Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Ugh…."

Mitchell woke up and pressed his temples against a headache that felt like his skull was splitting. After a moment, once the pain subsided slightly, he immediately began to examine his body's interior.

"It really is an Aura Hole…."

It was common knowledge that mixing mana and Aura was dangerous. In other words, a person could not have an Aura Hole in their lower abdomen and a Mana Hole in their heart open at the same time. Different energies would clash. For Mitchell, having an Aura Hole meant he would never be able to open a Mana Hole again.

"Haaa…."

Mitchell let out a long sigh and rubbed his face with his hands before standing up. For now, he decided to be grateful just for surviving.

On the other hand, he felt this might actually be a good thing. By giving up black magic, he could completely sever his ties with the loathsome House Kellion. To Mitchell, black magic itself wasn't what mattered; what mattered was the power to move forward. Martial arts could serve that purpose just as well.

'Hmm, I wonder if I can fill the Aura Hole using souls.'

To satisfy his curiosity, Mitchell looked around. He had already absorbed most of the souls in the cave. They had been decomposed into energy to pierce through his Aura Hole and Aura Roads. The important question was whether he could fill this Aura Hole using the same method. It was a risky gamble that could lead to another mana rampage like the one he suffered at age ten, but Mitchell believed it was possible. After all, hadn't he pierced the Aura Hole using black mana in the first place?

'…I just need to confirm it.'

Mitchell placed his hand on the ground and used Soul Drain to absorb the last two souls remaining in the cave.

Clang!

A black shadow formed beneath his palm, and chains made of ominous energy burst forth. They wriggled through the air and bound the two souls that had been hiding far away from him. The souls screamed as they were dragged toward Mitchell, struggling to escape.

Screeeeee—

The chilling screams continued even after the souls entered Mitchell’s body. But only for a moment. As Mitchell began to decompose them, the screams vanished, and the souls turned into black mana. Up to this point, it was the same as before.

Mitchell guided that energy toward his Aura Hole. Despite the risk of a rampage, he trusted himself and pushed the black mana into the hole. After trembling for a moment, the black mana settled quietly inside the Aura Hole.

"It works! …Wait?"

Mitchell cheered at being right, but then he noticed something strange: the black mana inside the Aura Hole remained as black mana.

'There's black mana in the Aura Hole? It didn't turn into Aura?'

He knew better than anyone that this should be impossible. It made no sense, yet it was happening inside his body right now. Mitchell observed the energy in the Aura Hole again. Then, he noticed something else.

"What is this? It's not even black mana."

It was something else—neither Aura nor black mana. The moment he confirmed this, his mind became a mess. If this was the case, he wouldn't be able to break the curse his father had placed on him.

'That won't do.'

Mitchell had already made up his mind to leave the family. To do that, he had to break the curse no matter what.

'Is there a way…?'

His original plan was to use black mana to unravel the curse's formula. But that was no longer an option. After agonizing over it for a long time, Mitchell’s thoughts turned to the souls inside his body.

'It might be possible if I can transfer the curse to a soul.'

Mitchell immediately moved the black sphere that was the core of the curse. As he gently pulled it, an excruciating pain washed over him. Just as he was about to lose consciousness from the skull-splitting agony, he succeeded in infusing the curse into a soul. Then, he decomposed that soul and shoved it into his Aura Hole.

"Ugh!"

Suddenly, a massive amount of energy surged in like a tidal wave. It was on a completely different scale compared to when he turned a normal soul into energy. Mitchell barely managed to vent the overflowing energy out of his body. After a long struggle, his body finally stabilized. Mitchell swallowed hard.

'…A simple curse contains this much black mana?'

Even a basic curse cast casually was at this level. Mitchell cursed his past self for thinking he could unravel the formula using black mana. If he had followed his original plan, the sheer volume of black mana within the curse would have killed him. Moreover, it was compressed so densely that he definitely would have died if he had tried to ignore it and run away.

'Did Father intend to kill me…?'

As long as he didn't run away, it wouldn't have happened. But the fact that his father cast such a curse meant he didn't care if Mitchell died. Mitchell’s mind grew sharp and clear. He had felt a small amount of guilt about abandoning the family, but now it was completely gone. Mitchell walked to the front of the training cave and activated the door.

Rumble—

With a loud noise, the iron door blocking the cave slowly opened. Since dawn was just breaking, the surroundings were bright. He saw overgrown weeds and his mana carriage sitting lonely in the distance. Mitchell climbed into the carriage and started it; the engine, powered by mana, began to thrum.

As he pressed the accelerator, the car moved forward. The path was hard to see due to the grass, but Mitchell didn't stop. After driving further, the rough terrain vanished, and a well-paved road appeared. From that point on, Mitchell pressed the pedal down deep.

A few days passed as he traveled along quiet roads to avoid people's eyes. Mitchell wandered aimlessly until he reached the outskirts of a fairly large village and finally stopped the mana carriage. Since he hadn't stopped at any village until now, even the Kellion family would find it hard to track him this far.

Gurgle—

Now that he felt somewhat safe, his stomach protested. He had already finished the food and water he brought from the training cave. He wanted to stop in the village, eat, and rest in a comfortable bed.

'Even if not for that, I need a place to stay for a while.'

Mitchell’s hands were itching. He hadn't been able to do anything because he was busy fleeing, but he wanted to grip a sword and swing it as soon as possible. Despite gaining an Aura Hole, he hadn't even held a sword hilt once. With those thoughts, he drove the mana carriage to an inn at the village entrance.

"Whoa, look at that! It's a mana carriage!"

Though it was a large village, expensive mana carriages weren't a common sight, so people's attention was drawn to it.

'I'll have to hide the carriage.'

Mitchell entered the inn. The owner, who had been watching through the window, rushed over.

"Welcome! This is the best inn in town, boasting top-tier service!"

"I'd like to stay for about a month."

"Oh! A whole month! Is there anything else you need?"

"I'll be heading out, so please bring my meals to my room. Also, I need a place to keep that mana carriage. Ideally somewhere out of public sight. Is that possible?"

The owner’s face lit up. Between the long-term stay and the carriage storage, he could charge double the usual rate.

"Oh, of course! I'll clear out the warehouse and let you know!"

"Thank you. I'm going out for a bit, so take your time."

Leaving the inn, Mitchell asked a passerby for directions to a jewelry shop. He needed money to live for a while. Currently, the only things of value he had were a few pieces of jewelry that belonged to his mother. Mitchell sold them all at the shop.

The amount he received was 10 Gold. Since 1 Gold equals 100 Silver, and a commoner needs less than 1 Silver for a decent meal, 10 Gold was a significant sum.

'And yet, Father told me to hand over Mother's inheritance instead of these trinkets.'

If the head of the wealthy House Kellion said that, the inheritance must be a massive amount. Mitchell decided he would check the Imperial Bank in a large city later, and then looked around. For now, getting supplies was the priority. The shops would start closing once the sun went down. There were many things to buy, including sword manuals and a sword. Mitchell moved busily to start his training this very day.

One hour later, in the inn room.

Mitchell closed his books after reading Basic Swordsmanship for Aspiring Knights and On Aura Circulation, both purchased at the village bookstore. Now was the time to move his body.

'Is this how I'm supposed to hold it?'

He gripped the hilt following the grip method in the book. Since it was his first time holding a sword, it felt awkward, but recalling the manual's instructions, he took a stance, and it felt slightly better. As he swung the sword, it made a sound like a club hitting the air.

Whoosh— Whoosh— Whoosh—

After swinging the sword for a long time, Mitchell slumped to the floor. He had only been swinging for about ten minutes, but his entire body was already screaming in pain.

'This isn't easy.'

He had expected it to some extent, but swinging a sword was harder than he imagined. However, he couldn't stop here. Once his breathing steadied, Mitchell picked up the sword again and began to swing.

'The book said the sound is different if you swing it correctly.'

Recalling the manual, Mitchell emptied his mind and focused solely on the tip of the sword.

"The book said to do it like this…."

Mitchell adjusted his posture slightly with every swing, listening to the sound. Eventually, the sound began to change. One hour, two hours, three hours. He rested whenever he got exhausted and then swung again. The dull sound of cutting the air gradually became sharper.

Swish— Swish— Swish—

Sweat poured down his body, and his breath became ragged. Normally, he should have stopped and rested, but Mitchell kept moving. He felt as if the sword was sending him a signal—that if he swung just a bit more, he would be able to master it.

Mitchell grit his teeth and swung. His strength was fading. But since he couldn't stop yet, he changed how he distributed his power to keep going. He used less strength when lifting the sword and applied precise power only when cutting. Suddenly, the burden was much lighter.

'The sound is much better too!'

There had been content about this in the book, but he hadn't understood the meaning. Now that he was actually swinging, he could feel it. Forgetting his fatigue, Mitchell practiced other stances like horizontal and diagonal slashes. Fortunately, thanks to finding the "feel," it wasn't long before every stance produced a consistent sound. Only then did Mitchell drop the sword and lie on the floor, his body soaked in sweat.

"Hehehe."

Laughter kept leaking out through his heavy breathing. By the time his laughter subsided, he laughed again at his own state.

'Was it always this fun?'

Between the family library, the training grounds, and the cave, ten years had passed. But he had never felt joy during that time. It was just a struggle to survive. But now, it was incredibly fun. He could feel himself improving every time he swung the sword. He realized this was the "joy of growth" he had read about in heroic epics.

Of course, if anyone had heard Mitchell’s thoughts, they would have cursed at him. Most people struggle for months just to get a feel for the sword, yet he was saying this after mastering it in a few hours. But there was no one there to tell him that. Mitchell, satisfied with the fun, sat back up. Now that he had caught his breath, he wanted to try something else.

'I want to try using the energy from the Aura Hole….'

Mitchell recalled the contents of On Aura Circulation. It said that, just like mana, the user’s will was most important for Aura. Mitchell focused intensely and recalled the feeling of energy circulating through his body.

Thump-thump-thump—

His heart pounded wildly, and energy began to move along the Aura Roads. Strength surged into his muscles, and his senses became sharp. Mitchell reached out and lifted the bed with one hand. The energy from the Aura Hole infused his arm muscles, producing explosive strength. The power was so great that he held the wooden bed with one hand despite its awkward shape.

'So this is the power of knights and warriors….'

Mitchell trembled with a sense of euphoria.