Winnie wasn’t unfamiliar with the Carmella Royal Palace; he had visited often enough, so he had a general idea of where the Soul Art repository was located. Otherwise, in such a massive palace, it would be easy to get lost without someone guiding him.
As he walked along the path leading to the royal repository, he reflected on the few plot points he remembered.
If he wasn’t mistaken, in the original story, Mirecia didn’t fall in love with Aeciphysis all of a sudden—Winnie played a key role in it.
If it weren’t for the irritating childhood friend always pushing Mirecia into Aeciphysis’ arms, Mirecia might not have even swung that way.
In a sense, it was Winnie who made Mirecia develop a repulsion to the opposite sex.
Though, it was also true that Mirecia might have had those tendencies to begin with, especially since this was an orange-themed game where men had no real choice in their partners.
He shook off those thoughts and looked ahead at the marble palace with exquisite dragon carvings on the columns.
This was the Carmella Royal Family’s dedicated Soul Art repository. Winnie had visited many times, but had never actually entered, since he wasn’t really interested in Soul Arts before.
Although the Carmella Royal Family had always used the Dragon’s Eye Soul Art, that didn’t stop them from building their own repository to attract and gather talented individuals.
The flying dragons carved into these pillars were the Carmella royal family’s totem.
There was also a rumor that the Carmella royals had a serious obsession with collecting rare and valuable items, but Winnie wasn’t sure if it was true.
In the original story, Winnie had rejected the Church and everything related to Soul Arts, perhaps as a form of escape?
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Focusing on Mirecia, wandering freely in the royal capital, maybe this was the only time he could briefly forget the weak and useless version of himself?
Winnie took a deep breath and opened the Virtue panel.
With so many Soul Arts in the royal repository, surely there must be something suitable for someone with a one-star magical aptitude, right?
He wasn’t sure. Could the one-star Soul Art be enough to catch up to the shortcut path of the original Winnie?
With those uneasy thoughts in mind, Winnie stepped into the royal Soul Art repository.
Once inside, his vision opened up. If he was still pondering about the future before, now, he was utterly stunned by what he saw in front of him.
The repository was far more spacious than it appeared from the outside. The ceiling and floor were made of transparent crystal, which contained glowing golden enchanted stones, illuminating the entire hall with an intense brilliance.
In the hall, the jade cabinets with pearl and jade accessories were the least valuable items. Inside each transparent crystal bottle were shimmering Soul Arts, glowing like stars, radiating suppressed power that felt overwhelming.
It was simply...
So beautiful.
Winnie’s eyes sparkled, mesmerized by the dazzling array of Soul Arts, feeling an indescribable awe at the immense power they exuded.
"Who’s there? Entering without a word," a hoarse voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts.
Winnie turned toward the source of the voice and saw an elderly man standing up from his seat behind a counter.
"Oh, it’s you, you little brat?" The old man’s expression immediately soured as soon as he recognized him.
What was that saying again? A good day ends the moment you see Winnie.
"Uncle Eric, as per His Majesty the King’s instructions, I’m here to select a Soul Art for myself today," Winnie said, walking up to the old man, handing him the pass from the King.
"Oh? It’s rare for you to be so polite today. I thought you were here to bother Princess Mirecia again," Eric said, giving Winnie a once-over, clearly not hiding his discontent with Winnie’s usual behavior.
Eric, whose temperament and speaking style were very direct, had once been the deputy leader of the Angry Dragon Knights. After retiring, he was given a high-paying, easy position to watch over the royal Soul Art repository.
The Carmella royal family never mistreated their loyal servants, especially those from the Angry Dragon Knights. If you served them faithfully, they would ensure a life of wealth and honor.
"But you’ve never been interested in Soul Arts, right? What’s this? After being publicly rejected by the Princess, you plan to try another way to win her heart?" Eric asked, his voice heavy with meaning.
"I know," Winnie answered calmly.
"......You know?" Eric’s eyes widened slightly at Winnie’s calm acceptance of his words. It made Eric even more confused about what Winnie was thinking.
Although elders shouldn’t interfere with younger people’s matters, Eric had seen just how obsessed Winnie was, and given his usual behavior, if it weren’t for the Goddess’s influence, Eric would’ve stepped in to discipline him long ago, especially with how he kept bothering Mirecia.
"Let’s not talk about that. Mr. Eric, have you finished checking the pass? I want to go and pick my Soul Art now," Winnie cut in.
Eric raised his head and saw the excitement in Winnie’s eyes, his gaze now glowing as if he couldn’t wait to dive into the sea of Soul Arts in front of him. It seemed like he had completely forgotten about Mirecia.
This was strange. Since when had this kid shown such ambition?
Eric muttered to himself.
"I don’t need to check it. His Majesty the King already told me about it. You can go ahead," Eric said, barely glancing at the pass before accepting it.
"Although, from how uninterested you were before, you probably don’t even know the different kinds of Soul Arts. Should I explain them to you?" Eric asked.
"No need," Winnie responded promptly.
"......Are you sure?" Eric’s eyes widened. Winnie’s immediate reply made him even more puzzled about what Winnie was thinking.
"Mm," Winnie said, as if signaling Eric to hurry up and finish so he could go pick his Soul Art.
"Alright, go ahead. If you have any questions, just ask..." Eric began to speak, but Winnie had already disappeared into the hall in a flash.
"Has this kid from the Aeciphysis family gone mad today?" Eric shook his head, muttering to himself.
Once inside the grand hall, Winnie’s goal was clear. The jade cabinets had Soul Arts sorted by their magical aptitude levels, starting from five stars and going down to the one-star and two-star Soul Arts at the back.
Winnie didn’t even look at the higher-rated ones.
What was the point? He couldn’t absorb them anyway. It was better not to look at them—they weren’t things he could touch.
The variety of Soul Arts in the royal repository was overwhelming, and it took Winnie quite some time to reach the section with the one-star Soul Arts.
Compared to the high-star Soul Arts, the one-star Soul Arts were far less impressive, their glow barely noticeable in comparison. They couldn’t even compare in magical potency.
One-star Soul Arts were far more numerous, like weeds in a garden, with every weird and bizarre type imaginable.
Winnie opened the panel and looked at the Soul Arts with increasing bewilderment.
Powerful Soul Arts were often the same, but weak ones were all over the place, their uses mysterious and countless. They all seemed to be useful for something, but never for battle.
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For example, there was a one-star Soul Art called Purification, which sounded mysterious and deep, right? What was its use? Dust-proofing and maintenance. In plain language, it made polishing plates shinier and sweeping floors cleaner.
Truly, Purification lived up to its name? Talk about sincerity??
The strangest part? This totally useless Soul Art had a 73% compatibility rate with him.
What was that supposed to mean? Was this a hint that he was only suited for these pointless, useless Soul Arts?