Lord: Starting with Contract Half-Elf Twins

"The negotiations went relatively smoothly."

Allen nodded.

After completing the initial communication with the half-elf sisters, the next step is to begin training them.

Allen opened the training interface, selected the only follower at present, the half-elf twins, and selected the [Train] button, consuming the 1 crystal he had just obtained.

The training interface flashed with a bright blue light, and soon, three new enhancement options popped up.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Name: Descendant of the Ancient Tree

Type: Bloodline Awakening

Enhanced effect:

Awaken the faint power of the natural realm within the bloodline of the elves.

Followers' vitality and affinity with nature are greatly enhanced, allowing them to initially guide natural energy to accelerate wound healing, increase endurance, and gradually awaken magical abilities in the natural realm.

Advanced paths include: Nature Druid, Woodland Guardian, Ancient Tree Priest, etc.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Name: Moonblade Dancer

Type: Combat Skill Inheritance

Enhanced effect:

Followers wield the Elven race's unique weapon—the crescent blade—and inherit its agile and unpredictable combat skills.

This combat technique combines dodging, blocking, and slashing skills. It is like a dance during combat, and the offensive becomes faster and more fierce as the battle continues, eventually unleashing an unstoppable attack like moonlight pouring down.

Advanced paths include: Crescent Dancer, Silver Moon Dreamweaver, Dark Moon Hunter, etc.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Name: Red Dragon Blood Guard

Type: Bloodline Modification

Enhanced effect:

The followers will be transformed by the foreign red dragon bloodline, embrace the magic of the fire element, be able to master the power of fire, and gradually unlock the ability of "half-dragonification".

Advanced path: This path cannot be advanced, but it can be combined with some compatible enhancements.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Three enhancement options are presented to you.

There is also a "Refresh" button below, but the cost is another crystal, which Allen naturally doesn't have.

Based on my experience with the game, the [Moonblade Dancer] upgrade is excellent.

It is a perfect blend of offense and defense, and its innate agility, which is highly compatible with the elven bloodline, makes it extremely promising for future development.

Furthermore, this enhancement is purely a combat skill inheritance; the [Twins of the Unbreakable] effect allows the other half-elf to quickly learn it, which is equivalent to a double enhancement.

Furthermore, the followers' mastery of combat skills can be fed back to Allen, granting him integrated offensive and defensive capabilities in the early stages, which greatly increases his survival rate.

But... this [Red Dragon Blood Guard]...

The enhancement path in the [Cultivation] interface can be artificially intervened by adding rare resources.

For example, adding dragon blood could potentially grant access to enhancement paths related to dragon blood.

Currently, Allen has no resources at all, so these three paths should all be generated directly by using followers or lords as the trigger targets.

The first two enhancements are clearly derived from the elven bloodline of the half-elf twins.

Therefore, the [Red Dragon Blood Guard] is clearly related to Eren himself.

Allen sighed. No wonder slave traders would keep a human boy captive for so long and then sell him to a black-robed wizard at a high price.

It turns out he was a "Dragonborn," and the most powerful of the five dragons, the Red Dragonborn.

However, they were discovered by slave traders in advance and kept in captivity for many years until they were fully grown before being sold.

Overthinking is pointless.

Although its compatibility with elven bloodlines is not high, under the current circumstances, the [Red Dragon Blood Guard], which can control the power of fire, is the perfect enhancement path to escape the dungeon.

Moreover, by having his followers undergo this enhancement, the power of his bloodline awakening will be fed back to Allen himself.

Allen already possessed a diluted red dragon bloodline, and the combination of the two would further purify the bloodline power, resulting in a 1+1 greater than 2 effect!

"Select [Enhancement: Red Dragon Blood Guard]!"

As Allen selected the enhancement, a vibrant crimson light flashed across the Half-Elf Twins' card.

On the left, Solina's character portrait changes rapidly.

Crimson, illusory fire serpents coiled around Solina's limbs, burning away her original calm and serene demeanor and replacing it with an extremely aggressive aura.

Meanwhile, in the dungeon next door.

Solina clenched her hands slightly, holding her breath and waiting for the mysterious being in her mind to demand the "price".

Suddenly, a surge of intense heat rose up from within him without warning!

"Hmm!"

Solina let out a muffled groan, her body trembling violently.

"Sorina?!" Viola, standing beside her, immediately noticed her sister's unusual behavior and exclaimed in a panic.

She immediately realized that Solina had secretly made a deal with the "mysterious being" without her knowledge!

"Don't worry, Viola, I'm fine."

Solina waved her hand, closed her eyes, and carefully felt the changes happening in her body.

The pain was not what I had imagined.

The unknown presence did not bring pure pain, but rather waves of tingling and burning sensations throughout the body.

It was as if clusters of small flames were igniting within her, slowly burning away the places that repelled this power, until they were burned into the form that existence expected.

If her original power were likened to a sapling full of vitality, then this power is what ignited that sapling.

It was not burned to ashes, but rather its fundamental form of existence was altered.

It's like an extremely subtle... transformation.

After a long while, the burning sensation subsided, and Solina felt her body, which had been cold and stiff from hunger and weakness, become reborn, full of vitality.

She opened her eyes and was shocked to find a bright flame burning in her palm, which completely dispelled the musty, cold smell in the stone cell.

Viola's eyes widened: "Solina, this is...magic? You've learned magic?"

She was in a state of utter shock.

Although the continent of Tyrese is full of magic, most mortals, without proper instruction and luck, will never have the chance to grasp even a trace of its mysteries in their entire lives.

Solina took a deep breath, forcing herself to pull herself out of the immense shock as well.

She knew that this power came at a "price," and that she might lose her life or soul as a result.

So before the "price" is paid, we must get my sister out of this hellhole as soon as possible!

So she quickly asked in her mind, "Great being, thank you for the power you have bestowed upon me, what should I do?"

"The power of fire can help you break down the prison door. Now, try manipulating the fire element to create simple magic."

Following the guidance in her mind, Solina tried to concentrate and imagine "a bigger flame".

With a whoosh, the flame in his palm shot upwards a little, its light shining brightly!

Viola covered her mouth tightly, watching the flame in Solina's hand with bated breath.

Magic obtained through a deal with a "mysterious being" is fraught with danger no matter how you look at it.

Even ordinary people who have never been exposed to supernatural powers know how serious the consequences of magic going out of control can be.

In various legends, the monsters that wield fire magic are always the most ferocious and vicious.

The most famous is the Red Dragon, the eternal villain in legends and stories, who has caused countless dragon calamities.

But Solina had no worries.

In her recent attempt, she discovered that the fire elemental acted like a loyal soldier, faithfully carrying out her "instructions".

Just as she was about to try to expand the flames further, a new instruction came to her mind:

"Your magic power is too low. Don't make any unnecessary attempts. Just break down the cell door first."

Solina indeed felt mentally exhausted, as she had used up a lot of the power she had just gained. She quickly stopped expanding her mind and tried to imagine "movement".

The flames obediently detached from her palm, flying in a graceful arc before crashing into the wooden cell door.

Once the fire had started burning steadily on the cell door, Solina's mental guidance was no longer needed.

It would take a long time for the huge, heavy wooden door to burn completely, but even without that being speaking, Solina knew what to do.

"It's a success!"

A glint flashed in Solina's eyes; she could clearly "sense" along the flames:

Following her train of thought, the flames found the hinge connecting the wooden door to the stone wall!

Under the constant licking of the flames, the door hinge is rapidly becoming brittle and losing its strength!

"Snap—!"

A low, but teeth-grinding, crisp sound.

The door hinges, charred brittle by the flames, snapped completely. With a dull thud, the heavy wooden door slowly slammed to the ground, and the billowing dust instantly engulfed the two men.

Although the commotion was small, Solina didn't know if the black-robed wizard would notice.

"Ahem!"

So she suppressed her cough and quickly ran out of the cell door to the wooden door next door, about to let the flames burn the door hinges again.

But before they could make a move, a familiar voice came from behind the door.

"Click—"

Solina realized what was happening and quickly dodged to the side.

"Bang!"

The wooden door slammed heavily onto the ground, kicking up another cloud of dust.

Having already experienced this once, Solina covered her mouth and nose, quickly waved her hand to sweep away the smoke and dust, and held her breath as she looked into the cell.

With the smoke and dust gone, the figures inside the cell behind the door came into view.

That mysterious being...

It is not the demonic creature with horns, fangs, and twisted limbs that one might imagine.

All she saw was a dirty-looking boy.

The other person looks to be about the same age as me.

Solina's mind flashed back to her memories of being in the slave caravan.

She had seen this boy before; he, like her sisters, was a "high-priced commodity" of the slave traders, carefully guarded.

But in her memory, she remembered that the boy was always dull and foolish, like a wild beast, unable to speak, only knowing how to eat and sleep.

Now, he is no longer the foolish man he once was, and is looking at me with bright eyes.

For some reason, Solina felt that she had no secrets from him.

Not only did a sense of familiar closeness reappear on a spiritual level, but there was also a feeling of kinship in our bloodline.

No words or confirmation are needed at all.

The "mysterious being" in Solina's mind who made a deal with her, gave her power, and guided her actions was actually the boy before her...

Could it be that some kind of evil spirit has possessed his body?

Or perhaps he was originally a demon, and was just pretending before?

Just as she was wondering how to react, the boy extended his right hand to her.

"Hello, Solina, my name is Allen."