The military intelligence officer in charge of this covert operation was even more detestable than Bihl had imagined. The man before him maintained an air of superiority throughout.
This fat-bellied bloke ranted on and on, sounding like he was both lecturing and giving a speech.
But if you stripped away all the empty rhetoric—phrases like "His Majesty the Emperor's expectations," "the glory of Yafa," and "the honor of a soldier"—there was little of real use. Hardings had already covered most of the essential intelligence.
Having already learned the specifics from his friend, and having sorted through everything last night, Hull was the most composed among those present—almost detached—while the others all looked as stunned as he had been the night before.
The one thing Hardings hadn't mentioned was that for this covert operation, Military Intelligence intended to grant each infiltrator a special ability.
This arrogant, self-important fat worm always spoke of it in a tone that sounded like a favor being bestowed, making everyone present, including Hull, feel extremely uncomfortable.
In the end, the fat worm never revealed what these "bestowed" special abilities actually were.
Upon leaving the conference room, Hull dismissed every word the fat worm had uttered as utter nonsense. By regulation, the meeting's contents were absolutely classified; any leaks would result in a court-martial. But Hull couldn't care less.
He had learned yesterday that the so-called security measures merely kept those who should know the truth in the dark. In reality, rumors had long spread among those unaffected by the matter.
Given this reality, Hell naturally chose to leak classified information in exchange for assistance beneficial to himself. The only person who could truly help him was Hardings.
Just as Hull had surmised, upon hearing the news, Hardings blurted out without hesitation: "Divine Warriors! It must be the Divine Warriors!"
Hull didn't press for details impatiently. He knew his old friend would give him a clear answer.
Hardings frowned, thinking for a long moment before saying, "I'll introduce you to someone. But you'll have to treat us to dinner."
Hull shrugged. This was nothing to him. The Military Affairs Office was a lucrative operation, and before leaving, he'd just pulled off a big score. His pockets were quite full now.
The most fitting place for a feast was naturally the senior officers' mess hall. Hardings brought along a man in his forties, clad in a deep blue hooded robe, sporting a full, curly beard.
Through Hardings' introduction, Hull met Master Maren. Like all mages, Master Maren held no military rank and thus belonged to no branch of the armed forces. Still, Hull certainly didn't consider himself Maren's equal.
The dining hall's layout was peculiar. Three long tables stood in the center, flanked by a bar on one side and a massive fireplace stretching across the entire wall on the other.
This peculiar fireplace doubled as a grill. Over the charcoal embers, iron grates held steaks, lamb chops, pork knuckles, and sausages. The enticing meats oozed fat that dripped onto the coals with sizzling sounds, filling the dining hall with the rich aroma of grilled meat.
Since the front lines collapsed, Hull hadn't indulged in such pleasures for ages. Now, the aroma of grilled meat began to tantalize his taste buds.
After glancing at the menu, Hull casually handed it to Hardings. "You know this place best, and you know my tastes. Why don't you just order for me?"
"The lamb chops here are excellent," Hardings remarked appreciatively. "They're from goats truly raised in the mountains—nothing like the taste of those farmed in pens."
Hurl nodded, though he felt little appetite for food at that moment.
Haddins clearly knew the place well, swiftly arranging everything. For aperitifs, he ordered a bottle of twelve-year-old champagne from the House of Obersberg. As starters, he chose pan-seared foie gras for himself and tuna salad for Hull, while the other man ordered a portion of tartare.
Perhaps due to the restaurant's popularity, the dishes arrived slowly. Fortunately, none of the three were in a hurry to eat.
Haddins had already briefed Master Maren on Hull's situation. After a brief toast, Master Maren cut straight to the point: "I've been briefed on your circumstances. This matter falls under my purview. Assisting you is merely a minor effort on my part."
Hearing this, Hull was immediately filled with gratitude. He understood well that sometimes a small act of assistance could change everything, even alter the course of a life.
Taking a light sip of champagne, Master Maren continued, "The current magical system is largely built upon the foundations of alchemy. Divine Warriors are essentially warriors created using special methods, employing the human body as raw material to forge fighters of immense power or unique abilities.
The earliest Divine Warriors were the renowned Knights Templar. Selected from the elite ranks of knights, they underwent alchemical modifications to enhance their physical constitution, granting them growth potential far surpassing ordinary humans.
"Typically, within two years of undergoing modification, a Divine Knight's strength rapidly increases two to threefold. Their explosive power surges even more dramatically, potentially reaching up to seven times their original capacity. Beyond this, their endurance, balance, and damage-absorption capabilities all experience remarkable growth.
"This represents only the initial stage of modification. Subsequently, each Divine Knight manifests unique traits, which can be further refined through additional modifications.
"According to the data I've obtained, Holy Knights typically undergo five to seven modifications, which they refer to as 'advancement.'
"The Holy Knights' classification system for advancement is quite intriguing. Those who advance fewer than five times are called Light Knights. Those who advance five to ten times are called Brilliant Knights. Those who advance more than ten times all possess unique titles, though achieving this level is exceedingly rare.
Divine Warriors evolved from Holy Knights. Thanks to advances in alchemy, Divine Warriors now come in far more varieties than Holy Knights.
To my knowledge, there are at least three hundred clearly documented types of Divine Warriors. As for those with incomplete records but documented special abilities? They are countless."
As he spoke, a waiter approached carrying a tray.
Perhaps due to the large number of patrons, appetizers and main courses arrived in rapid succession, like a relay. This slightly annoyed Hel, though he noticed the other two seemed utterly unconcerned, clearly accustomed to such efficiency.
The salad served as a starter held little appeal for Hel. He preferred the briny, salty taste of tuna sourced from the boundless depths of the ocean, but the dish before him clearly failed to satisfy.
He was quite pleased with the lamb chops, however. The restaurant's approach to all meats appeared remarkably straightforward: the marinades were exceptionally simple, consisting only of pepper and salt, and the sauce options were limited to five or six choices. What was interesting, though, was that during the grilling process, the chef selected different spices based on the sauce and ingredients they had ordered.
The lamb was good, though Hel didn't detect any difference from farmed sheep—he wasn't particularly discerning when it came to cuisine.
"Thank you for your hospitality," Master Maren said, moving his knife and fork. "In return, I'll explain something for you. Though there are thousands of types of Divine Warriors, the fundamental branches are only three: Warrior, Archer, and Scout.
"Warriors require the most adjustments—strength, explosive power, endurance, reaction speed, and physical coordination all need fine-tuning. Archers need adjustments to arm strength, eyesight, reaction speed, and hand-eye coordination. Scouts require the least, needing only adjustments to endurance and various sensory abilities.
"Among all adjustment projects, anything related to muscles and strength is relatively troublesome, while sensory adjustments are much easier—they only require stimulating the corresponding nerves.
For alchemy, any material has a limit to the magic it can hold, and the human body is no exception. Generally, an ordinary person's maximum magic capacity ranges from fifteen thousand to twenty thousand mana.
Warriors, needing the most adjustments, often find their maximum magic capacity just enough to complete all modifications.
"Archers have far more flexibility. Beyond standard adjustments, they can opt for auxiliary enhancements like hyper-distance vision or low-light vision. Scouts require the least adjustments. Since scouts primarily enhance perception, they can also choose one additional specialized adjustment."
"What is your recommendation?" the lieutenant inquired, having discerned from the master's tone that he already possessed a perfect solution.
"I believe most of you will choose the Warrior path, as its abilities are the most balanced. It handles diverse situations effectively, and should your cover be blown, a Warrior's skills prove invaluable during escape."
The middle-aged mage stated confidently, "But if I were to choose, I would select the Scout. I would sacrifice combat prowess, focusing muscle adjustments solely on leaping and climbing. This conserves enough adjustment opportunities for a single 'Mental Shaping'."
Noticing the lieutenant's impending question, the master waved him off. Anticipating the inquiry, he immediately explained: "'Mental Shaping' is also an alchemical technique applied to the human body. It was originally invented to mass-produce mages, but due to its severe limitations and low efficiency, it was ultimately abandoned.
"First, for successful shaping, the recipient must possess high perceptual abilities—restricting it to scouts and select archers.
"Second, even if successful, the recipient could only wield one type of magic, and that was restricted to low-tier spells. Unfortunately, few truly useful spells existed within the low-tier category.
"Among them, the most common were divination-based spells like 'Life Detection' and 'Magic Alert.' This category also included 'Magic Reading,' but that was only truly valuable to mages themselves.
Among summoning spells, there's 'Low-Level Animal Control'; within energy spells, 'Elemental Manipulation' and 'Telekinesis'; and in illusion spells, 'Hypnosis'.
All these spells complement scouting abilities quite well. As for which one to choose, that's entirely up to you."