I could still feel the weight of their eyes on .
Moona's awe, lisa's disbelief, neither of them hid it well. Not that I blad them.
I didn't understand it either.
The pistol in my hand had gone still, but the Mana hadn't. It pulsed faintly beneath my skin, synced with my breath, my thoughts, and even my heartbeat. Like it belonged there. Like it had always been there, waiting.
I hadn't learned this.
I rembered it.
No.
That's not the right word. It rembered .
The way the glyphs flowed from my fingers, the way mana bent without resistance, it wasn't like casting. It was like speaking a language I'd always known, buried sowhere deep until now.
And the more I used it, the clearer it beca.
The System chid softly in the back of my mind.
--------
[Skill]
Magic [EX- Grade #Must et certain criteria for Further Upgrade]
The ability to manipulate Mana through will and knowledge. Spells are cast using glyphs, incantations, or raw intent, depending on the caster's skill. Power scales with Mana Pool, Control, and Affinity.
Imbuing [EX- Grade #Must et certain criteria for Further Upgrade]
The art of channeling Mana into weapons, tools, or objects, enhancing them, or unlocking magical functions. Imbuing requires precision, intent, and a deep bond with the item. Stronger results co from repeated use and synchronization.
Mana Sensory [EX- Grade #Must et certain criteria for Further Upgrade]
Beginner Magic Affinity [EX- Grade #Must et certain criteria for Further Upgrade]
...
...
...
SP: 999,999,999
--------
My eyes flicked toward the SP.
The way it hadn't changed even when I kept upgrading my Skill to the maximum level,
At first, I was happy, upgrading my Skills to the maximum without the SP ever decreasing felt like a cheat code. But now... I don't know. That number didn't feel like a reward anymore.
It felt like a warning.
Like I wasn't supposed to have this yet.
Moona stepped back, arms folded, but she didn't speak. Her gaze was analytical now. Not scared, but cautious. Like a researcher trying to understand a creature, she'd only read about in legends.
lisa? She kept her smirk up, but it didn't reach her eyes. She didn't like things she couldn't control. And ? I was starting to feel like one of those things.
I exhaled slowly. Let the mana settle. It obeyed.
Too easily.
They called a Harbinger.
I didn't even know what that ant. But from the Quest that System issued to , the way they said it, from the way their expressions tightened... It didn't sound like a complint.
It sounded like a prophecy.
--------
I holstered the pistol, the weapon responding to like we were old friends. It shouldn't have. But it did.
"What's next?" I asked, breaking the silence.
lisa didn't answer imdiately. She was watching my hands. Not the pistol. My hands. Like she was waiting for them to do sothing unnatural.
"Next," She said, voice slower this ti, more deliberate, "We see how you do with Enhancent"
I raised a brow. "Physical reinforcent?"
"Yeah. Mana flowing through your body instead of a tool or spell." She smirked again, this ti, the real kind. "Let's see if your talent holds up when it's your bones and muscles on the line"
I hesitated. "But... Didn't you say we're supposed to wait for Grandpa before doing Enhancent training?"
"That was the plan." Her arms crossed. "But you're moving too fast. You pick things up like you've done this before"
She narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Be honest, Mikail. Are you sure this is your first ti?"
I looked at lisa for a long mont. Sothing about her tone wasn't teasing anymore. She wasn't just impressed... She was wary.
"First ti I rember," I said honestly, shrugging. "But maybe my soul's been through more than I know"
That made her pause.
"...You talk like an old man"
Moona gave a look. Not cold. Not warm. Just curious.
"And this ti," she said, "Try to struggle a little. You're making us look bad"
I laughed, just once. It felt strange. Not forced, but far away, like I was borrowing it from an older version of myself. One who used to be normal.
"I'll try," I said. "No promises, though"
Because deep down, even I wasn't sure what I was becoming.
But whatever this power was, This System, This knowledge that wasn't taught.
I was going to master it.
Before it mastered .
--------
lisa didn't wait. As soon as the tension between them was lifted, she turned and walked toward the center of the open backyard.
"Enhancent is simple," She said, voice steady. "In theory"
Mikail followed, He handed back the gun in his hand to lisa, its original owner, the Mana still humming faintly beneath his skin like a song he hadn't finished listening to. Moona trailed behind, silent again, her expression unreadable.
lisa stopped and turned.
"Your body's the conduit," She continued. "Your muscles, bones, tendons... All of it can be strengthened with Mana. But you're not just pumping power into your limbs because that's how people end up with torn ligants and ruptured veins"
lisa then raised a finger.
"You guide it. Slowly. Deliberately. It's not brute force. It's circulation, alignnt, pressure"
Mikail nodded, but lisa wasn't done.
"You start at your core," She said, tapping the center of her chest. "From there, you send Mana through your nervous system, your blood vessels. You don't just push it... You synchronize it. Breath, heartbeat, intent"
Mikail felt a flicker in his chest at the words. His Mana stirred again like it knew what she was talking about.
Then...
--------
[New Skill accuared]
[Enhancent [F- Grade #Can be Upgarded]
The technique of reinforcing the body with Mana increases physical attributes such as strength, speed, durability, and reflexes. Enhancent is not raw empowernt, it is controlled synchronization between the body and Mana.
--------
Mikail blinked at the chi, the translucent System panel flickering briefly in the corner of his vision before vanishing. Neither lisa nor Moona reacted.
But that didn't an he could ignore it.
His pulse quickened, not from fear, but anticipation. Excitent.
And from within his Mind, he ordered the System to maximize the Skill Enhancent Level.
lisa watched him, eyes narrowed, reading the smallest twitch of a muscle.
"Close your eyes," She instructed. "Breathe in. Feel for the mana in your core. Don't move it yet. Just find it"
Mikail obeyed. The mont his eyes closed, the world faded, not into darkness, but into sensation.
The rhythm of his heartbeat, the air in his lungs, the faint glow of energy pulsing at the center of his being. Like a second pulse.
A second self.
"There..."
Mikail said softly.
lisa tilted her head but didn't comnt.
"Now," She said, "Exhale, and when you do, draw the Mana upward. Slowly. Let it follow your breath. Up the spine. Into your shoulders"
He did. And it ca. Not with effort, but with ease. A silver thread of energy rose through his body like it had been waiting for this exact mont.
"Good," lisa said, watching. "Now hold it there. Don't let it spread too far. If it floods your arms too fast, you'll cramp. Or worse"
Mikail's eyes opened slowly. His veins faintly glowed with light. Not fire. Not lightning.
Just power. Cold and steady.
Moona let out a soft whistle.
"He's syncing faster than we did after weeks"
lisa's brow furrowed.
"It's not supposed to be this smooth," She muttered. "Even prodigies struggle with control at first"
She stepped forward and raised a hand, placing her palm lightly against Mikail's chest. The Mana within him responded, not to her, but to her presence. It recognized the evaluation. Almost like it didn't like being tested.
lisa's hand flinched back.
"You're not syncing," She said quietly. "You're harmonizing"
Mikail blinked.
"What's the difference?"
She t his gaze.
"Syncing is when you learn to fit your Mana into your body. Harmonizing is when your body was made for it"
A silence fell.
Not the good kind.
Moona crossed her arms.
"That's... Rare, right?"
lisa didn't answer.
She just stepped back, eyes wary again.
"Try moving," She said finally.
Mikail nodded. He tightened his stance and let the Mana flow gently into his legs... And stepped forward.
The air cracked.
His foot slamd against the ground, not hard, but fast. So fast the wind rushed in his wake.
He stared down at it, then back up.
"I didn't an to-"
"I know," lisa said.
She exhaled slowly.
"You just jumped to Interdiate Level Enhancent on your first try... *Sigh* I don't know anymore..."
Moona muttered sothing in another language under her breath.
And Mikail?
He just felt it again, that sa hum, the sa mory-that-wasn't-a-mory.
Like sothing inside him had finally woken up.
Like this wasn't new.
Just forgotten.
'... What are the limits of this System?'
....
...
..
.
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