G analyzed promptly:

  Analysis of condition: Muscle density enhancement. Strength increased by 25% compared to baseline state. Duration: 6 minutes 20 seconds. Stamina consumption: double normal rate. Blood loss: 50 ml, no impact on combat capability. Future testing possible for two additional states: 30 minutes (causes fatigue) and 60 minutes (causes exhaustion, very high risk of shock).

  The fact that Liam could complete the Mana absorption test on just the second day clearly demonstrated his innate gift with Mana. Moreover, Liam applied it excellently despite having absorbed for less than 30 seconds—an astonishing speed and adaptability.

  Theo thought that if Liam had any interest in becoming a spellcaster, he would make tremendous strides on the path to becoming a powerhouse.

  However, watching Liam still fondling the armor and meticulously re-oiling the Zaravand short spear, Theo could only shake his head. No matter how good his Mana talent, Liam was still Liam.

  Theo asked, both curious and sincere:

  "Not interested in Mana? You have the talent for it, Liam."

  Liam paused for a beat. The flickering firelight reflected off the spear blade and his face covered in forest dust. He snorted with a laugh:

  "Theo, you know me. I grew up with the sound of hammer on iron. All my life, I've only liked the feeling of a spear point hitting an opponent's armor or weapon. At my core, I'm just the son of a blacksmith from this Oakhaven region."

  He lifted the short spear, rotating it lightly in his hand, oiling it while adding with endearingly honest simplicity:

  "Mana? Sure... I think it's interesting. But in my head, it only has one purpose: making my spear ring louder when it hits armor."

  Theo burst out laughing. He couldn't argue with that.

  From childhood to now, Liam had only one desire: grip a spear and charge straight at his opponent.

  There was no way he'd sit still and study complex spellcraft.

  Theo smirked, understanding the core essence: Mana was merely an energy source. Knowledge and understanding of how to use and control Mana was the true authority and power—excerpt from The Stillness and the Source of Power.

  Therefore, if someone possessed excellent Mana talent but was foolish or had poor combat ability, they would merely be mobile Mana storage containers. Talent had never been everything in a real world where only results provided the definitive answer to two words—Powerhouse.

  It was late. Theo reminded Liam to sleep early so they could continue the harsh training tomorrow. The second day after meeting Vesper and her invitation had arrived.

  The next morning, Theo checked his remaining funds: about 300 Silver Coins. He and Liam planned to leave 100 Silver Coins each for their families.

  Theo calculated that with this amount, their families' financial burden would be much lighter, and importantly, the sum wasn't large enough to cause danger or attract unnecessary attention to either household. He just needed to carefully instruct both families not to spend recklessly.

  All important items had been fully prepared by Theo and Liam. Only provisions for the long journey remained—Theo decided to prepare these last; they wouldn't cost too much money or time.

  The morning hours were devoted entirely to perfecting the Endurance Incense and Tranquil Mint Cakes. Theo knew clearly that these two items were essentially medicinal herbs and nutrition, not yet applying much Apothecary knowledge. With his Mana still unstable, Theo didn't dare attempt true magical medicines.

  After completing the final steps, Theo began implementing his plan: testing interval Mana absorption training, divided into three sessions—morning, afternoon, evening—30 minutes each, to evaluate the efficiency.

  Theo lit a stick of the prepared Endurance Incense. The spreading aroma had the pungent, slightly fishy smell of spider blood but was immediately balanced by the cold, sharp fragrance of nightglow mushrooms. Indeed, this formula was correct—it neutralized medicinal properties very well. Unlike ordinary incense, it didn't relax but rather brought alertness to an uncomfortable degree, as if all senses were forced to concentrate.

  He began the absorption session. The intake had nothing remarkable—no immediate dizziness or nausea—but his mind focused far better than last night's session.

  After completing 30 minutes, G analyzed the entire performance:

  Analysis of interval training cycle: 10% efficiency for the first 7 minutes, peaking at 110% efficiency for the remaining 23 minutes. Highly optimal. Clearly, Endurance Incense has demonstrated its capability in maintaining high efficiency.

  Theo stroked his chin:

  "Not bad."

  The incense stick had only burned halfway; it could burn for another 30 minutes. He took out a Tranquil Mint Cake. He only ate half, saving the other half for the afternoon. The piece melted in his mouth, carrying the gentle sweetness of honey and an immediate cool sensation from frost mint, dispersing the mental tension caused by Endurance Incense.

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  He felt his head considerably lighter than after yesterday's exhausting session, ready for the next exercises.

  This afternoon, he wanted to dedicate all his time to reviewing Al's training progress, because in recent days, his preoccupation with Mana had caused him to neglect his companion. The little Pidgey seemed mildly sulky, and Theo naturally couldn't ignore Al for too long; the development and maturation of Al—this small but proud bird—depended entirely on him.

  Theo approached the familiar clearing where Al was training. Watching Al practice flying while gripping heavy objects to increase wing strength, Theo noticed some changes in Al's form: slightly larger, longer feathers. Stamina had also increased considerably.

  He asked G about Al's condition.

  G reported:

  Al has grown 6 cm taller, gained 36 g in weight. Development pattern slightly abnormal, plumage developing very rapidly but no impact on health.

  Theo felt somewhat reassured, but concerns about knowledge surfaced. He admitted being completely ignorant about the Pokémon training system. He couldn't rely on anime or games, because this real world was harsh and utterly logical. The idea of a battle being just shouting commands—Al dodge, Al counterattack, Al defend—was laughable; before finishing the sentence, the Pokémon would already be hit.

  He couldn't rush into mistaken training, and the only certainty right now was that a foundation of stamina and strength remained indispensable.

  This afternoon, he had a spontaneous idea about Al—a completely new exercise. No harm in trying. Theo tried to recall that each Pokémon had a unique characteristic. For Pidgey, he had the impression it related to eyesight or evasion speed, and he decided to test that immediately.

  Theo called to the little bird diligently training. Al was overjoyed, dropping the large oak branch it was gripping, chirping happily, swooping in a large circle before quickly perching on Theo's shoulder, nuzzling against his face like a loving reproach.

  Theo laughed, stroking its head and smooth plumage:

  "I'm sorry Al, I've been too busy these past days to pay attention to you."

  The little Pidgey chirped happily, not blaming him at all.

  "Al," Theo said, voice full of excitement, "I have a new exercise. Want to try?"

  The Pidgey puffed its chest proudly, accepting any challenge.

  The first exercise Theo wanted to recheck was Al's vision—how far and sharply it could see. Fortunately, there was G's translation; otherwise, this test would be impossible to conduct.

  Theo pointed into the distance:

  "Al, see that windmill on the hilltop? What's on the roof?"

  Al took only a moment to locate the target. Sharp, rapid chirps transmitted directly into G's analysis system.

  G coldly translated:

  It reports a bird's nest and three chicks inside. Estimated vision range: 7.4 km, with sharpness capable of distinguishing detailed objects at 100 m distance.

  Theo couldn't help being amazed. Al's vision was truly extraordinary!

  This bird's reconnaissance capability was worthy of being called masterful. In past battles, Theo had vaguely noticed this: Al was rarely obstructed by dense oak canopies, seemingly able to see through layers of leaves, almost immune to normal visual limitations.

  Such transcendent vision could only be Al's heaven-given latent ability. Theo knew that with this absolute intelligence advantage, he and Liam would have an enormously strategic edge in any future mission.

  Theo stroked his chin. So it could be somewhat confirmed that Al's prominent trait was vision, and fortunately so—otherwise Theo wouldn't even know what other traits to test for.

  The second test would focus on the ability to see through obstacles—specifically canopies or bushes—to verify the sharpness of Al's vision.

  Theo decided to hide seven small red flags in special, concealed positions, hidden deep in thickets and dense foliage, within a 100-meter radius around the training area. This was a very wide range, full of natural obstacles, challenging Al's flight and information processing capabilities to the maximum.

  Preparation complete, Theo called Al to begin.

  The little bird shot into the air, circling once widely to confirm the area's overall layout, then dove down. It didn't waste a single bit of energy in flight.

  Al's image deciphering speed was truly extraordinary—it seemed to have mapped the flag positions in just the first reconnaissance pass.

  In only 38 seconds, Al had collected all seven flags, one by one, and returned them to Theo.

  This result made Theo hold his breath. This proved Al had not only superior vision but also very fast image information analysis capability—a master of tracking, seeking and capturing traces, able to scan a vast area in the blink of an eye.

  So the third test would challenge the limits.

  Theo would use flags of different colors, still seven flags, within the familiar 150-meter radius. The purpose was to see how long Al could maintain search and information handling capability when facing visual interference and complex analytical pressure.

  The challenge began.

  Clearly, this time was much more difficult. It was no longer a simple collection speed test but required Al to exert vision to the extreme with high precision, extremely fast information analysis capability, nearly exhausting the remaining abilities in its small body. The little bird had to continuously adjust focus to distinguish and locate each flag color.

  It took 1 minute 40 seconds for the little bird to find all seven flags and return. Al was also panting heavily. This exercise had worked it quite hard.

  Although significantly slower than the simple speed test (38 seconds), this result was still resounding proof of Al's extraordinary multitasking visual processing ability and mental endurance.

  Theo was satisfied with the final results. Overall, he now had a clear idea for Al's training. After all, in this world, survival was the top priority, not the arena. Determining a specialized path for Al right from now was extremely necessary and certainly wouldn't be wrong. Even if Theo later found better Trainer knowledge, Al's tactical orientation wouldn't change—it could only be enhanced.

  He outlined two main development directions, transforming Al into a supreme intelligence tool:

  First, with transcendent vision, Al would become Theo's Absolute Observation Unit (Defense). The little bird would operate as God's eye, continuously providing special notifications through codes only Theo understood, ensuring he had comprehensive perspective on opponents and always maintained the initiative.

  Second, Al would be trained in Invisible Tracking Skills (Offense). Al could independently track prey Theo targeted, especially if targets moved too fast or required silent surveillance. As long as Theo trained basic tracking methods and situation handling, Al would become the stickiest adhesive, pursuing targets without letting them detect it.

  Both tactics—one defensive (observation) and one offensive (tracking)—would give Theo absolute intelligence advantage and initiative capability in any situation, transforming him and Liam into a nearly perfect hunting team.

  Satisfied with this afternoon's training achievements, Theo carried Al on his shoulder back to base. He needed to perform the second Mana absorption exercise of the day and prepare dinner.