A Targeted Spell

Lucian had no way of knowing that the unfortunate Norian had even lost his very soul to the service of a dark ritual. At this moment, Lucian was in the training ground, observing Carrie's demonstration of her newly developed archery technique, Poisoned Arrow.

This spell was part of Lucian's specific plan to counter the fey and half-fey adversaries they might face. Unlike humans, fey are naturally resistant to elemental forces like fire, lightning, and ice. Their delicate, seemingly fragile forms are, in reality, remarkably resilient. Yet, they have a notable weakness: toxins. Their sensitivity to poison is greater than that of ordinary humans. Anticipating future encounters with both fey and half-fey, Lucian had chosen this specialized spell to teach Carrie.

"Master Lucian, when I first tried to infuse poison onto the arrow," Carrie explained, demonstrating with her training bow, "I used a solid infusion, just as with fire, lightning, and ice. I applied the toxin directly onto the arrowhead, but it caused issues."

She held out her arms, showing red welts that hadn't yet faded.

"When I released the arrows, the poison would scatter due to the speed of the shot, with some of it splashing back onto me. If I used a potent enough poison, I'd likely end up more affected than my target! So, I adapted the spell model to an embedded absorption structure rather than the standard solid structure."

Lucian listened to her explanation with a pleased smile, noting Carrie's sharp improvement in archery-based spells. Perhaps her grasp of traditional spells like Shadow Stealth was slow, but when combined with her archery skills, her progress was far beyond his expectations.

After only a few days of practice, Carrie had managed to modify the zero-level spell Poison Ring into a viable archery spell under Lucian's guidance.

"Impressive," he said, ruffling her hair in encouragement.

Carrie's face lit up, her eyes sparkling as she tilted her head up.

"But there's still plenty of room for improvement," he added.

Her expression fell, and her head drooped. Carrie had hoped to impress Lucian with her hard work, even relishing the idea of showing him her achievements. Yet, in just a single observation, her teacher had managed to identify areas where she could refine her spell further.

Though she admired Lucian even more, Carrie felt a new sense of urgency. She would need to work harder just to keep up, or she'd risk losing sight of her teacher's distant footsteps altogether.

[Your student Carrie is filled with admiration for you. Reverence Points +10.]

Lucian's smile widened slightly as he took up her bow to demonstrate.

"Observe. By utilizing an enhanced coating effect, we can maximize the poison's impact," he said, drawing an arrow from her quiver and notching it.

A dark green liquid seeped onto the arrowhead, coating it in a thin film that stuck firmly to the shaft as he released it. The poison clung tightly, even accelerating the arrow's flight without splattering.

Lucian handed the bow back to Carrie and encouraged her to work on incorporating his adjustments. He then turned to leave, ready to return to his alchemical research.

"Master Lucian," Carrie called hesitantly, gathering her courage.

"What's on your mind, Carrie? Were there parts you didn't understand?" He turned back to her.

"No… not exactly. I just wanted to ask about my bow…"

Lucian chuckled, seeing her hesitation.

"You want to know if your bow can still be repaired, is that right?" He preempted her, sparing her the struggle.

"Yes." Carrie's voice softened, scratching her head in embarrassment.

She was attached to that old bow, her first, and a gift from Lucian—the first weapon she had used to master her archery spells. Even if it was no longer suited for combat, she wished for it to have a proper "retirement."

Lucian realized he'd neglected the promise he'd made to her, initially intending to repair the bow after picking up some alchemy knowledge. But other priorities had taken over, and the task had slipped from his mind...

"Time kept slipping by... I'd likely forgotten completely if Carrie hadn't brought it up."

Slightly embarrassed, Lucian looked away from her hopeful gaze, feeling a twinge of guilt.

"Ah... well, I was planning to give it to you when we set out, but since you're eager to have it back, come to the lab after tonight's training. You can witness the bow's rebirth for yourself," he said, feigning calm confidence.

Seeing Lucian's sincere expression, Carrie lowered her head, feeling slightly ashamed for doubting him. She worried that she might have acted impulsively by interrupting his busy schedule.

Noticing her unease, Lucian quickly patted her on the head to scatter her thoughts and smoothly guided the conversation past his forgotten promise.