Without the slightest hesitation...
Roy couldn't help but feel speechless upon witnessing this scene.
Only then did he realize that Atedia had long desired to truly pledge her allegiance to him and serve him as her master.
Previously, she had followed him under the orders of the castle.
Seeing her raise her head, her eyes shining brightly as if a sincere emotion was about to ignite, Roy couldn't help but feel that it was a bit too intense.
He pondered for a moment, condensing his mental strength to manifest a curse seal pattern composed of densely packed arcane imprints, which he then stamped onto Atedia's forehead like a brand.
This power was a spiritual and soul-level force, and it could only be precisely embedded if one opened their mind and fully cooperated.
Atedia obediently complied, and soon, a soul brand with intricate patterns appeared on her forehead.
It was the nineteenth Willpower Rune, Aivo (Love and Nourishment) — ().
It symbolized livestock and property, as well as "contract and trust."
This was by no means an equal contract or trust, but rather complete submission brought about by personal dependence.
Only when they could truly control it would wizards regard it as an extension of their own power, thus investing in it with confidence.
In a sense, after establishing this master-servant contract, Atedia became the most intimate intelligent being to Roy in this world, more trustworthy than his teachers and subordinates!
In fact, Yanila had also sworn allegiance to Roy in the name of her ancestors, but that relationship was far less significant than Atedia's current pledge.
Roy opened his eyes and instructed, "Use this potion."
Atedia took the orange-yellow potion bottle, filled the syringe under Roy's guidance, and then injected it into her vein.
Soon, Atedia's complexion changed, and her entire body visibly turned crimson, her body temperature rapidly rising.
She felt her beast blood boiling, the veins on her forehead bulging and throbbing.
In Roy's eyes, her life energy ignited in an instant, consuming a large amount of energy, as if radiating particles similar to the Source of Magic.
"Is this the Combat Aura that Orc displayed before?
I initially thought it was some kind of martial art from a mid-magic world, but it turns out to originate from the Bloodline!
This should be called Blood Combat Aura!"
Roy pondered briefly, left a bottle of stamina recovery potion and his specially crafted energy replenishment potion, and quietly left the scene.
The Bloodline fusion would take some time, so he went about his own business outside, only returning the next morning to check on Atedia's condition.
By then, Atedia's condition had stabilized, but she was drenched in sweat, as if she had just undergone a thorough steam bath.
Roy asked, "Atedia, how do you feel?"
"My lord, I feel great!"
Atedia stood up from her kneeling position, and whether it was an illusion or not, her posture seemed to have become more upright.
The aura of life energy around her had naturally surged, surpassing that of an advanced knight and reaching the stage of a Grand Knight.
Roy also noticed this change and nodded silently.
...
A few days later, it was late May.
After absorbing the power of the Bloodline Potion, Atedia had indeed smoothly grown to the stage of a Grand Knight.
Moreover, due to the elite biological template provided by the Behemoth Bloodline, there seemed to be room for further improvement when her strength erupted.
Given time, it should be no problem for her to reach the 15-degree energy level of the previous Orc warrior leader.
Roy had initially considered researching whether Blood Mercury Enhancement could be applied to such a creature.
However, after consulting the materials, he confirmed that this enhancement was more suitable for creatures inclined towards magical power, as well as Constructs and mechanical creations. The ultimate Wizardry Energy intensity it could provide was also converted through Mana or energy crystals.
This was not a suitable enhancement path for her, so he had to abandon the idea.
Nevertheless, plans to craft Silver Battle Armor and Star Iron weapons were also put on the agenda.
Based on the Alchemy techniques he currently mastered, as long as he was willing to invest resources, he could quickly customize equipment suitable for her current stage.
This could significantly enhance her combat power in a very short time.
At that moment, Yanila ran into the quarry with several centaur subordinates. It turned out that the various trivial matters in the tribe had been temporarily resolved, and she had brought the latest batch of gem Dust, fine iron ore, medicinal herbs, and other items to trade here.
Following the teacher's orders, the strategy of using barbarism to control barbarism was being deeply implemented. Roy's side would provide her with food, armor, weapons, and other items.
But it was certainly not for free.
It required the exchange of various resources from the territory, such as the gem Dust that Roy was very interested in.
Roy received her and personally inspected the goods. He then issued a note worth over 1000 gold coins, allowing her to collect the goods herself from Scarto City.
Now, that city had also received the teacher's orders and must supply as much as possible if there was a demand.
Yanila, however, was not in a hurry to purchase the items needed by the tribe. Instead, she circled around Atedia, marveling.
"How is it that after just over a month, you've grown taller, and even your chest has gotten bigger?"
Atedia was momentarily stunned, then remembered that after taking the Behemoth Bloodline Potion, her body had indeed undergone some subtle changes.
The power of the Bloodline stimulated the growth of her Flesh Chunk, unlocking a certain switch for life evolution.
But she ignored Yanila's teasing and instead chose to display her Life Energy, revealing the power of the Grand Knight stage without a doubt.
Yanila's body trembled: "You, you've also reached the Grand Knight level?"
Her astonishment was no less than when she had discovered that Atedia was equipped with Pegasus Wings and could fly!
If she could still make excuses for herself last time, saying that those were just external items and not her own power, then this time, there was no excuse to be found.
The enhancement brought by the Bloodline was the solid power of a Grand Knight!
Atedia raised her head, glanced at her, and didn't explain much.
"Hmph, what's there to be so proud of!"
Yanila was somewhat embarrassed and angry, her hooves pawing the ground.
"Dare to compare martial arts with me?"
Atedia didn't answer but instead turned to look at Roy: "My lord..."
Roy chuckled lightly: "Then you can compare with her. I also want to see if martial arts can make a breakthrough under the influence of the Bloodline power."
As for whether there was a breakthrough in martial arts, he really couldn't tell.
However, when the Blood Combat Aura emerged from Atedia's body, the aura of Life Energy surged to over 12 degrees, truly breaking through the mortal limits.
Caught off guard by this, Yanila carelessly lost a move and was quickly defeated.
"How is this possible!"
She felt both ashamed and unwilling, while also being utterly perplexed.
How could it be that in just one month, she was no longer able to win!
(End of Chapter)