Lucius found himself sitting in the common area of Eroa's embassy. His father, King Verdayl, and Kalliope were sitting with him. The wolf-girl was excitedly wagging her tail and practically drooled on his arm. He uncomfortably attempted to shake her off, but it was to no avail.
Kalivas and King Verdayl stared at him as he calmly sipped his tea. They appeared nonplussed by his performance. It was only fair; Lucius had not shown off such an ability before.
"What did you do?" Kalivas finally broke the silence by asking the question everyone shared.
"It is an ability I learned when I broke through into the Intermediate Rank. It is an extension of my Thunder Magic. So far, I have been unable to use it voicelessly under the effects of Channeling; however, because of my Channeling, I can pour the mana from Arts and the mana for Magic into it." He explained.
"How did you break through that barrier?" Kalivas continued. "Even I would need a few hits to break through."
"Overcharge summons every speck of magical mana in my body and compresses it into a single, overwhelming attack. Thanks to Channeling, I can manipulate it so I can use my Arts for it as well." Lucius answered.
King Verdayl spoke up next, "Are you saying you are an Intermediate Rank on par with a King Rank?" He eyed Lucius suspiciously.
"No. It leaves me extremely drained. Honestly, I'm so weak right now that I'm sure a strong breeze would knock me down. Also... I cannot use that ability again for another month, maybe more."
"Why not?"
"It puts an enormous amount of strain on my body. On top of leaving me on the verge of mana deprivation, it pushes the mana pathways throughout my body to their absolute limits. Trying it again before I have fully recovered would most likely kill me. Instead of a targeted attack, I would turn myself into a bomb."
Both the king and his father sucked in a deep breath. They agreed that it was an extremely useful and powerful ability, but what Lucius had just explained to him was a series of drawbacks that would hinder the usability of the skill.
"Yes, everything is in order. Kalliope is actually going to be hired on as a teacher's assistant to assist Old Man Carmichael." Kalivas explained. "You are being accepted as a student specializing in Marks. Only the Old Man seemed interested in taking you in as a student. Though I imagine after today's events, the other departments are eating their shirts!"
"You know Wally?" Lucius asked.
"Of course I do. He's a powerful mage. Do you think I wouldn't know him? Other than you, he is the only other person that I personally know who can use Channeling. Do not misunderstand, there are certainly others, I just don't know them." Kalivas answered.
"Hmm."
Kalliope chimed in again, "So, when am I going to meet this Rena girl?"
"At the party, most likely."
"How's that going to go, by the way? You are going to be in close proximity to a number of people who worked together to kill you." The girl growled. The fur on her ears and tail began to bristle a little.
"True, but they failed." He answered. "At least for now, my status as the champion and my little plan for the party will keep me safe until I regain my strength. I will not be so easy to entrap again."
Lucius stood up and went to his room in the embassy to prepare for the event. He was forced to ask his father to hold Kalliope down from sneaking in after him since he would be unable to fight her advances off. A part of him wondered if she would really even try since she seemed to love the hunt as much as the idea of actually being with him.
He carefully put on a nice suit and tie and checked his appearance in the mirror. There were burn scars on the back of his neck that were slightly visible from the front, and he still had the scar down his neck and chest from fighting the goblins with Rena's cousin, Simon.
Finally, he touched his left ear. He had pierced it when he got his position as a King's Shadow. Kalliope tricked him into thinking it was a thing that warriors did to celebrate. However, that was not the case, something he would have realized if he paid attention to Kalivas' or Kalliope's own ears. Despite that, he kept it because it became a part of himself.
"Time to go," Kalliope called out from outside the room.