Chương 177

[Basic Arcane Mastery (Lv. 1)] [Passive] [The ancient, secret art of the Witches. It uses internal life force and natural world resonance to bridge the gap between the physical body and the environment. - All effects of alchemical, medicinal, and culinary items produced by the user increase by 2%. - Potency and success rate of production-related 'Arcane' properties are increased by 2%. - When performing high-tier production or arcane rituals, you may substitute Mana consumption with Health or Stamina. - The potency of Arcane techniques scales directly with the user's physical stats (Strength, Stamina, Agility) rather than Intelligence.] [Acquisition Condition: Female Witch]"Let's see about that," Rudra muttered. He opened the book. [You have ignored the restrictions.] [You have learned the passive skill 'Arcane Mastery'.] [Due to your maximum affinity with the Witches and the Blessing of Althea, your understanding deepens rapidly.] [Arcane Mastery has reached Intermediate Lv. 3!] [Intermediate Arcane Mastery (Lv. 3)] [Passive] [The ancient, secret art of the Witches. It uses internal life force and natural world resonance to bridge the gap between the physical body and the environment. - All effects of alchemical, medicinal, and culinary items produced by the user increase by 16%. - Potency and success rate of production-related 'Arcane' properties are increased by 16%. - When performing high-tier production or arcane rituals, you may substitute Mana consumption with Health or Stamina. - The potency of Arcane techniques scales directly with the user's physical stats (Strength, Stamina, Agility) rather than Intelligence.] Elara's jaw dropped. She stared at him in complete disbelief.

"You... you actually learned it?"

"Like I said before, I have good eyes," Rudra grinned. He tapped the book against his hand.

"Now, before I leave, you said we needed to talk in private?" Elara slowly closed her mouth, trying to recover from her shock. She gave a stiff nod and gestured toward a heavily warded stone building at the back of the courtyard. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. Elara turned to the other witches.

"Clean up the courtyard. See to the priestess. Alex, pack your forge." Elara walked toward the large, heavily warded stone building at the back of the courtyard. Rudra followed her inside. The room was dark. The walls were covered in thick, glowing purple runes that hummed with defensive magic. It was completely soundproof. There was a small wooden table in the center with two chairs. Elara sat down and poured two cups of hot, herbal tea. She pushed one toward Rudra.

"Please drink," Elara said. Rudra sat down. He was definitely tired. The physical toll of kneading that dough with his full stats was heavy. He took a sip of the tea. It was bitter, but it helped clear his head.

"So," Rudra said, leaning back in his chair.

"What's the big secret?" Elara stared into her teacup.

"You know Alex's father was a great human swordsman and blacksmith. You guessed that much in the forge."

"Yeah," Rudra nodded.

"Pagma, right? The legendary blacksmith who was also a legendary swordsman." Elara flinched slightly at the name.

"Yes. Pagma. It was several centuries ago. He arrived on this island demanding an audience. He was arrogant and self-centered, always acting in the name of justice but at least he never looked on any of our works " She took a slow sip of tea.

"He wanted to learn our highest alchemical arts," Elara continued.

"He believed that if he could perfectly merge our alchemy with his blacksmithing, he could create weapons that surpassed the gods. We agreed to teach him. But we demanded a high price."

"What was the price?" Rudra asked.

"His seed," Elara said flatly.

"We witches are a dying race. We needed strong blood to produce a powerful new daughter to lead our coven. Pagma agreed to the trade." Elara set her cup down. Her hands were shaking slightly.

"He stayed for a year," she whispered.

"He learned everything we had to teach. But in the end, he failed. He realized that true alchemy and his style of blacksmithing fundamentally rejected each other. He could not perfectly merge them despite his talent. After that he decided to leave the island to seek other ways to grow stronger." Rudra frowned.

"Before he left, he fulfilled his end of the bargain," Elara said, her voice dropping into a bitter hiss.

"He gave me his seed. I incubated it within myself. But as he stood on the docks, looking back at me, he gave me a warning" Elara looked up, her silver eyes locking onto Rudra.

"He said to me, 'It is better for the world if your kind does not grow too strong. This seed is burdened with the world's weight.'" Rudra crossed his arms.

"That sounds like a threat."

"It was a curse," Elara stated firmly.

"Witch biology is absolute, Rudra. When a witch breeds with a human man, the child is always born female. Always. A male child is biologically impossible unless the blood of a literal God is involved." She pointed toward the door, gesturing out to the courtyard.

"But I was pregnant for an entire century," Elara said, her voice shaking with old anger.

"And when the child was finally born... it was a boy. Alex. A male witch. That is impossible. I know in my soul that Pagma maliciously altered or cursed his own seed before handing it over." Rudra rubbed his chin.

"Why would he do that?" Pagma was a figure who helped people but wasn't afraid to step on toes to get things done—like tricking Chreshler into a wooden coffin for the "greater good." So him cursing his own child because he felt a legendary witch blacksmith would throw off the balance of power on the continent was something which Pagma might have done.

"To sabotage us," Elara spat.

"He saw our alchemy. He knew that if we ever produced a legendary weapon-maker of our own, we would rival him. So he purposely created a male anomaly and installed a biological bottleneck in the child. The 'Cursed Hands.' He made sure Alex would be a genius with basic iron, but biologically incapable of ever forging high-tier magical materials. He cursed my son to a lifetime of failure just to protect his own legacy." Rudra sat in silence. The lore was incredibly heavy.

Pagma wasn't giving out the good of an impression.