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The group in front of Riven stayed silent and simply waited to see what he would do next.
FLAAASH!
The skies shone brightly, suddenly raining down bright divine light on everyone. Everyone present that had helped suddenly gained a sparkling around them and felt considerably stronger.
The light covered the grassland in a wide circle and reached every person who had joined the fight.
"Hoh? Not bad," said Ignias. "It looks like our young Divine Lord has learned how to cast Divine Blessings. This is quite amusing and rather interesting. Well done, Riven, you’ve learned the ropes better than I imagined."
She watched the sparkles fade from her own scales and already checked the lasting effect.
"Blessings?" Riven was surprised.
He had not planned the exact form of the reward, yet the light still responded to the intent he held.
Ding!
[You have used your Authority as a Divine Lord of the Divine Land to cast a "Blessing of Strength", "Blessing of Fertility", and "Blessing of Health" on all believers present at the moment.]
[You have exchanged 3,000 Faith Points.]
[Blessings Duration: 1 Year.]
"Oof, that costs more than I would’ve wanted but... it’s fine," Riven nodded, feeling like this was something they all needed. And the best thing was that the blessings lasted a whole year, so they weren’t even that bad. "Alright, time to go... I need to take a shower. Thank you, and may you have prosperity."
He gave the group one final nod and already started walking back toward the portal that would return him home.
Riven nodded and quickly disappeared, leaving the Believer Races staring at each other for a brief moment before they began to talk, with Ignias mediating between them.
For the first time, Giants, Mutants, and Kobolds were talking and seeing each other closely instead of just from a safe distance, never wishing to interact out of fear of the unknown.
A few still stood a little apart at the start, watching carefully, but the shared words pulled them closer step by step until the old barriers started to feel less important.
It was truly a beautiful new beginning for them.
...
"Alright dear, please stay still."
"Uuuh, is this really fine? Don’t I look ridiculous?"
"You don’t! I’ve told you that you’re a diamond in the rough, haven’t I?"
"I... I guess?"
Today, Riven and his family had gone outside to do some shopping and also because Elisa insisted she wanted to bring Label to her favorite manicure and pedicure place.
Label had tried to talk her way out of it a couple of times on the walk over, saying she was fine the way she was, but Elisa just smiled and kept leading the way without slowing down.
It was a very expensive place, but they knew her a lot and above all, they even let her participate because of her expertise and her regained mobility in her hands.
The staff greeted her by name the moment she stepped through the door, already setting out trays and tools as if they had been waiting for this visit.
With Label along, she helped the girls in the establishment, called "Ice Princess Beauty Salon" in name of Elisa, the owner of this entire sector, to polish Label into the real diamond she was.
Label sat stiffly at first in the high chair, eyes darting around the bright room, while Elisa stood nearby giving quiet directions and occasionally taking a tool herself to show exactly how she wanted something done.
The beauticians at Ice Princess Beauty Salon worked with practiced elegance, guided by Elisa’s sharp eye and Label’s own hesitant suggestions.
They finished cleaning Label’s face, refined her pores with a gentle mana-infused serum, polished her nails in rose-gold tones, trimmed and styled her hair into cascading waves that framed her features, and then added a light, natural layer of makeup, subtle blush, a touch of mascara, and a peach lip gloss that made her look radiant without ever feeling overdone.
Every few minutes Label would glance at the mirror, then quickly look away again, still getting used to the changes taking shape.
When they finally turned the mirror toward her, Label froze in place, her eyes going wide as she took in the reflection.
"HUH?! I... I look like someone else," she whispered, touching her cheek with trembling fingers and leaning a little closer to the glass.
"Is this really me?! Eeehh...?!" Her voice cracked a bit at the end, like she still couldn’t quite believe what she was seeing after all the cutting and styling and careful work the beauticians had put in.
Elisa wheeled closer and took her hand, smiling with genuine pride as she gave it a small squeeze.
"This is you, Label. The real you that’s always been underneath the exhaustion and the lab coats. You’re beautiful. You always were. Now this is how an Alchemist of your caliber should look, girl!"
She tilted her head, studying the new hairstyle and the soft touches of makeup that brought out Label’s features without covering them up.
Carlos’ eyes widened and sparkled after seeing her change. He took a half step forward, still holding the little snack bag he’d been munching from earlier. "Big sis Label looks pretty..." he said, and then blushed a little, maybe he had his first crush on her, which was very cute. He quickly looked down at his shoes for a second before peeking up again, unable to stop staring.
Daniela nodded vigorously from the neighboring chair, where one of the beauticians was still working on her own hair. "Yeah! Super pretty! Hehehe! See, Label? I told you that it would serve you well!" She grinned wide and gave a thumbs-up with her free hand, careful not to mess up the styling that was still going on.
Riven stood a little farther back, arms crossed, watching the scene with a quiet smile. He had never seen Label look so unsure of herself, and at the same time so happy in that shy way of hers.
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