When I entered the study room, I saw the mistress sitting across a robed and blindfolded man in his middle-ages.

The middle-aged man was an unremarkable bald and dark-skinned man with a thin and weary bearded face. He had a tall yet skinny build, lacking flesh and muscles, appearing decrepit. The man's robe seemed tattered and brown, and his blindfold was dirty, and he had a large branch by his dirty cloth-covered feet as a walking stick.

As I looked at him, the first thought that crossed my mind was, "Is this guy a hobo?"

However, I soon recalled Menvi Kiadunrac, the demigod soothsayer. The first time I saw her, she also looked like a blind homeless person in need. Also, I failed to find a reason for the mistress to sit next to a blind dirty hobo.

"This can only mean one thing, that he is a soothsayer. And a powerful one, at that. She likely wants to test my talent." - I concluded.

Not showing my thoughts on my face, I walked up to the mistress and bowed, "I am here as you asked, mistress. Is this the honorable guest you wished for me to meet?"

My voice didn't carry any disdain, only pure respect. Strong soothsayers deserve respect.

"My my my. It is hard to find people who are sincerely respectful to me these days without knowing who I am, even if it is from using your intelligence. I am flattered." - The man said with a smile, revealing a row of pearly-white teeth.

"Oh, how do you know that I didn't tell him anything?" - The mistress asked with a smile.

"The sound, young one. I could hear his every breath, the hastening of the beat of his heart when he guessed my identity, the lack of hesitation and mockery in his voice. If he was the slightest bit disrespectful to me, I would know." - The man said.

I stared at the man in astonishment.

"Wow. This man either has some tricks, or he is powerful." - I thought in my mind.

"Little Mog, who do you think this gentleman in front of me is?" - The mistress asked.

"Yes, mistress. I believe that this man is a powerful soothsayer." - I said honestly.

"Oh, and what makes you say that? Know that if you lie, I will know." - The man said.

I hesitated for a moment before replying.

"I had once met a soothsayer like you that dressed like a, well, like a blind beggar. Also, you are sitting together with the mistress, so your status is not low." - I said my observations.

"Hahaha, perceptive, I like perceptive children like you." - The man laughed as a change started to occur to him.

His originally frail and skinny build turned bulky. His weary face turned chiseled and suave. His dry skin turned a little oily and had a shine to it. His scraggly beard turned into a neat, braided beard. On his black bald head, a white tattoo of a spider emerged. The dirty rags he wore turned into premium satin clothing with web marks, and his walking stick turned into a golden stick with web symbols.

"Your eminence..." - I bowed deeply in respect.

The man in front of me is likely a priest of Emphine, and a powerful one, at that. For him to come and see me is an honor.

"Hahaha! There is no need for that. This old sack of bones is just a humble servant of Emphine. My name is Dawwie, Dawwie Webber. In the empire, I check the potential of promising young aristocrats like the little girl here. Speaking of which, I coincidently met her in the mages guild, and she asked me to divine your status." - Dawwie said with a smile.

"However, I offered her a bet instead. If you were to treat me with respect under the premise of not knowing who I am, then I will divine your status for free. However, if you treated me with disrespect, I would be paid 10,000 silvers and leave without divining anything, and I lost magnificently. Either way, I win. Hehehe." - Dawwie chuckled.

"Now, then. I shall fulfill my part of the bargain. Come here, child." - Dawwie motioned.

"Yes, your eminence." - I said without hesitation.

Hesitation would arouse suspicion, and I trusted Grith to hide any important information for me, so I wasn't worried.

"Come, place your hands on mine. I need to feel your hands directly for me to divine your fate." - Dawwie continued.

"Yes..." - I didn't hesitate and placed my hands on his.

He then started to feel my hands with his own large hands, murmuring and muttering to himself.

"Hmm... Yes... I see... Interesting, very interesting!" - Dawwie exclaimed, his voice full of surprise.

"What? What did you read?" - The mistress asked.

In response, dawwie scratched his bald head in embarrassment as he said with a sheepish smile.

"That is the thing, I can't read anything. The threads of his fate are obscured by someone stronger than me."

I wondered in my heart, "Is it Grith, or is it Menvi?"

"What?! HOW!" - The mistress burst out in astonishment.

If the room was not sealed right now, the entire mansion would have heard her.

"Well, I guess that the soothsayer that he met outranks me, so she hid his fate forcefully for some reason. It can happen." - Dawwie guessed.

"I... I see. So what now?" - The mistress asked.

"Well, there is nothing I can do in this case, so I shall be on my way now. Sorry for not being able to fulfill my side of the bargain." - Dawwie apologized.

"It is fine. Thank you for your time, uncle Dawwie" - The mistress bowed.

Dawwie nodded and picked up his cane, "Before I go, to in exchange for not divining his fate, I will give you a fair warning. The more you restrain the child, the more it shall bite you back in the future. Take care."

And then, he returned to his dirty hobo form, and walked out of the study, closing the door after him.

"Do all strong soothsayers like to pretend to be dirty hobos?" - I asked myself in wonderment.

"My dear, little Mog. It seems like you are hiding a few secrets from me." - The mistress's voice drifted to my ear, carrying irritation within.

"CRAP!" - I cried in my mind.

"I... Er..." - I struggled to respond as I faced the mistress, who now looked at me with squinted eyes.

"So, tell me, my little Mog. Did the previous soothsayer divine your talent?" - She asked.

"Er... Yes..." - I could only admit it.

"I see. And why didn't you tell me in private?" - She continued asking.

"I didn't tell you to protect the both of us, mistress." - I answered truthfully.

Only two unique talent holders exist in the empire. The first one is the great-grandchild of the emperor himself, Octavia Caesaris, and the other one is me.

Because her status as a unique talent holder was leaked, she faced countless assassination attempts, even from a demigod assassin. Luckily for her, she is a dotted-on princess, so she was protected.

I, on the other hand, am different. I am a defenseless child with the backing of a not-so influential young scion in a large family. If someone with true power were to learn about me, then my fate would be grim. As for the mistress? She would be dead to keep her mouth shut.

"Protect us? What do you mean? Do you have a perfect talent? If that's all, I can still handle the pressure if it is discovered." - The mistress's expression became better, trying to calm me down.

"Er... No, mistress. It is something a bit...More." - I tried to hint.

At my words, the mistress frowned, "Well, out with it. Write down the talents you have."

"Crap! Now I need to tell her all my talents, including Lord Of Adaptation! What do I do?!"

As I was panicking, the voice of an old woman sounded in my mind.

"Don't worry, just write the talents that were divined to you before. I will handle the rest."

"Who?!" - I asked in a panic in my mind.

"It's me, Aiuc'thougrith. Just do as I say, and you'll be fine." - The old woman continued.

"Hah?! I thought that you were asleep! and why do you sound like an old woman?! I thought that you're a guy!"

"I waste energy by talking to you. Also, I have schizophrenia, and I have many different personalities. Just do as I instruct you, and you will be fine." - The old woman's voice said and quieted down.

"Grith? Grith! Hey! I am not done talking to you!" - I screamed in my mind but had no response.

As I questioned Grith, the mistress already brought a wax tablet and a stylus. She handed them to me and said.

"Here you go. Now, write down your talents. All of them." - She instructed.

"Crap. Well, here goes nothing." - I thought as I started to write the talents I had before drinking the potion.

[Watched by Veona]
[Advanced Warrior Talent]
[Intermediate Rogue Talent]
[Ef???? lvl ?? (Locked)]

" I wasn't punished by the oath or my slave crest! But I wonder why Grith wanted me to show the mistress that I have a unique talent." - I asked myself.

"Here, mistress." - I showed the tablet to the mistress.

"Good, now let me see. Hm... "Watched By Veona.", normal. Advanced and intermediate warrior type talents, good, but expected. Eh... What's this...?" - The mistress squinted as she looked at the hidden talent.

"Eh... This... It couldn't be, could it? Oh, OH, oh... Shit." - The mistress cursed for the first time in front of me, her rosy face turning a few shades paler.

"Ok... Now I understand why you didn't want me to know about your talents and the warning from Dawwie. Knowing about a unique talent is indeed a bad thing." - The mistress said, her expression turning unsightly.

"One wrong move, and we are both finished. You did well on not telling me this until now." - The mistress said and started pacing across the room.

I remained silent, waiting for the mistress to finish thinking.

After a few minutes, the mistress stopped pacing and said, "I think I now know why you became weak after taking the paragon potion. I knew Ximjun was right! You have awakened your unique talent instead of forming the paragon talent, and the forceful awakening damaged your warrior talents, but you should recover from it in due time."

"In any case, we will need to form a cover story and get both our facts straight in case we will ever get questioned about your talents. We will work on that later. For now, you focus on recovering while we figure out what your unique talent does."

"Yes, mistress." - I nodded, secretly relieved.

I was afraid that she will do something crazy after learning about my talent, but it seems like she is just as afraid, if not more than I am.

For the next ten minutes, we got a cover story prepared in case my talent was ever questioned. She even explicitly gave me an order to never tell anyone, including her, what my true talents are under any circumstances.

After we got our cover story, the mistress appeared much more relaxed as she said, "Alright, my little Mog. I will prepare potions to raise your talent back. In the meantime, go and do whatever you see fit."

"Yes, mistress. Thank you, mistress." - I nodded in thanks, even a bit excited.

"Perhaps the mistress's potions can restore my talent a bit." - I thought hopefully.

Having finished our discussion, we both exited the study room, but just then, rapid footsteps echoed in the hall.

We both saw Livia sprinting in our direction as she shouted, "Mistress! Mistress! Terrible news!"