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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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Chapter 5
Kaylen sat on the bed with his eyes closed.
He had spent the past three days focusing on restoring his body, but progress was slower than expected.
‘The Mana Heart is the problem.’
As a Grand Sword Master, he had never possessed such an organ—the Mana Heart.
Perhaps it was because he had lived as a mage in this life.
Whenever he tried to utilize the mana from Infinity, a significant portion of it flowed into the Mana Heart.
Not only did it flow there, but once it arrived, it was barely being consumed at all.
Due to Infinity’s nature—where unused mana couldn’t be replenished—this was a major drawback.
With less usable mana at his disposal, the Mana Heart felt like an eyesore, leaving Kaylen deep in thought.
‘Is there a way to put it to use?’
Drawing from his past life’s experiences, Kaylen had extensive knowledge of the Mana Heart’s structure.
After all, he had destroyed countless of them while fighting against archmages.
‘In the 1st and 2nd Circles, the circle forms within the heart. From the 3rd to the 5th Circles, they form on the outer wall of the Mana Heart.’
The first major hurdle for a mage—the 3rd Circle.
While reaching the 2nd Circle was possible with sheer effort, no matter how untalented one was, progressing beyond that was strictly a matter of talent.
Forming a circle on the outer wall of the Mana Heart was so difficult that those who managed to surpass the 3rd Circle found the path to the 5th Circle much more accessible.
‘The mana absorbed from Infinity is trying to form the 3rd Circle.’
A third circle was slowly taking shape along the outer wall of the Mana Heart.
Mana was being consumed, albeit in small amounts, as it carved a path.
If he continued absorbing Infinity’s mana and gradually expanded the path, he would eventually reach the 3rd Circle.
Would he wait until then to find a way to make use of it?
Or…
Kaylen made his decision.
“I’ll put it to use later.”
Everything had an order of priority.
Right now, the Mana Heart wasn’t the issue—mana circulation was.
Bzzzzzt.
He shaped the mana released from Infinity into a small blade within his body—so small, it was barely larger than a fingernail.
That tiny blade moved toward the forming 3rd Mana Circle.
……
Swish. Swish.
Kaylen began dismantling his own Mana Heart.
Even as searing pain flared in his chest, making him bite his lip, he continued to break apart the mana circles.
Srrrkk—
The severed mana circles didn’t simply fade away.
They burned through their remaining mana in an attempt to reconnect themselves.
And that was exactly what Kaylen had been hoping for.
As the circles exhausted the mana they contained…
Whirr. Whirr.
Infinity once again released its boundless mana.
The mana that had been trapped in the stagnant circle was now flowing freely once more.
‘Good.’
Kaylen controlled the mana and shaped it into a single form.
To the eye, it resembled a star—just like Infinity.
As he embedded these stars throughout the Mana Hall, Infinity perceived it as mana consumption and immediately began releasing more mana.
‘Hah… Even in this body, it works.’
A mana construct shaped like a star, identical to Infinity.
To Kaylen, it was a form of ‘storage,’ but Infinity recognized it as ‘consumption.’
This was a method discovered in his past life by Ernstine.
The key was to create a flawless replica of Infinity.
‘If it deviates even slightly, it becomes completely useless…’
Forming a star-shaped construct was nearly impossible for an ordinary person.
It required precise mana control and an iron will.
But Kaylen had once reached the realm of a Grand Sword Master.
When it came to manipulating mana, there was no one he trusted more than himself.
Until now, he had been unable to form the stars because his mana was being drained by the Mana Heart.
However, after tearing apart his own mana circles, he finally had enough mana to create them.
‘Focus.’
For seven days and nights, he devoted himself to the task.
The remnants of the 3rd Circle had been cut away so many times that not even a trace remained.
Tiny star-shaped mana constructs had settled throughout the Mana Hall.
‘This should be enough.’
Kaylen sprang up from the bed.
With this many stars accumulated, he had more than enough mana.
Now, it was time to become a sword user.
The stars gathered.
Compressed mana was compressed once more, over and over, forming the hilt—the foundation of the sword.
Flashes of memory surfaced—of all the blades he had wielded.
Among them were countless legendary swords that had shaken the world, even weapons hailed as divine blades.
The Dragon Slayer, which had slumbered in the royal treasury.
The Holy Sword Astella, granted by the Holy See to subjugate the Demon King.
The Demonic Sword Gehenna, seized after defeating a Demon Duke.
But the sword he was about to shape was none of those famed weapons.
Long ago.
It was a set of ten iron swords he had used when he ventured into the North.
A sword as ordinary as could be, forged by an unremarkable blacksmith.
It was not crafted from rare metals, nor was it embedded with mana stones.
It was nothing more than the kind of iron sword used by common soldiers.
‘The shape doesn’t matter.’
A true craftsman does not choose his tools.
As long as it was a sword, that was enough.
As the sun set and rose three more times, he maintained his unwavering focus.
Gathering every last trace of mana from the stars—
“…It’s a success.”
A total of six sword hilts had been formed.
His Mana Hall, as well as the mana throughout his entire body, was completely drained, but he had achieved a meaningful result.
‘With this, I can be called a sword user.’
Kaylen was entertaining a thought that would leave other knights speechless.
In general understanding, a sword user was someone who could manifest mana as aura.
Their Mana Halls were merely filled with mana—they could not shape weapons from it.
The stage where one could manifest a weapon within the Mana Hall…
That was the realm of a Master.
Only after undergoing grueling training and reaching the pinnacle could one finally shape the mana in their Mana Hall into the form of a sword.
But Kaylen, a Grand Sword Master, was different.
His mastery over the sword had already reached its peak. As long as he had enough mana, creating a sword posed no real difficulty.
For now, due to his lack of mana, he had only formed the hilts, but with the foundation in place, forging a complete sword was only a matter of time.
‘Meier’s sword—I shall recreate it through the body of his descendant.’
Satisfied, Kaylen checked his physical condition and rose from the bed.
"I do feel lighter."
Was it because he had become a sword user?
He could clearly sense that his body had become lighter.
Kaylen’s physique itself was fairly decent.
He had gained an excessive amount of weight, but aside from that, he was tall and had a solid frame.
‘Once I get my body in shape, I could transfer to the Knight Academy, but for now, this is a chance to learn about magic.’
Knights gather mana. Mages spread mana.
Two completely different disciplines from the very start.
‘After becoming a Grand Sword Master, my understanding of mana reached an unparalleled level, but…’
Even so, he did not fully grasp how mages wielded mana.
No matter how much he had transcended human limits, he had started as a swordsman—it was only natural.
‘If I can completely master how mages utilize mana, I might be able to reach an even higher level…’
Kaylen resolved to make the most of this opportunity.
He walked through the halls of the Magic Academy with a familiar stride.
As he climbed the stairs toward a third-floor classroom, a voice called out to him from behind.
"…Kaylen?"
Thump. Thump.
The moment he heard that voice, his heart began to race.
Heat rose to his face, and his entire body tensed instinctively.
Along with it, a memory surged forth.
A memory from his time at the academy, a dull, gray existence brightened only by meals—and by a certain female student.
The only one who never ignored Kaylen and treated him kindly.
Lina de Florence.
In the original body's memories, she was practically a goddess.
But after reading through those memories—
‘What a fool.’
Kaylen’s perspective was entirely different.
‘He got caught by the queen bee.’
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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