Chapter 38: Noble Lady Image Management Specialist

The inner courtyard of Maple Dew Castle, a warm hall.

It was clear that Selena's words stirred the Countess's heart.

Luosen immediately seized the opportunity, picking up a wooden victory token from the chessboard.

"Madam, can we speak privately? I mean just you and us, with no attendants present."

The Countess hesitated, then nodded in agreement: "Masha, Hanna, you wait at the door."

After the two maids left, Luosen glanced at the Countess's appearance, then cast Transformation Technique on the ten‑centimeter‑high victory token in his hand.

A white glow enveloped it for about ten seconds; when the light faded, the victory token turned into a tiny wooden figurine.

The figurine looked exactly like the Countess, except it wore no clothes.

Naturally, Luosen didn't depict anything private; it was merely the likeness of an underwear model.

"Madam, please forgive my boldness, but I can use magic to transform you into this likeness."

"Look closely—only the facial details are slightly refined, so when clothed you appear unchanged, just with a better complexion, smoother skin, and brighter eyes."

"But when you remove your clothing, any outward flaws will disappear completely."

The Countess took the figurine and examined it closely; her eyes grew brighter, her face full of longing, yet gradually a hint of hesitation appeared.

"Luosen, your transformation skill is superb—better than any mage I've ever seen."

"But Grant dislikes magic; he says it goes against natural law, and he prefers genuine, natural beauty."

She paused, then sighed: "To be honest, I've consulted mages about transformation before, but Grant always tells me not to bother."

Luosen gave a faint smile: "Madam, that's just men's talk. The real meaning is that his transformation wasn't good enough, so he noticed the flaws."

"But my transformation technique is different; I confidently say I possess a unique talent in transformation. Even throughout Weilan, or even the entire White Continent, there may be no second master as gifted as I."

"Selena can vouch for me."

Selena nodded: "That's right, Lina—Luosen is indeed a rare transformation master, and moreover a trustworthy one who will keep all your secrets."

The Countess felt ever more tempted, yet still hesitated.

"But I've heard that overusing transformation harms one's health."

This time, without Luosen needing to explain, Selena laughed first.

"Madam, transformation is a highly mature spell."

"Indeed, unskilled transformation can damage health, because uncontrolled transformation energy seeps into vital organs."

"But a rigorous transformation mage would never make such a basic mistake."

"In fact, I, my brother, my parents, and many nobles I know often use transformation to refine our appearance, and I've never heard of anyone suffering health harm from it."

As a princess, Selena's words carried great persuasive power, and since the Countess wasn't completely ignorant of magic, her doubts were largely dispelled.

Seeing the Countess wavering visibly, Luosen immediately stepped in to persuade her.

"Madam, if the Count truly cannot accept transformation, we can change our approach."

"We'll say it's the effect of the 'Youth Secret Elixir' that Selena brought, and this elixir is the Adrian family's secret formula."

"Selena is beautiful precisely because she has this elixir."

"I think, hearing this, the Count will have nothing left to say."

The Countess nodded: "That approach is indeed good, but... but..."

She suddenly became hesitant, her cheeks flushed, as if she had something hard to say.

Luosen's heart stirred; he guessed some reasons and whispered them to Selena so she could ask.

At the same time, he stepped back a few paces, giving them some privacy.

After hearing Luosen's words, Selena's cheeks flushed slightly, and she asked hesitantly: "Madam, it's not just about appearance; there's also an inner inadequacy, right?"

The Countess, face flushed, nodded: "He said you've become… spacious, like Maple Splendor Avenue."

Shyness quickly turned to anger.

"I bore him five children, and yet he spouts such nonsense—what a heartless bastard!"

"Before, Selena wouldn't have understood such talk, but now she grasped it instantly, and a thought unbidden rose in her mind: 'I seem to have become considerably more spacious than before.'"

That strange thought flashed through her mind, yet it burned Selena's cheeks like fire, and it took a while for her to calm down.

"Madam, although I am a high‑tier mage, my achievements in transformation fall far short of my husband's."

"By common sense, this shouldn't be changeable, but my husband has never been a conventional mage—he might have a way."

"If you agree, Madam, I'll go ask him. Of course, if you feel it's inappropriate, just forget it."

The Countess wore a look of hesitation, for this is a private matter between women, and it's hardly proper to let a strange man know.

Seeing this, Selena whispered a reminder: "My husband is Anna's apprentice, deeply trusted by her; he knows exactly what may be said and what must not."

The Countess pondered for several minutes, then turned her head to look at Luosen, who stood a few meters away, his back to them.

After weighing the options, she ultimately decided to give it a try.

She truly wanted to win back her husband's heart.

"Then go ask your husband," she said in a voice barely louder than a bee's buzz.

Luosen then received Selena's summons.

"Putting on an act," he listened to his wife's description of the issue, his face remaining the detached calm of a scholar, with no excitement or curiosity about prying into privacy.

This let the Countess, who had been secretly observing, breathe a quiet sigh of relief, feeling that her sister‑in‑law's apprentice was very professional.

After Selena finished speaking, Luosen nodded and first gave a solemn assurance.

"Madam, thank you deeply for your trust in me; please believe I will never betray it."

Then he evaluated the matter itself.

"In this matter, the Count has indeed gone too far, but as a fellow man I can somewhat understand him."

"Of course, I'm not defending the Count; I'm merely saying that since this is an objective fact, rather than complain we should seek to change it."

Luosen's words had no emotional fluctuation; they were purely matter-of-fact.

This attitude made the Countess relax, her shy emotions gradually eased, and her focus returned to the matter itself.

"Can this be changed?"

Actually, she had secretly consulted other Transformation Technique mages about similar problems,

The consultants were all female mages, yet none dared to do this. Luosen wore a solemn expression.

"Madam, you should know that, according to the principles of the art, Transformation Technique can alter the form of any object, but life has its own internal operational laws; arbitrary changes easily cause problems."

"Exactly, exactly, other Transformation Technique mages all say that."

The Countess felt a bit disappointed, feeling that Luosen might also be unable to do it.

But unexpectedly, Luosen shifted his tone.

"The operational laws of life are very complex, and the deeper into the body, the more complex they become."

"The good news is that, although the parts needing modification are not on the surface, they are not too deep inside the body either, not so complex that ordinary people cannot study them."

"Huh?"

The Countess startled.

A faint confident smile appeared on Luosen's face.

"Madam, I maintain a vigorous curiosity toward all unknown things, which naturally includes the female body."

"There was a time when I was especially short of money, but since I am not an official mage, I could only take some underground channels, performing Transformation Technique for women who had needs."

"Although this somewhat violated Dawn City's regulations, it also gave me some unconventional knowledge."

The Countess understood: "So, you can help me?"

Luosen nodded, giving a clear reply.

"Indeed, I can."

"I know you certainly cannot be completely at ease, but Madam, my White Sturgeon Island is right next to Shire County; if something really went wrong, I would have nowhere to flee. I cannot, and dare not, joke about your health."

These words convinced the Countess: "Then let's give it a try?"

Luosen nodded: "As you wish, by the way, my wife will be present the whole time."

"Finally, she, as a High-tier Mage, will conduct the evaluation and stabilization of the Transformation Technique's effect."

The Countess relaxed completely: "Then when will we change? Now?"

She was a bit impatient.

Luosen gave a slight smile: "Madam, don't rush; first, we need to select a fixed appearance for you."

While speaking, he picked up the victory pieces, applying Transformation Technique to them one by one, transforming a total of ten pieces.

This time, he hid nothing, using Transformation Technique to reveal all the details, and made them extremely exquisite.

Thus, the ten victory pieces became ten wooden figurines resembling human figures, almost like works of art.

"Madam, please choose one as your appearance."

The Countess gazed at the splendid wooden carvings, her face full of astonishment.

"Oh Luosen~ you are truly an astonishing master of aesthetics!"

She looked at them one by one and found each extremely exquisite, each very likable, making it hard to decide.

Selena was also watching; she now fully believed Luosen's words, and with a Spiritual Whisper she softly sighed: "The Count is blessed this time."

Luosen, however, whispered in reply: "No, not enough; the Count lacks not beauties, but noble elegance, a beauty that makes him look up."

Selena blinked: "What do you mean?"

"From the information I've gathered, I infer that the Count likes beautiful women of higher status than himself, and may have a slight masochistic tendency."

Selena blinked again: "Is your inference reliable?"

Luosen looked at the information sent by the Detect Guard, which displayed images of pretty maids and some small toys for amusement.

Such as small whips, queen costumes, high heels, etc.

He smiled and said: "Whether reliable or not, let the Countess try it and see; after all, they are a married couple, so even if they get it wrong, it's no big deal."

"That's also true."

At this moment, the Countess finally made a decision: "Luosen, can I change it once a year?"

"No problem at all, Madam."

"Then I'll start with the first one."

"Alright, let's start right away; it can be completed in ten minutes."

"Oh~~ do I need to take off my clothes?"

"For the precision of the magical power, it's best to take them off."

The Countess hesitated not at all, complied readily, clearly having been thoroughly convinced by Luosen's superb Transformation Technique skill.

Luosen also did not delay, immediately proceeded to transform her, while detailing his earlier inference to the Countess.

After just a few words, the Countess immediately nodded: "Oh~ Luosen, you're truly spot-on; Grant indeed has such a quirk!"

"I have tried before, but he said I look nothing like a queen, rather like a poorly acted ballroom maiden; that really hurts!"

Luosen smiled: "Madam, your appearance now looks like a queen, but your speech and conduct also need appropriate changes."

"How to change?"

"In this regard, my wife has more experience than I; let her teach you."

"Ah~ I suddenly recalled that my husband, when young, once greatly admired the Duchess; I previously couldn't understand why, but now I do."

Having said that, she immediately apologized to Selena: "Your Highness, I apologize for my husband's rudeness."

Selena softly sighed: "Forget it, it's all in the past; my mother left me a full thirteen years ago."

During the idle chat, the Transformation Technique was completed, and Luosen thoughtfully condensed a water mirror.

The countess stood up, turning back and forth in front of the water mirror to admire herself, even reluctant to put on clothes.

Oh~ It looks so good, it's practically flawless; I even fell in love with it myself.

Luosen winked at Selena, meaning: "Leave the rest to you."

Then he bowed to the countess: "Madam, my task is done; I shouldn't stay longer, I'll wait outside."

The countess was very pleased with Luosen's thoughtfulness, and immediately returned the favor: "If we can really win Gelante's heart this time, he should be willing to listen to my advice."

Luosen smiled faintly: "May the lady become the count's queen."

(End of chapter)