in her tracks as usual.
Leon carefully averted his eyes from the blades of the daggers and said:
“Alicia, when you hold those daggers, do any strange thoughts pop into your head? For example, do you feel very hungry?”
Alicia felt for any thoughts in her mind and shook her head. “No.”
Good, as long as she didn't.
Leon breathed a sigh of relief.
He understood now why Big Alicia had said that with successive reincarnations, the power within the 【inherited memory】 would become increasingly formidable.
Holy cow!
Big Alicia’s 【inherited memory】 had actually managed to pluck the power of 【Hunger】 itself!
What level of power was 【Hunger】?
For Leon, if he hadn't been in a non-physical state in the dream, he would have been completely consumed by that power of hunger.
And for Big Alicia, who was an extremely powerful being even among the legendary rank, she had been tortured to the point of near-death by 【Hunger】, and ultimately her soul was corrupted by it, leaving her forever in that wilderness.
And yet, power of that level was currently being held in Alicia’s hands like a pair of daggers!
Rate on N.U.
