Spark read the panel with a grim satisfaction.
[Loyalty: 0%]. Expected. Easily corrected. The Grimoire could handle that. He just needed enough modifier currency.
[Modifier Currency: Rose Petal]. This one was more troublesome than Lilith's mystic silver.
It was a common materials and could easily be found. Many florists in town sold it. In small number. The problem was that he didn't know where to buy rose petals in bulk.
Her talent, [Verdant Soul], granted enhanced affinity with plant-based fairies. And boosts efficacy of plant-related abilities.
Her other talent, [Moist Physique], increased regeneration in humid environments. It also enhanced water-based abilities. And granted resistance to dehydration and heat.
Those talents were perfectly suited for botany, alchemy, poison, and dealing with biological agents.
Next would be her listed personalities: Cowardly, Envious, Ruthless.
These were traits that could be exploited and controlled. However, if he could acquire enough Rose Petals, and she got better set of personalities... He didn't mind replacing them.
Next would be her soulcraft fairies.
[Soulcraft Fairy: Plant Fairy, Flower Fairy, Rain Fairy]
==[Growth Item: Mystic Water, Earth Quartz, Blue Crystal]
==[Shared Talent: Fast Recovery, Plant Affinity, Water Affinity]
==[Ability: Soulcraft Crest - Plant Appraisal, Rapid Growth, Healing Rain]
Plant, flower, and rain fairies. None was designed for combat. But, for support character, they were quite great.
Fast Recovery. Plant Affinity. Water Affinity. The shared talents were also optimized for support.
Plant Appraisal and Rapid Growth confirmed her herbalist build. She could identify useful flora and potentially cultivate rare ingredients quickly. Great magic spell for alchemy and poison-potion study.
Healing Rain. That would make her a capable medic. Nice for certain situation.
As for the framepath choices...
[Framepath Monster: Mandrake, Bellgnome, Mystic Trent]
==[Growth Item: Poisonous Mushroom, Heavy Water, Pure Milk]
==[Shared Talent: Poison Immunity, Disease Immunity, Healing Affinity]
==[Ability: Framepath Fusion - Floral Dryad]
Her framepath materials were bizarre yet quite logical. It wouldn't be the choices for a typical combatant. But it somehow made sense for a poisoner/alchemist.
Mandrakes, Bellgnomes, and Mystic Trents were all plant monsters. Not a great choice for straight combat. But for those practicing alchemy and poison-potion study? It would be understandable.
The talents were: Poison Immunity, Disease Immunity, Healing Affinity. They were traits ideal for foraging for ingredients, surviving her own toxins, and supporting allies... or herself when injured. Nice.
And then... the Floral Dryad fusion. Again, this one is not standard. Not a werebeast but a dryad? It seemed more focused on manipulating plants.
Spark looked at the blue sky. The slaver, Dr. Crow, was locked away in the Slave Grimoire. Waiting to be modified.
But the modifier currency was 'Rose Petal'. Common as dirt, maybe. But where the hell could he find enough of them to modify someone? Not just tens or hundreds, but thousands. He didn't deal in flowers.
"Lilith!" He called, not really looking at her. "Roses. Lots of them. Common ones. Anywhere nearby you know of?"
He didn't expect an answer. People rarely had useful information lying around in their heads for him. He expected to spend time and resources figuring it out himself.
"Yes, Master," Lilith replied instantly. Her voice soft and clear. "There is a place. Rose Valley. It's about a day's journey from here, directly west. Known for wild roses. Vast fields of them."
Spark stopped looking at the sky. He turned to look at her properly. Her blonde hair was neatly tied back. Her movements precise. Submissive, capable, and apparently, informed. Interesting. A lucky find.
"Rose Valley," he repeated. "A day's journey." He processed the information. A day wasn't long. If it had vast fields, it would have the quantity he needed. It beat searching blind. "Good. Pack everything. We move now."
"Immediately, Master." Lilith didn't question. Didn't hesitate. She simply turned and began dismantling their temporary camp with practiced speed.
Spark watched her for a moment. A faint, almost imperceptible shift appeared in his expression. Having her as an assistant was convenient, and useful. Very useful.
Within half an hour, their camp was gone. Erased from the Greensea Grassland.
They travelled west on their rhino-horses.
The sun began to dip towards the horizon on the second day. It painted the sky in bruised orange shades. They reached the edge of what Lilith had described.
It wasn't a sudden valley. Rather, the grassland began to slope downwards. The air was growing sweeter. Carrying the scent of countless blooms.
But the entrance wasn't empty. Blocking the path where the grassland met the descending valley floor stood an immense creature. It was a tree. A Banyan Tree. But it was horrifyingly alive.
Its trunk was thicker than a common house. Its aerial roots dangling like massive, ropy tentacles. Thick with moss and leaves. It pulsed with raw life force. Its sheer presence was oppressive. A Tier-3 monster. A Banyan Trent.
"Master." Lilith said. Her hands instinctively summoned her gearcores: a cursed dagger and a handgun. "Banyan Trent. Third tier. Very dangerous."
"Looks like it." Spark grunted. His eyes were scanning the lumbering giant. It was slow. But it was huge. And that pulse of life force... it felt like a bottomless well. "Stay back. Observe. Look for anything unusual."
The Trent registered their presence. Branches swayed like massive arms. The thick trunk creaking like ancient wood. It began to advance. Its roots were tearing up the earth with each slow, heavy step.
Spark didn't draw his weapon. It was not time to use the Power Rifle. Yet. He needed to gauge its defenses.
He charged. A blur of sheer power despite his size. His fist, backed by his powerful muscles and reinforced with framepath energy, slammed into the trunk. The impact was like hitting a tough tree with steel mace.
Wood splintered. Bark flew. But the damage was minimal considering the force. And even as he watched, the torn bark began to mend. Green energy flowing into the wound. Sealing it almost instantly.
Regeneration. Fast, powerful regeneration.
He tried again, targeting different points. The roots. The upper trunk. Anywhere that looked like a potential weak spot. There wasn't one.
Every hit, no matter how powerful, began to heal almost immediately. It was like trying to punch water. And expecting it to stay indented.
"No core, Master!" Lilith called out. Having moved to flank the creature. Observing its structure. "Its life force seems distributed throughout its entire mass. Regeneration is constant and rapid."
So, blunt force wouldn't work unless it was continuous and faster than it could heal. Spark grinned. A dangerous glint in his brown eyes. Good. A challenge.
He pulled back. Dodging a slow, sweeping branch. He shifted tactics. If direct impact didn't cripple it. Maybe something more destructive would.
He pulled his gearcore, the Power Rifle, from the void. The monstrous weapon hummed with contained energy. He aimed it at the Trent's base. Right where the trunk met the ground.
He pulled the trigger.
The air shrieked. As a bolt of metal bullet mixed with raw energy tore through the space between them. Slamming into the Banyan Trent. With the force of a small bomb.
Wood exploded outwards. A chasm ripping through the lower trunk. Dust and splinters rained down.
The Trent shuddered. A low, groaning sound echoed from its depths. It stopped moving. For a glorious second, Spark thought he had done it.
Then the green light intensified.
From the edges of the ruined trunk, thick, vibrant vines and roots erupted. Weaving together with impossible speed. The chasm began to close. The groaning turned into a rumbling crescendo of regrowth.
In less than a minute, the trunk was functionally intact again. The signs of the catastrophic damage was just... gone. The regeneration wasn't just healing. It was rebuilding.
"Damn!" Spark swore. He emptied another clip into a different spot. It was the same result. Devastating damage followed by rapid, relentless regeneration.
Spark sighed. He realized then... This wasn't about finding a weakness. Or hitting a critical point. It was about overwhelming its capacity to regenerate.
How? By exhausting the source of its life force. This thing wasn't just a monster. It was a walking, regenerating fortress fueled by some internal reserve. He needed to empty that reserve.
Spark reloaded the Power Rifle, but he knew this wasn't the answer. The rifle was powerful. But it had limited ammunitions and took time to charge. He needed sustained, high-level damage that he could maintain.
He dismissed the rifle. Letting it disappear back into his void.
"Alright!" He announced. Cracking his knuckles. "This is going to take a while."
He charged again. This time, he focused his framepath techniques on endurance and rapid, powerful strikes.
He wove around the lumbering roots and branches. His huge body was surprisingly agile. He struck repeatedly.
A relentless barrage of punches, kicks, and open-hand strikes. Each blow wasn't aimed at a specific weak point. But anywhere he could land it effectively.
Bang. Bang. Crack. Thud.
Each hit splintered wood. Tore bark. Shredded leaves.
And each hit was followed by the eerie green light of regeneration. It was a battle of attrition. Pure and simple. Spark against a living, regenerating mountain of wood and leaves.