Luck managed to get all his named creatures to A-rank before he exhausted all his mana cores.
He hadn't spent the Goblin Chief's core he had gotten from the quest yet, choosing to leave it for later, or as he had put it, for "when his luck was feeling high."
His shadow just stared at him blandly before shaking its head.
Luck's mouth twitched at the display. "You're a divine artifact, how can you not believe in luck? I mean, I'm sure there is a god or goddess out there like that."
His shadow just eyed him from top to bottom as if saying, "And who told you they favor you?"
"..." Luck stared at his shadow flatly before he sighed, internally lamenting Nyx's choice of artifact again.
He stood up, dusting his clothes as he walked back to where he was sitting before.
He paused, his right foot already over Harry's sleeping figure, as a thought passed through his head, making him abruptly turn back and sit where he previously was.
Over the past months, Luck had trained his bodily control, his elemental discipline, and even tried to touch upon the divinity in his soul.
But even with that, he still had something to comprehend, something he had completely forgotten about, as the thing was so vague, he could barely understand it.
(Devour.)
Nothing happened. Or rather, nothing seemed to happen, as Luck's shadow began to expand.
It expanded and rose, growing until a giant black maw made of pure shadow took shape behind him.
Luck felt himself begin to sweat. (I see the reason behind Apophite's imprisonment now.)
The living shadow had released a single bit of pressure, but its presence alone was enough to intimidate him.
If the shadow could do this to Luck, his current owner, what would be the fate of Luck's enemies?
Luck smiled darkly at the thought, but he soon focused on the matter at hand.
Luck looked at the maw with curiosity as it searched for any source of energy.
Seeing none nearby, it did something unexpected.
It began to draw mana from the surroundings.
Luck stared at his shadow as it greedily 'swallowed' the ambient mana in the air, shock apparent in his eyes. The shock quickly morphed into glee as he smiled widely.
Luck felt his already full mana rising above the capacity his core could handle. What gave him joy was not that he had found another way to regenerate his mana, but because his mana was filling above the range he could handle.
Cores formed during the awakening process for a reason. The core allowed an awakener to contain mana within their bodies, allowing for faster usage of the said energy than drawing from the environment.
Cores also acted as the regulator of the energy contained within the body. It made sure that the energy in your body never passed the optimum limit your body could handle.
But of course, there was always a loophole.
Cores acted to stop energy from passively rising above capacity levels. Active methods, such as the intake of mana potions/pills, could override this function, but by doing so, it puts a strain on the core.
Too much strain will cause your core to start to crack, then fracture, leading to losing the ability to gather or manipulate energy, essentially crippling you, at best, or entering a vegetative state or dying at the worst end of the spectrum.
So by all means, Luck should have suffered by now, but here he was, lying back and grinning like a madman.
Like magic, Devour could somehow accumulate mana and store it in a separate area if needed.
(This skill just keeps getting more and more broken.) Luck thought as he tried to suppress his grin. He failed miserably.
"Ackkk"
He suddenly began to cough. Quickly cancelling the skill, his violent fit soon subsided after a few minutes.
He glanced at the floor, seeing the blood that painted the floor, he smiled wryly.
(It seems there is a limit that Devour can store for me.) Luck chuckled, amusement and glee flashing through his eyes. "It's enough for now."
Luck's brain whizzed, imagining several scenarios where this skill would come in handy. He had plenty of ideas on how to use the skill; all he had to do was do it, and through trial and error, he would slowly begin to comprehend the current upper limits of this skill in full.
Luck slowly stood up as he crept back to his little corner in the wagon and plopped himself there. He had already accomplished what he needed for the morning.
Now he would just wait for the rest to wake up, so he could spar to adapt to new strength again.
(The thirst for power never ends.) Luck thought as he flashed a mad grin. Such a thought thrilled him, as far as he could remember; that was what he truly thirsted for.
The lazy attitude he always bore during his pre-awakening years was something akin to a facade to hide the hunger he felt.
A hunger for power. A hunger for power so great that after absorbing and perfecting the knowledge and skills taught to him, he actively sought out more, all in preparation for his awakening.
He barely had time for anything else; the fact that Harry, Tara, and Terra considered him a friend was a miracle in itself.
And when he could find no more, the hunger began to grow.
That hunger soon morphed into disinterest. Disinterested in his own stagnation. He seemed to just go with the flow, as he watched his mates refine the techniques and knowledge he had already mastered weeks ago, hoping to get some type of inspiration to better himself.
He got none.
(But now...) Luck's inner thoughts trailed off as he clenched his fist tightly. Now he had finally stepped onto the playing field. His horizons had become infinitely bigger, and with all that potential sitting in his palms.
Honestly, he couldn't help but feel giddy inside.