The elder threw something in Aston's direction.

Aston, realizing that there's no negative intent to Elder Erin's actions, caught a piece of cloth.

"That will help you on your task. You have a new identity, right? That will be your 'mask'. Just put it onto your face and you will know. Good luck."

As she said her last words, he slowly transformed back to her initial form—the old man—while her spirit beast emerged to her hand and transformed into a walking stick, then disappeared into the alley.

Aston stood beneath the arched shadow of the alley, the strip of cloth in his hands still warm, unnaturally pliable. The alley was quiet again, the sound of the elder's cane-turned-snake vanished with her retreat. Only the faintest shimmer of a spirit trail lingered in the air—a sign she'd ever been there.

He turned the material over. It shimmered under the streetlamps in shades of muted rose and pale amber. Faint, glassy patterns spiraled across the surface—like the fine etchings on a serpent's scale.

Aston's eyes narrowed. "Nova," he murmured softly. "Analyze."

A flash of data swept across his vision.

—

[Analyzing item…]

[Name: Seraphis Shed]

[Type: Spirit-crafted Artifact]

[Material: Biogenic Shedding of Spirit Beast – Name Registered: Seraphis Lamiar Garter]

[Function: Adaptive Disguise Layer]

[Forged from the natural shedding of Seraphis Lamiar Garter, this cloth reacts to essence imprint and overlays the wearer's face with a flexible illusionary mask. Unlike traditional illusionary techniques, this one adjusts bone structure, vocal tone, and presence-field. Mild psychic resistance required. Extended wear may cause emotional diffusion or identity dissonance in untrained users.]

—

Aston took a steadying breath.

So this… wasn't just a disguise. It was something born of Elder Erin's spirit beast.

He touched the cloth gently, letting it press against the skin of his palm. It moved—not like fabric, but like liquid thought. It shifted temperature slightly as if sampling him.

And its origin…

"Seraphis Lamiar Garter," Aston repeated quietly.

He recalled the serpent from earlier. Pink-red, iridescent, winding with grace and lethality. It hadn't just been beautiful. It had been… ancient.

And now, part of it was in his hand.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

He recalled the data description from Nova's cache when he first saw the serpent during their first meeting.

—

[Spirit Beast: Seraphis Lamiar Garter]

[Type: Bestial]

[Attribute: Illusion/Charm]

[Genus: Lamioris]

[Rank: Marshal Rank]

[Potential: Sentinel Rank]

[Description: A rare, exotic spirit beast born from the Veiled Garden, Seraphis Lamiar Garter weaves illusions not through projection, but through perception—manipulating how others interpret light, voice, even memory. Its venom does not kill; it enthralls, alters judgment, and clouds thought. When coiled around its binder, it enhances persuasive resonance and disguises truth at a cellular level.]

[Skills:]

[Mirage Skin: Overlays the user's body with adaptive visual and scent illusions.]

[Coiling Tongue: Emits a hypnotic hiss that would cause subtle persuasions within the area.]

[Whisper Venom: Bites an opponent and releases a venom that causes minor memory disruption and temporary emotional realignment.]

[Hypnotic Coil: Encircles a target in a rapid spiral while moving in rhythmic pulses that momentarily suppress the target's ability to distinguish truth from illusion.]

[Venomblood Thread: Injects a refined strand of its venom through spirit energy rather than fangs. The thread lingers on surfaces or objects, triggering subtle hallucinations or emotional influence when touched.]

[Passive Skills:]

[Shed of Silence: Upon shedding, the material can be used for covert transformation with near-undetectable aura masking.]

[Silkstep Presence: While not actively attacking, Seraphis emits no spiritual aura or movement trace. Standard detection techniques fail unless used by tamers two full ranks above its own.]

[Empathetic Link: Automatically harmonizes minor emotional cues with its binder, subtly enhancing the user's charm and perception during conversations, negotiations, or subtle manipulations.]

[Lustrous Coil: Being near the Seraphis Lamiar Garter dulls the edge of aggression in lower-ranked opponents.]

[Innate Skills:]

[Veilshift Core: Seraphis Lamiar Garter can attune itself to its surroundings and shift the visual and aura signature of its entire body—including size, pattern, and core frequency—to mimic another creature or vanish entirely.]

[Mindlace Fang: Upon biting or injecting a target, Seraphis Lamiar Garter can weave suggestions directly into the victim's subconscious. These are not commands, but seeded thoughts—urges, doubts, or compulsions.]

[Shed of the Many: Seraphis Lamiar Garter stores echoes of former disguises and personas within its core. With this skill, it can rapidly cycle through past forms—including aura, scent, and voice patterns—causing false detections or triggering mistrust in enemy formation scans.]

[Core Skills:]

[Seraphic Bloom: Releases a swirling mist of pheromone-laced spirit energy. All targets within the bloom suffer disoriented vision, distorted depth perception, and minor emotional confusion. Effective against group formations and aura-dependent users.]

[Shedskin Mirage: Instantly ejects a false body in the form of its last known position, while the real body vanishes for a few moments]

[Writ of Untruth: Generates a psychic aura field where spoken lies become believable for a limited time. Useful in infiltration, interrogation, or misdirection. However, the effect fades quickly under direct scrutiny or spiritual truth-seeking artifacts.]

[Ultimate Skills:]

[Covenant of Serpentshade: The Seraphis Lamiar Garter fully uncoils into its transcendent form—a spectral serpent of immense size and translucent color. Within its domain, up to five chosen targets experience completely fabricated realities layered over the real world. Time perception warps. Speech becomes distorted. Even pain, memory, and light can be manipulated. While active, Seraphis and its binder cannot be perceived unless directly touched. High mental resistance required to withstand prolonged exposure.]

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.