The 9th Class Swordmaster: Blade of Truth

Chapter 86: Arcane Mana

"Phew." Karyl exhaled deeply, feeling the weight of the sentinel's core in his hands.

The Fountain of Vision bubbled furiously, and white steam rose as he carefully submerged the core into its waters.

[Handle it carefully. The core of the sentinel is filled with condensed vision mana. It may not be as potent as dragon mana, but compared to other forms of human mana, it’s one of the most potent forms,] Allen advised.

Even among the Assembly of the Seven Elders, hailed as the greatest sorcerers in the history of humanity, Allen Javius' arcane magic was exceptional. Based on that dragon mana, he had established his own unique system of magic.

Sparks flickered within the core, like lighting trapped within a vessel.

[The timing is the most crucial. Lightning is the fundamental property of arcane mana. If you lose control of the rampant mana, it will oxidize in an instant.]

As Karyl reached his hand into the Fountain of Vision, the waters churned as if trying to grasp the core.

"..."

Hashir watched with a tense expression. The situation seemed quite precarious; it looked like the arcane water would burst out at any moment.

It's fascinating. Such a huge amount of water is churning, yet there’s no sound. Most would hesitate at the sight of such a vortex, but Karyl remained undeterred.

[Boy, you do have a keen eye,] Allen noted.

As he gazed at the waterspout, Karyl's eyes suddenly brightened.

"Fear not what you see. The realm of mana is reached when you surpass the five senses." Allen scanned the Fountain of Vision once more. "The mana you are about to wield is one of the most potent in history."

Flash--!!

The sentinel's core, which Karyl was holding in both hands, began to melt rapidly. Instinctively, he snatched a tiny spark of light inside.

[Focus. That's the arcane core.] A light as small as a fingernail jittered in Karyl’s grip, trying to escape in every direction.

Karyl mustered all his strength into his hands. He was once again grateful that the only two open mana points were in his arms; otherwise, his arms might have been blown off.

"Huff...!!" Exhaling, Karyl clenched his hands around the thrashing arcane core, compressing it.

"When it comes to ordinary mana, you just accumulate it in your body. But you don't need that. Instead, you need to detonate the potent mana in your veins to open up blocked mana points."

Brrrrr... Karyl's arms shook violently as if being pulled by someone.

"To cause a mana explosion, an extreme and powerful force must be injected. As far as I know, this is the only force capable of impacting your mana veins."

Crack—

A thunderous sound erupted from between his palms, followed by an intense burst of light. That was when it happened. A dizzying sensation instantly washed over Karyl, surging through his body.

"!!!"

Karyl's eyes flashed. It was as if something new had wrapped around his retina, moist and transparent.

Suddenly, the far end of the rocks seemed to zoom in, then stretched back out, dozens of times further away.

"Cough... Cough!!" For the first time, Karyl gasped for air and collapsed. The sudden surge of mana energy around him started thrashing as though it was alive.

"Aaaagh!!!"

A jolt of pain struck Karyl, and his veins swelled and turned red and blue. Pain surged from his head to his toes as if struck by lightning.

"What, what is it?" At Karyl's agonized screams, Hashir, not knowing what to do, reached out with a confused look.

"If you don't want to die, it's best not to touch him."

"...!" Startled by the sudden voice, Hashir stepped back. "Who's there?"

"Haah... It's been a while since I've felt the wind’s touch. Not too bad."

Hashir realized that a faint silhouette was flickering before his eyes.

"Don't worry. He won't die."

"Who... who are you?"

"Well, you don't need to know that much. If you want to keep watching, I suggest you take a few steps back."

Following Allen's advice, Hashir quickly retreated toward the entrance.

"Although I'm still incomplete, the fact that other mortals can see my spirit form means I might be able to influence reality a bit." Allen looked at Karyl and chuckled softly. "Hehehe... That alone means you've succeeded."

Kwaahhh—!!!

A pillar of light that seemed visible to the entire southern region pierced the darkness.

"Vice-captain?! What is that...?"

"That place is..."

"It's the Abyssal Rocks. Could those guys be up to something again...?"

"Hmm."

Ironically, Karyl's pillar of light halted Nareel's advancing knights at the entrance of the Abyssal Rocks. Not even Karyl had anticipated this.

"Perhaps it's wise to retreat and regroup... Facing the golems and the serpent again under these unclear circumstances..." With the death of Vice Captain Banhon, the young knight who had become the acting vice-captain spoke with a face full of tension. He gritted his teeth as he recalled the recent events.

"Moreover, given time, the rest of the barbarians will also finish regrouping. The other Four Great Families will surely come here."

If they were to retreat, there might be a rebellion among the commanders. Knowing the character of his superior, who viewed retreat as the utmost dishonor, the knight gathered courage as he believed no one else would speak up.

"The key to our attack was the element of surprise. Even for us, it's difficult to face thousands of barbarians at once. We should at least request support from Duke Vestal at the southern front..."

Click—

The young knight unwittingly flinched as he saw Nareel furiously gritting his teeth. This was the first time he saw him react like that.

Being defeated by barbarians, of all people... This will be the most regrettable battle of my life.

Nareel raised his head and looked over the edge of the cliff. The one thing he couldn't accept was the unexpected fear he had felt during his engagement with Karyl.

"What's the knight's name?"

"Harold."

"Tell the knight to start organizing the wounded and prepare for retreat."

"Yes!!" the knights of the Ryeo Knight Order responded as if they had been waiting for the command. But even so, their eyes were filled with animosity.

*

The sound of applause echoed across the desolate summit. Allen Javius approached Karyl with light steps, seemingly enjoying the sensation of the ground beneath his feet for the first time in a while.

"Congratulations."

Allen’s comment seemed out of place as Karyl, propping himself up from the ground, was gasping for air in a situation that hardly seemed celebratory. A tingling shiver ran down his spine as Allen's touch reached him, and he slowly lifted his head.

"You've broken through the wall."

"Did I... succeed...?"

Although Allen stood before him in his physical form, Karyl’s expression was dominated by confusion rather than surprise.

"Your mana was confined to 2nd Class because the mana points in your mana veins were blocked, which prevented the powerful mana from circulating through your body."

Karyl's shoulders twitched.

"This is your mana. Having unblocked your mana points, you can borrow some of it. How does it feel? Can you sense the mana circulating inside you?"

With that, mana flowed from his shoulders down his arms and legs, tingling like waves.

"Ugh, ah..." Karyl grimaced in pain as the mana circulated through his body. "Damn... It hurts so much that I might pass out before I even get to use it."

"Indeed, it will hurt. The arcane core you absorbed is no ordinary mana. But your dragon mana is powerful enough to accept it. You'll adapt soon."

Zzzzt...!!

"Eh?"

As the mana flowed from Allen’s fingertips to his hands, Karyl looked at his palms, seemingly unable to control his own strength.

"Don’t just stand there. Grab the Freezing Talon. Otherwise, the mana I just planted in you might blow your arms off."

"What?"

As Allen motioned with his head, urging him to hurry, Karyl scowled and moved quickly.

"Damn!!"

Kwaahhh—!!

The moment he grabbed the hilt of the Freezing Talon, an explosion erupted from the blade planted in the ground, propelling Karyl backward.

"Whoaaah...!!"

Exhaling sharply, Karyl glared at Allen with a soot-blackened face.

"Hey!!" Karyl snarled, dropping all formalities.

"Hahaha." But Allen spoke in a low voice, amused by his reaction, "Now slowly start circulating the mana through your body. Given the nature of Arcane Mana, you need to vigorously move it throughout your body and expel it in order to adapt to it."

Allen’s advice was spot on. The pain that felt like thorns scraping Karyl’s insides whenever he maneuvered the mana had indeed diminished slightly.

"Now you’ve opened two mana points and reached the stage where you could attain the 4th Class. Once your swordsmanship is perfected and supported by your mana, you could rise to the level of a Sword Master, as the continentals say."

Sword Master...?! One of the only five on the continent, and that kid...

Hashir, lacking mana, couldn't see what the two were doing, but he clearly heard Allen's mention of a Sword Master. He knew well how formidable and powerful that level was.

Moreover, hadn't he experienced it? The current situation, with the Northern immigrants being ruthlessly killed by Kuwell MacGovern’s Blue Knights, was proof of that.

"But this isn’t enough. Just as you aspire to be more than a mere Sword Master, having abundant mana doesn’t automatically elevate everyone to the rank of a mage."

"Then...?"

"Like training in swordsmanship, mana also needs to be honed. Just because the vessel is ready doesn’t mean you immediately ascend to the rank of a mage."

Allen gestured with his finger raised. "However."

Karyl's heart raced.

"Having absorbed the arcane core, you’ve just barely met the minimum conditions to receive my teachings."

Until now, Allen had only imparted sword mana techniques within the illusionary space, never offering Karyl any significant knowledge about mana. The sword mana wasn’t even his own; it had been devised by Kalnere, one of the seven elders.

"Minimum conditions mean you’ve just reached the starting point."

Flash-

Zzzzt...! Zzzzt...!!

Purple mana sparked from Allen’s palm.

"This is the moment..."

Zzzzzt...!!

"You’ll truly become strong."

The purple turned a deep violet once again.

"I will now impart to you my life’s work."

Karyl felt his hair stand on end with the ferocity of the mana, yet he wiped the sweat from his brow and spoke boldly, "If it’s something trivial like a sword mana, I will redefine your mana myself."

"Hahaha... I Look forward to it."

Crack—!!!

At that moment, as if representing Allen’s delight, the violet mana exploded into a deep, blood-red hue.

"This is my real mana."

His words struck like a nail in the brain.

“Arcane Mana."