Chapter 89 - Know Your Party

Chapter 89: 89 - Know Your Party

Adrien honestly hadn’t expected that question to come out of Lucien’s mouth.

His surprise must have been obvious, because Lucien stared back at him with a confused expression. "What? Is something wrong? Did something strange happen?"

Adrien quickly composed himself. "No, nothing. Sorry. Yeah, my arsenal. Give me a second."

He extended one hand, and Umbral Root materialized in his grip. The dark casting focus formed almost instantly, settling comfortably into his palm. With his other hand, Adrien summoned the Lightning Manual.

The difference was immediate.

The SSS-rank grimoire appeared after its usual delay, and the moment it fully manifested, mana began pouring out of Adrien at an absurd rate. It felt as though someone had opened a dam inside his Core and simply allowed everything behind it to rush outward.

Lucien’s eyes moved straight toward the book. Amelia had already seen it before, but even she watched the familiar cover carefully.

"This one isn’t useful in an actual fight yet," Adrien explained. "The mana consumption is ridiculous, and it takes too long to manifest. Right now, I mainly use it to learn from."

He dismissed the grimoire before it could continue wasting mana.

Then Adrien raised Umbral Root slightly. "This is my main casting focus. It makes my spellcasting faster, reduces some of the mana I lose while shaping spells and makes control easier. It’s what I’ll be using most of the time."

Lucien nodded. "And the spells?"

"I have several."

Adrien began with the simplest. "Frost Lance is my basic offensive spell. One Star, fast to cast, cheap, and I’ve trained it enough that I can use it without thinking much about the structure."

He lifted another finger. "Zap is also One Star. Lightning Aspect. It’s better at close range and can paralyze someone if I connect properly."

Lucien seemed more interested now.

"Ice Wall is Two Stars. Defensive spell, but I can also use it to block paths or change how someone has to move." Adrien continued counting through them. "Winter’s Reach is Four Stars. It affects a large area, freezes the surroundings and improves my Frost spells while it’s active."

"And Lightning Bolt?" Amelia asked.

"Six Stars." Adrien looked toward her. "Strongest spell I have in pure destructive power, but it costs far more mana and isn’t something I want to throw around unnecessarily."

Lucien leaned forward slightly. "That’s already a lot."

"I learned another one yesterday."

Adrien raised his free hand.

[Veil of Mist]

Aqua mana spread from him, carrying moisture into the air. Thin strands of white mist appeared near the floor before rapidly thickening, spreading between the chairs and across the table.

Within seconds, the lower half of the room had almost disappeared.

Lucien looked around, his expression changing completely.

Adrien stopped feeding mana into the spell before Vael came back and accused him of filling the entire residence with fog. The mist lingered briefly before beginning to thin.

"It obscures normal vision and slightly distorts movement inside it," Adrien explained. "It’s only Two Stars, but I thought it could be useful for controlling what an enemy can actually see."

Amelia remained quiet for a few seconds.

Another spell.

Adrien had already learned several while she’d known him, and apparently he’d decided that wasn’t enough. His rate of improvement had stopped surprising her in the same way as before, but that didn’t make it normal.

Lucien, however, looked delighted.

His eyes had practically lit up.

Adrien recognized that expression. Somehow, the man who normally solved problems by putting an arrow through them was now running through several ideas at once.

"My turn."

Lucien extended his hand, and his bow appeared.

Adrien recognized it immediately from the previous times they’d fought together. It was elegant but practical, built from dark material with faint mana patterns running along the limbs.

"This is the bow you saw last time." Lucien tapped the weapon lightly. "I have several types of ammunition. Normal arrows stay in the quiver on my back. They’re cheap, easy to replace and good enough for most enemies."

He then gestured toward himself. "The special arrows stay in my Inventory. I don’t like wasting them."

"What kind?" Adrien asked.

"Explosive arrows, speed arrows, accuracy arrows, a few that penetrate armor better than normal ones." Lucien shrugged. "Different things for different problems. If something annoys me enough, I usually have an arrow that makes it stop."

That sounded much more like Lucien.

He pointed toward the last traces of mist. "But this changes things. With your mist, we can work well together. You have a lot of raw attack power and area control. I’m more precise, and being a Ranger means I can reposition quickly."

Lucien then pointed toward Amelia. "She stays behind us."

Amelia looked at him. "That’s not entirely true."

She extended one arm.

A cleric’s mace materialized in her hand, its head reinforced with pale metal and a small magical stone embedded near the center. A compact shield appeared on her opposite arm a moment later.

"My grandfather doesn’t want me completely helpless if something gets close," Amelia explained. "I’m primarily a Healer, but I can defend myself."

She rested the mace against her shoulder. "And I’m Three Stars. Even without specializing in physical combat, the strength of a Three-Star awakened is still far above that of an ordinary person."

Adrien nodded slowly. That gave them more flexibility than he’d initially assumed.

"Alright. Sounds clear enough." He rested Umbral Root against his shoulder. "With Winter’s Reach and Ice Wall, I can create different situations for us too. Block paths, separate enemies, slow movement or force them toward a specific direction."

Lucien immediately understood. "Yeah. I’m a Ranger, so moving around won’t be a problem. If you force something down one route, I can change position and shoot from another angle."

Adrien looked at him for a moment.

Lucien noticed. "What?"

"Nothing."

"Why does everyone keep doing that today?"

Amelia smiled faintly but stayed out of it.

The three continued talking over dinner, going through simple formations and deciding that Adrien would control the center while Lucien moved around him and Amelia stayed farther back unless she needed to step forward.