Chapter 355 - 355 - Choices for the Future, Hand of Omnipotence!

Development Ability:

|Versatility G|Hunter G|Mage G|Abnormal Resistance G|

|Strong Body G|Magic Resistance G|Escape G|

|Concentrate H|Accuracy H|Strong Defense H|

...

Leon opened his status panel and glanced at it.

...Huh?

Something felt off.

He frowned.

Something wasn't quite right.

He looked again...

He tilted his head, his gaze settling back on those few lines of development abilities...

The next second, realization dawned on his face.

"So that's it!"

"No wonder my Pharmacology practice has felt so stiff, no wonder the compounding never had that smooth, flowing feel to it..."

"It's because I don't have 'Compounding'!"

"As for the other related development ability, 'Mystery,' that one probably leans more toward the research and theory behind specialized skills like alchemy, pharmacy, and smithing. It might not boost the immediate quality of the finished product much."

"But in the long run, it likely sets the ceiling for breakthroughs and innovation in a formula."

"Hmmm... so next time I'm picking a Development Ability at level-up, maybe I should weight things toward those two directions?"

His gaze drifted to his existing skill column, where Hand of Omnipotence sat quietly giving off a faint glow.

...

Hand of Omnipotence

·Grants the Development Ability 'Versatility'

·'Versatility' is linked to all Development Abilities

·Each level-up allows extra Development Ability selections, up to three;

...

"By Lv.5, my combat-related Development Abilities will be more than enough for now. Even if I pick up a few more combat traits like 'Magic Resistance,' 'Strong Body,' 'First Strike,' or 'Combo,' the diminishing returns mean the overall boost to my fighting strength would be limited."

"But if I develop toward the specialized side, the payoff is a whole different story. For one thing, the Monster Hunter Special and the Wild Mixture would definitely break past their current ceilings under those buffs. The Versatility boost might climb from the current 5% to 6%, 7%, even 10%..."

"And that kind of improvement wouldn't just help me, the whole team gets to share in it."

At that thought, the corners of Leon's mouth lifted on their own.

The earlier confusion had left his eyes, leaving only a clear plan and a faint flicker of anticipation.

"Mm, if the effect really does improve, then maybe the Monster Hunter Special's price could go up a notch too. It's not like those big-spender clients... would miss the pocket change anyway."

If a few of those "top-of-the-leaderboard big shots" had heard that, their reactions probably would have varied quite a bit.

With Freya Familia's wealth, they might not care at all; the Justice Familia took the elite route, so their purchase volume was small and the impact limited.

But Loki Familia, who were just as tight on funds, were a different matter.

They fought as a massive legion, which meant they bought in far greater quantities. So even the slightest fluctuation in the Monster Hunter Special's price meant a sizable extra expense for them.

When that happened, if Finn wanted to keep up the current supply but couldn't cough up more money, he'd probably have to trade something else for it...

Like, say, those out-of-print rare books treasured in their Familia's library.

After all, those were a goddess's personal collection, plenty of them one-of-a-kind originals, extremely valuable.

With a whole crowd of excellent Mages living under his roof, Leon had long been eyeing the collections of those great Familias with envy. If he could trade for a few of those treasures, he wouldn't hesitate for a second.

"Still... the premise for all this is that I have to reach Lv.5 and successfully develop 'Compounding' and 'Cooking' first. It's a bit early to be thinking about all this now."

He shook his head and gently closed the panel.

Rising to his feet, he stretched and let his gaze sweep over the finely crafted Magic Stone clock on the wall.

"It's this late already?"

"Tch... whatever I'm doing, once I lock in, my sense of time goes fuzzy."

He took off the Gale-Force Reading Glasses, carefully wiped the lenses with a soft cloth, then tucked them away in the glasses case he kept on him before finally turning to leave the workshop, heading up the stairs.

...

...

The workshop was located in the basement.

Being underground, it naturally had no windows.

By the time Leon followed the stairs back up to the ground-floor sitting room, the sky outside had gone fully dark, leaving only the fireplace casting warm, dancing shadows across the room.

"Whew... the big sofa really is the best."

As if he'd shed every ounce of strength, he ignored the few subtle looks coming his way and sank into the soft embrace of the couch.

In that instant, he narrowed his eyes in contentment.

Unfortunately, the comfort didn't last more than a few seconds.

Irisviel puffed out her cheeks slightly, her small nose wrinkling, her face full of obvious distaste. She raised a hand and waved it gently in front of her, her tone polite but leaving no room for argument:

"Dear Mr. Leon. I think perhaps you ought to go take a shower first."

"?"

She paused, her eyes sweeping over his frizzed-out hair and the suspicious stains on his collar.

"Have you really not noticed? You're giving off a... sour, bitter, and somewhat pungent strange odor. And, well, your appearance might also... need a bit of tidying up?"

From somewhere, she produced a small compact mirror, pinching her nose as she held it up in front of Leon.

Leon: "..."

The reflection showed his face streaked with black and gray smudges, his hair blown out into a tangled bird's nest. His expression froze instantly, and his whole face darkened at a visible pace.

Without a word, he sprang up from the sofa and bolted toward the washroom without looking back.

It would have been fine if Iri hadn't said anything, but once she spelled it out, he immediately caught a clear whiff of the bizarre smell on himself, a mix of scorched grime, medicinal fluid, and sweat...

How could anyone put up with that?

"Hehe, Mr. Leon looked like such a mess running off like that!"

"I'd bet he had a pretty rough time with his experiments today."

Hearing Laurier's words, Iri explained with a soft laugh:

"Mm, Pharmacology really is an important branch of alchemy. Our Einzbern family has some related traditions too. As far as I know, mystical-side Pharmacology is hard to even get a foot in the door of without a certain amount of talent."

"Eh?"

Laurier blinked.

"So you're saying Mr. Leon actually has some talent in this area?"

Iri nodded with a smile.

"That's right. And he's already past the stage of pure theory study and started getting hands-on with the actual work..."

Just then, Aura lifted her head from between the pages.

She thought about all the endless "cheat" skills Leon kept pulling out, and suddenly it all seemed perfectly reasonable.

The way she saw it, Leon's very existence was already ridiculous enough, so even if he suddenly became a potion-maker, there'd be nothing worth being surprised about.

As if!

...

While Leon was battling the grime all over his body in the bathroom...

Elsewhere, Jeanne and Rose, wrapped in thick "quilted cloaks" and carrying a Wonder Pack no bigger than a handbag, had just stepped out the front doors of the Guild headquarters.

Standing at the entrance, the two exchanged a glance, then drew a deep breath at the same time.

Savoring the fresh, icy air of the snowy day, their brows immediately relaxed...

"Whew..."

"Other than being a bit colder, snowy days are good in every way, the scenery and the air alike."

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