Selena called Lucien aside after morning combat evaluations. Her tone was calm, but her gaze held weight.
"You're not improving like the others," she said, watching him closely. "You're growing beyond them. That kind of growth needs shaping."
Lucien said nothing. He only met her eyes. She nodded once.
"Obsidian Hall. Tomorrow. Dawn."
---
The hall was colder than it looked. Tall obsidian pillars absorbed sound, light, and presence. No students trained here—this was where personal limits were broken.
Lucien stood in the center. Unmoving. Waiting.
Selena arrived without ceremony. Her robes were simple, her aura steady.
"I'm not teaching you spells," she said. "This isn't that kind of lesson."
"I know."
"Good. Then we begin."
---
She stepped back and unleashed pressure. No attacks—just raw elemental mana filling the air in waves. Fire brushed the skin, lightning buzzed under the surface, cold crept into the bones.
Lucien didn't flinch.
Flow of Adaptation activated on its own.
[SYSTEM INTERFACE – PROFICIENCY UPDATE]
Flow of Adaptation – S Rank [89.1% → 90.3%]
Internal Mana Circuit Control – Refined by 72.0%
Mana Resonance – Level 9 [Progress: 2012/3000]
---
Selena walked around him, observing how his body responded. The trait wasn't just reacting—it was learning, refining, and simplifying complex reactions into muscle memory.
She layered more pressure. A sharp shift in temperature. A swirl of wind-enhanced mana. Even distorted spatial pulses.
Lucien adjusted without conscious thought. His foot slid a fraction. His fingers twitched once. The heat passed through his frame instead of resisting it.
Adaptation was no longer reacting—it was flowing.
---
"This trait of yours," Selena said quietly, "It doesn't just survive pressure. It feeds on it."
Lucien didn't answer.
Another wave hit—light-based. Dense and focused like a spear. It shimmered with divine particles.
Lucien's core trembled slightly before absorbing the intent. Flow of Adaptation pulsed in his veins. He didn't dodge—he shifted through it.
[SYSTEM INTERFACE – PROFICIENCY UPDATE]
Flow of Adaptation – S Rank [90.3% → 91.7%]
Affinity with Light Magic – Slightly Increased
Solar Flame Resistance – Reinforced (Inner Furnace Active)
Combat Footwork: Phantom Steps – Level 4 (New)
---
Selena watched closely.
"You're not using a shield. No barrier. Not even control spells."
Lucien finally spoke. His voice was flat. "Unnecessary."
"Confidence or habit?"
"Neither."
She paused. "You're refining your body's magic like it's a blade."
Lucien didn't respond. He was already centering his mana again, slowing his breathing. His body processed mana like air now—light or fire, it didn't matter.
---
Selena changed the environment. A sudden surge of volatile mana, this time chaos-tinted. Corrosive.
Lucien staggered—barely. Adaptation kicked in harder this time, filtering the distortion with painful recoil.
Blood dripped from his lip. He wiped it off with the back of his hand. Still calm.
[SYSTEM INTERFACE – PROFICIENCY UPDATE]
Flow of Adaptation – S Rank [91.7% → 93.2%]
Internal Mana Circuit Control – Refined by 73.5%
Divine Warding Magic – Expanded Range (Minor Passive)
---
Selena stepped forward. "This isn't just physical endurance. You're using Flow of Adaptation to mimic mana tolerance—on the fly."
Lucien nodded once. "It's faster than learning traditional resistance."
"There's risk."
"I know."
---
By midday, the hall was scarred. Scorch marks, deep indentations, faint mana distortions in the air.
Lucien's shirt was torn at the shoulder. His breath was steady, but his hands twitched now and then—his circuits still adjusting.
Selena finally slowed.
"Your body is evolving faster than it should," she said. "That's not safe."
Lucien's gaze was distant. "It's necessary."
---
She didn't press further. But there was something in her silence—recognition. Not of power, but purpose.
This wasn't about domination. Lucien trained like someone expecting the world to fall apart. Like someone preparing to stand alone if needed.
She handed him a vial—mana stabilizer, rare quality.
He took it but didn't drink it. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the floor and closed his eyes. Letting the Flow guide his breath. Letting the silence wrap around his mind.
---
[SYSTEM INTERFACE – PROFICIENCY UPDATE]
Flow of Adaptation – S Rank [93.2% → 94.9%]
Meditation – (Passive Buff Triggered: Neural Stream Clarity)
Mana Circuit Repair Efficiency – +6.5%
Core Stability – Improved
---
Selena leaned against a wall, arms crossed, eyes still on him.
"You're not like the others."
Lucien's eyes remained closed.
"I'm not trying to be."
---
An hour passed.
The silence inside Obsidian Hall wasn't comforting. It was heavy. The kind that made even veteran mages uneasy. But Lucien didn't move.
Mana pulsed through him — not in bursts, but in steady, measured spirals. Like his body had learned how to breathe mana.
Selena watched from the corner. She'd seen prodigies, monsters, and heirs blessed by ancient bloodlines. But Lucien was none of those.
His control didn't come from talent. It came from cold repetition and something deeper—an instinct to refine every fragment of experience.
---
He opened his eyes.
His gaze was sharper than before. Not wider, not glowing. Just focused, like he was cutting through the world one thought at a time.
Selena stepped forward. "Show me how you're applying it."
Lucien stood, unhurried. He lifted his right hand, and without a chant, condensed neutral mana into his palm. It began to rotate. Slow. Controlled.
She noticed immediately. The way the mana was layered.
"This isn't a normal compression," she muttered.
"No," Lucien replied. "It's folding."
"Folding?"
He extended the mana forward. With a pulse of his will, it separated into three overlapping layers—each tuned to a different frequency. Fire. Wind. Earth. All coiled tightly in sequence.
Selena's eyes narrowed. "You're layering flow using your trait's learning patterns."
Lucien nodded.
---
[SYSTEM INTERFACE – PROFICIENCY UPDATE]
Flow of Adaptation – S Rank [94.9% → 96.1%]
Layered Spellcraft (Unrefined Form) – Detected
Spell Weaving Efficiency – Increased
Mana Burnout Resistance – Minor Upgrade
---
He stepped forward and struck the ground lightly. The layered spell collapsed into itself and unleashed a controlled blast—not large, but precise. A clean crater, no scattered mana.
Selena folded her arms. "You're not a mage," she said. "You're something else entirely."
"I'm adjusting," Lucien answered. His voice was low, almost distant. "I don't need a casting style. I need a system."
---
The word hung in the air.
System.
Selena realized that's how he saw his training. Not a series of spells or techniques, but parts of a greater internal mechanism.
Lucien wasn't growing stronger. He was becoming more efficient.
And efficiency, in magic, was terrifying.
---
She walked to the edge of the crater, crouched, and traced the edge. Clean. No mana scars. No recoil damage.
"This is second-nature to you already?"
"Barely adequate."
The tone wasn't pride. It was evaluation.
---
Selena stood again. "If your Flow continues this way, you'll become immune to standard casting barriers within the year."
Lucien didn't respond.
"You'll stop learning from teachers eventually," she added. "What then?"
His answer was simple. "Then I'll learn from battle."
---
She didn't press. Not yet. But something in her expression softened slightly.
He wasn't just a boy with power. He was a boy who knew what to do with it.
She walked past him and tossed a small disk on the ground. It activated, creating a combat simulation field.
"Let's see if your efficiency can hold up under motion."
---
The construct that emerged was a tall figure—armored, agile, and dual-bladed. Designed for fast-paced pressure fighting.
Lucien's stance shifted slightly. Not a fighting pose. Just enough balance to move.
The construct attacked. Sharp, precise slashes. It was fast.
Lucien didn't dodge the first blade. He let it graze his shoulder, timing the second slash just as his body twisted. His footwork was incomplete—but it was learning.
He wasn't fighting like a knight or a mage. He was reacting, and his trait was recording every second.
---
[SYSTEM INTERFACE – PROFICIENCY UPDATE]
Flow of Adaptation – S Rank [96.1% → 97.4%]
Adaptive Combat Reflexes – (Trait-Synergy Detected)
Combat Flow Reading – Initiated (Passive Observation Skill)
Pain Response Conversion – +5.2% Efficiency in Next Reaction Phase
---
The second round, Lucien began exploiting.
He fainted to the left but used raw wind mana under his foot, creating a micro-push. The construct overshot. Lucien delivered a palm strike—no spell, no blade. Just redirected force.
The construct fell back. Lucien didn't follow.
He was letting the simulation push him, measure him, and refine him.
Each exchange gave his trait more information. Each mistake was processed and improved upon within seconds.
---
Selena raised an eyebrow. "You're letting your body solve the fight."
Lucien didn't confirm or deny. His shoulder still bled slightly, but the muscle beneath had already adjusted tension patterns to minimize re-injury.
He moved again.
This time, the construct couldn't land a blow.
---
[SYSTEM INTERFACE – PROFICIENCY UPDATE]
Flow of Adaptation – S Rank [97.4% → 98.6%]
Muscle Memory Mapping – 42.6% Efficiency
Mana-Coated Palm Strikes – Detected [Level 2]
Environmental Rebound Prediction – Basic Pattern Learned
---
By the end of the simulation, Lucien stood without a scratch. His breathing was calm. Adaptation had done its work.
Selena deactivated the field. "You could become untouchable in five years."
"I won't wait that long."
She watched him walk past her toward the exit, not rushing, not tired.
He was already planning his next step.