"Arina? What's wrong? Is everything going well over there?"
Arina let out a long sigh while standing outside, leaning her back against the wall with one hand holding the phone and the other holding the broom. "It's going well, Miss. Too well, in fact."
"I see."
Arina paused for a moment. "Well, I guess I should give you an initial report. He's crazy—crazy good."
"Explain."
"He evolved 12 people in succession this morning. 11 of which were avatars belonging to either the fire element or the earth element."
"11? What about the last one?"
"About that…" Arina scratched the back of her head. She couldn't believe it either, but she had to after seeing it with her own eyes. "A water-element avatar."
"So, with items?"
"Yeah. He used the same method. All the people who evolved here were treated before they started their evolution."
Ellia fell silent. Such a result was supposed to be good, but for a bronze-grade evolution master, it was too good to be true.
It could be said that Auric's skill was above his rank. The only thing that limited him was his own element. If Auric's avatar had already reached juvenile form, he would have no problem becoming a silver-grade master.
The only problem was that Auric didn't possess an avatar. Both his talent and his potential were still unknown.
If Auric couldn't progress further in the future because no one understood his problem, then it would be over.
Still, it was worth investing in Auric. No one had ever thought about using a battle technique to evolve.
Thanks to Auric, she could evolve safely. Auric could be said to be the only unique element evolution master in the world. Even if his potential was unknown, he could still help her evolve in a certain way.
Nevertheless, the main point of the report was that Auric managed to evolve someone purely using an item. The case itself might not be common, but it wasn't rare either.
Just like Arina's case, where she could evolve after flushing the accumulated energy, Auric should be able to handle a similar case as long as he possessed the materials.
But it brought another problem. Earlier, she had promised to give Auric any materials belonging to the fire element or the earth element so that he could conserve his energy.
Given that he could evolve someone purely with items, she shouldn't focus only on those two elements. Instead, she should give him a variety of materials so that he could help even more people.
She had given him the first batch that contained all the elements, but the quantity was limited.
Ellia crossed her arms while leaning on her office chair. "Should I change the order? Maybe I should give him materials regardless of their elements."
"I think so, Miss. His talent is simply too good, so I don't think it's weird for him to be able to evolve a lightning element avatar or a wind element avatar. No, even light or dark element avatars might be possible."
"In that case, I will arrange it that way. Anything to report?"
"Hmm… I don't know if I should report this." Arina hesitated for a moment. "Do you remember the layout of the store prior to this, Miss?"
"Not really."
"I remember there were only four doors inside the store the last time we visited, but there is actually another one behind the counter now."
"Really?" Ellia tried to recall. "Well, I don't know the number, but I don't think there is a room behind the counter, right?"
"Yes. Did he renovate the store in the past few days?"
"For the time being, it doesn't matter. You just work there and protect him from any troublemakers."
"Understood."
"Anything else? Something extraordinary?"
"Now that you mention it…" Arina remembered one extraordinary thing she had witnessed. She had almost forgotten about it because of all the customers, but since Ellia mentioned it, she brought it up. "There's one weird thing about his evolution chamber."
"Hoh? Tell me about it."
"When we evolve, we will end up leaving a residual element in the surroundings, right?"
"Yes. Usually, an evolution master wouldn't use the room twice in succession. They will let it cool down. The ventilation system in the evolution chamber must be good."
Arina nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it's just… this guy did what shouldn't be done."
"What?" Even Ellia couldn't contain her shock this time. "Are you sure? You're not joking with me, right?"
"No."
"Did he evolve those people under such conditions?"
"Not really." Arina smiled wryly. "He actually evolved the people in a clean room."
"So, the few rooms he has in his store are all evolution chambers." That was something she could accept. The number wasn't small, but with good enough ventilation, it should be doable.
However, Arina surprised her one more time by saying, "No. He used the same room. I was shocked at first, but when I checked the room one minute after the evolution, I noticed there was no residual energy in the evolution chamber."
This time, Ellia was speechless. It was no wonder that Arina called him crazy.
"How? Are you going to tell me that his ventilation system is better than the ones in the association?"
"I don't know either. I can only report this to you, nothing else."
"I guess everyone has their own secrets. I'm not sending you there to steal his secret. I just want to know his skills." Ellia pinched the bridge of her nose. She got more surprises than she initially expected.
"Any orders?"
"Not really. What are you doing over there right now?"
"Lunch break. He's getting takeout from a nearby shop."
"Alright. That's good enough. Thanks for the report. I'll remind you one more time—If there are any troublemakers…"
"Don't worry. I'm going to beat them up or use your name."
"Very well. Good luck over there."
"Yes, Miss."
Once the call ended, Arina stretched her body. "I guess I should start sweeping the floor again."
Since they had taken care of the previous customers, the store had become empty, not only because of the lunch break but also because there weren't many customers with specific elements that were about to evolve in the first place.
Auric's store was not yet known to treat all elements, so that limited the number of customers.
Still, the publicity Auric had done was quite significant. The customers had been asking for pictures, so they would definitely spread them on their social media, which would spread his store even further.
Eventually, people would start coming here because there was a handsome evolution master who would help them.
"I'm back." Auric's voice echoed inside the store. He placed the plastic bag down on the table. "I hope you like it."
Arina casually took out the contents while saying, "I'm not picky, no worries."
"Great." Auric prepared his own as well.
Arina first took a bite as her eyes flashed in approval. She gave him a thumbs-up.
While eating, Arina couldn't help but ask, "Auric. Let me confirm this. How many elements can you handle?"
"If I have the materials, I can do all the elements. Still, I only have experience with water, wind, earth, and fire right now."
"I see. By the way, I heard you plan to join the Element Department."
"Yeah. What about it?" Auric thought Arina wanted to tell him that this department would be a good idea because he could gain experience with other elements as well. But it looked like she just wanted to confirm it for the sake of the customers.
"It's different from the Evolution Department, you know? The Evolution Department doesn't have any courses related to combat."
"I did intend to study combat." Auric nodded.
"Have you practiced before? I'm not talking about using your element. Even a little combat is fine. Do you know what the most important thing in combat is?"
Auric tilted his head. "I'm sorry, but I've been a nerd all this time. I've just been studying all the time."
She sighed before she swung the fork right in front of Auric's face. "The most important thing in combat is to never close your eyes during combat."
She said this because Auric had blinked earlier. However, Auric seemed to be able to react properly, as his body leaned back, instinctively dodging it.
"This is the most important thing. So, I suggest you practice this one thing before you think about coming into the Element Department. You may have gotten used to elements, but you shouldn't neglect the basics."
"I see." Auric looked down, understanding the current situation. It was true he was familiar with the elements, but if he and Simon had fought before, he might be the one who lost.
In their first engagement, the reason he won was simply elemental suppression. But as they grew stronger, there would be ways to bypass the suppression.
If Auric couldn't handle the basics like this, he would have a hard time going forward.
"It looks like I don't have to point it out." Lindwurm surprisingly spoke.
'So, you already know about it?'
Lindwurm smirked as he started making a punching motion as if he were trying to punch Auric. "I'm ready to help. We can use the off-time to fix that habit."
Auric didn't say anything else. Lindwurm didn't have to tell him every single thing. He should be the one to realize it, so he just acknowledged the mistake in his heart.
Since Arina opened the topic, Auric asked, "So, after I'm done with this training, should I focus on battle techniques?"
"No. There is a so-called basic trinity. Once you are done with this exercise, you should find breathing techniques, footwork techniques, and observation techniques. Then again, you are already an evolution master, so I don't think you need an observation technique whose sole purpose is to figure out the enemy's strength."
"What about the other two?"
"You breathe to take in oxygen. You will have to supply oxygen to your heart and your brain so that they can keep pumping out energy and giving you ideas. On the other hand, the footwork technique is to ensure that you know where to step during a battle.
"It gives your form overall stability. Well, it won't be funny if you suddenly trip when you step forward, especially in a battle, right? It doesn't need to be a high-level technique. This trinity is designed to set up a simple foundation for battle."
"I see. Thank you for telling me."
"No problem." Arina winked playfully. "I'm merely giving you a piece of advice as a senior. No need to worry about it."
Auric nodded with a smile. As he raised his head back up, he noticed a silhouette standing at the entrance.
The silhouette was that of a young man. He stood with his arms crossed, his face stern, as if he knew why he had come.
He came alone, so he was definitely not someone sent by family just to get close to Auric. In other words, he was a genuine customer.
"Welcome to Night and Day Evolution Store. How may I help you?" Auric hurriedly stood up.
"Welcome." Arina turned around and rushed to the entrance.
"I heard you evolved a water element avatar this morning." The man's tone sounded contemptuous.
Arina and Auric weren't bothered by his attitude since rude customers were bound to appear sooner or later. So, both of them immediately entered professional mode.
"Indeed. If you possess a water element avatar, we can help you as well. How about checking it in the evolution chamber first?" Arina smiled while extending her hand to the left, pointing at the evolution chamber.
"I possess a lightning-element avatar, and I want to evolve."
"Of course. I can help you." Auric nodded, assuring him. "Let me check your situation first. I'll figure out which materials will be suitable for you."
"I don't want to use any materials. I want you, an evolution master, to help me evolve directly! Can you?!" The man glared at Auric.
"!!!" Both of them instantly realized what was going on. This man was no rude customer. He was a troublemaker.