Chapter 1767: Chapter 1767

Chocolate lowered its head, munching on its food while its ears twitched, listening to Jenkins converse with the young women. Of course, the cat had already eaten breakfast with the ladies of the house, but that didn't stop the considerate feline from keeping Jenkins company. Otherwise, he might feel quite lonely.

"That gift... it was a once-in-a-lifetime offer," Briny remarked. "I don't think I'll ever have the courage to prepare something like that again."

Seeing Jenkins's composed expression, she gently nudged Julia, who was standing nearby.

"However, that outfit really was something. Tonight, you and Julia could..."

She trailed off, covering her mouth with a suggestive giggle. The maid's face flushed slightly, but she maintained her elegant posture, as if she hadn't just been pulled into the topic at all.

"You see? Julia isn't objecting."

Hathaway affectionately hugged Julia's arm. In truth, the two hadn't been this close before, but the failed gift from the previous night had forged a new familiarity between them.

"Your teasing is wasted on me."

Jenkins rustled his newspaper, preparing to eat. He spoke with perfect composure as he picked up his spoon.

"Is that so?" Hathaway's eyes twinkled. "To thank you for that beautiful lute, I could give you a nice gift in return."

She blinked, then leaned in to whisper something in Julia's ear. Julia, having undergone rigorous training to become a princess's personal maid, kept her expression perfectly neutral, though the tips of her ears betrayed her by turning red.

There was much to do today. After breakfast, Jenkins returned to his room to sort through the insights he'd gained from the Month's End Whisper in the pre-dawn hours.

June and July belonged to the Righteous Gods, the Universal Star and the Hermit of Destiny, respectively. Their divine domains had considerable overlap, particularly since both held sway over Uncertain Destiny—a concept tied as much to the vastness of the cosmos as it was to the very nature of fate.

Perhaps because his soul had inexplicably ascended during the whisper, reaching a plane much closer to the Righteous Gods, his gains this time were exceptionally bountiful. He had received five complete rituals for acquiring new abilities, and every single one was remarkably useful.

[Faint Starlight], a White Basic ability. Jenkins had never even heard of it before. Its purpose was to forge a link between the user's soul and a specific, observable star in the night sky. By meditating on this star, one could draw and absorb spirit directly from the Astral Plane.

This ability was incredibly powerful. As its wielder grew in level, it would gradually reveal more uses. Obvious benefits included a stronger soul and enhanced power under the night sky. If a user reached the eighth level of a demigod, they could even rely on it to survive an otherwise fatal blow.

Should the wielder of [Faint Starlight] die, they would return from the Astral Plane the following night. This resurrection, however, came at a steep price. It wasn't merely a matter of the Enchanter dropping a level and losing at least five abilities; it could also inflict irreversible damage upon their very soul.

Of course, such a powerful ability came with stringent requirements. While there was no level restriction, a prospective learner had to be born under a specific celestial alignment, possess a powerful innate resonance with the Astral Plane, and already have two-thirds of their abilities be related to the [Starry Sky].

In other words, this was an ability Jenkins couldn't learn even if he wanted to.

[Astral Jaunt], a Yellow Spell ability. It was remarkably similar to another well-known power, [Shadow Shuttle]. Both enabled the user to temporarily leave the material world to become invisible, evade attacks, or travel across space.

The danger of [Shadow Shuttle] stemmed from the inherent perils of the Shadow Realm, a place where countless terrifying entities lurked—such as the Hanging Mother Goddess's Shadow. Every foray into that dimension came with the risk of never returning.

The Astral Plane, however, was no safe haven either. Though Jenkins could casually converse with Rakul there, that was only because he had earned the friendship of the Star Spirits, the most powerful race in that realm.

In truth, as an ancient dimension attached to the material world, the Astral Plane had its fair share of bizarre and primeval entities. The silver dragon Anathasia, for instance, had been active there for a very long time. The terrifying monsters dwelling in the cosmos were mostly born in an era when the sky was just a faint glimmer—the first three epochs, a time so ancient that almost no records of it survived. Amid that twilight and chaos, colossal beings slumbered in the Astral Plane's depths. To enter their realm was to be prepared for an encounter. Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on novel-fire.ɴet

The remaining three abilities were all strongly tied to fate. Two of them were particularly renowned: [Fortune Hunter], a Red Martial ability, and [Harbinger of Misfortune], a Yellow Spell.

Of all the abilities and rituals capable of influencing so-called "luck," these two were by far the most potent. While most Enchanters found fate-related powers eerie and esoteric, their practical application wasn't actually complex, provided one could meet the steep requirements to learn them.

However, fortune and misfortune often walked hand in hand. Thus, whether one was a Fortune Hunter or a Harbinger of Misfortune, influencing the fate of others would inevitably cause a backlash for the user.

Only true diviners understood how to revere fate and properly wield its power. As a rule, any Enchanter who used such abilities carelessly was destined for a gruesome end.

The final ability he'd gained from the whisper was particularly intriguing. It was an evolution of his [Cycle] ability, a White Basic power. Furthermore, it wasn't the [Recurring Fate]—a Purple Destiny ability—that Miss Audrey had told him about.

[The Scribe (Purple Destiny)]. It could not be perceived through any form of divination or prophecy, nor could it be affected by any fate-based attacks. The Enchanter who possessed this ability could read any part of the Millstone of Fate that had already been written, not just observe the present and the near future.

Jenkins looked up from his desk. Had he not known the description, he would have mistaken it for a divine art of the Sage based on the name alone.

He recalled what Papa Oliver had mentioned in the carriage not long ago—the connection between the God of Knowledge and Books and the God of Fate. The thought opened a floodgate of other possibilities in his mind.

He set down his pen, and his right hand began to tap unconsciously on the desktop. Tap... tap... tap... The sound caused Chocolate, who was napping on the desk, to crack open one eye in annoyance. The cat stood, stretched, and pressed a soft paw on Jenkins's hand, stilling the motion.

"It seems useful," he mused aloud, "but at the same time, not particularly useful for me."