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I showed my great-grandmother the Ink I had obtained from the gods. She and the other elders fell completely silent, staring at it in awe.
"Incredible… This is a special ink made by the gods themselves?" she whispered. "With this, you could finally obtain your own Spirit Beast Tattoo!"
"But how long has it been since we've had proper ink like this?" one elder murmured.
"The last elder capable of tattooing at this level has been dead for decades," another added. "He was a great Shaman, able to channel the power of the spirits through the ink he crafted… Even those born without a Spirit Beast Tattoo could gain one with his help."
The other elders watched with clear interest, yet none of them possessed the knowledge required to grant such tattoos.
"So… it's not possible?" I asked.
"It is," my great-grandmother said. "I learned from him. I may not be the best, but I will give it my all. We can start right now. Come here."
"Right now?" My eyes widened, but I nodded. "Okay."
I followed her to her home. The item in question was [Spirit Beast Tattoo Ink – Sun Phoenix (A Grade)]. I had already evolved the ink to S Rank just before showing it to her, and when she saw the sparkling liquid, she was utterly flabbergasted.
"Incredible… To be gifted ink directly from the gods, and you even evolved it further?" she said, voice filled with wonder. "This must have been made with the greatest ingredients imaginable. A Sun Phoenix, no less… I am honored to try this. Are you ready, girl? It will hurt a great deal."
"Yeah, I'm ready," I said firmly.
I deliberately suppressed my divine power and weakened my Physique's natural reinforcement until my skin became vulnerable. It was just enough for her needle to pierce through. The pain was immediate and sharp, but I clenched my teeth and endured it.
She worked on my entire back for nearly the whole day, carefully painting wings, the bird's head, body, eyes, beak, and intricate feathers. I had prepared revitalizing potions for her to drink throughout the process so she wouldn't grow exhausted.
The tattooing was as painful as it was mesmerizing. She infused her own spiritual aura into the needle, guiding the ink deep into my skin with painstaking precision. Slowly, each part of the design began to connect like living runes, glowing with radiant light.
When she finally finished, my entire back was glowing and bleeding. She gently cleaned the blood away and gave a satisfied nod. I used healing magic to soothe my skin, reduce the swelling, and help it adapt.
"It's done," she said softly. "Now stand up. It's inactive for now, but if everything went well… you should be able to awaken it by unleashing your Spirit Aura and letting Mana flow through your body, dear."
"Okay, Grandma. Let me try."
I closed my eyes and channeled both Spirit Energy and Mana throughout my body, instantly activating my Physique.
The change was instantaneous.
BOOOM!
A massive explosion of flames erupted around us, swallowing everything in pure spiritual fire. We suddenly stood within an endless expanse of blazing spiritual energy.
"W-What is this?!" my great-grandmother cried.
"Incredible!"
The flames did not burn anything. They were made of my own spirit energy, ready to unleash as much destruction as I desired. Within this blazing dimension, a giant bird descended from the white sky, its presence overwhelming.
"CRYAAAAA!"
It let out a piercing cry as flames engulfed me completely. When I opened my eyes again, I was back in her house. My body felt stronger than ever. The tattoo had spread across my back, arms, and legs, glowing with brilliant gold and red hues. A pair of burning wings manifested on my back.
"What is this?!" I gasped, shocked beyond words. My power had surged dramatically, and I could feel something alive now residing within my skin.
[You have successfully Awakened the Powerful: [Spirit Beast Tattoo: Sun Phoenix – Tier 4: Rank 1]!]
[All of your Stats have increased by +4,000!]
[You have learned the Spirit Beast Tattoo Ability: [Sun Phoenix's Wings – Tier 4]]
[You have learned the Spirit Beast Tattoo Ability: [Sun Phoenix's Talons – Tier 4]]
[You have learned the Spirit Beast Tattoo Ability: [Sun Phoenix's Beak – Tier 4]]
[You have learned the Spirit Beast Tattoo Ability: [Sun Phoenix's Soul – Tier 4]]
So this is what a Spirit Beast Tattoo feels like. It grants the ability to transform? I had seen others draw upon this power before, but theirs manifested as beast-like auras that merged with their attacks. This felt far more advanced.
"Incredible… So this is how it feels to have a Spirit Beast Tattoo?! It's insane!"
"Hohoho, I'm glad it worked!" my great-grandmother laughed. "I guess I'm not as rusty as I thought."
"Of course you aren't, Granny! You're amazing!" I cried, hugging her tightly and lifting her off the ground. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I planted a big kiss on her forehead.
"Hahaha, let go of me already!" she protested, giggling despite trying to sound grumpy. "You're way too strong, girl!"
"Heheh, sorry," I said, gently setting her down.
"Ahem! Well, now that we're done, it's already night. Go back to your family," she said. "I need to rest. I'm exhausted."
"Oh, okay. Here, take this," I replied, handing her a necklace I had crafted earlier, adorned with beautiful red and green jewels.
"What's this?"
"It's a Spirit Necklace. It will boost your Vitality and Stamina, and help you live more comfortably."
"You didn't have to, girl…" she sighed.
"Oh please, you're my family. This is the least I could do," I said, carefully placing the necklace around her neck. "See? It looks beautiful on you, Grandma! You're a real beauty!"
"Hohoh, stop with the jokes!" she laughed. "Fine, fine, I'll keep it. Now go already! Leave this old woman alone."
"Okay, sorry!" I laughed and ran out of the house, heading back home.
As I ran, I suddenly stopped. With the immense amount of Mana now flowing through me, I realized I could try something truly crazy.
I didn't hesitate.
"Evolve."
FLAAASH!
Targeting my Spirit Beast Tattoo, the Evolution succeeded. A tremendous explosion of flames burst from my body as an even larger phoenix emerged, now composed of golden flames and sacred fire. The tattoo spread further across my arms, legs, and torso, shifting into a deeper red-gold hue and growing far more powerful. My phoenix wings became significantly larger and split into two majestic pairs.
"Wow…"
My Divine Power had risen as well, and my Physique began resonating with the tattoo, as if the two were slowly merging into one.
[You have used your Trait: [Evolution (? Rank)] to evolve your [Spirit Beast Tattoo: Sun Phoenix – Tier 4: Rank 1] into [Spirit Beast Tattoo: Holy Sun Phoenix – Tier 5: Rank 1]!]
[All of your Stats have increased by +1,000!]
[You have learned the Spirit Beast Tattoo Ability: [Cruel Holy Sun – Tier 5]]
[All your other Spirit Beast Tattoo Abilities have Ranked Up to Tier 5.]
[The Abilities: [Sun Phoenix's Wings – Tier 5], [Sun Phoenix's Talons – Tier 5], [Sun Phoenix's Beak – Tier 5], [Sun Phoenix's Soul – Tier 5] have merged into [Holy Sun Phoenix's Soul Transformation – Tier 5]!]
"A whole rank up, and it even became Holy?" I smiled, deeply satisfied. "Interesting."
Feeling lighter despite the earlier exhaustion, I continued walking home. The Spirit Beast Tattoo was already showing its passive benefits—it greatly increased my Mana and Spiritual Energy regeneration speed, as well as my maximum capacity. The recovery was happening at an astonishing rate.
"It looks like the power of Evolution has proven incredibly valuable," Freyja said.
"I'm relieved it could help, Brunhild."
"Yeah, it really did," I replied. "I was wondering… could I use it on you?"
"On me?!" Freyja sounded genuinely surprised.
"I never thought about that… Okay, do it."
"You sure?"
"Yeah!"
We stopped in a quiet, unoccupied area of the village. I focused my power on her.
"Evolve!"
FLASH!
My energy surged toward Freyja. She cried out in surprise as she began absorbing the immense power, her digital aura expanding rapidly. But suddenly—
"Ugh?!"
I fell to my knees as the ritual collapsed halfway. All my strength vanished in an instant.
"B-Brunhild? What happened?"
"Ugh… It felt like you kept absorbing energy without end. I don't have enough power to evolve you… You're simply too strong."
"Ah… Maybe because I'm technically a Divine Spirit."
"Makes sense…" I groaned. "It failed…"
"I'm so sorry! I do feel pretty revitalized, if that helps!"
"It doesn't…"
In the end, Fenrir had to drag me back home. I joined my family for dinner and told them everything that had happened. All preparations were nearly complete.
Tomorrow morning will be the big day.
I can't wait.
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