"Then, why do you think I would accept you?"
Hel looked at Witt, whose loyalty was still rising, and her eye twitched involuntarily.
Is it really necessary? Just because of her talent, this guy insists on clinging to her short leg?
"Then allow me to introduce myself again," Witt said, placing his hand on his chest and bowing to Hel while speaking rapidly:
"I am Witt, currently a Wind Magic instructor at Skoll Academy, and former squad leader of the Wind Wolf Eye, Skoll City's intelligence organization.
Besides excelling in wind magic, I am highly skilled in intelligence gathering, espionage training, and covert operations."
"Is that so? But isn't the best form of covert action to eliminate all witnesses?"
Hel, seeing Witt's posture, was reminded of a gag from her previous life and blurted it out subconsciously.
Witt's eyes lit up at this, and his loyalty toward Hel rose a few more points.
"Little Master, you are truly a future Saint-rank powerhouse; I admire this temperament of yours."
Even with Witt's flattery, Hel's face turned red.
"Cough… I was just speaking casually."
"No, no, no! Only someone so confident in their own strength could have such a bold perspective. I am in awe," Witt insisted.
"Alright, alright, you don't need to say more. I accept your surrender," Hel said, waving her hand to dispel the magic array beneath her feet.
No choice—this guy's sincerity was overwhelming. In just a few sentences, his loyalty toward Hel had already reached 80 points. One small trigger, and it could reach the "devoted" level.
Coincidentally, Hel needed someone like Witt for intelligence work.
"Since you said you specialize in intelligence gathering, I'll give you a task. I need you to select people in Heim City and quickly establish a competent intelligence organization.
If you have any requirements, feel free to tell me."
"Understood, young master," Witt said, rubbing his hands and pulling out a pre-prepared list.
"Based on my experience, to build a small intelligence organization capable of covering the entire Mandrake Duchy, we would need…"
"Wait, if we're building it, it can't be too small-minded. Just knowing Mandrake Duchy's intelligence isn't enough. I want an organization capable of covering the three major human empires," Hel interrupted.
"Cover the three empires? Little Master, that's no small task.
We'd need to recruit specialists in various fields and acquire a large number of alchemical artifacts. Conservatively, funding would require at least 10 million gold coins per year."
"Ten million gold coins, huh?"
Hel nodded. She could afford it. However, spending so much just for an intelligence organization seemed excessive.
"What if we produce the alchemical artifacts ourselves?"
"That would be much cheaper, only about thirty percent of the cost.
But Little Master, many artifacts are controlled by specific schools. Even if you gather all the materials, you might not know the crafting methods."
"No worries. Later, organize a list of the artifacts we need," Hel replied, handing the list back to Witt. The dense writing made her dizzy.
"Very well, Little Master. Besides the artifacts, the most important factor is personnel training. To save costs, I suggest recruiting talented children from the Scholars' Kingdom. This ensures loyalty and cultivates talent from a young age."
"What kind of talents?"
"Dark affinity is best. Wind and Earth are also suitable. Fire affinity is less ideal."
"Besides talent and loyalty, what else is important?"
"Mindset and intelligence," Witt answered without hesitation.
"These two traits are the most crucial for an intelligence agent, even more than talent, second only to loyalty. Often, an agent with a sharp mind can achieve far more than someone with higher talent."
"Then I'll give you authority. You can select suitable people throughout Heim City, without worrying about their talent or loyalty.
If they are excellent, gather them. I'll give you an initial fund of one million gold coins to select and train them.
The top one hundred performers will personally receive superhuman talent from me."
"Granting talent? Little Master, do you mean bloodline potions? That would be extremely costly," Witt said.
"Of course not," Hel said, patting his shoulder and giving him her devoted loyalty trait.
Once his loyalty reached the required level, she adjusted his skill.
She simply changed his purple wind magic talent to an orange elemental magic talent.
The moment the adjustment was complete, Witt felt his elemental power surge violently. Ambient elements poured into his body, and his cultivation, which hadn't advanced in over a decade, surged several levels.
He moved closer to fifth rank, feeling that with a little more time, he could truly become a Grand Mage.
"But my talent limit is only mage… How is this possible? This isn't even magic!"
"Feeling it?" Hel smiled. "As you can see, I can grant anyone any talent. A person's natural ability makes no difference to me."
Witt stared at the gathered magical energy in his hands in shock.
"Could this… be the legendary elemental attribute?"
He could only kneel once more, pledging his loyalty:
"I am willing to serve Little Master with my life."
"Do well. If I can make you a Grand Mage, I can also make you a titled mage. Becoming a Saint-rank powerhouse isn't impossible," Hel said, painting a bright future for him.
The two loyalty traits flickered wildly, and soon a new trait appeared:
[Hel's Follower]: Loyalty +250. He has already imagined you as a reincarnation of a deity. He will obey every command and deeply interpret your words, taking action accordingly—a behavior commonly called "deification."