It seemed that because of Aaron's choice, Alice's attitude had improved noticeably along the way. Even her reminders for Aaron to mind his noble etiquette had become gentler.
She couldn't afford to ignore such details, either. Once she became Aaron's fiancée, it would, in a sense, mean that Aaron represented the House of Iris.
His conduct would also affect the reputation of the House of Iris.
Alice certainly didn't want Aaron to disgrace the House of Iris over such a trivial matter.
While reminding him about noble etiquette, she also took the opportunity to introduce them to the lord of the city, whom they had never met before: "Iron Arm" Bals, a Gold Tier Holy Grail Path Transcendent.
If Sword Affinity Transcendents strengthened their bodies through transcendent aura, and Gold Coin Path Transcendents strengthened their souls through transcendent aura, then Holy Grail Path Transcendents treated transcendent aura as a precious source of energy.
Through transcendent aura, they could turn stone into gold, animate metal, and allow living beings to break through their limits...
As for Iron Arm Bals, as his name suggested, he had successfully modified his right arm into a metallic construct.
In fact, quite a few Holy Grail Path Transcendents, like Bals, tried replacing certain parts of their bodies in pursuit of greater combat power or other uses.
Alice led Aaron and the others past several attendants, and they encountered Bals chatting with Ed in the reception hall of the city lord's residence.
His hair had already begun to gray, and several conspicuous old claw marks crossed his cheeks.
Even though he had entered middle age, his sturdy build made him a head taller than Ed. Merely standing there, he resembled a towering wall that inspired awe.
His right arm had vanished from the shoulder down. In its place was a dark metal arm several inches thicker than an adult's thigh.
Even more astonishingly, his left arm was so powerful that it looked no weaker than the enormous artificial right arm.
Perhaps because his appearance was simply too imposing, or perhaps because of the pressure emanating from a Gold Tier Transcendent, Aaron felt a trace of awe rising in his heart.
He secretly examined Bals's metal right arm. He couldn't help thinking of a metal prosthetic from some cyberpunk game and imagining what such an arm would look like attached to an ordinary person.
Obviously, he had long since cast Alice's recent reminder about noble etiquette to the back of his mind.
After signaling to Aaron several times to no avail, Alice sighed helplessly, performed a standard hand-to-chest salute, and took the initiative to greet him. "Lord Bals, may the Light of the Griffin be with you."
"May the Light of the Griffin be with you." Bals gave a slight nod and stepped forward. His enormous metal prosthetic moved with unexpected dexterity as he gently took Alice's hand.
However, after glancing at Aaron, he gave a hearty laugh and did not continue with the customary hand-kissing ceremony. Instead, he merely lowered his head symbolically.
"This must be Master Sart, right?" He turned to look at Sart, who was following behind Aaron, a warm smile spreading across his face.
Although Sart disliked dealing with nobles, that did not mean he was incapable of conversation. He merely nodded, his expression revealing just the right amount of distance. "That's me, Lord Bals."
"To be honest, I didn't expect the Star Tower to respond to my letter so quickly. I was already prepared to spend several months with Leyden City without a prophet." As he spoke, Bals led everyone to the huge round wooden table in the center of the reception hall. "Please, everyone, have a seat."
His weight was astonishing. Chairs made of ordinary materials could not possibly support him, so he sat on a sturdy section of a log.
Sart couldn't help frowning when he heard Bals's words.
He had come to Leyden City purely to follow the guidance of fate. In fact, before meeting Aaron, he himself had no idea where he would encounter his opportunity to advance.
Moreover, the Star Tower had not told him anything. He knew nothing about Bals sending a letter to the Star Tower.
"I'm sorry, Lord Bals, but I didn't come because of your letter."
A trace of surprise flashed through Bals's eyes. "Master Sart, are you joking? I clearly received a reply from the Star Tower. It stated that you and another apprentice of the Star Tower would help me resolve this incident."
As he spoke, he pulled out an envelope shimmering with a deep blue radiance.
Sart knew at a glance that it truly was a letter from the Star Tower. Only the Star Tower would lavishly mix Spirit Powder into special papyrus to create a letter capable of traveling through people's dreams.
This also indirectly proved that the matter Bals had mentioned was extremely important—important enough to warrant the use of a Spirit Letter.
Bals glanced at Aaron and even gave him a special reminder. "Sir Aaron, you'd better be careful. This letter also possesses transcendent aura."
Aaron sensed a certain goodwill in his gaze and nodded, half-understanding.
Only then did Bals open the letter. The Spirit Powder remaining on the envelope evaporated and formed the mark of a hexagram in the air. The deep-blue hexagram then faded, and a human voice emerged from the letter.
"Esteemed Lord Bals, we have received the relevant aura and residual spices you sent us. As you feared, we will immediately send apprentices to investigate this matter. The apprentices' names are Siosand and Sart. They will assist you in investigating this matter. Please also take care to protect their safety. On the condition that their safety is ensured, allow them to participate in this matter. The starlight above, may we remain ignorant."
The voice gradually faded, and the deep-blue Spirit Powder was completely depleted. The envelope turned a slightly greenish color.
The voice sounded ethereal, coming and going as though from both near and far. Yet the more closely one listened, the less possible it became to determine where it came from.
Aaron knew perfectly well that the voice should have come from the letter, yet he inexplicably felt that it had come from some unknown corner of the reception hall.
Sart's brows drew together even more tightly.
He naturally recognized that ethereal voice. It belonged to his mentor, Julian of the White Robes.
His mentor's voice, the Spirit Letter, and his own name—these three things unquestionably proved that Bals had not been deceiving him.
And yet he truly had received no notification.
Had his teacher foreseen that he would become involved with this matter in Leyden City, and therefore decided not to notify him?
Seeing Sart's expression, Bals frowned. "You didn't know about this?"
Sart nodded frankly. After glancing at Aaron, he said to Bals, "I know now. As for this matter, I'm afraid we'll have to wait for Siosand to explain. Perhaps he knows why. He should know more."
Yet inwardly, he was filled with confusion.
What exactly did this matter refer to?
Why had his teacher assigned Siosand to handle it?
Before you continue