Chapter 44: Between Luck and Loyalty
The deepened talent for Enhanced Deflection granted a reduction in physical damage after a successful parry. Ryan’s heart swelled with quiet satisfaction. It was a powerful, survival-focused talent—one that, when paired with a high enough parry rate, would stay active almost constantly.
What he hadn’t figured out yet was whether each point in the talent increased its duration, or if the damage reduction stacked. Either way, it would cost his own precious talent points to unlock, and that posed a dilemma. The total number of points was fixed—unlike Auxiliary Talent Points, which could be earned through Glorious Achievements. Spending them here meant cutting into future possibilities elsewhere.
With a resigned sigh, Ryan closed the talent panel. He left his character standing idle inside the Grand Cathedral and logged out of his virtual headset.
The scent of dinner had already begun to spread through the house. As Ryan stepped out of his room, the aroma wrapped around him, rich and relentless, tugging at his stomach. Molly and Mia were already moving around the kitchen, warming up dishes with a rhythm that suggested they’d been at it for a while.
While Molly was still preoccupied, Ryan motioned Mia over and pulled her aside.
"Hey," he said in a low voice, "what’s going on between you and Evelyn?"
Mia blinked at him. "What do you mean?"
"I mean the sudden change. You two looked like you were ready to kill each other, and now you’re practically friends?"
She gave a short sigh and folded her arms. "It’s nothing."
Ryan raised an eyebrow.
She hesitated, then rolled her eyes and finally gave in. "Okay, fine. She wants to recruit me into her professional team."