“Nine.”
Watching Eliza count down there made Luna feel a flicker of unease.
What does she mean by ‘not much time left’!?
“Eight.”
“Seven.”
“Six.”
Eliza continued counting down steadily.
What exactly is she counting down to!?
“Five… three…”
Why did she skip numbers!?
“Two…”
When she reached two, Luna panicked and looked around frantically, but noticed nothing unusual. Her body felt perfectly fine.
“One…”
Eliza’s voice rang out again. Luna nervously closed her eyes, her heart filled with fear and anxiety as she braced herself for whatever was about to happen.
But as seconds ticked by, nothing happened.
Puzzled, Luna opened her eyes and saw that everything around her was still the same. She breathed a sigh of relief as her body showed no signs of abnormality.
“Seriously, don’t make jokes like that, Eliza.” Luna said with a hint of reproach, but just then—
Before she could finish, Eliza’s lips parted slightly and she uttered the final word.
“Zero.”
The next moment—
“Ugh—!”
Luna’s heart seemed to tighten violently, trembling with a fierce throb.
Immediately, an unprecedented wave of weakness surged over her like a tide, rapidly spreading to her limbs.
Her legs suddenly went limp, and her knees slammed heavily against the ground with a dull thud. She collapsed weakly to her knees, her head hanging down in exhaustion.
She struggled to part her cracked lips, a faint dry sound escaping her throat, desperately craving something to drink.
Her hands drooped limply at her sides, fingers trembling slightly.
At the same time, her stomach began to growl loudly, the sound startlingly clear in this moment—as if a hungry beast were roaring inside her.
Right now, there was only one thought echoing in her mind…
She needed blood. She urgently needed that crimson, sweet liquid to moisten her parched body.
“Blood…”
Luna murmured, her consciousness hazy, instinctively trying to pull out the Blood Bag she had previously taken from the Medical Room, stored inside her Space Ring.
But the overwhelming weakness was like a shackle binding her whole body, making even raising her arm a monumental effort.
Her fingers trembled, sliding over the surface of the ring, but she couldn’t trigger the mechanism to open it. She could only watch helplessly as the life-saving item lay within reach, yet untouched.
“This is the ‘Cost’.”
Eliza’s voice suddenly sounded in her ear. She strode over quickly and effortlessly dragged the weak Luna to lean against the wall.
With practiced ease, she reached into Luna’s Space Ring and pulled out a Blood Bag, then swiftly tore open the seal.
Supporting Luna’s head with one hand, she carefully brought the Blood Bag to Luna’s lips, allowing her to drink the blood smoothly.
Feeling the liquid flow into her mouth, Luna’s restless cells gradually calmed. She savored the sensation of “food” filling her body, gulping it down eagerly.
“Slow down, don’t rush, good girl.”
Eliza said softly, feeding her as a mother would care for her child.
Before long, Luna finished the entire Blood Bag. After drinking, her hunger and weakness slowly began to fade.
“Drink another one quickly, kid.”
Hearing Eliza’s words, Luna didn’t hesitate. She pulled out another Blood Bag from her ring and drank it down.
After drinking two Blood Bags in a row, Luna finally returned to normal, her complexion rosy once more.
“Ugh… I’m finally alive…”
Feeling like she had just escaped disaster, Luna let out a long breath. This episode was even more intense than the first time it happened!
No buildup, no warning—just a sudden ambush.
What a trick!
What a sneak attack!
I’m an 18-year-old beauty, you know.
“What exactly… is going on, Eliza!?”
Once she had recovered, Luna glared at Eliza, furious. She definitely didn’t want to go through that feeling again.
“I told you already, this is the Cost of asking me for help.”
“The Cost?”
“That’s right. Your body’s Magical Power Capacity isn’t proportional to the amount of Magic I consume, so this kind of Backlash is to be expected.”
Eliza explained clearly why this reaction happened and why Luna shouldn’t rely too much on her.
“So now you know, don’t depend on me too much. Given the gap between my current power and your body’s strength, the Magic consumption is huge.”
“This time was manageable—two Blood Bags restored you. But if it gets any worse and I have to intervene personally, those Blood Bags might not even be enough.”
“Oh…” Luna said, disappointed. She had thought having Eliza around meant she could slack off all she wanted.
Eliza seemed to see through Luna’s little scheme and said:
“Actually, as long as you work hard to raise your Level, the Backlash won’t be so severe.”
“Anyway, the one thing you must remember is—if you want my help, you have to be ready with Blood Bags.”
“Raise my Level…” Luna felt a headache coming just thinking about it.
To be honest, she still had no idea how to improve her Level. She wanted to become an S-rank Psychic like her sister, but she simply didn’t know how to level up.
By the way, her sister’s S-rank was innate—it wasn’t gained through leveling but something she was born with. Same with Luna’s A-rank.
During weapon training, it was essentially training the body’s ability to absorb Magic, but no matter how much she trained, real improvement was hard to come by.
After all, improving the body required Enlightenment.
But no one really knew what Enlightenment was…
That’s why Teachers usually only taught weapon proficiency and practical skills.
Only those with “Enlightenment” potential would be specially cultivated through the Master-Apprentice System to discover their true potential.
“If I could really raise my Level, I wouldn’t still be stuck at A-rank…” Luna said with frustration.
But for Eliza, this was a minor problem.
“There are actually many ways to raise your Level. It just depends on whether you can ‘enlighten’ yourself.”
I know that! But what exactly is this so-called Enlightenment!?
I can’t just suddenly say to my Teacher:
[Teacher, I’m enlightened.]
What have I enlightened myself on!?
“Not knowing what Enlightenment means is why you’re stuck at A-rank.”
“Oh, it’s really simple. If you really want, I can teach you.”
Eliza smiled brightly, as if it was the easiest thing in the world.
“Really!?”
“I’ve never lied to you, have I?”
Hearing that, Luna’s heart leapt with joy. If Eliza could truly help her break through to S-rank—
That would bring her one step closer to slacking off completely!
No worries about serious Backlash, plus she could rely on Eliza.
“Alright! Please teach me!”
“Okay, since you asked me.”
Eliza’s lips curled into a sly smile, a gleam of pride in her eyes. But she clearly wasn’t done yet.
“But when you ask someone for a favor, you have to show some sincerity, right? The sentence I want to hear most—you know what I mean.”
She deliberately stretched the tone, perked her ears, and put on a listening posture, waiting for Luna to say it.
Here we go again…
Luna sighed inwardly. But to satisfy Eliza, she had no choice but to play along.
“Mom~ Please teach me. I really want to learn.”
Luna’s words held a hint of helplessness, but the sparkle of desire to improve in her eyes made Eliza feel proud and satisfied.
“Mm~ That’s more like it.”
Eliza’s face showed a pleased smile as she thought:
Looks like this kid really wants to learn. I’ll have to ‘train’ her properly.
“Then find a time, and I’ll teach you.” Eliza said, feigning calm.
“Okay~” Luna replied excitedly, full of anticipation.
And so, under Eliza’s guidance, Luna would begin raising her Level. She looked forward to the lessons ahead.
Eliza wouldn’t trick me—after all, I’m doing exactly as she said.
That’s what Luna thought.
While Luna was happily hopeful, Eliza stood to the side quietly pleased, plotting in her mind.
I never said how I’d train you, did I, my dear?
You’ll have to figure that out slowly for yourself.
A conspiratorial grin spread across Eliza’s face—her plan was working perfectly.