I’m Here to End This Fight

Chapter 15. Mana (4)

Johan’s expression changed at the transformation occurring around Yuri.

‘This guy, finally…?’

The changes in mana happening right now weren’t something he had caused.

Yuri had instigated the transformation himself.

The implication was simple.

‘He has awakened to mana!’

And that wasn’t all.

Unlike before, he was now gathering mana with his own will.

The irregular absorption rate of the unstable mana proved this.

It was clearly the skill of a beginner absorbing mana for the first time.

Johan let out a small sigh.

‘He’s passed the hurdle.’

Most people could perceive mana, but only a few could artificially contain it.

In other words, anyone could perceive mana, but only the chosen could absorb it.

Of course, from Johan’s perspective, absorbing mana was just the preparatory stage.

Now was when the ‘real’ beginning started.

Johan looked at Yuri, who still had his eyes closed, and opened his mouth.

“Listen carefully to what I’m about to say.”

Johan’s voice resonated calmly.

“Mana inherently tends to disperse easily. Even if you draw it into your body, it will soon scatter. Therefore, you must now condense it within your body. In the Magic Body Technique, this is called… the Core.”

The Core.

Creating that tiny seed was indeed the true first stage of the Magic Body Technique.

“The characteristics of the Core vary greatly depending on which Magic Body Technique you learn. To be precise, the use of the Core depends on which Magic Body Technique you’ve mastered.”

The heart, the solar plexus, the head, the arms and legs, the feet, and so on.

The composition, location, and even the number of Cores change according to the characteristics of the Magic Body Technique.

And the place where Johan needed to plant the seed that would form the foundation of the Magic Body Technique he would teach Yuri.

That place was the navel.

The center of the body, where mana could freely and evenly balance.

The Magic Body Technique Johan learned from the Redner family, as well as the one he created himself, focused on forming the Core at the navel.

“Don’t be surprised.”

Saying that, Johan’s hand touched Yuri’s back.

“From now on, my mana will guide yours. Remember this well. This is the path of mana you will hone for the rest of your life.”

At the same time, Johan released his own mana, infusing it into Yuri’s back.

Using one’s mana to guide another’s body.

This was a task that required deep knowledge of mana handling, something only a truly skilled person could attempt.

Soon, the events happening inside Yuri’s body through Johan’s hand touching his back vividly unfolded in Johan’s mind.

Johan was slightly surprised.

‘It’s fast!’

From the beginning, Yuri’s mana absorption rate had been abnormally fast.

But upon closer inspection, it wasn’t just the absorption rate that was fast.

‘The accumulation rate, permeability rate, transmission rate… all are at a considerable level!’

The three efficiency standards of mana, often referred to as the three major efficiencies of mana, far exceeded the normal values.

‘Comparable to mine… no, perhaps even beyond that.’

Comparing his childhood to Yuri now, Johan was certain.

Currently, Yuri’s talent for mana was at least on par with his own or possibly higher.

It was ridiculous.

‘Heh heh.’

At first, he thought Yuri was a hopeless case who couldn’t even sense mana, but once he peeled back the layers, it was as if a monstrous creature had emerged.

Johan’s lips twisted into a grin.

The smile he wore was the same as when he first saw Yuri using the Avatar.

‘A monstrous brat!’

A sense of anticipation filled Johan’s heart once more.

What would this young monster show him next?

What kind of surprises would he bring?

With such expectations, Johan moved his mana.

A refreshing stream of mana began to carve a path within Yuri’s body.

‘Now, follow along!’

There were numerous Magic Body Techniques in the world, each with a distinctive ‘Mana Road.’

If one operated a secret Mana Road, a Core suited to it would be formed.

And now, what Johan intended to impart to Yuri was the fruit of his single-minded determination to surpass the Sword Master.

A system he had researched endlessly but never managed to create a seed.

A new type of Mana Road that even Johan had not mastered was being etched into Yuri’s body for the first time.

Following Johan’s guidance, Yuri’s mana boldly began to trace the path.

‘Yes, that’s it!’

Although it was the first presentation of this Mana Road, Johan had no doubt that a Core would be formed from it.

He had poured over a decade of effort into developing this Mana Road.

With the years he had invested, there would be no failure.

‘Consider it an honor! To become the owner of this Mana Road!’

As Johan’s confidence surged, the Mana Road grew clearer within Yuri’s body.

The mana, flowing unhindered, reached the vicinity of Yuri’s navel, the destination.

The place where the Core would be born.

‘Finally!’

After years of effort, the first fruit was about to be borne.

‘Show yourself!’

It should have been so.

A fruit should have been formed…

‘……?’

Johan’s thoughts froze.

‘Huh?’

All that was left was for a tiny Core to be born near Yuri’s navel.

But…

‘Huh, it’s gone?’

No Core was formed.

Far from a Core, the mana that should have remained inside Yuri vanished without a trace.

‘This… this is impossible?!’

Stunned, Johan suppressed his confusion and ran the Mana Road again.

Perhaps because the path had already been carved, the mana moved faster and more accurately.

After the second attempt was over.

‘Huh, it’s gone?’

It was the same.

No Core, and the mana that had followed the path disappeared as if it had evaporated.

A flustered Johan tried several times to run the Mana Road, but the Core didn’t form.

Time passed.

Johan removed his hand from Yuri’s back and murmured with a dazed expression.

“It was there… but it’s gone? It was there… but it’s gone!”

At Johan’s lament, Yuri asked with an innocent face.

“What is?”

“The mana! Where did you sell off the mana from earlier? Where did you stash it?!”

“Oh, that?”

Yuri immediately understood Johan’s question.

How could he not?

It was something that happened within his own body.

Although Johan had guided the path, it was Yuri who moved the mana.

So he couldn’t help but know.

But…

“Well, I don’t know. Hehe.”

The problem was, Yuri also didn’t know why the mana had vanished.

He only felt that the mana had evaporated.

As Yuri chuckled and scratched the back of his head, Johan pounded his chest in frustration.

“Why can’t you be normal?! Why does everything have to be so difficult with you? Can’t you do anything the ordinary way? What the hell is this crazy difficulty for just forming a mana core?!”

He had only tried to help Yuri master mana, but unexpected variables kept cropping up.

Johan looked exasperated.

In response, Yuri stood tall and confidently.

He puffed out his chest and pushed his stomach forward.

“There’s an old saying.”

“…….”

“Geniuses always face trials.”

“Geniuses, my foot! Just shut up and tell me where you sold off the mana, you crazy bastard!”

“How can I tell you if I keep my mouth shut? You idiot?”

“Just spit it out!”

Johan grabbed Yuri by the collar and shook him.

Yuri looked aggrieved.

“No, seriously, I don’t know!”

“Why don’t you know! It happened in your own body!”

“How would I know! Could it be that the way you taught me to move mana was wrong?”

“You brat, do you have any idea what you’re talking about? No way in hell is that method wrong!”

“Are you sure? Can you prove it? Betting on something uncertain isn’t a good idea, is it?”

“Prove it? If that Mana Road was faulty, your limbs would have twisted by now! Proof? The fact that you’re still alive and kicking is the proof, you brat!”

“…You crazy old man?! Shouldn’t you have told me that before putting it into my body! Are you trying to kill me?”

“Why would I?”

Yuri and Johan bickered heatedly for a while.

They finally agreed to keep trying until they figured out where the mana had gone.

From then on, it was an endless repetition of running the Mana Road.

As time passed, Yuri’s mana manipulation became increasingly proficient, but the Core showed no sign of forming.

After about a dozen attempts, Johan realized something.

‘The mana isn’t being expelled.’

Knowing this made it even more puzzling.

How could so much mana vanish inside the body without being expelled?

‘For the first time in a long while… I’m feeling obstinate. Haha.’

A vein popped on Johan’s forehead.

If the mana wasn’t being expelled and was disappearing somewhere inside Yuri, he would find where it was going.

Johan concentrated all his senses.

He focused harder than he had in the past ten years.

Had his effort paid off?

‘I got you, you rascal!’

After dozens of mana circulations.

Just as Yuri was about to express his mental fatigue from moving the mana, Johan finally found the trace of the vanishing mana.

In the next attempt, he succeeded in following the mana that was disappearing like a mirage.

He then found out where the mana was going.

It was a valuable result obtained after both Yuri and Johan were exhausted.

But Johan couldn’t be happy.

He was busy being shocked by the truth he had discovered.

Where Yuri’s mana had disappeared to.

It was none other than…

‘This… this… crazy?!’

The spiritual hole.

And inside it.

The reason mana wasn’t accumulating in Yuri’s body.

The culprit that sucked up the mana Yuri accumulated before a Core could form!

‘Huh…’

Johan laughed like a madman.

‘…This is insane.’

It had to be insane.

Inside Yuri’s spiritual hole was the Core they had tried so hard to create.

‘A Core… in a spiritual hole?’

This was unprecedented.

A place where a Core should never exist.

No, a place where it was unimaginable to create a Core.

That was the spiritual hole.

‘Is this even possible?’

But there was undeniable proof right before his eyes.

The knowledge and common sense Johan had accumulated over the years were shattered by this one occurrence with Yuri.

Johan’s eyes twisted, and his inner thoughts spilled out.

“…What kind of brat is this?”

It was a deep, sincere sentiment.

And he added another statement.

“Should I… dissect him?”

Johan’s eyes gleamed.

Seeing the serious look in his eyes, Yuri shuddered with chills.