Bai Shi, clad in the full Banished Knight set, pushed the door open and walked out.
He was heading for the Site of Grace behind the castle; it was the closest one.
The other two Sites of Grace required an elevator to reach, which was less convenient.
Unbeknownst to Bai Shi, shortly after he left, Irena was led to the front of his guest room, supported by a maidservant.
By now, Irena had also changed her clothes and bathed. Dressed in a light green robe that complemented her delicate features, she had shed her previous disheveled appearance from her time as a refugee, fully revealing the beauty of a noble lady.
Normally, although Irena was very mindful of etiquette and courtesy when dealing with others, she herself had none of the airs of a noblewoman.
Now, the robe, embroidered with patterns in fine gold thread, added a touch of noble elegance and grace to her.
The maidservant stopped, and Irena knew they had arrived.
She reached out with her right hand, found the door, and knocked gently.
She wanted to properly thank Bai Shi for all his help along the way. If not for him, she would have long been a cold corpse, never able to return to Castle Morne and reunite with her father.This time, no matter what gift Bai Shi asked for as thanks, Irena would surely agree.
If it was something she couldn't decide on her own, she would definitely ask her father.
"Knock, knock."
No response.
"Knock, knock."
Still no response.
Has Sir Bai Shi fallen asleep? It's understandable after such an intense battle.
But there doesn't seem to be any snoring from inside the room.
Irena hesitated, biting her lower lip in indecision.
After much thought, she finally spoke to the door:
"Sir Bai Shi, are you in there?"
After waiting for a while longer with no sound, Irena had no choice but to leave, disappointed.
---
Meanwhile, Bai Shi had arrived at the Site of Grace behind the castle.
Bai Shi took off his helmet. It was a habit of his; he didn't want to speak with Melina with his helmet on, as it felt disrespectful. So, he always removed it.
As he sat down at the Site of Grace, Melina appeared.
Looking at Bai Shi, who was thoroughly encased in the Banished Knight set, Melina couldn't help but praise him:
"What a fine and sturdy suit of armor. With this set, your future battles will be much safer."
Bai Shi agreed completely.
The Banished Knight's equipment was indeed excellent. Though it was heavy armor, its flexibility wasn't bad at all.
No wonder the top master of Castle Sol could use his lightning whirlwind slash so smoothly.
Melina extended her hand, gesturing for Bai Shi to take it.
"Take my hand. I will take you to the Roundtable Hold."
"No, the Roundtable Hold can wait. I want to convert my Runes into strength first."
Bai Shi placed his hand on Melina's.
Sensing the massive amount of Runes within Bai Shi, Melina was utterly shocked, followed by deep confusion.
The Runes from those Misbegotten weren't much, and that Leonine Misbegotten couldn't have possessed so many either. Where did all these Runes come from?
Melina had been by Bai Shi's side, watching the battles. If there had been an enemy holding a massive amount of Runes, she would have known.
Except for the time Bai Shi was washing up in the other room, Melina hadn't followed him. She had just stayed in the guest room, lost in thought.
‘Was it then?’
‘No, never mind. Everyone has their secrets.’
‘Since we are companions, I should trust him just as he trusts me.’
Although Melina had initially told Bai Shi it was a transaction.
But she could feel that Bai Shi, from the very beginning, had never treated it as just a deal.
He truly and genuinely trusted her as his maiden.
Even when she was assessing him—an act of distrust—Bai Shi hadn't gotten angry, and his attitude toward her remained the same as before.
That being the case, she shouldn't pry into her companion's secrets.
"Melina, what's wrong?" Seeing Melina suddenly space out, Bai Shi called to her, interrupting her thoughts.
"My apologies, I was distracted. Please tell me which aspects of your strength you wish to improve."
Bai Shi was about to state the stat allocation plan he had prepared, but as he looked at the attribute panel only he could see, he was surprised to find that his Endurance and Strength had each increased by one point.
Bai Shi double-checked. That's right, last time his Endurance was 11 and his Strength was 15, and now they were 12 and 16.
Fortunately, Melina spoke up, conveniently answering Bai Shi's question.
"Ah, and congratulations. Your Endurance and Strength have improved through battle."
Bai Shi thought about it. The previous few battles had constantly pushed his stamina to its limits, so it was normal for it to improve after he recovered.
After all, unlike the Tarnished, other beings like soldiers had to rely on training to increase their strength.
But Bai Shi still had a doubt in his mind, so he asked Melina:
"Will these self-improved attributes increase the Rune cost?"
If it did increase the cost, it wouldn't be a big deal if it was an attribute he needed to level up anyway.
But if an attribute he had no current plans to upgrade increased, it would disrupt his plans for the Runes.
"No, they won't. Attributes gained through your own training certainly don't increase the Rune cost."
Good, so there was no increased cost.
Bai Shi thought for a moment and began to allocate his points.
First, six points into Vigor, bringing it to 25. He was aiming for rock-solid stability.
Four points into Endurance, which, with the one point gained in battle, brought it to 16.
Four points into Strength, which also gained one point on its own, bringing it to 21.
And four points into Dexterity, bringing it to 18.
He had spent points on 18 attribute levels in total, with over 3,000 Runes left.
In terms of in-game levels, Bai Shi had jumped from level 15 to 32 in one go. And because of the two points gained from battle, his actual attributes were that of a level 34 character.
His level had more than doubled. A massive, intense, explosive increase in strength!
Now, as a warrior, Bai Shi's strength had improved in every aspect.
Bai Shi clenched his fist, feeling his newfound power.
Bai Shi's stat allocation was well-founded; it wasn't just a random, even spread.
Vigor was self-explanatory. What kind of warrior doesn't put points into Vigor until it's at 40?
The Banished Knight set was a bit heavy, so Endurance was essential for combat.
Strength and Dexterity were for wielding various weapons.
Now that his Strength and Dexterity values were quite high, he could freely use most warrior weapons, from greatswords that required immense strength to curved greatswords like the Bloodhound's Fang that needed both Strength and Dexterity.
The more diverse his weaponry, the more flexible his tactics could be.
He could pull out a different weapon to counter different enemies.
As for Intelligence, Faith, and Arcane, Bai Shi wasn't relying on those for combat at the moment.
If Intelligence actually made him smarter, Bai Shi would definitely max it out first, no questions asked.
But unfortunately, Intelligence here only represented his aptitude for sorcery.
Besides, as long as he used Fengling Yueying and the 5x Rune multiplier to fight achievement bosses, becoming a jack-of-all-trades build was just a matter of time.
Finishing a fight, using the 5x Runes to level up, and then using the restored charges on the next achievement boss—it was a completely risk-free business.
---
Bai Shi looked at Melina and smiled confidently.
"Alright, Melina. Take me to the Roundtable Hold."
"Let me see how I measure up to those heroes."
Melina looked at Bai Shi and smiled back.
"I believe that even among those heroes, you will surely be the most brilliant."