Chapter 52: Day Three of Training 8

When Adam and Vespera passed through the gates of Valoria Manor, night had already fallen.

The magical lamps placed along the paths cast a soft glow over the gardens. A few knights still patrolled between the buildings, while maids finished their last tasks of the day.

The guards immediately greeted Vespera.

"Good evening, Mistress Vespera."

Then they inclined their heads toward Adam.

"Good evening, Mr. Adam."

"Good evening."

Adam replied with a weary smile.

His legs felt heavy.

His wrists ached slightly under the weight of the Progressive Charge Bracelets.

His mana, however, seemed strangely dense, as if it were still refusing to return to its normal state after several hours of compression.

Vespera walked beside him without slowing down.

She seemed perfectly rested.

Adam glanced at her.

"You’re really not tired?"

"No."

"Even after spending almost all day studying the new runes, modifying my program, and monitoring my failures?"

"Your failures were instructive."

Adam remained silent for a few seconds.

"I don’t know if I should take that as a compliment."

"It wasn’t."

"Obviously."

A very slight smile appeared on Vespera’s lips.

They entered the main building.

At this hour, most of the corridors were quiet. The sound of their footsteps echoed softly on the polished stone floor.

Adam now knew the manor well enough to know where the others were.

So they headed straight for the dining room.

As they approached, several voices reached them.

Selene was laughing loudly.

Shiora spoke with her usual enthusiasm.

Elaria seemed to be correcting someone.

And Elena was clearly trying to calm the conversation.

Adam placed a hand on the doorknob.

"They’re all here."

Vespera replied calmly,

"Like every night."

Adam opened the door.

The large dining room was already quite lively.

Elena was sitting next to Lyriana, several military reports open in front of them.

Isadora occupied her usual place at the head of the table. A stack of administrative documents lay to her right, but she had already started eating.

Selene had finished almost half her plate before everyone else.

Elaria was examining a small fragment of enchanted metal while taking notes.

Shiora, meanwhile, was sliding several coins across a sheet of paper covered with charts and calculations.

They all looked up when the door opened.

Elena was the first to smile.

"There you are at last."

Adam entered the room.

"Good evening."

Vespera inclined her head slightly.

"Good evening."

The others replied almost simultaneously.

"Good evening."

"You took your time," Isadora remarked.

Adam approached the table.

"We’re forty-two minutes over the allotted time."

Elena immediately turned her eyes to Vespera.

"Again?"

"He was making progress," the dragon replied simply.

Shiora rested her chin on her hands.

"So Vespera has decided again that time is a secondary concept."

Vespera sat down.

"Time is important."

Adam sat down next to her.

"She only decides when it deserves to be ignored." "

Selene burst out laughing.

"You’re starting to know her well."

A maid quickly brought two more plates.

Adam thanked her before beginning to eat.

For a few minutes, the conversation remained light.

Isadora was the first to ask:

"So, how did your days go?"

Selene immediately raised a hand.

"Adam survived his second training session."

Adam looked at her.

"Is that how you sum up everything that happened?"

"Yes."

She pointed to the bracelets around his wrists.

"And now he’s wearing his new gear properly."

Shiora examined the metal rings.

"He was already wearing them when he came to the Merchant Guild."

She smiled.

"I think they’re very elegant. They give the impression of a dangerous prisoner."

Adam looked down at the bracelets.

"Selene calls it training gear. Elaria calls it a tool for advancement. And you, you probably already see it as a product to sell."

Shiora adopted an innocent expression.

"A less powerful version might appeal to nobles who want to maintain their bodies without leaving their manor."

Elaria looked up from her notes.

"Bad idea. Without an accompaniment, the risk of injury would be too high."

Shiora nodded calmly.

"Then we’ll sell the accompaniment too."

Adam sighed.

"Naturally."

Elena turned to him.

"And your lesson with Elaria?"

"Enchantment."

Vespera’s interest was piqued slightly.

Adam continued:

"She taught me the basics of simple runic circuits. Light, heat, fortification, stabilization, locking, and alert."

Elaria immediately corrected him:

"He didn’t just learn the basics. He started modifying the structures to reduce mana loss."

Selene smiled.

"So he tried to correct the work of people with centuries of experience again?"

Adam raised a hand.

"I didn’t correct anyone. I only noticed some losses."

Elaria adjusted her glasses.

"And proposed several functional improvements in his first attempts."

Shiora burst out laughing.

"That’s exactly what Selene was saying."

Adam preferred to continue.

"Then Shiora explained the economic workings of this world to me in more detail."

Isadora immediately observed the oni.

"And what did you learn?"

Adam put down his cutlery.

"That Shiora would probably be considered an international threat in my old world."

Shiora placed a hand on his chest.

"I take that as a huge compliment."

"I suspected as much."

He briefly explained their discussion.

The separate companies.

Stocks.

Dividends.

Dilution.

Investors.

Bonds.

Licenses.

Protecting control of a company.

When he mentioned the possible creation of a privately held company for the Valoria Games, Isadora nodded slowly.

"A special share belonging to the duchy would indeed prevent an outsider from taking control of the project."

Shiora smiled.

"Exactly. And Adam will retain a founding share."

Adam looked at her.

"You’ve already decided that definitively?"

"Yes."

"Without asking me?"

"You can refuse the profits if it bothers you."

Adam remained silent.

Shiora smiled more broadly.

"I knew you’d understand."

Lyriana, who had listened calmly, asked:

"And the Tower of Mages?" "

Adam exchanged a glance with Vespera.

"It was... difficult."

Vespera calmly picked up her cup.

"Her schedule has been changed."

Elena sat up slightly.

"Why?"

Selene and Elaria exchanged a glance.

Vespera replied:

"Because Adam has Adaptation."

Silence fell immediately in the room.

Isadora stopped turning a page.

Elena remained motionless, her fork hovering a few inches above her plate.

Lyriana looked up sharply.

Shiora’s smile faded for a fraction of a second.

Selene, Elaria, and Vespera were the only ones who didn’t seem surprised.

Adam observed their reactions.

"Yes. That’s exactly the same expression Selene and Elaria had."

Elena was the first to regain her voice.

"Adaptation? The actual Adaptation skill?"

"That’s what it says on my status panel."

Isadora slowly put down her documents.

"When did you get it?"

"After my night with Elaria. I discovered it this morning."

Elaria nodded.

"I already explained to her that it has only officially appeared twice in recorded history."

Shiora leaned slightly forward.

"The two Bringers of Change."

Adam turned his eyes toward her.

"You know this story too?"

"Of course. Both of them altered the economy of their time simply because their progress made possible things that others considered impossible."

Lyriana folded her arms.

"One of them survived for several months in a poisoned region. His body gradually developed a resistance to almost all of the continent’s natural toxins."

Selene added,

"The other could learn fighting styles that are normally incompatible." Heavy weaponry, rapid combat, breath techniques, internal reinforcement... He transformed every difficulty into a new foundation.

Elena looked at Adam with visible concern.

"And this skill is already working?"

Adam raised his wrists slightly.

"Selene noticed I was adapting far too quickly to changes in gravity. Then the bracelets came along."

Selene smiled proudly.

"They’re perfect for him."

"They add a charge equivalent to seventy percent of my strength."

Elena slowly turned her head toward Selene.

"Seventy percent?"

"He’s already getting used to it."

"That’s no reason to kill him."

"I’m not going to kill him."

Selene thought for a moment.

"Probably."

Adam closed his eyes.

Isadora, however, remained serious.

"Adaptation can become an extraordinary ability. But it also risks attracting a lot of attention if its progression becomes visible."

Lyriana nodded.

"This information must remain in this room."

Shiora continued:

"Especially if the Empire learns that a man connected to Valoria possesses a skill capable of gradually breaking his own limits."

Vespera set down her cup.

"The Empire would try to capture him, study him, or eliminate him before he becomes too difficult to control."

Elena clenched her fists slightly.

"They won’t touch it."

Adam gently placed a hand on her arm.

"For now, only the people here know."

Elaria corrected her:

"And Mira probably knows about the bracelets, but not necessarily the skill that motivated their use."

Selene nodded.

"I haven’t explained anything to her." I simply asked him to work with Elaria on equipment that could evolve with you."

Isadora thought for a few seconds.

"Very well. We will treat Adaptation as strategic information. Adam, don’t share it with anyone outside your status."

"Understood."

Shiora gradually regained her smile.

"That explains a lot, though."

Adam frowned.

"What?"

"Your way of absorbing information. You don’t just learn. You gradually modify your way of thinking to integrate each new area."

Elaria shook her head slightly.

"Accelerated Learning already produced this effect before Adaptation came along. But now the two abilities are likely to reinforce each other."

Vespera added,

"Not to mention Mana Body. Her body, her mana, and her mind can now learn together."

A new, much more thoughtful silence fell.

Adam looked at the women around the table.

"The way you put it, I almost feel like I’ve become an experiment."

Vespera replied immediately,

"You are an extremely interesting experiment."

Adam stared at her.

"Thank you for confirming."

Selene laughed again.

Elaria then placed her notebook on the table.

"Since we’re talking about your way of thinking..."

Adam immediately noticed her expression.