However, could the Griffin family hope to take a step further and join the ranks of aristocratic families?
Sorry, there's still an insurmountable ceiling.
Ultimately, it comes down to a lack of foundation and strength.
At the very least, a truly wealthy family wouldn't bother with a gold-plated bathtub.
Made of pure gold, it's just the basics.
Without some enchanted special effects, it's not truly aristocratic.
Alan lay in the gilded bathtub, feeling deeply moved.
Right now, living a peaceful and comfortable life isn't difficult.
But ensuring a peaceful and comfortable life for my parents, my sister, and their descendants in the future... too difficult!
Unless I possess sufficient strength and influence.
Broaden my family and create my own warlock clan!
After a moment of lost in thought, his thoughts returned to reality.
Improving strength starts now, step by step.
This visit to a friend yielded the unique ingredient, griffin eggs, which was a good start.
But it's not enough!
Near Griffin Island, there are quite a few wild islands infested with magical beasts and poisonous insects.
They're marked as dangerous restricted areas on the nautical chart!
Alan plans to borrow a tamed griffin from Felin as a flying vehicle to explore these dangerous islands.
Perhaps he can discover more unique ingredients!
However, with his current strength, exploring a deserted island is too risky!
"A craftsman who wants to do his work well must first sharpen his tools."
He certainly understood this principle!
Alan opened the system page.
Including the 1 point of Agility provided by the griffin egg, his current attributes are:
Constitution 22, Agility 19, Spirit 23
Potential: 3 points already accumulated. Without hesitation, Allen chose to fuse his skills!
Ding Ding—
"Deduction Complete!"
"Fusion Formula: Thunder Wave + Bone-piercing Burst + 3 Potential Points = Tier 3 Unnamed Martial Skill"
"Please name this skill!"
After a moment's thought, Allen named it "Thunder Explosive Wave"!
...
Thunder Explosive Wave: Consumes 8 mana points. A 10-meter radius, centered on the player, unleashes a rumbling shockwave, dealing four times the damage of "Thunder Wave" and adding the "Knockback," "Armor-Piercing," and "Crush" special effects.
Note: This sonic skill deals double damage to brittle and fragile objects!
...
"Thunder Explosive Wave" uses "Thunder Wave" as its basic framework, incorporating the special effects of "Bone-piercing Burst."
The destructive power is equivalent to four times the power of "Thunder Wave" combined!
The radius of the sonic wave spread also doubled.
Alan naturally thought of "Spell Shaping"!
Can metamagic feats be used to enhance martial arts?
He had asked his instructor about this question before.
The answer is, it depends on two scenarios.
For ordinary martial arts that don't consume mana, it can't!
For magical martial arts, it depends on whether it's applicable.
For example, "Spell Shaping" is only effective against spells and magical martial arts with a certain area of effect.
Single-target attacks like Exploding Palm cannot be shaped.
On the other hand, group attacks like "Thunder Blast Wave" can be shaped by spending two extra mana points.
Theoretically,
"Thunder Blast Wave" + Spell Shaping can create a 10-meter explosion centered on the target, turning it into a directional eruption.
For example, a 30-meter cone-shaped expansion pointing forward.
Or a 60-meter linear cluster jet.
All were within the permissible range of the shaping.
Alan grew more and more excited as he thought about it.
He stood up from the bathtub, eager to find a place to practice immediately.
However, as he dried himself, he forced the urge to suppress it.
A high-end resort, of course, would have a practice room.
But this wasn't his home after all.
No matter how kind Julie and Flynn were to him, they couldn't represent the entire Griffin family's stance.
People's hearts were hidden, so one must be on guard.
Practicing martial arts here, what if someone saw him...
How could a late-stage first-level warlock use a third-level martial art?!
Alan couldn't explain this.
So, I still had to resist the urge to show off!
Impulse is the devil.
Keeping a low profile is the way to survive at the bottom of the warlock world.
…
Alan accompanied the siblings on a week-long vacation at a mountain villa.
After a great time, the three returned to the harbor.
This trip had lasted over a month.
Alan asked Felin if he could borrow a griffin and ride it home...
Let's take a stroll around the deserted island we passed along the way.
I couldn't explain the collection of exotic ingredients.
Felin didn't understand his friend's true intentions and naturally urged him not to rush off and to spend more time with her.
With Alan gone, he felt bored at home.
After spending these days together, Julie had a good impression of Alan and wanted to ask him to stay a few more days.
So they racked their brains to think of what else to eat, drink, and do on the island, hoping to take Alan to try them all.
"What a shame, we're back too late," Julie said to Alan.
"I heard there was a circus performing while we were up the mountain."
"This afternoon, after their last show, they're going on tour to other islands."
"I'm afraid it's too late to buy tickets now..."
"Julie! Wait a minute!"
At the word circus, Alan's sensitive nerves immediately tensed up! "That circus you're talking about... isn't it called the 'Amazing Circus'?"
"Yes!" Julie said with a hearty laugh. "I heard the show's amazing, especially popular with the city kids!"
"Brother Allen, how did you know the circus's sign?"
"Of course I know..." Allen said bitterly. "Because the Amazing Circus visited my hometown two years ago."
"When the circus left, they abducted three children."
"Two of them were my seniors, and the other was a girl next door."
"In fact, if it weren't for my luck, I'd have almost been abducted myself..."
Awakening his deepest fear, Allen's face darkened.
The Griffin siblings exchanged bewildered glances.
After a long pause, Flynn finally broke the silence.
"Alan...is this Amazing Circus the same criminal gang that's been making so much noise about kidnapping children with sorcerer abilities?"
Alan nodded with a cold expression.
"Then what are we waiting for?!"
Julie jumped up, her face filled with anxiety.
"Let's hurry to the theater. Maybe we can still stop those traffickers! Stop them from taking away the kidnapped children in the city!"
"Wait a minute!" Flynn smiled bitterly. "Julie, the problem is we have no evidence! How can we accuse them of being traffickers without any proof..."
"You idiot!" Julie pushed her cousin away impatiently. "Alan, isn't this just a ready-made witness?"
"As for physical evidence...we don't have any right now, but if we search the theater, we might find some!"
...
Alan and the Griffins hurried to the theater.
In the end, I was still a step too late.
The show had ended an hour ago.
The Amazing Circus had just packed up and left.