CHAPTER 282: NEED MOAR

Adyr no longer bothered to hide his true race, nor did he feel the need to mention it—their realization and full acceptance played perfectly into his plans.

After all, sooner or later, they would understand he wasn’t truly Velari.

Ever since bringing Veyla and Isolde to the Velari Kingdom, he had been considering how to make Liora and the others accept them. They were only the beginning. In the future, he would need to bring far more human researchers and workers into this world, establishing a solid foundation for the empire he envisioned.

The sooner they accepted the truth, the faster they would adapt to the changes Adyr had meticulously planned for the future.

They probably think I’m from an ancient race, and Velari are one of its descendant races. Adyr read their thoughts effortlessly, requiring little effort to understand the assumptions forming in their minds.

A sense of relief washed over him. There was no need for lengthy explanations anymore; they had already discussed everything and accepted him without question. It was in this calm moment that Liora spoke.

"Adyr, we have a change of plans."

He looked up, seated cross-legged, a single brow raised in curiosity. "What is it?"

Liora didn’t answer directly. Instead, she turned to Malrik, who immediately understood and spoke with a heartfelt laugh. "I’ve decided not to join the Legacy Domain. I don’t want to drag you along with my old body."

His expression appeared lighthearted, laughing, yet beneath the surface, a deep hurt was visible to everyone.

"Old means wise, doesn’t it? I think you can guide me more than drag me," Adyr replied, his laughter genuine, carrying a caring and sincere tone.

This decision also suited Adyr, as he was naturally someone who preferred to act alone. This time was no different, though he, of course, concealed that thought from the outside.

Malrik recognized the thoughtfulness behind his brother’s words, seeing the subtle praise meant to honor him without drawing attention to any weakness. "No need to be polite, brother. It’s already decided. I might not be with you inside, but I will pray to God Astrael for your well-being. Just don’t rush anything, and focus only on your own safety. That’s all I ask."

Adyr simply nodded. Any further words might have inadvertently wounded his pride.

Malrik wasn’t just a Rank 2 Practitioner—his build was also far from ideal.

He wasn’t a pure strength type like Liora, nor a pure support type like Mirela, and not even a hybrid of movement and strength like Lucen. He was essentially a jack of all trades but master of none.

The path he had chosen, while versatile, inherently limited both his growth and his current power. Not having all four stats like Adyr only amplified these limitations, leaving a build that was flexible but ultimately weaker than one focused on mastery.

Even though I have the advantage of access to all stats, I still need to be careful not to fall into his situation, Adyr thought, considering each evolution step for every rank and knowing he had to plan meticulously.

Meanwhile, sitting among the other Practitioners and continuing their tactical discussions for the Legacy Domain, Adyr sent his energy body to Twilight Land to complete the daily task he couldn’t afford to miss.

On a branch of the Mother Tree, a striking, fist-sized fruit glowed with a vivid red, fully ripened and waiting to be consumed.

His energy body hovered in the air, approaching the fruit slowly, plucking it effortlessly with a soft ’ptuk!’ as it detached from the branch, and taking a large bite.

The refreshing liquid within spread through his mouth, filling his stomach with its strange vitality.

Though he suspected his energy body’s internal organs weren’t exactly like a physical stomach, he could feel the unusual, soothing energy accumulating in his abdominal area.

"The taste is still bad, though," he murmured, voicing his dissatisfaction to the Mother Tree. Yet, the moment the system message showed him the +5 stat points he had gained, the unpleasant flavor seemed to vanish as if by illusion.

Adyr summoned his character panel to check the current state of his stats.

[Name]: Adyr

[Race]: Twilight Human

[Path]: Primora

[Evolution Step]: 2

[Physique]: 188

[Will]: 200

[Resilience]: 405

[Sense]: 225

[Energy]: 50 / 1318

[Registered Talents]: 15/15

[Omnisight (Lv1)], [Tracking(Lv3)], [Throwing(Lv3)], [Elysian Cook (Lv1)], [Linguistic(Lv3)], [Tactician(Lv4)], [Stealth(Lv3)], [Trapper(Lv3)], [Butchering(Lv3)], [Scouting(Lv3)], [Surgery(Lv3)], [Reader(Lv3)], [Masonry(Lv3)], [Sword Art of Existence(Lv2)], [Maleficent Architect (Lv2)]

[Sparks]: 10/10

[Sanctuary]: Twilight Land

[Free Stat Points]: 5

"It looks okay."

The lack of free stat points for emergencies was a concern, but his overall stats looked solid.

Although his [Physique] stat was the lowest—and he would eventually need to raise it to maintain his cover as an Astra Path—it wasn’t immediately alarming.

[Physique] represented his overall body strength, including durability, which [Resilience] also contributed to, speed, which was supported by [Will], and reflexes, vision, and other senses such as smell, which [Sense] could partially cover.

In other words, even though [Physique] was his lowest stat, the other attributes compensated in various ways, keeping it from being critical.

What truly concerned him now was [Sense].

To effectively utilize his newly discovered Gaze and Presence combo, he needed an expanded perceptual capacity—to process the overwhelming influx of information into his mind quickly and efficiently.

By also increasing [Physique] and [Resilience], he could reduce the physical strain on his body, allowing him to sustain the combo for longer periods with greater ease.

Based on his calculations, to use the combo effectively for at least 3 minutes—encompassing the full area within his Presence and perceiving every detail with the precision of an overpowered investigative skill—he would roughly need an additional 200 to 300 stat points.

Looking at his current talents, he noticed that his lowest common talent was already at level 3, and bloodline talents remained difficult to advance. It became clear this wasn’t something he could achieve quickly.

I should try the new VR simulation rooms at Player Headquarters soon and see if they’re sufficient to push my common talents to level 4.