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"'Subtlety'… does that mean having complete, one-hundred-percent control over your own power?" Alex asked. He wasn't unfamiliar with the term—it popped up all the time in wuxia and xianxia novels.
Luo Hao nodded. "Exactly. To reach that level, though, you'd need years—no, decades—of relentless training."
After she finished speaking, she collected the rest of Kenneth's Lunar Spirit Fluid, erased any traces of it, and handed it to Alex.
Combined with the portion he'd already obtained, it now made up a full vial of the precious substance.
But to actually use it, he'd still need the El-Melloi family's Magic Crest.
The so-called Magic Crest was a hereditary mark—a record of generations of research that magi passed down to their successors.Through it, a magus could inherit the accumulated magic and studies of their bloodline.
In short, only true mage families possessed one.
Alex didn't have such a thing himself—but he did know someone who could make one.
Hestia.
As a goddess who'd once connected to the Root itself, she possessed magic knowledge that could rival seventy or eighty percent of the entire Type-Moon world's systems.
If she were willing to imprint that knowledge into him, it would save him years of study.
By noon, after returning to the hotel, Alex went straight to find Hestia and told her about needing a Magic Crest.
She didn't even hesitate—just smiled, lifted a hand, and created one for him on the spot.
Of course, there was no way to cram everything she knew into it. Her knowledge was far too vast.
So she carefully chose only the most useful disciplines for Alex—reinforcement magic, projection magic, and bounded field construction.
The moment the Crest merged into his right arm, his mind was flooded with a storm of magical knowledge.
Most of it focused on those three core types—reinforcement, projection, and bounded fields.
In that instant, Alex's understanding of the three surpassed even that of Heroic Spirit Emiya himself.
Which meant, theoretically, that as long as his mana output could keep up…he could even use Unlimited Blade Works.
Granted, unlike Emiya's Noble Phantasm, his version would still fall under the realm of ordinary magecraft.
"How does it feel?" Hestia asked eagerly.
Alex opened his eyes and grinned. "Pretty damn good. If I'd known getting a Magic Crest gave you all this knowledge automatically, I wouldn't have bothered memorizing books like an idiot."
His power had just leapt another tier.
He took out the Lunar Spirit Fluid and began channeling magic into it through his Crest.
In an instant, the silvery liquid began to shift and change shape—first a dagger, then a sword, then a spear.
Inspired, Alex decided to push it further. He willed the liquid to coat his body, forming a full set of armor.
The design? The Leo Gold Cloth from Saint Seiya—only in shimmering silver instead of gold.
"Not bad at all," Merlin said, smiling with approval. "A fine piece of magical equipment."
"Yeah, this stuff's amazing," Alex agreed enthusiastically. "It's super adaptive—auto-attack, auto-defense, auto-targeting, even environmental detection. Basically a one-size-fits-all weapon system."
He listed off each feature like a proud inventor showing off a new toy.
But Morgan, ever the sharp critic, coolly interjected."It's impressive, yes, but ultimately it's still just an automated mechanism. Once someone figures out its behavioral patterns, they can counter it easily. And the more complex its shape, the greater the mana drain and response delay. You'll want to keep its form as simple as possible—or the next move it makes will come out sluggish and weak."
"Fair point," Alex admitted, but he didn't seem too worried.After all, he already had ideas for upgrades.
Merlin nodded. "She's right. But this artifact has huge potential. With refinement, those flaws could be eliminated entirely."
Tch. Typical Merlin—just as insightful as Morgan.
One could instantly pinpoint the weaknesses, the other could see the paths to improvement.Their mastery of magic really was on a terrifying level.
After familiarizing himself with the Lunar Spirit Fluid, Alex's afternoon training began.
Now that he had the Magic Crest, there was no need to waste time on basics.
His next goal was clear: create his own Unlimited Blade Works.
On his own, it might've been nearly impossible.But with Hestia's help, the odds looked a lot better.
Of course, this wasn't something they could practice inside a hotel room.
They needed space—and privacy.
Naturally, he also brought along Merlin, whose Hero Creation skill could massively boost his progress.
The three of them traveled to an abandoned factory on the outskirts of Shinzan Town. There, Alex explained his idea—to merge reinforcement, projection, and bounded field magic into one cohesive system.
"That's a pretty bold idea," Hestia said, eyes sparkling. "I like it!"
Merlin smirked. "Not too difficult either. Worth a try."
"The fused spell I'm aiming for," Alex said, thinking aloud, "would be a Reality Marble. It should be able to copy and store other people's weapons, then project them in battle—using exploding projections as a means of attack."
Both Hestia and Merlin froze, staring at him in disbelief.
"What? Did I say something weird?" Alex asked, confused.
"Alex," Hestia said, narrowing her eyes, "you already have a prototype in mind, don't you?"
"Uh… maybe a little," he admitted sheepishly.
Merlin chuckled. "A Reality Marble, huh? That's no small feat. It's a forbidden art that manifests one's inner world and overrides physical reality itself. Hardly any modern magi could pull it off. So tell me, Master—your idea came from a Heroic Spirit, didn't it?"
Alex sighed, shaking his head with a wry smile. "Nothing gets past you two, huh?"
Hestia leaned forward curiously. "So? What kind of skill is it exactly?"
"To be precise…" Alex's tone grew solemn. "It's a Noble Phantasm."
As he spoke, he projected the imagery from his memory—the world of Unlimited Blade Works—into their minds.
Hestia and Merlin closed their eyes, absorbing the vision. Within moments, they had seen it all.
When they opened their eyes again, Alex was waiting expectantly. "Well? Think it's possible to recreate?"
The two exchanged glances—then smiled in unison.
"Easy," Hestia said simply.
Relief flooded Alex's chest.
If this fusion hadn't been viable, all the effort he'd spent on these magic branches would've been wasted.
But then Merlin asked, "That Noble Phantasm—'Unlimited Blade Works'—places extreme demands on one's magic circuits, especially regarding elemental alignment. What's yours?"
"Uh… no idea, actually." Alex turned to Hestia; after all, she'd been the one to craft his circuits.
"Your attribute is Alpha," she said with a confident smile. "All attributes."
Alex's jaw dropped. "Wait—what? All attributes?!"
That… couldn't be real, could it?
"..."
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