When the plot-skips players into the game world

```

After Aiwass had selected his perk, the other two options shattered into pieces.

He felt his body becoming light and airy... Looking down, he saw that his body had transformed into a grey shell, entwined with the Shadow Demon, and then it solidified once again.

The power from the Shadow Demon flowed into him continuously through the contract. What was once a trickle like a faucet, had now become a roaring drain pipe, and his Mana Pool was finally enlarged, capable of accommodating the extra Dark Attribute Mana!

When Aiwass awoke from his dream, the sun had not risen yet, and it was still pitch-black outside.

The robe he wore, smeared with chicken blood, had dried and was emitting a faint unpleasant odor. Lily had not yet awakened, probably still choosing her perks.

His attribute panel had changed accordingly:

Demon Scholar LV10: [Demonology Knowledge-2nd level (97%)], [Basic Ritual-2nd level (0%)], [Demonic Pact-4th level (0%)], [Shepherd's Nurturing (Essence)-2nd level (0%)]

Mana Pool: 27/27 (Light), 24/24 (Dark), 47/47 (Fire)

Path Traits——

Transcendence-Shadow Avatar (Balance): You are both the vessel and the incarnation. The shadows are no longer your enemy. Your "Shadow Affinity" and "Dark Container" levels increase by one.

Transcendence-Shadow Affinity LV2: You have signed a life-bound pact with the Shadow Demon, allowing you to freely use second-level shadow abilities.

Transcendence-Dark Container LV1: You have come into contact with the Serpent Father's Feather, your Mana Pool (Dark) maximum capacity increases by 14.

——It's done.

Aiwass now had the rank of a 15th level Priest and a 10th level Demon Scholar, and he had barely used any of his experience.

In other words, he could advance twice more next month!

And this time Aiwass had finally confirmed something, that perks could indeed be influenced by behavior!

"But how am I supposed to acquire the container perks for the wind, earth, and water attributes?"

Aiwass fell into deep contemplation.

He shook his head, deciding to think about such matters later.

Aiwass changed out of his clothes, then began to clean up the traces of the ritual.

He waited another ten minutes or so when Lily, who was still asleep on the sofa, suddenly made an indistinct sound like sleep talking, hummed, and then slowly woke up.

Aiwass, who was cleaning up after the ritual, looked up to see Lily silently staring at him with her clear grey eyes.

After this ritual, their relationship had grown much closer.

If it had been before, she might have woken up panic-stricken, quickly getting up to start working for Aiwass. Outside of work, she nearly never chatted or talked with Aiwass.

She was simply used to maintaining a distance from her master as a personal maid—that was her modesty and professional ethic. Unless needed by her master, she would not give her opinion.

She always liked to maintain silence, not because she didn't like to talk. In fact, she could even have long, happy conversations with Princess Isabel... as long as Aiwass was not nearby.

Lily knew she was of lowly status and relied on others, so to protect herself, she always kept her distance from people. Knowing too much was not necessarily a good thing for her. So she would often pretend not to see, not to hear, hoping to become invisible to everyone.

But now, looking at Aiwass, Lily only felt a sense of calm.

It wasn't the silence chosen out of a principle of caution.

It was a feeling of not wanting to think about anything, a quiet and warm sense of security.

It was like when she was very small, and her mother would sometimes hold her quietly in her arms.

That's when Lily would feel this sense of tranquility.

Lily's mother did not have a good temper, or rather, she was somewhat neurotic. In most cases, she was irascible and unreasonable, but occasionally she would calm down and become very gentle.

Lily did not hate her for it. Because unlike her colleagues, her mother did not decide to make her daughter follow in her footsteps—her mother's only wish was for Lily to study hard and ultimately change her destiny. For this alone, Lily bore no grudges against her mother.

Lily knew she had no way out, so she studied very hard. Until middle school, she was always at the top of her class.

It wasn't until Lily was thirteen years old. Because of her good looks, quietness, and decorum, many classmates wanted to pursue her.

This was also a direction for changing her destiny.

```

"As long as she could find a suitable husband, she could also break free from the fetters that her birth status had brought upon her."

However, Lily, who hailed from the Lohar District, was sensible from an early age and had broad experiences, knew this possibility was slim.

The greater likelihood was that she would be toyed with and then callously discarded, squandering her youth and time. Therefore, Lily did not harbor any such wishful thinking and concentrated on her studies. That was why she rejected those men's advances."

But Lily didn't know that being unattainable only spurred people's interest. As a result, the boys who pursued her began to investigate her background, likes, and interests... and unexpectedly uncovered her mother's profession, learning that Lily was an illegitimate child and that her surname came from her mother."

The news spread from someone, but in an instant, it was all over the school, and Lily's suitors immediately distanced themselves from her, while more repugnant flies came buzzing. Suddenly rumors abounded, and Lily couldn't settle down to her books; she could only go home and hide in the attic to read."

Lily's mother thought this would only ruin her since their home couldn't provide a learning environment. And there were no teachers to instruct her, so she turned to Lily's biological father... hoping he could provide Lily with resources befitting the Drost Family and give her a surname."

It was only then that Lily learned that noble blood from one of the Founding Families ran through her veins."

But at that time, she didn't understand why she was born. She still fantasized that she was the result of a forbidden love and even indulged in all kinds of romantic stories filled with girlish fantasies."

It wasn't a baseless assumption."

Because the first time she met Minister Drost, he was incredibly friendly."

He even had a serious heart-to-heart with Lily, carefully inquiring about her grades, likes, interpersonal relationships, and future dreams. He explained his current predicament to her in a very equal and humorous way, the rules of the Knight Family, what being an illegitimate child meant, and why he couldn't give her a surname, and he apologized to her."

Lily accepted this outcome."

She learned from Minister Drost that with her troubling background, even with excellent grades, she would not be permitted to attend university—she was the illegitimate child of a prostitute, an unregistered dweller of the Lohar District, and at the same time, the illegitimate child of the Knight Family. With all these factors combined, her status was essentially akin to that of a descendant of a serious criminal."

Neither the military, the courts, nor the Supervisory Bureau would recruit her. The best job she could hope to find was to become a governess."

Therefore, Lily followed the arrangements of Minister Drost and was sent to the Moriarty Family, also one of the Founding Families, to take care of their newly adopted young master, Aiwass, as a personal maid."

As a personal maid of a Founding Family, Lily's status was actually higher than most governesses—because usually, personal maids begin looking after the direct heir at a very young age, and their ages aren't too different. If the personal maid is of the opposite sex, she often has an intimate relationship with the heir and is the most closely acquainted peer during adolescence."

In a sense, a personal maid is the future person of power's absolutely loyal lover, best friend, and accomplice."

They were different from other maids who were just engaged in chores. They didn't usually wear maid uniforms but dressed in the mistress's hand-me-downs or clothes gifted by the male head of the household. Except for not being allowed to wear jewelry on principle, their attire and grooming were indistinguishable from the young ladies of the Royal Capital."

Moreover, since they would accompany the masters during outings, they didn't eat the servants' meals but the masters' leftovers, and they often shared the table with the masters outside formal banquets."

They also had their own private rooms and didn't live in dormitories like the other servants. Personal maids usually weren't dismissed and would accompany their masters until death."

The salary of a personal maid was second only to that of a housekeeper, and they also received paid annual leave for family visitation."

Even for girls of common birth, this was a highly sought-after job that they couldn't just stumble into."

Not to mention, Lily's origins were humble... And so, at that time, though Lily felt helpless and saddened that she could no longer pursue her studies, she knew she had reached a destination difficult for many to achieve even after years of education. She received security and respect in the Moriarty Family, and thus, was very grateful for Drost's arrangement."

The only thing that saddened Lily was that shortly after she settled into her new life, her mother passed away."

It was only during this ritual that she uncovered the secrets behind everything."

Her mother had been murdered by an assassin hired by her father."

And perhaps it was because her current master, Aiwass, had gotten involved in the secretary's death, attracting Minister Drost's wrath; or maybe because Drost had learned of Moriarty's demise and grown bolder... or even just because Lily had gone against his wishes to attend school, making him feel offended."

He even wanted to hire an assassin to kill Lily now!"

Lily then realized that Drost's arrangement was not for her benefit. She was already enrolled in school and hadn't heard any such thing as "a prostitute's descendant can't attend school"; she had also seen descendants of criminals among the students at the Theological Seminary."

So, Minister Drost simply didn't want her to appear in public."

He sent Lily to the Moriarty Family just to keep her confined. To ensure she would never have the chance to claim the Drost surname in her lifetime."

—Such things, better off without."

Lily thought to herself.

"What truly deserves attention has already been acquired. My treasures, the direction of my life..."

She had particularly chosen the "Shadow Affinity" trait for this occasion, to better cooperate with Aiwass, who possessed the Shadow Demon. Coupled with the "Shadow Affinity" she had acquired when she entered the Path of Adaptation, she now had two levels of Shadow Affinity."

This was her strategy for her future self. One day Aiwass would leave his wheelchair, and by then, what status would she use to follow Aiwass?

She had to find a way to make herself more useful. She already knew for whom she was living and didn't want to be left behind by anyone again.