Chapter 3
The energy moving by his own will was incredibly beautiful and enchanting.
Back when he was a child—before the mana rampage—he had thought that the movement of black mana while casting spells was full of life.
However, the movement that started from the Aura Hole, circulated through his entire body, and returned to its original place was far more dynamic and raw.
It made all his desperate struggles to fix his mana circuits feel utterly futile.
Mitchell set the bed down and returned to the desk to speed-read On Aura Circulation from the beginning.
A significant portion of the book consisted of theoretical content and basic concepts. After quickly flipping through those parts, he reached the section on basic Aura manipulation.
'You can inject the Aura accumulated through breathing exercises into muscles, skin, bones, and even objects?'
Mitchell turned the page to verify the details. He then began to move the energy from his Aura Hole accordingly.
Perhaps because he had done it once before, infusing energy into his muscles came easily. He tried injecting it into his legs and jumping; he injected it into his waist and supported his body while leaning back at an impossible angle.
Postures he could never normally achieve became possible through the power of his strengthened muscles. Next, he injected energy into his bones. However, it was hard to feel any particular change. He figured he wouldn't truly feel the difference unless he was struck by a blunt weapon or received a powerful impact.
Next were the skin and sensory organs.
Sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch. A new world unfolded before him. Mitchell’s eyes tracked a single speck of dust floating in the air. He remained entranced by the fascinating phenomenon for a long while before turning the page to see the next section.
"Huh?"
Mitchell looked at the contents of the next page with a puzzled expression.
This marks the end of the methods for directly manipulating the physical body. For those with average talent, it would take a year to learn how to utilize the entire body through Aura, and those without talent might never achieve even this much in their entire lives. Furthermore, infusing Aura into objects afterward is even more difficult...
A year?
Mitchell wondered if he hadn't done it properly, so he flipped back to the previous pages to check, but the explanation was no different from what he had done. Just in case, Mitchell began to move the energy again, step by step. Yet, the energy still flowed through the Aura Roads without a single hitch.
"Is it because it's a cheap book? I should buy a proper one when I get the chance."
It was a mass-produced book intended to spread knowledge to the public. Mitchell casually uttered a remark that would have infuriated the author, then hummed a tune as he went to wash up.
Late at night, two men were hiding near the inn. A man with a full beard and a scrawny man. They were criminals with quite a notorious reputation in the area. The bearded man, who had been watching the inn for a while, looked at the scrawny man.
"You're sure he's in there?"
"Yes, Brother. I heard him myself say he'd be staying for a month."
"Hehehe, if he has a mana carriage, he must be a brat from a wealthy family."
They planned to kidnap Mitchell. They could demand a ransom, or if all else failed, kill him and sell the mana carriage for a fortune.
"Brother, but what if he's a noble?"
"What are you worried about? Are nobles even 'proper' nobles these days?"
Many things had changed since the war between the Karseon Empire and the Holy Empire forty years ago. As the entire empire was swept into war, countless nobles died, and as a result, most of the land returned to the Imperial family.
After the war ended, the Imperial family bought up the remaining noble fiefs and underwent a massive systemic reorganization. Astronomical sums of money were spent as compensation, but they recouped the funds by selling the land back to the people.
Thus, while the status of "noble" still existed, there were no longer any nobles with their own fiefs. The system had changed to a centralized government where officials sent by the Imperial family cared for the people throughout the empire. Thanks to this, the power of the nobility had weakened significantly.
"And so what if he's a noble? The moment he comes out alone like that, everyone's the same. Since he was brave enough to come out by himself, shouldn't he have a taste of the harshness of the world?"
The bearded man gave a greasy smile and turned his gaze back to the inn, waiting for the target to step outside so they could kidnap him. However...
A day passed, then a week, and until nearly fifteen days had gone by, Mitchell did not step a single foot out of the inn. Forget leaving the inn—it was rare for him to even leave his room. The only time he emerged was in the early morning.
All he did after coming out was physical training. Even that sight was bizarre. Running, duck-walking, doing handstands—he was going through an immense amount of training. Watching this, the scrawny man looked at the bearded man with trembling eyes, feeling uneasy.
"Brother, his movements aren't ordinary. Could he be an expert?"
"He's not an expert. Didn't you see him moving on the first day?"
He was a guy who couldn't even run properly and collapsed from exhaustion. Seeing him move like that after only fifteen days made the man think he was probably using an artifact. It was common for young masters from rich families to use artifacts. And above all, there was a reason he was certain the boy wasn't an expert.
"Look at his stride. If he had properly learned martial arts, his stride would be consistent."
"Ah! You're right."
"That aside, why the hell isn't this brat coming out?"
"Maybe he's hiding just like us?"
That sounded plausible. If so, his current behavior made sense.
"Then this makes things even easier. No one will know even if we 'snip-snip' him."
The bearded man stroked his thick beard, his eyes gleaming.
For a month, Mitchell devoted himself to training. In the mornings, he did physical conditioning in the empty lot behind the inn, and the rest of the time, he swung his sword inside his room. Through this, he realized something. His body was incredibly exceptional.
'After the accident, my physical body itself changed. Both growth and recovery.'
It was remarkably superior. There were several times when he developed issues in his bones or ligaments from overtraining, only to be perfectly fine by the next day. Furthermore, something he found while scanning through his books a few more times turned his suspicion into a conviction.
A physical body built through solid basic training can create thick Aura Holes and Aura Roads, and these in turn form a virtuous cycle that builds an even sturdier body.
Therefore, talent in swordsmanship can ultimately be defined as relentless training.
Currently, the Aura Hole and Aura Roads in Mitchell’s body were as tough as whale sinew. Considering that, his body's condition was perfectly understandable.
Mitchell clenched his fist and looked in wonder at his forearms, which had grown incomparably larger than they were a month ago. A smile naturally formed as he watched his changing physique.
After checking his changed body, Mitchell stood up and picked up his sword. Lately, he had been contemplating how to utilize his abilities.
'My current level is around a 2nd-class Aura User.'
By forcibly opening his Aura Hole and Aura Roads, he had started a step ahead of others. If he added the ability to convert souls into energy, he felt he could create some useful techniques. He was about to attempt that now.
Screeeeee—
As he decomposed a soul, a scream rang out and his Aura Hole began to fill up. Mitchell immediately released that energy out of his body. While releasing energy was normally only possible for a 4th-class Aura User, Mitchell solved this by decomposing souls to supply the energy. Of course, an immense amount of energy drained from the Aura Hole.
Vroooooom—
A moment later, Mitchell felt as if something was being layered over his body. It was like the shape of a living monster made of souls. Mitchell, looking in the mirror, gasped in surprise. As his concentration broke, the monster's form vanished.
'What was that...?'
It felt like he had summoned something he hadn't intended. Moreover, it wasn't just a form made of Aura. He clearly felt another will within the monster. Mitchell had seen something like this before in the family.
There was an elder in the family who was skilled in summoning, and the spiritual summon he had shown gave off a similar feeling to the monster just now.
'What is it... the book didn't say anything about this happening just from releasing energy...'
Mitchell sighed as he recalled the contents of the book. Nothing matched what was written. He wanted to train more properly, but there was a limit to self-training.
'I should be able to move now, right?'
He had been holed up in the inn for a month without taking a single step outside to avoid showing his face. It was time to move his residence further away. He planned to find a proper place to settle down and focus on training.
'Where would be good?'
Mitchell took out the map he had bought on the first day and scanned it. His current location was a village in the eastern part of the Western Empire. Having confirmed his position, he scanned the surroundings, contemplating where to go.
'The East is too far, and the Central region has too many people.'
The East, with its long coastline, was far away and reportedly plagued by pirate invasions. Mitchell, who wanted to train in peace, wanted to avoid it. The Central region was where the Imperial Capital was located, a place where people from all over the empire gathered. He excluded it as well, fearing he might frequently run into people from the West.
'Then that only leaves the South and the North...'
After a moment of thought, Mitchell chose the North. The North was a relatively secluded region of the empire. A perfect place for Mitchell to hide. Above all, wasn't the North the birthplace of martial families and sects? He felt he could learn more proper martial arts there.
'Since I have to stop by a major city, I should go to Langa.'
Mitchell confirmed the location of Langa, the central city of the North, and tucked the map away. He then immediately began packing his bags. Since he had decided on a destination, there was no need to delay. Mitchell soon left the inn and asked the owner to open the warehouse door.
"Please come again!"
The inn owner bowed deeply toward Mitchell, who had provided a steady income during his stay. Leaving the owner's farewell behind, Mitchell started the mana carriage and pressed the accelerator. The mana carriage sped forward, quickly leaving the inn and heading out of the village.
Eventually, he reached a fork in the road. Going straight would lead directly to the North, while turning would lead to a rugged mountain path. Mitchell pulled out the map with one hand and examined it.
'I should take the quietest road possible, right? Phew... it’s incredibly far.'
If he just took the main road, it would take ten days, but taking the long way around looked like it would take a month. But he had no choice. Since he was still in the West, he had to avoid people as much as possible. Once he reached the North, he wouldn't have to worry about being tracked anymore, so a little hardship now was much better. Just as he was about to turn the steering wheel...
Clatter, clatter—
The urgent sound of hoofbeats echoed from behind. Mitchell frowned. He had left quickly in case of pursuers from the family, but on rough roads, he couldn't outpace a horse. Eventually, two horses overtook Mitchell’s mana carriage and blocked his path.
"Aha, you can't just leave so suddenly without even touring the village. Do you know how long we've been waiting?"
Mitchell quickly assessed the two men's appearances. Seeing no family crest, they didn't seem to be pursuers. Only then did a relieved Mitchell step out of the car. He couldn't escape those on horseback like this anyway. Mitchell, picking up the sword from the passenger seat, looked at the two men and spoke.
"Are you tour guides?"
"What?"
"You said you chased me because I didn't tour the village."
"Hehehe, your mouth is certainly alive. Fine, let's see how long that lasts."
The two men jumped off their horses, drew their swords, and approached Mitchell.
