The reflexive response that popped out was a single word.
“Why?”
Well, it’s understandable.
Up until now, whenever I reached a new level, I could instinctively sense it.
It was always a mystical experience.
But now, all I feel is a body weighed down by exhaustion and teeth on the verge of shattering.
And suddenly, I’m told I’ve reached the 5th rank?
Something feels off.
“You really don’t notice the changes in your body?”
“Well… before, I could sense it instinctively. But now, I have no idea.”
“Tsk tsk, how dull can you be?”
Drakan let out a deep sigh, as if the ground itself might collapse under it, then plopped down and propped his chin on his hand.
“Well, it’s possible you didn’t notice because your circuits are already fully open.”
“Fully open?”
“Normally, when you ascend in rank, your mana circuits deepen, become more intricate, and expand into new spaces. It’s what we call evolution. But for some reason, your body’s circuits are already fully open.”
I knew that mana circuits change—it’s something I’ve read about countless times in the original work.
But ‘already fully open’?
I had no idea.
No matter how much I racked my brain, I couldn’t recall anything like this happening in the story.
Drakan seemed intrigued too.
He mentioned that he had examined me while I was unconscious after training.
“In the end, I couldn’t figure out why it happened.”
“…I see.”
“Ah, right. It’s probably not because of that stone. That thing only explosively increases mana; it doesn’t refine or expand mana circuits.”
Drakan knew that the mana imbalance in my body was caused by the Fragment of Chaos.
He said that only something as bizarre as that could cause such a strange distortion.
It wasn’t surprising that he knew about the Fragment of Chaos—after all, there isn’t just one.
The one I bought from the extra shop was ‘No. 5,’ meaning there are at least four others out there.
And in the original story, those fragments were held by certain characters.
‘Though they all ended up dying quietly.’
Drakan, having lived for decades, must have encountered many things, so it made sense that he knew about it.
“Do you have any idea why this might have happened?”
“No, not really.”
“Well, regardless, don’t overuse that cursed thing. You might not live to see your natural end if you do.”
“Ahem, I’m aware of that.”
Drakan gave me a stern warning, but if it came down to it, I’d have no choice but to use it again.
Better to die a little sooner than to die right now, right?
‘It’s true, though. Things have been strange since then.’
After that bizarre dream, not only did I become more familiar with the Alteia swordsmanship, but I also felt more comfortable with the sword itself.
‘Ian said I took care of Bakal, but I don’t remember any of it.’
I’m sure I failed back then. Even with the Fragment of Chaos, I was utterly defeated.
But Ian said it was like I had become a completely different person.
He brushed it off, saying I wasn’t in my right mind, but still.
‘It’s suspicious.’
Since that day, something about my body has changed.
Even I, the one living in it, don’t fully understand it.
“What a shame, a real shame. If only we’d met a little sooner.”
Drakan clicked his tongue as he cleared the empty plates.
“Such a waste of talent.”
I chewed on the remaining bone fragments, thinking it was just his usual grumbling.
“Sigh, such talent… what a pity.”
He kept repeating the same thing, almost as if he was waiting for me to ask.
Reluctantly, I opened my mouth.
“What are you talking about?”
“Curious, are you?”
“Ah, yes. Very curious.”
“Hmm, the movements I’ve been having you do every morning. What do you think they are?”
“…Calisthenics? Self-defense? Something like that?”
“Ha… I can’t tell if you’re really clueless or just plain stupid.”
Crack!
“W-what are you doing? Are you going to hit me?”
“Wait and see. I’m making a teaching aid.”
Drakan smashed a nearby rock and began shaping the fragments with his wrinkled fingers.
‘Crazy.’
Using precise mana manipulation, he slowly carved the rough stone into the shape of a human figure.
“Here, let’s say this is your body. If I put this here… and pull this out, what do you think will happen?”
He spread thin, branch-like lines across the surface, filling them with mana to create pathways between the countless branches.
“Uh… I don’t know.”
“Watch closely.”
The thin lines Drakan created looked like a tangled web inside the body, resembling blood vessels.
‘Ah, it’s the mana circuits.’
Among the countless lines, he filled one with mana, creating a single, solid line.
It looked like the flow of mana.
‘It feels familiar.’
I closed my eyes and slowly examined my own mana circuits, guiding my mana along the path he had shown.
As I recalled the familiar flow and sensation, my body moved naturally.
When I saw it with my eyes, I wasn’t sure, but now that I was moving my body, it was clear.
“This is…”
It was similar to the technique I used in the black market back then.
The one I desperately tried to mimic from Isabel’s movements.
“Hehe, see? Your talent is overflowing. The movements you’ve been doing every morning aren’t much different. You didn’t use mana, so it was hard to notice, but you’ve been following the essence of it perfectly.”
“…Me?”
“Yes, you. If I had met you before my previous two disciples, I might not have taken them on at all.”
I was stunned.
He was essentially saying that I was executing his techniques more perfectly and cleanly than anyone else.
‘But why back then…’
On the day he first asked me to become his disciple, he said he had no intention of making me give up the sword.
He said I had talent for it.
So why is he saying this now?
“At first, you said I had talent with the sword.”
“Yes… I did. That’s what’s so regrettable.”
He looked at me with a somber expression.
“I knew you were skilled with the sword. I was planning to coax you into begging me to teach you my techniques… but your body was already too accustomed to the sword. I don’t know why, but I couldn’t change it.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“What do you think? I wanted to steer your path as I pleased, but it didn’t work out. Sigh, I fed you everything I had, and now it’s all for nothing.”
“…”
His shoulders slumped as if the ground had given way beneath him.
His lips twisted in dissatisfaction.
It didn’t seem like he was lying.
“But it’s strange. You pick up my techniques so well, yet you can’t do the basics at all.”
“Huh? But you just said I had talent.”
“I did. That’s why it’s puzzling. If you were completely untalented, I would’ve just fixed your body a bit and sent you on your way. But how is it that you can’t even do the basic combat techniques that are common in the Empire, yet you absorb my personal techniques so effortlessly?”
I couldn’t tell if he was complimenting me or insulting me.
First, he says I have talent, then he says I don’t.
I don’t know how to respond.
“Well, whatever. You’ve finished lunch, so go roll some stones.”
Drakan waved his hand dismissively, his expression one of resignation.
“…From your perspective, isn’t there no reason to keep me around anymore?”
To be honest, I didn’t fully understand what he was saying.
My body being too accustomed to the sword, my mana circuits being fully open—these were all changes I couldn’t grasp immediately.
But if I had to summarize his words, it sounded like he thought I might be useful, but upon closer inspection, I was just empty inside.
‘No, maybe more like a third-place lottery ticket.’
“Nonsense. Your body still has plenty of room for improvement. I may not like the idea of a swordsman being my disciple, but I can’t just let you go when it’s obvious you’ll get beaten up out there.”
I thought I might finally be able to leave this mountain valley, but he stubbornly refused.
As he said before, unless I can traverse that peak in under ten minutes, he won’t let me go.
‘Well, it’s a good thing to be trained by someone like Drakan.’
At first, I was anxious and tried to escape, but now I don’t feel that way anymore.
No matter the process or his intentions, as long as I can fix my mana imbalance and grow stronger, it doesn’t matter.
Besides, thanks to him, I’ve reached the 5th rank.
Even though I can’t fully feel the effects of my mana yet, if things continue like this, aiming for the 6th rank in the near future doesn’t seem impossible.