Aside from the entry on Lily, the others also had the same kind of entries on them.
However, the duration varied from person to person.
Anna's entry, for example, only lasted for an hour — probably due to how much blood they had each come into contact with.
Hel swept her gaze across the people present. None of their entries would last very long, so she simply performed a symbolic spiritual scan on them.
After confirming there was no major issue, she waved her hand, signaling that they could leave.
"All right, there's nothing seriously wrong with any of you," Hel said calmly.
"According to our tests, the blood you were exposed to only contains trace amounts of toxins — not enough to be lethal.
Just drink plenty of water when you get home, and it'll flush out naturally."
Once the irrelevant bystanders had been dismissed, Hel finally turned her attention to Lily and Anna.
"I've already been briefed on the situation while on the way here. Melanie will be coming shortly as well."
"Melanie-sister was poisoned too?" Lily asked in surprise.
She had thought that only she and Anna had been attacked today, but apparently, the enemy had gone mad — launching two assaults in a single day.
"To be precise," Hel replied, "it isn't really poison. In fact, for you two, it might even bring some benefits."
Hel then explained to Lily what kind of substance had actually contaminated them.
By the time she finished, Melanie had already arrived.
Hel glanced at her. The duration of the enhancement entry on Melanie was surprisingly long — a full fifteen days, half a month.
"Impressive," Hel murmured. "To think someone managed to make all three of you come into contact with divine power in just one day… Whoever did this truly isn't ordinary."
On her way over, Hel had already heard from Melanie that the culprits were people from the Caramel Trading Company.
"The Caramel family, huh?" Hel said softly, her tone laced with amusement. "They didn't even bother to hide their identity. Is this arrogance born of being an old noble family, or do they really think they've got me cornered?"
Hel whispered this under her breath, then stepped closer to Lily and gently took her hand.
[Entry Adjustment: Blessing of the Witch of Wisdom (Gold) – Removed]
Seeing the entry appear in her log, Hel smiled wryly.
"If the old patriarch of the Caramel family knew that their elaborate little scheme was undone by me this easily, I wonder if he'd die of rage."
With that, she also removed the entry from Melanie.
As for Anna's, Hel left it alone — it only lasted an hour, so there was no need to bother.
After finishing up, Hel looked at the three girls again and instructed,
"I think I understand what the other side is aiming for. For the next few days, be extra careful.
Stay inside the castle whenever possible, and if you must go out, bring guards.
What you've seen so far is just their appetizer — the real feast is still to come."
"Yes, Young Master," they responded in unison.
After sending the two girls off, Hel returned to Heim Castle with Anna.
Once inside, she turned to her and asked,
"How's the absorption of the Bloodline Fruit coming along?"
"It's going smoothly, Young Master," Anna replied. "At my current pace, I can absorb one fruit every three days. To finish all nine will take quite a while."
"No rush," Hel reassured her with a small smile. "Maybe you can use the amplification from the Witch's Blood to find a faster way to absorb them within this hour."
Anna's eyes lit up at that, clearly tempted to go into seclusion immediately. Still, she asked carefully,
"Then… may I go now, Young Master?"
"Go ahead," Hel nodded. "Even if you don't make any progress, don't be discouraged.
Once this crisis is over, I'll extend your Witch's Blood amplification time."
"Understood, Young Master!"
With that, Anna dashed off toward her room like the wind.
"This girl… still as hasty as ever," Hel sighed helplessly, then made her way to her alchemy lab.
With a crisis looming, it was best to start putting some things away.
But as she entered the lab, she instinctively took out two spatial rings.
One contained a bottle of red wine and some spilled liquor.
The other held what remained of Clint's body after his self-detonation.
Hel carefully packed the contents and removed the witch-related entries attached to them.
After tallying it up, the entries she now possessed could last a total of sixty days.
"Two months, huh? I wonder how long the maximum duration could go.
Once I reach the sixth tier, I can test that."
Looking at her entry list, Hel picked up some pig's blood and applied one of the entries to it.
Soon, the affected pig's blood visibly changed color.
After extracting the altered portion, Hel successfully recreated a complete batch of Witch of Wisdom Blood — albeit a "pig-blood version."
"The effect should be identical to the original," she mused, shaking the vial.
"And since I can tailor the dosage and duration, it's far more cost-efficient than using entries directly."
Hel tucked the test tube back into her spatial ring.
For now, she had no intention of using it. If the enemy had more tricks up their sleeve, it wouldn't be long before they showed their hand.
Sure enough, just after Hel finished tidying up her lab, Sebas came to find her.
"Young Master," he reported, "two knights from the Inquisition Church say they have urgent business with you."
"I see," Hel said with a nod.
Following the messenger, she arrived at the castle gate — where two knights stood waiting: one elderly, one young.
The older knight looked like a kindly old man from a village, his eyes always narrowed in a friendly squint.
The younger one radiated fierce energy — a straightforward, hot-blooded youth.
"Greetings, are you Count Heim?"
It was obvious that the elder knight was the one in charge.
He stepped forward, extending his right hand politely.
"Hello, I am Pablo, from the Inquisition Church's Inquisition Knights.
You might not be familiar with our order. Unlike the Church's visible clergy, we are the guardians who operate in the shadows.
I serve as the captain of Squad 13, Second Division."
"Hel Heim," she introduced herself, shaking his hand with a courteous smile. "Count of the Heim Territory."
At the same time, she quietly activated her aura concealment and disguise skills to their fullest extent.
Even a Saint-ranked powerhouse wouldn't detect her true nature — much less this mere titled knight.
As expected, Pablo simply gave her a polite handshake before releasing it, still smiling in that calm, grandfatherly way.
If not for his words, one might mistake him for a humble country priest.
But what came next was anything but gentle.
"It's like this," he said mildly. "Your liege lord, Duke Mandrake, has reported to us that a witch has appeared in your domain.
Tell me, Count Heim — are you aware of this matter?"
At that moment, the kindly old knight slowly opened his eyes — revealing a pair of chillingly cold pupils that pierced straight through Hel.