Chapter 559 – A Shift.

Lucille opened her eyes, gasping as she felt the lingering echoes of mana flicker away from her fingertips. A dull ache spread across her limbs, a reminder of her exertion, but it was overshadowed by the exhilaration coursing through her veins. She had done it. She had passed. Robert was standing over her, his expression clear with worry as he was unsure of her success.

“Lucille, is everything alright?”

His brother, on the other hand, wore a different expression. She didn’t know how, but it seemed he had noticed something. Usually, his hand would already be hovering, casting spells to enhance her memories, but it wasn’t.

“Congratulations on reaching Tier 3.”

Robert quickly looked at Roland with a dumbfounded expression, then back at Lucille. However, before he could congratulate her, something started rising from within, and she could feel it.

“Now then… try to bear with it. This should lessen the pain…”

She had witnessed the process when Robert achieved his Rune Arch-Knight class, and it looked painful. Now, it was her turn. A cold sweat covered her body, and it felt as if a thousand needles were pressing into her from all directions. Luckily, her brother-in-law was there, and it seemed he had figured out a way to alleviate the pain. After a few seconds, a golden aura surrounded her, and she felt more at ease.

Thanks to Roland’s pain-relieving spell, she felt only a slight tingle as her body underwent the transformation. When Robert went through it, his expression had been filled with pain, but for her, this was almost refreshing. She also noticed that all the sweat her body produced was being cleansed, along with any potential bad odors.

However, her mind was preoccupied with something else. The runes glowing on Roland’s gauntlets no longer felt so unfamiliar. Her transformation into Tier 3 had begun, and she had already grasped the basics of greater runes, an ability granted to her after completing the fifth and final stage of the trial.

The last stage had been exhausting, but thanks to her studies on the complexities of Tier 3 runes and her constant observation of Roland using them, she had figured it out on her first attempt. It had taken her about the same amount of time to complete her ascension as Robert, and now, at last, it was over.

“Lucille, how do you feel?”

“I… I feel great!”

Robert helped her up by taking her hand, his grip firm yet careful, as if still expecting her to falter from exhaustion. But Lucille stood tall, feeling the strength coursing through her newly refined body. It was unlike anything she had ever experienced before. Her mana felt denser, more fluid, and her senses were sharper. The world around her seemed clearer, as if every detail had been brought into sharper focus.

She flexed her fingers and watched as faint traces of mana swirled around them. The transformation was complete. She was no longer just an aspiring Rune Mage. She was now a Rune Transmuter, a class she had fought and struggled for and one she had not even known existed.

“Can you see it? It’s there!”

“Umm…”

Robert watched with concern as Lucille waved her hand and pointed at the air where her status screen was displayed. Of course, he could not see what she was seeing, nor did he have an identification skill to help him understand. However, she was completely focused on her new and improved status screen, which now displayed her class and all its upgrades.

The bonuses were staggering. Her old Rune Mage class had only reduced mana usage for runes by twenty percent, but now she could lower it by an additional forty percent. With her newly enhanced mana reserves, she would likely be able to cast rune magic far more freely without suffering the usual drawback of high mana costs.

This didn’t even take into account the raised multiplier that exceeded the standard three times. A regular Master Rune Mage was said to have a slightly higher multiplier, which meant that choosing this class had probably been the right decision. Her eyes quickly shifted to the most important skill she had received, and now, it was no longer listed as temporary.

There it was, the main skill that went along with this class. It allowed her to shape Runes of all kinds and tiers. However, it was not the only skill she was blessed with as there were some more.

This was something that was not included in a trial. She wasn’t quite sure how storing and loading transmuted runes worked but she already had an idea. Then there was a skill that seemed similar to a basic runsmithing skill just one adapted for transmuting.

It was similar to “Rune Mending” but had some drawbacks and limitations. She clearly could not affect the material the rune was on, so if someone cut a rune in half, she probably would not be able to restore it. Moving runes around metal did not seem possible, at least not for now.

Now this was an interesting one. She knew exactly what these magical pathways were. They were essential for almost all high-tier runes since connecting runes through only physical paths was sometimes impossible. With this skill, she would be able to alter their composition, but she was limited to already existing ones, a restriction that runesmiths did not have.

This was all she could see of the skills she received from the Rune Transmuter class. Various skills had their masteries raised when she reached Tier 3, but they were not that important. Now that it was finally over, a new challenge stood before her as she needed to master greater runes, something she had been waiting to do for years.

Lucille stood in silence, her eyes fixed on the status screen displaying her newly gained class and skills. The rush of power within her was intoxicating, and the two brothers noticed her growing obsession with it.

“Why don’t you two head home and rest for now? There’s going to be plenty of work tomorrow”

Roland suggested while Robert nodded, but Lucille didn’t seem to be listening. She continued mumbling about transmuting runes and greater runic structures she wished to research.

“Tomorrow? I don’t feel tired at all! I wouldn’t be able to sleep even if I wanted to!”