The forge was an organized ss, its walls lined with tools, sketches, and half-built prototypes. The air slled of oil and tal, a testant to months of relentless work.
The magic gun lay on the workbench, its sleek fra of gleaming under a mana-powered lamp. Its barrel, etched with faint runes, housed a intricate mana conduit, and a slot at its core awaited the final piece — a Magic Crystal, pulsing faintly in Adrian’s hand.
The past two months had been grueling. The gun’s design demanded precision beyond anything he’d tackled before.
Starsteel was stubborn, resisting the forge until Adrian perfected the heat with custom bellows. The mana crystals shattered if the conduit’s alignnt was off by a hair.
Adrian had burned through countless failures, each one a lesson, but the Tech Core’s [Blueprint Ascension] skill had been a ga-changer.
Applied to the gun’s design in the first month, it refined the mana conduit, boosting efficiency and reducing crystal strain. The result was a weapon an overall better weapon with much greater expected performance.
In the second month, Adrian used [Blueprint Ascension] on the Communicator, elevating it from a basic voice-transmitter to a marvel.
Upgrading it to a 3-Star Magic Crystal extended its range to 20 kiloters — far enough to reach the Borin estate from Tulia.
But the skill’s true genius was in the redesign: the Communicator could now detect multiple devices within range, allowing group calls or connection to a central receiver.
Each unit had a unique ID, translated as a na, with signals encrypted by the Tech Core’s mysterious logic. Adrian had stared at the blueprint for hours, awed but baffled.
He could build it, but the system’s tech was leagues beyond his understanding.
Now, as he slotted the 1-Star Magic Crystal into the gun’s core, a soft click echoed in the workshop. The crystal glowed and its energy humd through the conduits, and the gun vibrated faintly, alive.
Notifications flooded his vision, the familiar rush of completing an invention:
[Analyzing Invention: Mana-Powered Arc Gun]
[Type: Magical Weapon]
[Functionality: A ]
[Practicality: A]
[Complexity: A]
[Integrity: A]
[?? - F-]
[Overall Grade: A]
[Remark: A groundbreaking mana-channeled weapon with devastating potential.]
[Reward: 1500 EXP | 2000 TP]
Adrian’s heart raced, a wide grin spreading across his face.
"Finally." The high ratings was expected, but the persistent F- still nagged at him. ’What’s that even an?’
Still, the TP and EXP were a windfall. He spun the gun in his hand, its weight perfect. ’This is it. My edge.’
Checking his status screen, he noted the ti:
[10:47 AM]
"I’ll start getting ready," he said, securing the gun in his [Inventory]. As he headed for the door, a notification blazed into view, bold and electrifying:
[New Quest Unlocked!]
[Quest: Seize the World’s Stage]
[Objective: Join the Academy Examination in three days, pass, and secure a place at the Zarion Academy.]
[Requirents:
- Register for the examination
- Demonstrate exceptional skill to gain admission.]
[Reward: Unlock System Factory]
Adrian froze, his hand on the doorknob. ’System Factory?’ Another notification followed, as if reading his confusion:
[System Factory: A dinsional workshop accessible only to the Tech Core host. Automates and streamlines production of inventions, with upgradable features for mass production and advanced crafting]
Adrian’s jaw dropped, his legs wobbling.
"Wow," he gasped, steadying himself against the workbench. A factory in a pocket dinsion, churning out his designs without breaking a sweat? It was beyond anything he’d dread.
’This could make unstoppable.’ His mind raced he imagined his inventions being produced at scale. The possibilities were dizzying.
He knew the Academy Examination was coming up; Tulia’s elders had ntioned it, a kingdom-wide event to scout talent for Zarion’s elite academy.
Adrian had formally dismissed it since he had no magic, and applying as a knight seed pointless with his weak body.
But the magic gun changed that. If he could use it in the knight track, he’d outshine any sword-swinger. The quest’s title, ’Seize the World’s Stage’, caught his attention.
’World domination vibes? The system thinks the academy’s my ticket to sothing huge.’ He trusted the Tech Core’s judgnt — it hadn’t steered him wrong yet.
"Okay," he said with a grin. "I guess I’m going to the academy. Let’s see what the hype’s about."
He stepped away from the workbench, stretching his stiff muscles. He had worked all night and his bodymonths had been relentless, and his body deserved a break.
After locking up the forge, he returned ho and went straight to the washroom to keep himself awake.
After which he changed into fresh clothes and headed to the kitchen where he saw Mara kneading dough.
"I’m heading to the Magic Forest to test sothing," Adrian said, leaning against the doorway. "Shouldn’t take long."
Mara looked up, then packed up so food for him. "Have this with you, and be careful out there."
"Stay sharp, son. Co back in one piece."
"Always do," Adrian said with a grin, before accepting the food from Mara. "Thank you. See you for lunch."
They waved him off, and Adrian stepped into Tulia’s morning light. The village was waking up, his bulbs dimming as sunlight took over.
He hired a carriage as usual and began his travel.
***
In a shadowed alley, the lean figure watched, his dark cloak blending with the village’s edges. He’d stalked Adrian for days, waiting for this mont.
"Finally, he’s leaving," he murmured with malice. He slipped from the alley, silent as a ghost, and followed the carriage’s dust trail into the forest.
***
After going through the formalities, Adrian found himself in the magic forest. Alone, he pulled the Mana Gun from his [Inventory], its sleek form materializing in his hand.
The gun was a beauty; looking like sothing straight out of a sci-fi movie.
Adrian ran his thumb over the trigger, a smooth button that adjusted intensity based on pressure.
’Light tap, low power; hard press, full blast,’ he thought, recalling the design. With a 1-Star crystal, it could fire five shots at standard intensity or one overcharged blast if he pushed the crystal’s limits.
Unlike his old flintlock, there was no recoil, and reloading was simple, just to swap the crystal, and it was ready. It could handle up to a 3-Star crystal, but for now, the 1-Star would do.
’This thing’s a ga-changer,’ he mused, turning it over. ’Let’s see what you can do.’
He moved through the outskirts of the forest with his eyes scanning for a target, and after an annoyingly long futile search, he finally found one.
[Analyzing...]
[Beast identified: Fla Wolf]
[Rank: 1-Star Magical Beast]
[Elent: Fire]
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