Arya was excited to try out the bow I had crafted for her but since it was still rather early I insisted that she should eat something before going out and testing it. I knew very well the joy that came from testing out new things and how quickly one could lose their sense of time. As was usual I started working on breakfast, though Arya was actually able to help out today since I had woken her up instead of letting her sleep. Marian joined us as well once she came out of the hot spring, wearing the new clothes I'd weaved for her just last night.

"How am I supposed to explain my appearance?" she asked while cutting some fresh vegetables, a question I had expected but wasn't sure how to answer. It wasn't exactly common for one's appearance to change overnight, even if it was the effect of a Skill. I had thought of making an item to disguise her new appearance but it would be a mana intense item, not something that could be used freely unless I hooked it into the same system the communication jewelry was using, but to do that I would have to owe another favor to the prince, not something I particularly wanted.

The three of us discussed ideas over breakfast, but none of the ideas really seemed plausible. The hair I could deal with via dye even if it wasn't perfect. The biggest problem was the seeming regression of age and eye color, no matter how we thought about it there didn't seem to be a good explanation. In the end we decided to delay by having Marian fake illness and staying at the manor while I did some research through Seshat's Library.

When I told Marian to check her Status to see what changed and what we'd really need to explain the changes seemed minor, but they were in some of the most important places.

The title was something that probably wouldn't cause too much trouble, but the fact that Marian's race, date of birth and age had all changed was not something that would be easy to disguise. While it would be possible to hide them for a time, eventually someone would need to verify her identity which would likely cause all manner of problems. Regardless, I took a bit of time to transcribe the new entries from what Seshat's Library told me so that I could reference them when I needed to.

"Retainer: A Title granted to a being that has become the servant of a more powerful being. Grants differing bonuses depending on the difference of power and the nature of the Retainer's Lord.'

'Dhampir: An extremely rare breed of Hellborn. Typically born from the union of life draining demon, such as a vampire or succubus and a mortal race. Dhampirs take the best traits from both parents and often have none of the weaknesses.'

'Retainer of Blood: A Gift acquired by undergoing a willing transformation into a Vampire, Blood Fiend, or other Demonic entity. Increases the strength of any blood or life draining Skills. Grants the Hemomancy Skill.'

'Devotion: An evolved version of the Loyalty Skill. This Skill increases the strength of a subject in proportion to their devotion towards their lord."

'Life Drain: A Skill used to drain the vitality of other beings."

'Hemomancy: A heretical Skill that deals with the manipulation and rituals that can be done with the lifeblood of living beings.'

It always felt strange to look at another person's Status, especially when they had lived a rather normal life such as Marian and it really made the absolute bizarreness of my Status clear. Even though she'd become a Dhampir and gained some interesting Skills, it was incomparable when I thought about all the things I needed to keep hidden.

Like lightning running through my head I suddenly had an idea, though I was unsure if it would work. I had the Deception Skill, something I'd been granted by the mysterious pink haired woman back during the Awakening Ceremony and it allowed me to mask entries on my Status Plate. I was somewhat hesitant to get Ellie involved in my secrets, but if I could get her to remove a level from it and give it to Marian it would be a perfect solution.

The biggest issue with this solution was that I wasn't sure if Marian would be able to withstand the procedure. It was a simple process for me, but she would have to deal with the pain and even though she'd become a Dhampir I wasn't sure if she could handle the intense sensation of having a Skill stitched into her.

Even if Ellie was unwilling to do the procedure, she might know of a Skill that would cause sudden changes in appearance, or at the very least might be able to provide some insight into another solution. It was my best lead besides trying to figure something out with Seshat's Library, but it wasn't like I had a limitless amount of time to peruse the mostly useless information I was going to have to scour through.