Archer's Adventure Manual

With a broad smile and a bag slung over his shoulder, Thompson arrived at the reading area of ​​the training camp and immediately spotted Loran sitting in the corner.

"Lorraine! Hey, I knew you'd be here!" Thompson walked over with a grin.

When Finita saw the little old man, she was slightly startled. Curious, she asked in a low voice, "Loran...who is he? Does he...know you?"

"Oh, this is a friend I met at the antique shop. It's alright. Don't be fooled by his appearance; he's not a good person either," Loran explained.

Thompson, who was walking towards them, twitched at the corner of his mouth upon hearing this. He had originally thought that Loran would say something nice, but damn it!

Lorraine looked at Thompson and asked, puzzled, "Thompman, you wanted to see me? Is there something you need?"

Thompson casually sat down next to Loran, grinning as he asked, "I wanted to ask you, when are you going on an adventure?"

Loran shrugged. "We probably won't be taking any risks these next few days. We need to rest too."

Thompson looked disappointed, but then said expectantly, "I have a question for you. Could you take me with you on your adventures?"

Loran was taken aback, looking at Thompson with disbelief. "What? You want to join our adventurer's party? Forget it, you know how dangerous things are right now!"

"Besides...aren't you an antique dealer? You...you really can take risks?" Loran expressed great skepticism.

Also, isn't this guy busy researching runes? How come he has time to come here? It's really strange.

Thompson rubbed his hands together. "My fighting ability is still quite good. With me here, protecting a little guy like you will definitely not be a problem!"

"Besides, runes aren't something you can figure out overnight, and I just want to relax a bit!"

Lorraine pursed her lips. "Hmm? Thompson, what are you trying to say with all this beating around the bush? I don't think that's what you're after. You're lying."

"I, Thompson, never lie!"

Loran: "..."

After a long and complicated conversation, Thompson finally gave up on joining the adventurer's party, but he did learn from the chat that Loran was going to participate in the wedding archery competition.

Thompson patted his chest and said earnestly, "As a close friend despite our age difference, of course I'll go and support you! Just you wait, I guarantee my cheers will be the loudest!"

At that moment, Brian jumped up from the floor, landed on Thompson, yawned, and then lay down on Thompson's lap to continue resting.

"Oh, Brian is getting better and better. To be honest, I'm growing to like this big guy more and more," Thompson said with a smile, stroking Brian's soft fur.

Lorraine was no fool either. She had just talked to Thompson for so long, and she knew Thompson well.

This kind of situation, where someone seems to be making trouble out of nothing, probably means that Thompson has made some new discovery and wants to get the answer from him...

However, Thompson didn't say anything, probably because there were too many people around and it wasn't convenient to talk about it, and Loran didn't ask any further questions.

Thompson looked at the books laid out in front of Loran and Finita and asked, "Are you two... studying from these books?"

"Yes, grandpa, are you interested too?" Finita replied with a smile.

Thompson gave a confident smile. "Interested? Of course I'm interested. In fact, this is what I did when I was young! Even now, I know more about this book knowledge than you do!"

When Lorraine heard Thompson's words, her eyes lit up. "Thompman, I happen to be experiencing a slight bottleneck in my studies. Since you're here, could you please give me a little pointers?"

"You must know you were an exceptionally talented scholar in your youth! It's such an honor to have you as my mentor!"

Upon hearing this, Thompson's lips curled into a slight smile. He chuckled proudly, "Of course, excellent scholars are never stingy with their knowledge. Since you are so eager to learn, I'll teach you a little!"

"Oh, and this young lady, I imagine you also have some questions about knowledge. Feel free to ask me any of them!"

Finita was taken aback, never expecting that this unassuming old man in front of her had once been an excellent scholar and had a good relationship with Loran. There was no need for him to boast.

So Thompson began to patiently teach the two of them. He was able to answer not only Loran's questions about basic knowledge, but also Finita's questions about using magic.

Loran was surprised again. "Thompman, you've learned so much magic, why, why do you use it? You should be able to become a very excellent mage!"

Thompson sighed and said helplessly, "Although my learning ability is very strong, my talent in using magic is terrible. In fact, I can't even do the most basic mental control skills..."

"I understand many of the principles of magic, but I can't put them into practice or apply them. So all that knowledge is just empty talk. But I haven't given up."

"The runes I'm currently researching don't have these traditional constraints. As long as you can understand and use them, even an old man without talent can unleash enough power... However, I don't know if I'll be able to live to see that day."

Thompson's tone was full of sighs and resentment, and Loran gradually understood why the old man had been so persistent in exploring runes.

Despite possessing immense talent, he was unable to progress due to a lack of natural ability, and ultimately could only earn a living by selling slightly flawed antiques.

Finita asked curiously, "But... even without magic, life can still go on! You don't need to be so discouraged. We all respect you now that you're a teacher!"

Thompson shook his head. "No, this knowledge alone is useless in this world. If I cannot wield enough power myself, then all of this will be in vain when danger comes."

"Thompman, aren't you being a bit... too pessimistic? You're still doing just fine at your age," Lorraine said.

Thompson scoffed, "That's because you didn't see how pathetic I was when I was young. Otherwise, why do you think someone as talented as me would stay in a big city and instead become a humble old man running an antique shop here..."

Loran and Finita fell silent.