Blessing~~~

[Item: Black Grsrzy Scarf (??? Grade)

Description: It wards off evil spirits and is normally used in a funeral. Having this in your pockets makes you immune to evil spirits in Lucid.

Special Functions

—Becomes more potent in warding off evil spirits the more Evil Spirits are consumed 1/100

—Purifies the surrounding area 200m radius. (Condition: Has to consume at least 1 S-Rank Evil Spirit or Higher)]

While Yuuta clasped the Black Grsrzy Scarf on his hand in an attempt to ward off the Evil Spirit Aarkra which he can't even see, a panel suddenly manifested in the air, and on it was the updated item description of the Black Grsrzy Scarf. New special functions of the item were unlocked after Aarkra was seemingly absorbed by it. 'Is Aarkra really defeated? There's no way I'd know since I can't even see a speck of an Evil Spirit.

As he wondered where on Lucid the S-Rank Evil Spirit has gone off to, the Holy Circle disappeared and every Sacred Stones Member fell on their butts, overcome with exhaustion. Ashuril and Lorraine— who also helped with the Holy Circle and the subjugation of Aarkra— wasn't the least bit tired at all. Seeing that the Holy Circle is gone, they instantly traveled the short distance to see if Yuuta had suffered any injuries. They examined him from head to toe, thinking that it's impossible for someone so low-leveled to come out unscathed after meeting Aarkra face-to-face.

"What level are you? Are you perhaps, level 200 already but you specialize in the Elements and not physical strength?" Ashuril confirmed. He couldn't explain why Yuuta wasn't injured at all.

"Yes, are you hiding your level from us?"

Yuuta still couldn't hear what they were saying... but he could tell that they were bewildered. He pointed at his ears to remind them that he busted his eardrums when Aarkra let out an ear-piercing scream a moment ago.

In Yuuta's perspective, Ashuril called out to the Sacred Stones members and then they gathered around him. They all raised their hands and chanted something. Seconds later, Yuuta found himself inside an orb of light and Lorraine was with him. He didn't know how to respond to the situation so he just stayed stiffly still and shut his eyes. "Is this an ascension ritual?" He asked himself (he doesn't even know what an ascension ritual is).

"Thank you," Lorraine silently muttered to the other Sacred Stones members as she slightly bowed down.

Since Lorraine's Holy Element is extraordinarily suitable for healing rather than attacking or defending, she releases more power the more she uses it. That's why the Sacred Stones members had to encase Lorraine and Yuuta inside a Holy Capsule of sorts. Not only would it help Lorraine have more control over her Holy Element, it would also shield the Sacred Stones members in case her Holy Element gets out of control.

Ashuril knew first-hand just how erratic Lorraine's Holy Element is. After all, they grew up under the same roof. That's why right now, he was more worried for Yuuta rather than his younger sister.

"The gleam of the sun and the veins of the earth, with my covenant, please grant rejuvenation to this soul." She murmured. It was almost the same chant she murmured to give Yuuta a blessing before he ventured into the other dimension. The only difference was the next phrase. Instead of saying 'please grant a blessing to this soul', she said 'please grant rejuvenation to this soul'.

A warm glow of light wrapped around Yuuta's ears as it was slowly healed. While looking at his panel, Yuuta realized that his HP Bar was slowly getting full; and in the process, his hearing was gradually returning to him.

Shiiiing~

The first sound that Yuuta heard was the sound of the light that caressed his ears. And then the sound of the murmurs coming from the Sacred Stones invaded his ears next. Soon after, he could hear the rustling of the trees and the flapping of birds in the skies. Just like that, his hearing was back to normal. The hearing that he honed after all these years has finally come back!

Yuuta sighed in relief. "Thank you, Lorraine, I'm okay now."

"Wait, not yet." She mumbled, her eyes were closed. "I'm almost there, please don't interrupt me."

Zipping his lips, Yuuta continued to remain rigidly still as Lorraine continued to do whatever it is she was doing. Even the members of the Sacred Stones seem to have no clue as to what was going on. She has already healed the kid's eardrums, didn't she? Why is she still carried on with healing him?

Something uncomfortable welled up within Yuuta as he realized that Lorraine was already locking him in her embrace. Her bosom took up all of Yuuta's chest space as she continued to hug him even tighter. Yuuta's face reddened. This time, he was exerting himself to not stay stiff anymore, otherwise, it wouldn't be just him who will feel uncomfortable.

"Eek~" A weird voice came out of Yuuta's lips, making his face even more flustered than before.

"There, all done," Lorraine called out, giving herself a pat on the back. Even though she got a bit carried away with healing Yuuta, she was pleased with it. She could tell that she achieved something great when she didn't lose focus in healing him.

But after looking around and seeing everyone's flustered faces, it was her turn to become flustered as well.

At that very moment, she realized that she was hugging Yuuta in a somewhat bold manner. With an embarrassed look on her face, she slowly unclasped her hands behind Yuuta's back and distanced herself from him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to... I just got too focused on healing you that— I mean, I don't mind hugging you but it must've felt uncomfortable... I mean, that's not what I meant. I meant I'm fine with it if you hug me, but are you not fine with... but— I..." She stammered.

In the end, Yuuta didn't know what she meant. In response, he patted her on the head. "Thank you for healing me. I think my hearing now is a lot better because of that. And no, I don't mind. I didn't feel uncomfortable at all, just a bit flustered."

"I-if you put it that way... " Lorraine peeked in between her fingers as she continued to hide her face behind her hands.

Seeing that the 'ritual' of healing the kid was finally over and that nothing out of the ordinary happened, the Sacred Stones members heaved a huge sigh of relief in unison as all of them fell flat on their butts once again. After sealing Aarkra like that and assisting with the healing, they were just too exhausted to even support their whole body in a standing position. Disregarding the dangers that lurk around them, the group decided to take a moment of rest.

"Yuuta, are you okay?" Yua asked, clutching the edge of Yuuta's sleeves as she hesitantly glanced towards him. She missed her chance to express her gratitude so she didn't know what to do. And when she had mustered enough courage to come up to Yuuta in an attempt to talk to him, she realized that she couldn't think of anything else to say other than ask him of his well-being.

"I'm all right, thanks to everyone here, I've completely recovered. How about you? How do you feel?" Yuuta asked, patting the grass beside him to indicate that she could sit there.

The invitation made Yua feel at ease. Grabbing the edge of her long skirt, she gracefully sat beside Yuuta. She finally found the perfect time. "Yuuta, thank you so much for saving me. I owe my life to you. By now, I would've been converted into a vessel for that Evil Spirit, had it not been for you."

"It's all thanks to your mom. Even though you've been missing for more than three days, she didn't give up on her search for her beloved daughter. You have no idea how many portraits of you she carefully hand-drawn just so she could hand it out to anyone passing by your place." Yuuta related. Although he played a big part in rescuing her, he knew that a majority of the credits should go to her mom."

"Mom... " Yua weakly muttered as tears streamed down her cheeks. She tried wiping it off with her hands but they were just replaced with more tears. "You're right. I should go thank my mom. As soon as we get back to— mmph!"

Before she could finish stating her resolve, Yuuta covered her mouth and brought her face closer to his. "I know what you're going to say so please keep it to yourself. If you say it out loud, something bad might happen to us on our way out of here." He seriously said. "Say that out loud once we reach Revalia City. If you say it right now, you'll just be triggering a death flag for all of us."

At first, Yua didn't know whether Yuuta was joking or not. But after seeing the seriousness in his face, she immediately thought that some sort of curse must be at play in the Spirit Jungle. Although she doesn't know what a death flag is, the ominosity of the word bothered her a little bit.

'But there's the word death in it for a reason. For starters, I should listen to what Yuuta is saying. He's my rescuer, he knows what's best for me.

Yuuta heaved a sigh of relief when Yua finally nodded and gestured that she'll zip her mouth. The quest may be done but avoiding a death flag in a VRMMORPG is something that should always be kept in mind. If one is not careful, another event might play out— a slaughter of everyone present when the death flag is not avoided.

"I guess if I were a resident of this world, avoiding a death flag is more or less a superstition rather than a law in a VRMMORPG, huh," Yuuta said to himself, glad that the overall event has finally come to an end.

.....

[Name: Ashuril Lancaster

Race: Human

Gender: Male

Class: Saint

Level: 169

Titles: He Who Supplies

Condition:— Help those who are in need 121/100

— Class change to 'Saint'

— You have been bestowed a blessing from the heavens, your Holy Element will be buffed by 100% on first usage, 200% on second usage, and 300% on third usage and upwards. You are immune to Darkness (however, you are not immune to puppets, items or artifacts affected by Darkness).

— You can bestow blessings to items and people.

(Blessing— favor and protection to those who are in need; a temporary combat to the Darkness when an entity doesn't have immunity to it.

[Title: Savior

Condition:— Save someone who is in dire need of help 67/20

— Grants the Protection and Save Skill

— You have been blessed with luck (You have unlocked the Luck Stat)

HP: 27,713/27,892

Strength: 816

Stamina: 996/1,314

Agility: 1,279/1296

Speed: 1,120

Intelligence: 2,028 (+100%, +200%, +300%)

Vitality: 1,167

Luck: 809

[Skill: Heal (Normal) (Class-specific)

Level: 2

Description— Grants heal (2% per second of maximum hp)

Skill Cooldown: N/A

Skill Mana Consumption: 30/s

(Note: Mana is related to the Intelligence Stat. Amount of mana = Int. *90% *2 )

Skill: Blessing (Normal) (Class-specific)

— Grants favor and protection to those who are in need; a temporary combat to the Darkness when an entity doesn't have immunity to it.

Skill: Sprint (Normal)

Level: 3

Condition:— Reach 1000 stats in agility. (unlocks the Speed Stat)

Description— temporarily increases speed (sprint based on raw agility, stamina, and speed stat.)

— Can be used to escape when necessity arises.

(Second form *Blink unlocks at Level 4)

(Third form *Light Step unlocks at Level 5)

(Fourth form… )

Skill Cooldown: 15s

Skill Mana Consumption: 25/250 (25/s, maximum of 10s)

Skill: Protection (Normal) (Class Specific)

Level: 2

Condition:— Receive the title 'Savior'

Description— Grants shield that negates 30,000 dmg.

Skill Cooldown: 5-10mins

Skill Mana Consumption: 20%

Skill: Save (Special)

Condition:— Receive the title 'Savior'

Description— Exchanges places with the person being saved. After the exchange, grants shield with damage reduction of 50%

Skill Cooldown: 3mins

Skill Mana Consumption: 101

Skill: Holy Circle (Unique) (Class Specific)

Description— temporarily seals and weakens an evil spirit or an entity affected by darkness

—Grants a powerful being control over his/her power (if a being is out of control, the Holy Circle can help regain that control)

Note: The more Holy Circle users, the more effective the skill

Skill: Ultimate Blessing of Ygg (Hidden Skill) (Class-Specific)

Description— grants the ultimate blessing like the Yggdrasil Tree from the myths.

— You can heal someone on the verge of death to full health

Note: An eye for an eye , a tooth for a tooth. A blessing comes with a curse. Healing someone with this skill consumes exp points (maximum of minus ten levels).

Skill Cooldown: 10 days

Skill Mana Consumption: 100% (Stamina Consumption 99.8%) (Level Reversion max. 10)]

[Equipment: Common Staff (Normal)

Description: A staff made out of a tree branch, imbued with mana.

Durability: 1

Attack: mana stat +9]