Hwain's reaction was something I hadn't seen in a long time.
"Indeed..."
What kind of ability will he use?
The Magic Codex.
At times like this, I find myself reflecting on the transcendent nature of the Magic Codex.
A transcendent artifact coveted by all the great magic families, whose origin is unknown to anyone.
We only know that it has been passed down from ancient times, a period not even recorded in history.
What is certain, however, is that the effects of this artifact operate outside the realm of ordinary common sense.
Setting aside its effects during the Calahen era, even during the first activation, it was evident.
"Truly, purification."
It races through the circuits like a storm, burning impurities and transforming the mana within the body into the purest form.
Originally, after converting natural mana into magical power, a process of refining its impure nature was necessary.
But with the ability of the Magic Codex, the refining process was almost eliminated.
This allowed me to wield magical power more freely than in my previous life and freed me from the impure circuits that had held me back all my life.
So, this time...
"Ah!"
A sharp heat radiated from Hwain, and a groan escaped my lips.
It hurts.
It hurts so much that I want to scream right now.
But I embraced the pain with a willing heart.
The change that will come after this pain. The anticipation of that change is so much greater than the pain itself.
Even in the midst of this, I did not stop the manipulation of magical power needed to create a magical power conduit.
"Through the entire body, not just the circuits."
This requires considerable control of magical power.
If it were a journey, it would be like riding a horse on a rugged path through mountains and forests, rather than a well-trodden road.
But the difficulty is incomparable.
Riding a horse, you can push through obstacles like protruding rocks and tree roots.
"This is more like a fire field."
It burns everything that rises from the ground.
It pulls out rocks that cannot be burned and sifts through pebbles and all impurities to create a clean ground.
After sweeping through the entire body with magical power, the next step is by parts.
At first...
"Muscles."
I inject magical power into each muscle fiber.
Even though I had swept through the entire body, the first injection of magical power is sluggish, like wetting a sponge that is already soaked with water.
But magical power is not water, and muscles are not sponges.
I pushed the magical power in with force.
"Ugh..."
Intense pain.
It is different from the heat Hwain provides.
It feels like compressing muscles that have already been stretched to their limit.
Just as Hwain was only providing intense heat, it began to move in earnest at that moment.
Sizz...
At the same time.
Crack, sssss!
The sound of a rupture spreading through my mind.
"..."
At this point, it was hard to endure no matter what.
"Such madness..."
It tears my muscles.
Like scattering dried meat along its grain, it feels like disassembling each muscle fiber!
No, it's not actually tearing.
I just feel that way.
"Placebo."
Is this right?
When performing a magical power conduit, there is inevitably some pain, but this is on a different level.
Torture.
"Yes, torture..."
My mind went blank, and I clenched my teeth.
I was worried about my dental health as I was over eighty, but there was no way to endure it otherwise.
If I stopped here, I would only end up with a half-baked magical power conduit, so there was no other choice.
"Damn it."
Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind.
"Do I really... have to suffer...?"
In my previous life, it was rare.
I had nothing and knew nothing, so I had to learn everything, no matter how difficult or painful.
It was like not being able to be picky about cold or hot soup when there was nothing to eat.
But what about this life?
It is abundant.
I know a few decent visions from not being lazy in my previous life, and with the larger pool of knowledge, I have more opportunities to encounter them.
But.
"Strive."
"..."
A voice from somewhere.
"You, you..."
The Magic Codex.
I was sure it was the Magic Codex, even though I had only heard its voice once.
It never responded to my attempts at conversation, but now it suddenly read my thoughts and spat out a single word.
The pain came right after.
Crack!
"Damn it..."
Originally, I should have finished with the muscles and moved on to the bones and nerves.
But the magical power suddenly pushed into the bones.
I didn't move, yet it moved on its own. It was a baffling situation, but there was no time to ponder it.
"Pain..."
Makes you stronger.
I burned with determination.
After that.
"Ugh, ughhh..."
The stifled groans filled the training room.
It was really a damn life.
Really.
* * *
"..."
A long time after the voice of the Magic Codex disappeared.
I got up from my position, breathing heavily.
I must have collapsed at some point.
I wasn't sure exactly when I had collapsed, but the fact that I was sitting up now meant I had been lying down.
Anyway.
"Damn it..."
Rage boiled up to the tips of my hair.
The voice of Hwain.
If he were human, he would undoubtedly be a genius who could understand ten things from one.
He naturally recognized and executed the next step of the magical power conduit, even though we had only progressed to the second stage, the muscles.
But.
"I never intended to give up."
It's true.
For a moment, the pain made me think that way, but who am I? A tenacious troubleshooter.
I have a patience that would make the second-best in the world cry, and I don't know the word "give up."
I just needed a little mental preparation.
"Phew."
Enough of the pointless thoughts.
I clenched my fist gently.
"The magical power conduit..."
Success.
No, it's more than that.
The magical power conduit that my comrades and I built in the war.
I was confident that there was no better method for manifesting a solid body with ether.
But that confidence was shattered.
Crack.
Just the strength I felt in my clenched fist was unbelievable for such a small body.
I tried picking up a suitable object from the subspace.
It was a walnut from the academy cafeteria.
Crack!
The walnut crumbled effortlessly.
Its shell shattered like an eggshell.
"Originally, it shouldn't be this much..."
The solid body manifested with ether is the same.
A solid body is about altering the body.
While the physical abilities increase exponentially just by learning it, completing it requires relentless training and practice.
But to achieve this much without training...
"One level..."
No, it's several levels higher.
Of course, you can't expect to be full from the first spoonful.
Crack.
I gently shook my numb fist.
"Overloading is inevitable."
Overall, my durability and output have increased, but the durability hasn't caught up with the output yet.
"I need to be careful for a while."
But with this much...
"I won't fall behind a knight with just a solid body."
Depending on the level of training, but in terms of basic specs, it should be top-notch.
When my body matures and serious physical training is added...
"Hehe."
A mage who can punch a knight with a fist.
It's not a dream.
Of course, I won't be able to match knights who have reached the stage of body reconstruction.
From the stage of body reconstruction, they are no longer human but more like monsters or animals.
Anyway.
"Good, let's see..."
I got up and tried a few experiments.
First.
"Regeneration."
I lightly cut my palm with a dagger.
The crimson blood flowed down the blade.
It was a sight that would make a vampire in a legend salivate, but what I focused on was not the blood.
The wound from which the blood flowed.
"How long will it take?"
Originally, a shallow wound like this would heal in about five minutes at the fastest, and at the latest, ten minutes.
But.
"!"
I soon widened my eyes.
Sssss.
The wound healed as if time was fast-forwarded.
No, it wasn't just the wound that healed.
It was as if time was reversed, and the blood on my palm flowed back into the wound.
After that.
A clean palm.
"!"
At this point, I was at a loss for words other than "amazing."
"What kind of troll is this..."
No, it's not a troll.
Trolls can recover even if their heads are cleanly cut off, as long as the severed parts are reattached.
They can even self-repair a completely crushed heart.
It's impossible for a human to show troll-like regeneration.
"Unless it's Damian."
In my previous life, during the time he was called Blandor's monster.
His healing magic was something beyond ordinary common sense.
But since I have the Vision of Healing Light, combining it with this regeneration could give me comparable healing power.
"I've gained a significant advantage."
More like a lifeline.
Either way, having an additional card is a welcome development.
By the way.
"Hmm, look at this."
I frowned at the sense of déjà vu I had been feeling.
The sealed training room.
In this space where no one has entered, I sensed a magical power that was not mine.
When did I start sensing it? It was right after I cut my palm.
"It's too weak to notice..."
Was it because I constructed the magical power conduit?
My heightened senses clearly picked it up.
A very weak and faint magical power that I could easily overlook.
No one had infiltrated the training room.
"It's not a familiar either."
I narrowed my eyes and looked around, then focused on the spot where I sensed the magical power.
The spot where I sensed the magical power was at my feet.
The stone floor, neatly swept and cleaned for the academy students, had a few sweat stains from my writhing in pain, and a few drops of blood that had fallen earlier were pooled on top.
So.
The magical power I sensed...
"It's from these drops of blood."
Why?
I tilted my head.
Mad mages believe that human blood contains magical power, but that's a misconception.
Magical power is not a substance, so how can it reside in blood?
It might be possible for it to reside in the heart, but strictly speaking, magical power resides in the core constructed over the heart.
But magical power in a drop of blood?
Not only that.
"This feels familiar..."
Somehow, it feels similar to the magical power I possess.
"More precisely..."
I feel like I can control it.
As if it were magical power emitted from the core for casting a spell.
I concentrated my mind, just in case.
A bright blue spark leaped from the drop of blood at that moment.
Crack...
"..."
It was a faint light that I might have missed if I hadn't focused, but I saw it clearly.
This is...
"It's clear."
One of the phenomena that occur when a spell fails.
I lightly touched the tip of my finger, just in case.
A few drops of blood clung to the blade of the dagger.
"The spell that consumes the least magical power and can be cast on the smallest scale, let's see..."
Yes, a light-emitting spell would be appropriate.
I focused on that thought.
Sssss.
The blood drop vaporized with a faint blue light.
The change happened right after.
Boom!
A glowing orb rose.
It was only the size of a match flame, but...
"Is this possible?"
Regardless of the size, the phenomenon was incomprehensible.