Chapter 12

“Not eating?”

“…No.”

Dumaine even raised a hand to refuse outright. The mage didn’t press further and walked away.

“Haa…”

Dumaine exhaled deeply. Two teleports had taken a heavy toll on him as well. The mana field spread across the Desert of Death was so dense that the usual structure of teleportation couldn’t be used. To pierce through and move safely, far more mana had to be consumed. That meant over twice the usual cost—and the density of that mana weighed down on everyone.

Even Dumaine, who had reached the realm of a Master, wasn’t exempt. In fact, it hit him harder than the others. His stomach churned, his head pounded. If he tried eating the Tower-made rations like this, he’d probably just vomit them up.

“We depart after sunset.”

That meant about an hour to rest. He had to recover his stamina before another round of teleportation. Stamina was key when forcing through mana fields.

Dumaine looked around. The desert stretched endlessly. Shadows lay long across the sands.

‘If only I could obtain the Mana Elixir…’

Suppressing his desire, he turned his focus inward and began to rest.

The black door ahead was revolting to behold. Just looking at it sent an unpleasant, prickling sensation stabbing through his entire body. Beyond the door, there was nothing—only the lone black gate standing on the desert sands.

Court Mage Hazabut felt the ominous mana radiating from it. If left unchecked, it seemed as though the mana itself would spiral out of control. This was the center of the mana field that blanketed the entire Desert of Death. Dark, oppressive mana layered upon itself, weaving a dense net.

The mana field didn’t resist evenly. It wasn’t absolute resistance; rather, the more mana one carried, the greater the pushback. So while the rank-and-file soldiers held their composure, the high-class mages and Dumaine wore visibly sickly faces.

“Proceed.”

At Hazabut’s command, the mage beside him gave orders to the gathered force.

All of them—knights, soldiers, mages, and priests—had sworn binding oaths of secrecy. Now, they moved as one under command.

Naturally, the first to enter were the soldiers. The black gate opened, revealing stairs that descended underground.

To the soldiers’ eyes, it looked like the gaping maw of some subterranean beast. They swallowed dryly. Then, without warning, two of them stepped inside. The others could only mutter “Uh…?” in disbelief.

“Uwaaaagh!”

“Gyaaah!”

It didn’t take long before shrill screams tore out, freezing everyone’s skin with gooseflesh.

The soldiers lingering at the entrance paled.

“What are you standing around for?”

A mage barked at them. The soldiers hesitated.

“It’s… it’s too dark. At least some light—”

One soldier barely managed to speak, summoning courage he normally would never have in front of a mage. But with death at hand, even forbidden words slipped out.

The mage, recognizing the grim situation, didn’t lash out. Still, the mana field was so thick that even casting a basic Light spell—barely 1st-class—took real effort.

A glowing orb the size of a man’s head flickered into being. Relief spread across the soldiers’ faces.

“You were marked, weren’t you? Then you’ll go first.”

The soldier’s face drained white. He didn’t dare argue. With hesitant steps, he descended underground. The rest followed, one after another. The mage hung back, watching from a distance.

“We’ve found bodies!”

The cry came from below.

“Move them aside and keep reporting!”

‘Damn it. The mana field’s too strong—I can’t scry inside.’

The mage grimaced, then sharpened his hearing with a spell. If he couldn’t see, he’d at least catch every sound.

By sheer coincidence—or perhaps design—every soldier but the one bearing the Light mark was dead.

From their report, they learned two things: first, that one-use traps littered the approach to the temple; second, that beyond those traps, twelve branching passages sowed chaos.

The marked soldier gave his report, then collapsed, nerves spent. An indescribable pressure had been crushing his chest, feeding his fear. But he couldn’t voice it—something unseen held his tongue, binding even his thoughts.

“Perhaps we should form mixed groups of knights and mages to move forward?”

“No. Time is on our side. This temple is ancient. Better to move all at once, slowly, and keep everyone safe.”

At Hazabut’s command, the mage nodded and relayed the order. They spent about thirty minutes making preparations, then the entire force entered the temple. The black maw swallowed them whole.

It felt like three years had passed. This was a strange place where even teleportation didn’t work. Even when I struck with sword aura, the walls only bore scratches. Without enlightenment, the next realm remained far from me. Unless I reached at least 7th-class strength or learned to wield sword force, escaping here was impossible. If I relied on endless training in this place to reach that realm, I might very well lose my mind and die first.

At least now, my vessel had grown large and sturdy enough to absorb the Dragon Heart’s mana freely. Day after day, I absorbed and expelled mana, widening my capacity. More than half of the refined Dragon Hearts had already been consumed, but the mana I possessed had multiplied in turn. Fill and empty. Fill again, then empty again. Just that cycle alone had vastly deepened my understanding of magic and martial arts.

But a few days ago, the vessel stopped changing, no matter how much I filled and emptied it. Instead, the space around me began to shift. With so much mana saturating me, and with daily cycles of intake and release, it was as if I bathed in mana itself. Perhaps that was why my body had become hypersensitive to it. I could feel the slightest currents, even the instant magic shifted its nature when cast.

“This is it…”

I stood where the oppressive mana pressed strongest. Exactly in the center of the chamber.

From here, I felt the same foul mana radiating from six other points. I focused harder on the flow. The center connected to all six. More precisely, each of the six sent threads of corrupt mana toward the center.

And at each of those six points…

“Dragon Hearts?”

My gaze turned toward where the refined Dragon Hearts lay. Maintaining my focus, I traced the mana currents. They seeped through the floor and walls toward the six places, then from those places back into the center in an uncanny circuit. Steady flows, measured quantities.

A magic circle. My knowledge screamed it at me. But what kind?

To know for certain, I had to sharpen the current, make it bold and clear.

I pressed my hand against a refined Dragon Heart and absorbed mana with all my strength. The flow snapped into sharp clarity—though only for an instant. Until now, I had always taken in mana slowly, so I had never seen it so vividly.

“Firewall.”

I layered barrier after barrier of flame along the far wall. In an instant, half my mana was gone. The raging fire warped the black surface grotesquely.

Then I drew from the Dragon Hearts again, harder. The flow turned even clearer, darker, undeniable.

Now I could see it at a glance. As the Dragon Hearts were drained by me, the amount they sent to the six points weakened. Already faint before, the threads were now nearly extinguished.

When I stopped, the Dragon Hearts surged back—pouring mana into the six channels as though to compensate, flooding the pathways. The flows blazed across the floor and walls. The whole space hummed with vibration.

A magic circle—without a doubt.

The chamber shone. I cast again, this time layering a spell stronger than Firewall. Mana poured from me in torrents.

“Let’s see what kind of circle you are…”

My eyes gleamed.

The Dragon Hearts were feeding this formation, maintaining it endlessly. What was its purpose?

Curiosity gnawed at me. Could this be the clue that finally led out of here?

I gripped the Dragon Heart tighter and drew harder than ever. With such long and violent intake, the six channels were severed completely. All of the Dragon Heart’s mana flowed into me alone.