NoveLight ™
Leon raised his eyebrows as he assessed his current state.
It had been four days since he endured the pain of his core forcibly expanding, feeling as if his flesh was being torn apart.
While his consciousness was fully awake, he found himself in a peculiar state of hazy awareness.
He didn’t experience the usual clarity of mind and the sensation of his understanding expanding that typically accompanied a rise in rank.
It was unclear whether his rank had actually increased or not...
It was a vague, ambiguous feeling, as if he were hovering between levels.
It wasn’t until Leon noticed the translucent screen that appeared before his eyes that he realized he had indeed advanced in rank.
[Growth Assistant]
After consuming 30 elixirs, his mana quality had also improved, shifting from E+ to D-.
It seemed he didn’t even have time to relish the exhilarating sensation of his mana quality rising.
Leon checked the rewards for his rank advancement.
▶ Rank advancement rewards have increased in probability.
▶ 500 hours of Space-Time Orb usage have been granted.
▶ Please select an additional rank advancement reward.
▶ Elixir (C+ grade Balance Crystal) / Artifact (C+ grade Lightning Staff)
"Hmm..."
So far, the additional rewards had steadily increased in grade, but this time, they were of the same C+ grade as before.
"But that's not what's important."
The C+ grade elixir, Balance Crystal. It wasn’t an essence or a concentrate. From the name alone, Leon couldn’t precisely determine its function, but the name caught his attention given his current unstable core.
Was there really an elixir that could stabilize mana?
Leon had never heard of such a thing.
And he felt uneasy.
An elixir that stabilizes mana appears just when he needs it?
Leon reflected on the additional rewards he had received so far.
Refined Concentrate, Guardian Golem, the Glorious Lightning of the Raida Series.
The Refined Concentrate appeared when he desperately needed an elixir, the Guardian Golem arrived when he needed protection, and the Glorious Lightning when he required a magic book.
And now, the Balance Crystal, just when he needed to stabilize his mana.
"I'm being given exactly what I need..."
Could this reward system have an "intention"?
While regular quest rewards were random, the additional rewards seemed deliberately tailored.
"This is just blatantly... helping me."
Come to think of it...
"The fact that I obtained an All-Attribute Constitution as the 300th reward might not have been purely due to luck either."
Leon had considered himself fortunate because he had managed to get the All-Attribute Constitution even though he had been receiving F-grade rewards for a long time.
Leon calmed his swirling thoughts and chose the Balance Crystal.
He changed the reward for the standard quest, which automatically completed upon breaking through a rank, to an artifact.
This was to prepare for facing the golems outside.
▶ You have acquired a one-time use Explosion Scroll (D-).
With the increase in reward probability, receiving a D-grade reward was considered a typical outcome.
Leon gazed at the Balance Crystal in his hand.
It was a small, thumb-sized cube of crystal. It was transparent, but inside, faint blue and purple hues swirled together.
According to the appraisal spell, it was an elixir capable of repairing a damaged core and calming unstable mana.
While Leon's core wasn’t in a severely damaged state, consuming the crystal could stabilize his currently unstable mana.
Leon decided to set the crystal aside for now without consuming it.
His original plan was to raise his rank and then use the additional Space-Time Orb hours to gain the insight he lacked.
The "borrow now, repay later" strategy.
Leon now had 673 hours of Space-Time Orb time.
This gave him about 28 days of continuous time inside the orb.
During this time, he planned to elevate his awareness to match his newly heightened rank.
"If not for the Balance Crystal..."
Leon looked at the remaining essences.
14 C-grade essences. 5 B-grade essences. 1 A-grade essence.
He placed 8 of the C-grade essences in his palm and pondered.
The Balance Crystal was C+ grade.
C-grade essences were effective even at the Martial rank.
It seemed wasteful to consume them at the Apprentice 5th Rank.
"I think I can reach the Martial rank."
Leon quickly swallowed the 8 essences.
"Ugh..."
The essences didn’t taste good, and for some reason, they made him feel like retching.
And so, another two days of pain passed.
Sitting cross-legged, Leon now had 3 B-grade essences lying in his palm.
"Haha..."
He chuckled to himself.
Despite the smile on his face, he hesitated to put the essences into his mouth.
"Haha... haaa..."
Closing his eyes tightly, Leon shoved the three B-grade essences into his dry mouth.
The essences dissolved in his mouth, transforming into mana that spread deep into his body.
His body was already throbbing with uncontrollable mana, so the sensation didn’t feel particularly intense.
And then, suddenly, his mind became foggy.
Forcing his way through a breakthrough that required insight left his mind reeling.
In the thin line between consciousness and unconsciousness, Leon struggled to stay alert, but his efforts were in vain.
Just before he lost consciousness, Leon instinctively swallowed the Balance Crystal.
As soon as he felt something begin to seep into his rampaging mana, Leon blacked out.
When Leon opened his eyes again, he realized, in a dazed state, that he had reached the Martial rank.
"...It feels just like when I reached the 5th rank."
It was an ambiguous state, unsure whether he had truly reached the Martial rank or not.
It was like he was half-immersed in it.
But Leon was still satisfied with this state.
If not for the Balance Crystal, he might have failed to break through, let alone achieve a partial breakthrough.
If that had happened, he would have had to consume all the remaining essences.
"I can't keep doing this..."
No matter how unique his All-Attribute Constitution was, attempting this kind of advancement from Martial to Transcendence would only exacerbate the imbalance between his consciousness and core.
"And it would be difficult to acquire enough essences to do this again."
His core, now over twice its previous size, was veined with thin threads.
Among those threads, three extended out and connected to Leon’s head.
These were known as the Threads of Will, a characteristic of Martial-level magicians.
Leon realized that having only three threads was an abnormal number—in a bad way.
A magician with average talent who reached the Martial rank would typically have 2 or 3 threads connecting their core to their head.
These threads enabled multi-casting.
Had Leon reached the Martial rank under normal circumstances, with his talent, he would have had at least 9 to 10 threads connecting to his head.
This would have allowed him to perform ninefold or tenfold incantations.
However, because he hadn’t achieved a proper breakthrough, Leon’s "will" hadn’t fully caught up with the Martial rank.
[Growth Assistant]
Information
▶ Name: Leon
▶ Rank: Martial Beginner
▶ Mana Quality: D-
▶ Elemental Constitution: All-Attribute (Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, Wood, Lightning, Light, Darkness)
Standard Quest
▶ Basic Magic Training (Complete)
Reward
▶ Artifact (Selected)
Breakthrough Quest
▶ Rank Advancement (Complete)
Mileage Exchange Store
▶ The Mileage Exchange Store has been added.
▶ Rank advancement reward probabilities have increased.
▶ 1,000 hours of Space-Time Orb usage have been granted.
▶ Please select an additional rank advancement reward.
▶ Magic Book (B+ grade Tree Magic ‘Amonaea’s Thousand Leaves’) / Artifact (B+ grade Mirror of Truth)
In fact, the additional rewards were somewhat different from what Leon had hoped for when he consumed the B-grade essences.
He had wanted a powerful artifact, but the Mirror of Truth didn’t seem like an artifact with great power, just based on the name.
On the other hand, the B+ grade Tree Magic was a spellbook that could be used up to the Transcendence level.
Moreover, it was an attribute magic that Leon didn’t currently possess.
In the end, Leon chose Amonaea’s Thousand Leaves.
A green-covered book fell into Leon’s palm.
Before examining it, Leon checked out the Mileage Exchange Store.
"Five rewards to collect, huh..."
It seemed like a system to convert unwanted rewards, based on the concept of mileage.
Leon then accepted the standard quest reward.
▶ You have obtained the Triple Acceleration Golden Wings (C+) (Confirm / Cancel)
Leon noticed the change immediately.
Rather than simply acquiring the reward, he could now choose whether to accept it or not.
"Does canceling add to the mileage?"
However, he liked the reward, so he chose to confirm.
With the increase in reward probabilities, F-grade rewards were no longer common, but if they did appear, they could be converted into mileage.
When Leon confirmed, three pairs of small golden wings appeared in his palm.
They were small enough to fit in his hand, but when he infused mana into them, they expanded enough to be worn on his back.
According to the appraisal spell, they were an artifact that assisted with Levitation Magic.
They reduced the mana consumption of Levitation Magic and allowed for three instances of dramatic speed increase. After using the acceleration three times, it couldn’t be used again for a day.
"I don't like the color, though..."
The golden color was too eye-catching when worn on his back.
However, the ability to help him escape dangerous situations made it worthwhile.
There was another change.
The standard quest had changed from Basic Magic Training to just Training.
"...Does this mean I can progress the quest by simply practicing mana condensation?"
Was this a sign that now that he had some direction, he could train freely?
It felt strange to think the system had any particular intention, but considering everything that had happened, it seemed plausible.
The Space-Time Orb now displayed the number 1693 in white.
This included the 1,500 hours gained from the rank advancement reward, plus 20 hours from two automatically completed standard quests...
"Huh?"
There were 10 more hours than Leon had calculated.
"It seems the standard quest reward increased to 20 hours now that I’m at the Martial rank..."
As his rank increased, so did the time required for training, hence the increase.
Having settled everything, Leon grasped the orb.
Two weeks had passed since he had entered this training room.
"Now it’s time to repay the debt..."
Leon entered the orb and didn’t emerge for two months.
He even brought the jar containing the nourishing fruits into the orb.
The first two weeks were spent stabilizing his mana after reaching the Martial rank, and the following month was dedicated to catching up on the 4-star and 5-star Arpina basic magic spells that he hadn’t had time to train in due to advancing his rank with the essences.
The last two weeks were spent touching on the Martial-level magic Glorious Lightning of the Raida Series, while simultaneously practicing Arpina’s basic magic.
Glorious Lightning was not a magic that started with basic spells and built up systematically. Instead, it explicitly began at the Martial level.
At the 1-star level, it only covered basic spells, while the 2-star level dealt with higher-level magic.
Upon reaching the 3-star level, one would immediately start refining Martial-level magic.
Martial-level magic was powerful, high-impact magic that could be fully utilized only at the peak of the Martial rank.
The Martial-level spell available at the beginner stage was Dawn’s Lightning.
While its range and power were weaker than Glorious Lightning, which could be used at the advanced Martial rank, it was still an extremely potent spell.
"I can’t use it yet..."
Despite spending two months training, Leon hadn’t fully reached the Martial level.
"If I get out of this lair, I’ll probably need to spend about three more months holed up in a training room..."
Although he hadn’t yet reached the stage where his consciousness manifested magic directly, the significant reduction in the casting process was a promising development.
The remaining orb time was 250 hours.
He decided to keep this time in reserve for any unforeseen circumstances.
Returning to reality, Leon extended his index finger.
"Thunderbolt."
A small, bead-shaped spark of electricity formed on his fingertip.
When he flicked it toward the wall, the bead immediately spread across the surface with a crackling sound.
Thanks to the protective magic circle, the wall remained mostly unscathed.
"Fall."
With a downward motion of his finger, a small bolt of lightning appeared out of nowhere from the ceiling and struck down.
"Not bad."
These were all 2-star spells from Glorious Lightning: Thunderbolt and Thunderstorm.
The 1-star spells in Glorious Lightning included Spark, which generated small sparks, and Lightning Bolt, which fired the generated electricity like an arrow. All of these were basic spells necessary for learning the 2-star spells.
Other basic electricity attribute spells weren’t even covered.
They weren’t necessary for learning Glorious Lightning.
Over two weeks, Leon had mastered the 1-star spells and was now gradually learning the 2-star spells.
"Though the power is still weak... it’s definitely stronger than Apprentice-level magic."
Glorious Lightning was an offensive magic, making the difference feel even more pronounced.
Leon spent another four days in reality practicing the 2-star spells of Glorious Lightning.
He planned to acquire a few more artifacts through standard quest rewards before leaving.
Training for 20 hours in reality and 10 hours in the orb each day, Leon spent four days becoming familiar with the 2-star spells before finally getting up.