Chương 626: The Man and the Maids

"Finally gave up that hermit-beggar look. Amazing what a woman can do to a man," Artemis said.

"Anne cut my hair, and Charlie said she likes it when I look put together," Luke replied.

"In that case... amazing what women can do to a man. There goes your Lord Voldemort era. At least tell me you managed to forge a few Horcruxes first." Five days had passed since Beacon 2 had been cleared. Luke was in a cabin aboard the ship. During those last few days, they had gone through an intense crash course to help Anne learn how to operate it properly. It had not been easy, but the doll maid was incredibly diligent and explained everything well. They also had the four pennants they had taken from Beacon 2.

Those pennants infused the ship's sails with wind magic, allowing the vessel to generate its own wind and sail in whatever direction they wanted, which made everything much easier. On top of that, the robot Cadmus also knew how to navigate, complementing Anne's explanations.

"Now I can focus on leveling my profession more easily," Luke said, tasting a liquid from the cauldron with a shell.

"This is awful..." With the ship serving as a mobile base, he finally had room to focus on his profession and tend to his plants, especially while experimenting with the new ones he had collected. Luke wanted to create a potion that helped people breathe underwater, not for himself, but for the rest of the group. He also wanted everyone to have an emergency backup in case one of their items broke. And beyond that, creating a new kind of potion granted a massive amount of experience.

"The navigator knows how to handle a ship well, and how to avoid treacherous currents," Cadmus said.

"But the third challenge is even farther from the Main Island."

"And what exactly are you implying?"

"All the Beacons so far have been in the Reef region. The farther you go, the deeper you move into the true Open Sea. The more exposed you are to those waters, the more dangerous it becomes, especially with all the Stage 2 penalties your region is dealing with."

"Okay, Wall-E, that's enough bad news," Artemis said. Luke went back to stirring the cauldrons, not with telekinesis this time, but with his own hands. It was a fun hobby. After that, he started checking on the greenhouse.

"When Katarina stayed inside the greenhouse, she accelerated the growth of the other plants. Even the magical ones. That's interesting." Your profession [Guardian Botanist of Mother Freya] has reached Level 79! (+5 Strength, +3 Agility, +4 Vitality, +4 Intelligence, +12 Free Points) The more attribute points I get, the stronger I become. And one more level unlocks a new skill. Then the door burst open. Standing in the doorway was a girl with a pout on her face and an openly irritated expression. Luke sighed.

"Hello, Layla."

"Hello?" she repeated.

"There's a sign on the door saying not to come in."

"There is not."

"Layla, just assume there is one every time you think I'm in a room." She dropped a bucket and mop onto the floor.

"I finished my cleaning duties. Including that disgusting-smelling lower deck."

"Good work. Want a reward?"

"That's not the issue. The issue is the ship's duty board."

"Layla, don't be selfish. Everybody has chores. This isn't a hotel."

"I'm not complaining about that." She stepped closer and stopped right in front of him, arms crossed.

"Why does Katarina have the title of 'First Mate'?"

"The first mate is the most important position after the captain. That person can even check the captain's abuse of authority. It's a position of real power on a ship."

"And why did you give that position to a damn plant?"

"Because I trust her. And you should get back to your duties before my first mate reports that you're slacking off. Want to be thrown off the ship? The sea is full of sharks." She let out a breath.

"I do not care about your antics, and I have no idea how you convinced everyone else to split the duties like this."

"Anne's the navigator. Everyone trusts her. And when I suggested the plant should be first mate, she thought it was 'cool.' Got a complaint? Go argue with an assassin maid."

"I'm not wasting my time fighting with your insanity. But why is there a damn parrot drawn next to what's supposed to be my role?" she asked.

"This conversation is already answering that question," he said. A soft knock came a moment later. A maid with porcelain-doll skin stood in the doorway carrying a tray.

"Good afternoon... Lord Luke," Anne said as she stepped inside. She set down the tray with tea and biscuits.

"Anne, only you could restore the peace that was stolen from me in this place," he said.

"I'm... flattered," she replied shyly.

"By the way, Layla has complaints."

"I-I-I do not," Layla said immediately. Layla was terrified of Anne.

"I'll leave you two alone to talk," Luke said.

"N-no, th-that's alright," Layla said.

"I-I do not want to bother you, Lady Anne." The maid looked at her, then at Luke, gathered the sides of her dress in both hands, gave a small curtsy, and left the room. Once the door closed, Layla waited a few seconds before finally breathing again.

"Any complaints?" Luke asked.

"None..." she said, still a little irritated, but she did not add anything else.

"I love democracy... the democracy of fear," he said with a smile as he sipped his tea. After that, Layla left Luke's improvised office-laboratory.

"I have an idea. I'm going to treat Layla the way I'd treat a dog," he said while working on a potion.

"Might actually work."

"You're being served by a beautiful maid. This is basically your paradise, isn't it?" Artemis asked.

"Does Luke Moon like maids?" Cadmus asked.

"I do not."

"He absolutely loves maids."

"Hmm," Cadmus said.

"It is good to have hobbies."

"The correct term is fetish," Artemis said.

"Fetish?" Cadmus asked.

"Listen, all of you. I do not have any kind of maid fetish," Luke said.

"Yes, you do. Especially for modern maid uniforms," Artemis said.

"That is absurd," Luke replied, offended.

"Modern uniforms? They're boring. Victorian-era designs are obviously superior." Artemis sighed.

"See...?"

"Yes... that may, in fact, qualify as a fetish," Cadmus said.

"It is not a fetish. It is simply an objective observation about reality," Luke said.

It was night. Luke had just finished his daily lesson with Anne on how to handle the helm and operate the ship. Now he stood watching the water. Angie still hasn't shown up. He opened his system interface. A skill selection notification was waiting there. His second class had reached level 80 while he was inside the Beacon. When he clicked it, five skill options appeared. [Black Flame Torrent (Epic)]: Sometimes a fireball is not enough.

This skill allows the Witch to fire a stream of flame from one hand born from a [Shadow Ball], unleashing a torrent of black fire capable of incinerating enemies and everything in its path. Although the flames burn out quickly after use, their temperature is far greater than that of ordinary fire, and they also hinder the regeneration of any target they strike. A spell that reveals the Witch's most destructive side.

[Mirror Step (Rare)]: Allows the Witch to step into mirrors or other reflective surfaces, such as water. Once inside, she can hide from enemies and even remain concealed while the reflection itself is moved, making this skill extremely useful for infiltration, assassinations, or tormenting those foolish enough to stare into a mirror for too long. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

[Telekinetic Arcane Tentacles (Epic)]: Your mastery over mana allows thick arcane tentacles to rise from the ground through [Mana Infusion], after which they can be controlled mentally through [Enhanced Telekinesis]. They are useful both for restraining enemies and for attacking, giving the Witch extra weapons on the battlefield and reducing her opponents' advantage.

The number of tentacles depends on your mana control and the requirements of the linked skills, but the more that appear, the harder they become to control with precision. [Teleportation Pentagram II (Legendary)]: This skill has now reached a new level of power. In addition to inheriting all the capabilities of [Teleportation Pentagram], it grants one additional teleportation circle, allowing the Witch to place up to three teleportation circles and expand her magical mobility even further.

More than that, its power has grown significantly: the maximum range between teleportation circles now scales with the Witch's class level, allowing her to travel greater and greater distances as she evolves. In addition, the Willpower attribute further increases that range, granting an extra bonus to teleport distance. [Cursed Healing (Rare)]: [Despair Aura I] gains an additional effect. Enemies affected by your presence will feel pain whenever their wounds are healed, as long as they remain near the Witch.

A perfect skill for confusing healers, disrupting recovery, and spreading even more fear and despair across the battlefield. After all, few things please a Witch more than watching hope turn into suffering. These skills are so good that if I could, I'd take all of them. Every single one of them could be absurdly useful in its own way. Black Flame Torrent could be a hidden ace if I ever got surrounded, and it would be incredibly useful against large groups.

But the skill doesn't say how long I can sustain the torrent, how long the cooldown is, or worse, how much mana it burns. [Acid Blood Arrow] was excellent for dealing with crowds, but it practically required Luke to stay well outside its area of effect. The acid cloud spread too fast and too unpredictably. Even he could get caught in it. With this other skill, at least, he would be the one directing the fire.

I'm assuming it's the kind of skill that can only be used through a magic-conducting artifact, like a wand, or in my case, my magic ring. There was no scenario where he would willingly walk around without that ring. He never took it off. Still, ever since the battle royale island, Luke had started imagining situations where some outside force left him without it. If that happened, he would only be able to use basic Witch skills, and that skill almost certainly would not be one of them.

If that ever happens, I'll just fall back on my assassin abilities. And I doubt the other skills would work without the ring either. [Mirror Step] was useful for infiltration, but Luke already had [Shadow Dive]. Being carried around inside a mirror would be pretty useful. Especially a small mirror. For infiltration, it's genuinely strong. Even so, he left it as the last option. [Telekinetic Arcane Tentacles] was a fusion of two paths, his understanding of mana and his telekinesis.

It was a skill he was genuinely curious to test. That left [Teleportation Pentagram II] and [Cursed Healing]. Being able to confuse a wounded enemy while they recover is useful, but compared to the others, that one gets overshadowed. So only three real choices remained: [Black Flame Torrent], [Telekinetic Arcane Tentacles], and [Teleportation Pentagram II]. I'm back at the same crossroads again. The first is pure offense. The second sits somewhere between offense and utility. The third is nothing but utility.

That was why he had put off choosing ever since Witch reached level eighty. There's no way I can pass up the usefulness of this one. [You acquired the Class Skill: Teleportation Pentagram II] Let's see what changed. Luke raised both hands and activated the skill. Damn. The range really did increase by a lot. As far as his special eye could see, he could feel where he was able to place the teleportation circles. And now he no longer had only two circles to work with. He had three.

Luke was on a small island they had found, nearly flat and barely worth calling an island at all. The ship had sailed off, leaving him there alone. Creatures began crawling out of the water.

"Let me run the damn test." Luke gripped his kukri, poured [Cursed Weapon] into it until the blade turned purple, and went to work on the beasts climbing ashore. When he had finished killing them, he pointed a hand at the ground. [Teleportation Circle 3 activated] A circle inscribed with a pentagram appeared. Luke stepped onto it. [Teleportation Pentagram activated] He reappeared on the deck of the ship.

"Well, damn, Cinderella," Evangeline said.

"It actually worked. I thought we were going to have to come back and pick you up."

"I'll be right back." Luke stepped onto the circle again and appeared somewhere else.

"Master Luke," Charlie said when she saw him. She was in the ship's room, where the first teleportation circle had been placed.

"I'll be right back, Charlie." Then Luke returned to the island.

"The mana cost stays the same. Always one thousand. And I can choose which circle I appear at. Interesting." A Stalker was watching him from the shoreline. The moment Luke turned his back, the creature lunged. He turned and drove the kukri into it. The Stalker screamed as [Curse] spread through its body. Once it hit the ground, Luke kept firing [Shadow Ball] into it. [You have slain an Abyss Stalker - Lvl 88] 293. 012 EP earned Your second class [Arcane Witch] has reached Level 81!

(+12 Intelligence, +10 Wisdom, +7 Perception, +6 Willpower, +5 Agility, +3 Vitality, +2 Endurance, +10 Free Points.)"Tests complete." He sat down in the sand. A teleportation circle can be moved if it's placed on something like a ship. So what happens if I try to exploit that by sending the ship far beyond the maximum range? Would the circle disappear? That was a test for another day.

A day passed. Luke stood at the prow. The sea was rough. Jack was helping Anne navigate, since he had a thread leading in the direction of his father. At the same time, the group was sailing toward Beacon 3. They had finished Beacon 2, but they were already partway through the phase for the next one. They only had eight days left before they lost that Beacon phase. Luckily for Jack, his father was in the same direction they were already headed. Which meant his father was probably clearing Beacons too.

"This is weird, Anne. My father... he's not someone powerful. He shouldn't even have the system," Jack said. He had repeated that more than once.

"Parents lie..." the doll maid replied.

"Yeah. Parents lie..." Luke said, thinking of Elizabeth Moon. By nightfall, the waters in that area were crowded with giant fish, natural obstacles blocking the route. A golden glow shimmered among them. Charlie had jumped into the water and was fighting them alone, leaping from rock to rock and dropping down on them with her fists. When she finished, she came back to the ship in a single jump.

"I did it. I got another artifact," she said happily, while at the same time dragging a huge fish with her and dropping it onto the deck.

"Congratulations... Charlie... very good," Anne said, clapping. Charlie was enjoying having her own storage item now. A small leather pouch attached to a belt, something she could wear at her waist. It suited her.

"That fish is huge," Eleanor said.

"More for me," Artemis said. Anne picked up two daggers.

"Time... to clean... the fish." And the maid cleaned it right there, carving out the best cuts and setting them on a table. Luke returned to his lab. He was using the item he had received for clearing the Beacon. [Pirate Eyepatch (Rare)]: An eyepatch worthy of a pirate captain, or of someone who just wants to hide something. Worn out of necessity or style. This accessory can give exactly the right impression, or the wrong one. A dangerous man, or just someone clumsy enough to blind himself. Who knows?

Enchantments: [I Can Still See! (Common)]: "I can still see!" is what anyone would say after putting on the eyepatch, because it does not block your vision. [Can I Really See? (Uncommon)]: "Can I really see?" is what anyone would ask after activating the eyepatch and finding everything pitch black, but do not worry, it is still useful. When this enchantment is active, you can see buried treasure or treasure hidden behind walls. If there is a concealed chest, you will see it.

Why do I feel like the system enjoys messing with me? The eyepatch was only useful for one thing. Helping Luke hide his heterochromia. Opening the system interface, he looked at the free attribute points he still had to distribute.

Name: Luke Level: 87 Race: Half-Demon Rank: E Core: [Spectral Beast (Rank E)] Class: [Demonic Predator (Lvl 90)] 2nd Class: [Arcane Witch (Lvl 81)] Profession: [Guardian Botanist of Mother Freya (Lvl 79)] Titles: [Dark Lord], [Myth Slayer] Bloodline: [Bloodline of the Dark Demon] Health Points (HP): 10950/10950 Mana Points (MP): 13583/14760 Stamina: 7863/7890 Soul Fragments: 771/1000 Stats: Strength: 720 Lethality: 1406 Agility: 1314 Dexterity: 540 Endurance: 789 Vitality: 1095 Toughness: 506 Perception: 1270 Wisdom: 1476 Intelligence: 1438 Willpower: 1108 Free Points: 22 Class Skills: [Advanced Blade Handling (Uncommon)], [Advanced Knife Throwing (Rare)], [Twin Blade (Common)], [Basic Dark Dash (Rare)], [Crimson Fang (Ultra-Rare)], [Predator's Mark (Rare)], [Demonic Blade Dance (Rare)], [Force Infusion (Rare)], [Advanced Stealth (Rare)], [Assassin's Tracking (Rare)], [Mana Infusion (Rare)], [Basic Archery (Common)], [Demonic Predator Hands (Epic)], [Demonic Predator Throwing Knife (Epic)], [Burst Throw (Epic)], [Stealth Critical Strike (Rare)], [Shadow Dive (Rare)], [Knife Storm (Epic)], [Feline Agility (Epic)] Second Class Skills: [Advanced Magic Conjuration (Uncommon)], [Teleportation Pentagram II (Legendary)], [Curse (Common)], [Cursed Weapon (Uncommon)], [Shadow Ball (Common)], [Enhanced Telekinesis (Rare)], [Witch's Gaze (Uncommon)], [Cursed Weapon Throw (Rare)], [Telekinetic Impulse (Rare)], [Telekinetic Pull (Rare)], [Witch's Thread (Rare)], [Despair Aura I (Rare)], [Clear Mind (Ancient)], [Shadow Mana Explosion (Ultra-Rare)], [Spell Grimoire (Epic)], [Tactile Telekinesis (Rare)], [Telekinetic Stasis (Rare)] Profession Skills: [Herbology of Mother Freya (Ancient)], [Precise Extraction (Common)], [Advanced Potion Crafting (Uncommon)], [Corrupted Plant Growth (Rare)], [Plant Sensor (Uncommon)], [Botanical Bond of Mother Freya (Rare)], [Seed Conversion (Rare)], [Plant Manipulation of Mother Freya (Rare)], [Corrupted Blood of Mother Freya (Ultra-Rare)], [Thorn Mutation (Uncommon)], [Soil Analysis (Uncommon)], [Botanical Purification (Uncommon)], [Acid Blood Arrow (Epic)], [Soil Guardian I (Ancient)], [Vegetal Respiration (Common)], [Stomach of Mother Freya (Ancient)] Race Skills: [Identify (Common)], [Demonic Perception (Uncommon)], [Dark Blood (Uncommon)], [Advanced Meditation (Uncommon)], [Demonic Endurance (Uncommon)] Rank Skill: [Soul Infiltration (Rank F)] Bloodline Skill: [Servant of the Dark Lord (Unique)] Servants: [Charlotte Vespertilio (Vampire) - Lvl 82], [Unavailable] Familiar: [Unavailable] Luke distributed his points: +2 Strength, +4 Lethality, +6 Agility, +1 Endurance, +3 Perception, +4 Wisdom, and +2 Willpower.

The ship had entered a region drowned in fog. The sea was unnaturally calm. There was no wind at all, which would have made navigation miserable if they had not still been carrying the speed pennants.

"Your father's still in this direction?" Luke asked Jack. The healer barely went near the cabin area. He stayed busy helping with navigation instead. Luke knew he would be doing the same thing if one of the Baumanns were out there.

"He is. He's definitely somewhere in this Beacon zone," Jack said. Luke looked at the notification that had appeared the moment he exited Beacon Two's dungeon. Phase 3 Challenge And then the challenge text appeared.