Arknights' Lock of Heaven

“Time limit?” Xia Yu stroked her chin upon hearing this. “No, as long as the base I drew is intact, it will continue to function.”

Hearing this, Maria and Zofia exchanged a glance.

They could both see the astonishment in each other's eyes.

As long as it's not destroyed... it will continue to work?

What kind of divine Originium technique is this?!

Upon hearing this, Zofia's legs trembled slightly.

This...this...this kind of treasure, if it were in the Kazimierz government, there would be countless people trying to win it over...and it was Margaret who entrusted them to protect him and Maria?!

If this ability were to be leaked, who would be responsible for protecting whom?

Just think, in just over twenty minutes, Maria's armor became so...powerful.

If you equipped the Silver Spear Pegasus of Kazimierz with this kind of Originium Arts, coupled with their armor, which is itself a crystallization of Kazimierz's industrial heritage...

Zofia couldn't even bear to think about that scene.

"Actually, it's not that wonderful," Xia Yu said after thinking for a moment, seeing their surprised looks. "Although the effect is permanent, it still needs to draw energy from me to work."

"The essence of this Originium Arts is simply enhancement. However, while others enhance things like materials, my enhancement elevates the concept to the level of an item."

"For example, enhancing a finely crafted suit of armor to the level of a master's masterpiece—that's the essence of this ability."

"So, you know what I mean."

High-level enhancement magic is said to be able to enhance even the abilities of Heroic Spirits, such as attributes like strength.

Xia Yu gave them a knowing look.

"Phew..." Zofia breathed a deep sigh of relief upon hearing this.

"Oh, I see. That makes sense."

Yes, how come I didn't think of the energy issue?

It's all because the limitations of Originium Arts, which are similar to enchantments, are mostly limited by duration, so she didn't immediately think about energy.

This is also a consequence of relying too heavily on empiricism.

If there are energy constraints, this capability immediately drops from the strategic level to the tactical level.

What was once a super bomb that was fiercely sought after by various countries, with some even willing to destroy it rather than possess it, has now become something that allows one to easily find a well-paid job at major companies.

That way, it becomes much easier to accept.

“Even so, it’s still quite remarkable,” Maria said, stroking the armor on her chest. “To conceptually enhance an item is simply unheard of.”

"It seems that Sister Zofia was right; my perspective was still too limited."

No, it's not that your vision is narrow, Zofia hesitated before speaking.

I've never even heard of such an outrageous ability.

“With my enhancement, Zofia, you don’t need to worry about Maria getting too badly injured in the knight competition anymore,” Xia Yu smiled faintly at Zofia. “After all, I’m quite confident in this area.”

"There are people who can break through my enhancement and hurt her, but at least I won't encounter them in the qualifiers."

"Thank you so much," Zofia said gratefully. "This silly child knows nothing about the cruelty of knightly competitions and just plunged into it without any persuasion."

"With the help of such Originium Arts, at least I won't have to worry about her too much."

Zofia's gratitude was heartfelt.

After all, everyone can see the power of Originium Arts, and Maria is happy that her safety is guaranteed.

"Can I try it?" Just then, Skadi walked out of the mansion carrying a greatsword and asked, staring at Maria's armor.

"Uh," a hint of surprise flashed in Zofia's eyes upon seeing this.

"Aren't you two colleagues? Then why is Miss Skadi here...?"

Why would she be so interested in Xia Yu's Originium Arts? Shouldn't she have known about it beforehand?

Although she didn't finish her sentence, everyone understood what she meant.

"Well, although we're all going to be teammates, the team is newly formed," Xia Yu explained helplessly. "Skadi's situation is a bit special; she always carries out missions alone, so we're not very familiar with each other."

"I first met her on the way to Kazimierz this time."

"I see," Zofia said, though she still had many questions, but she didn't ask any more.

This Agor man looks dangerous, but since he's Margaret's colleague, he'll definitely hold back.

Maria straightened her back, put down her sword, and assumed a ready stance, waiting for Skadi to draw her sword.

Seeing this, Skadi unsheathed her greatsword from behind her back and held it in her right hand.

"Ahem, Skadi," Xia Yu coughed lightly, reminding her, "go easy on her."

Upon hearing his instructions, Skadi nodded, then swung the spine of her greatsword at Maria and struck out with a wide arc.

Maria's vision blurred, and with a loud bang, her feet floated off the ground. The sky and the earth appeared in her eyes several times in turn, and she hadn't even reacted yet.

She didn't wake up until she fell into the bushes in the distance.

Struggling to get up from the bushes, he patted the debris off his clothes.

I don't feel any pain.

"Maria!!!" Zofia was stunned when she saw this.

171 Nighttime Confessions

"I, I'm fine..."

Maria stood up from the bushes in the distance, looking completely bewildered. She brushed the branches and weeds off herself and ran back to where she started.

"Are you alright?" Zofia didn't care about anything else. When she saw her run back, she pulled her over and started checking her over.

Looking at him from left to right, aside from being rather disheveled, he had no wounds on his body.

"Didn't I tell you to go easy on me?" Xia Yu looked at Skadi speechlessly.

"I tried my best to hold back," Skadi said innocently.

Yes, he used only one hand, and then struck with the spine of the sword; he definitely held back.

But to send someone flying dozens of meters away like that is just too exaggerated.

The two looked at each other in silence, realizing that their concepts of holding back were quite different.

Meanwhile, Zofia had also finished examining Maria's body and found that apart from some muscle strains, there was nothing seriously wrong.

Even those muscle strains are so severe that they're afraid of the injuries they caused during training...

In other words, although it looks terrifying, flying that far away, Skadi didn't actually use her full strength; she clearly used a clever trick.

Even Maria's breastplate didn't dent at all after taking this hit.

“Miss Skadi, really…” Zofia turned her head to look at Skadi, her gaze complicated, “…powerful.”

Of course she's stronger. Maria, whom I couldn't defeat after a long time, was sent flying so far without her even getting serious.

This level of skill is enough to win a championship in the Cavaliers Tournament.

This also indirectly highlights the power of Xia Yu's Origin Stone craftsmanship.

If Maria could be protected from such an attack, it seems I don't need to worry about her suffering the same fate as me in the knightly arena.

“Miss Skadi, if you participated in the Knights Tournament, you might be able to fight against the Blood Knights,” Zofia exclaimed sincerely.

"Wow, is it that amazing?" Maria had no idea about these things.

After all, she was someone who dared to venture into the knightly arena with only a superficial understanding.

"Of course it's amazing," Zofia said, giving her a hard slap on the back of the head. "Don't you think about it? To be able to send you flying that far without hurting you, even with Mr. Xia Yu's Originium Arts, this skill is still amazing enough."

"Or rather, the power to send someone flying while wearing reinforced armor surpasses that of the vast majority of knights!"

“Knightly competition,” Skadi lowered her head and pondered for a moment, “I’m not interested.”

“That’s true,” Zofia laughed heartily upon hearing this. “True powerhouses like you usually look down on knightly competitions.”

Take that guy Manna for example. Although we don't know exactly how strong he is, he'd definitely be a cavalryman for the Nearl family.

But he just wouldn't step forward.

"That's enough for today," Zofia said, glancing at the fading sunlight and sighing as she looked at Maria, who was covered in sores. "I'm giving you one last day off."

"Starting tomorrow, if you're not planning to give up, you'll have to undergo my grueling training."

Cherish the days you have now!

"By the way, please ask Mr. Xia Yu not to use Originium Arts when training her."

After saying that, he turned to Xia Yu and Skadi and said, "You two, dinner should be almost ready. Let's go back to the manor first."

-

After a pleasant dinner, Maria was taken away by Zofia for a heart-to-heart talk.

Xia Yu left her room and went to the balcony on the second floor.