While looking over the rewards, no one got the horn they wanted. It was a shame, but that was to be expected. After all, if it was an easy item to get, the alliance wouldn't have sent them here. Still, they got some loot that was interesting. Hera got a set of inks that could swap the color of something permanently. There were some minor restrictions, and it couldn't be used with living creatures. But it would be a way to swap the pallet of an object if they needed it. Not very helpful for the group, but it could be worth some money.

Roan and Skyler got a few materials. Again, nothing was that exciting, especially since the materials were supposed to make better art supplies, but it was still worth something. Flint got a set of three potions that could have a temporary effect on someone. They could see a broader range of colors, have perfect pitch, or have synesthesia. Those would last only a few hours, and a warning was attached to the increased range of color. Apparently, it could be addictive. Then again, that made sense. Hera thought about those color-blind filters, and if she were in that situation and suddenly became aware of all colors, it would be hard to get back to how things were. And if that potion would give germ more cone cells to detect colors, then it might be even harder to explain to others how the world really looked like.

The next two items were a bit more interesting. Vash got a green easel. One of those supports for people who were painting. Attached to it was a small tray of paints. It said paints would be replenished every 24 hours, and the entire tray would be cleaned again. If there was a specific color one might want, all they had to do was mix it and place it in a slot to the left, and that color would appear in the next replenishment. In addition, while painting with those colors, you could remove a stoke by touching the side of the easel, almost like a ctrl+z command in a computer. That could only take back a single stroke, no matter how long it was, and if the canvas was removed from the support, the effect wouldn't work on it again. The item seemed amazing, but unless someone wanted to paint, it would be better to sell it.

Lastly was Neria's item. She got something that could actively help them. It was called 'Canvas of Creation,' and as the name suggested, it was a canvas. However, any time someone places an item they created themselves on it, the canvas would generate a blueprint of the item. Not one like a crafter could make that allowed other crafters to just make it with mana, but a blueprint that anyone could follow to replicate the item in question. After a few tests, they realized that this worked with pretty much anything that was created. From Flint's armor, telling every single material that was used on it, to Neria's staff potion, where each ingredient and the process to make said potion was on display. That canvas even worked with Hera's [Venomous Arsenal], although the materials that appeared were all things that the Ophidianite herself knew about. Still, this could give her some idea of how to improve that skill. The Empress also tested one of her court members, but nothing happened. It seemed like the canvas didn't recognize the blades as a created item, or they also recognized them as a living creature. Still, just by using that with her [Venomous Arsenal], Flint already suggested some things she could try. For one, the materials used in the creation of her weapons could change. It wouldn't be a physical change, but if she could control the skill to the point that the canvas recognized something as being made out of copper instead of iron, for instance, her control would increase. And who knows, maybe she will eventually be able to attach full skills to the weapons she creates.

Another benefit this could bring the Empress, specifically, was the idea of using her [Explorer Blueprint] skill to make the handles and pommels of those weapons. This could let her create some unique combinations that could be used by someone else.

Either way, the group left the dungeon and headed back to the city. The idea was for them to have a meeting to come up with strategies to speed run the dungeon, which, in this case, would simply be 'How to find and kill the Monarch of the Glen as quickly as possible.' Flint grumbled a bit about how this wasn't a good use of their time, but there was another issue. Everyone was a bit tired, hungry, and out of mana, and they were now carrying somewhat large items. Between the scarf, the rug, the easel, and the canvas, it was a bit too much. In the end, this was the best idea. Flint and everyone didn't realize how tired they actually were and ended up resting for the rest of the day. The people in the Alliance Center were already aware of their presence, and they even suggested the group start in the morning before they headed out.

During that first meeting, the team suggested that they leave one hour a day, be it after lunch or before dinner, to look around the city. Vash and Skyler spearheaded the idea, but when the argument was made that they could find items and other things that could help with the dungeon runs, that felt like less of an issue of responsibility. Neria also added that if they were constantly going on dungeon runs, they would get stressed. Stressed people became angry and snippy, and that could lead to problems and accidents. Taking care of themselves, resting, and relaxing were part of what they had to do to operate in peak conditions. It took a bit of convincing, but eventually, Flint agreed with that decision.

After dinner, the group gathered in their hotel apartment. This place had individual rooms for each of them and a small living room where they could talk and strategize properly. Some ideas were tossed around, including how to deal with the Monarch's moose-empowered charge. According to the information Milla sent them, the more the monster moved, the stronger it would get. But they could just stop it. Not by putting a wall or something it could break, but by either lifting it up to the sky or trapping it inside a giant ball of water. That didn't have to last long. While under the effect of that skill, if the Monarch stopped for any reason, the moose power would be deactivated and enter a long cooldown. It was just 10 minutes, but fights rarely lasted that long.

They circled back to their own abilities to see if anyone was missing something that could obviously help them. During that time, Vash turned to Hera, "And how about that gift thing you can do? Couldn't it give a skill that helps us deal with the Monarch?"

"Maybe, but it's been a very long time since I could give a gift to one of my blades… Actually, it's been way too long, Daskka?" the Empress turned to the herald.

"Yeah, now that you mention it. That's weird, hang on," Daskka frowned and started looking over some things. The rest of the team continued their conversation. Only after they were done, and Hera had returned to her room to rest for the night, her snake spoke up, "Soooo… I did something wrong."

"You did something wrong? Do you mean you made a mistake, or you did something bad? I don't think that phrase works. Like it technically does, but it sounds off," Hera tried to break a bit of the tension she was feeling coming from Daskka.

"Both. Remember when you gave Nimbus the gift?"

Hera nodded, "I do. He wanted to be a guinea pig for us to understand the skill."

"And remember how you asked around, and everyone said they would wait as long as they could for the best possible skill?"

Hera nodded again, "I do."

"Soooo, they are waiting. Because of the way I set up the skill trigger, it wouldn't show up unless one of the court members could get a legendary skill. In Nimbus's case, it would never appear since the next upgrade would be from common to uncommon."

"Really?" the Empress tilted her head, "So who has a gift to receive?"

"Right now, Nimbus can get the upgrade. Lurize can get a very rare gift, and Ember can have a common gift. Viper and Crimson could have gotten a very rare gift, too, but when they became titled blades, the gift resets," Daskka explained.

"Well then. Let's check with everyone," Hera turned to the rest of the court. They were all there, and the titled blades even participated in the strategy meeting. Currently, they were all under Lurize's tutelage to improve their cores, and things seemed to be going extremely well. Even Hera's own core was growing a little bit while she was focused on other things. There was one more thing the Empress and her court realized about those cores. They could be charged without a Royal Quest being assigned to them. However, the amount of mana they would have inside their cores would slowly trickle down. The rate at which that happened was extremely slow when close to Hera, but if they tried to move away, it would drop rapidly.

The benefit of this was allowing the Ophidianite to charge their cores in stages. Sure, she would eventually spend a considerably higher amount of mana, but in the end, she would be able to give them quests when their cores were completely full.

"I don't have much to say; just, yeah, give me the upgrade," Nimbus said.

Hera crossed her arms and smirked, her tail warping around her own leg like a blanket, "Is that how you thank your Empress for a gift?"

Nimbus jolted up, "No! I'm sorry, I…" he patted himself down to clean any dirt and placed one hand on his chest while keeping the other close to his body, "Thank you for the gift, my Empress. I will treasure it for the rest of my life, and I hope this skill can protect you from harm."

"Oh? So now you are asking me to get hurt? That way, you can use the skill. Good to know where your priorities lie," Hera gently tossed her hair to the side.

"NO! What? I didn't say that!… Did I?" Nimbus looked around the rest of the court with puppy dog eyes.

Hera couldn't help herself and started laughing, "I'm just messing with you. Don't worry about it. Your skill is great, and any upgrade is more than welcome," she gestured for him to get closer, "Give me your hand."

Nimbus was still a bit distraught but did what the Empress asked. Hera then took his hand into her own and gave it a gentle kiss, much like what they would do to her when getting a Royal Quest.

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Share the Pain - (Rank Uncommon)

When the Empress or any of the court members is hit, part of the damage that would be inflicted on them is transferred to you. Your next attack will deal extra damage based on the damage that was transferred to you over a certain period of time.

Damaged Transferred: 50%

Damage Transfer from other court members: 20%

Extra damage to the next attack: 60% of the damage transferred.

Maximum duration of the extra damage storage: 30 seconds

Mana cost: 600 mana/s

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"This is nice! And I think I can still pick and choose who I'm protecting at one time. Or at least, that's the feeling I get," Nimbus had a large smile.

Hera let go of his hand and let the Sentinel return to the group. She noticed how Lurize was about to get up to come to talk to her but made a gesture for him to wait, "First, let's go for an easy one. Ember, do you want your gift to be common?"

"I'd rather wait for something a bit better. Maybe uncommon or rare," the curved sword replied.

"That is completely fine. If you ever decide you want the common instead, let me know," Hera smiled at the weapon and turned back to the Royal Tutor, "Now, Lurize. How about it? Want to go for the very rare or wait around for the epic."

'I believe I should take the gift now. Even if I understand the logic behind waiting for a better one, we don't know what might happen tomorrow. And if we are going to run dungeons by ourselves, I'd rather have all my tools at my disposal,' the Royal Tutor explained while talking inside everyone's mind.

"Very well, come here then," Hera asked and waited until he was close enough to trigger the skill.

It's been a long time since she used this, and the Empress had forgotten how it worked. However, as soon as the three markers appeared around the Royal Tutor's body, memories came flooding back in. Each of those markers represented a skill, and touching them showed what they actually were, with the last one being above Lurize's head and offering a random gift.

Hera looked over them one by one. The first was on his left shoulder. It was a skill called 'Armored Onslaught,' and it was basically a slightly different version of his [Rhinoceros Form]. A temporary buff that increased his physical prowess. Doubling down could be interesting, but Lurize wasn't that interested. Next was something called 'Guardian of the Keep,' located on his left arm. This would increase his power when fighting inside a certain area and allow him to create traps and other defenses. Unfortunately, they couldn't know the details until after they got the skill. If he could designate an area around Hera as the location, that could help. But if it had to be a location, things would chafe. He put that one below the Armored Onslaught on his list of choices.

The third skill was located in the back of his ear, and it was called 'Whispers of the Ancients.' This skill allowed him to tap into the legacy and bring back any fighting style that one of the court members had used. That would have a limited duration, and Lurize would never be able to learn the fighting style skill. But that made it clear that Lurize couldn't. If he could tap into a style and teach it to someone else, it was likely that the second person could learn it. After hearing the entire description, the Royal Tutor didn't hesitate.

'I choze that one. Whizperz of the Ancientz,' he said, his excited voice coming through and the sounds of Ss turning into Zs.

Hera nodded and touched that option, giving her second blade a new skill.

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Whisper of the Ancients (Very Rare Skill)

It allows you to tap into the legacy and temporarily bring back any fighting-style skills that were used by one of the previously titled blades. While this skill is active, you will be able to use a weaker version of the skill used by the fighting style you requested.

Duration: 10 Minutes

Cooldown: 24 hours.

Maximum rank of the recovered skill: Rank 5

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