"What the hell?" Sophia exclaimed. "I thought those drawings were important!"
"They are…" Aeris clenched her teeth, forcing the words out. "But not in his case."
"What do you mean?"
"Those circles are there to buffer him. They split the flow into stages—one, so the master can guide it back, and two, so it doesn't drain him of all his mana before it returns."
Sophia's eyes widened. "So since he has such a big reserve, and he was actually alone…"
"Exactly. But this is reckless." Aeris glanced at the glowing circle beneath Jan. "Instead of a master guiding his mana along the right path, he's flooding the entire circle, forcing the mana to rush straight back into him."
A laugh burst from Sophia. "This is crazy! Yet somehow, it seems to be working. Right?"
*Ziziziziz—* Crack—
As Sophia spoke, lightning split the air, crashing into the floor with a blinding flash. Smoke curled from the charred mark it left behind, sharp with the sting of ozone.
Aeris flinched. "Does this look like it's working to you?! He's not absorbing it back fast enough! There are no stages anymore—he hasn't just skipped them, he has erased every limitation. This isn't even the fifth stage! The circle is drawing his mana at full power!"
*Ziziziziz—* Crack—
Another bolt smashed into the wall, stone dust raining down.
Sophia shielded her eyes with her arms and shot Aeris a look. "Is that why his elemental magic is going crazy?"
"...I'm not sure...It's like he's turned himself into a lightning rod."
Deep inside Jan's inner world...
Crack—
'It happened again…'
Jan sat cross-legged, staring up at the orb of mana swelling above his head, growing larger by the minute. From it streamed countless shimmering threads, each tethered to his chest where his essence glowed, feeding power back into him.
Crack—
'Tsk, no space left.'
He flinched as two threads twisted together, sparking violently with lightning.
He had been right back then. He was close. Learning to re-absorb his mana was only a matter of time. If not for the poison, he might have already done it.
All he needed was to remain in this state, endure through trial and error, and eventually he'd grasp it—because that was the entire point of Loris Thorne's method.
Maria was right too. The poison was spreading because Aeris's mana had seeped into him during the process.
'That confirms it. She's sick…'
He knew this was reckless—rewriting a grand master’s spell when he knew next to nothing about magic. But he couldn't stop himself.
Worry gnawed at him. He needed to verify Maria's theory.
*Crack—* Crack—
Another pair of threads collided and entwined, sparks flying.
Jan shook his head. 'I need to focus.'
He didn't have the leisure to think of something else. The orb loomed above, bristling with mana threads, like the quills of a hedgehog latching onto his essence. Still, it wasn't enough.
The orb swelled larger, and each time it reached a certain size, it began to throb, unstable, as if it were on the verge of bursting. His only answer was to keep weaving in more threads.
*Crack—* Crack—
'Can't add any more!'
Jan gritted his teeth. He could feel the outside world too. Every failure sent lightning lashing beyond his mind, striking in reality. The thought twisted his stomach—what if he damaged the guild? What if he hurt someone?
'Wait… who's there?!'
From the outside, voices bled through. Two people—arguing. He forced his eyes open just enough to glimpse them.
'Sophia… and that's Aeris?! She made it! She's out!'
For a brief moment, relief surged through him. But that cost him dearly; he lost control of a dozen threads.
*Ziziziziz—* Crack—
*Ziziziziz—* Crack—
*Ziziziziz—* Crack—
Lightning roared outward. Dozens of bolts struck outside—one of them aimed straight at Aeris.
Jan's heart plummeted.
Sophia yanked Aeris back by her hoodie just in time, then scooped her under one arm and sprinted in jagged circles, dodging the storm.
"I—I'm sorry!" Jan shouted, eyes squeezed shut as he fought to regain control.
"Don't talk—focus! You're losing control!" Aeris yelled, eyes wide as more lightning tore free.
"Don't apologize! Just do something!" Sophia barked, rolling out of the way of another strike.
Jan screwed his eyes shut tighter, forcing himself to assess the chaos.
"Fuck!"
*Crack—* *Crack—* *Crack—* *Crack—* *Crack—* *Crack—* *Crack—* Crack—
!
The threads snarled together like a ball of tangled yarn—sparking inside, striking outside. Unraveling it would take time he didn't have.
*Ziziziziz—* Crack—
All of a sudden, one bolt struck the wave of mana beneath him.
A big chunk of the energy vanished, as if vaporized.
'What just happened?!'
He could feel it—it hadn't disappeared. The bolt had carried the mana straight back into him.
It was like lightning finding a conductor, arcing home to its source.
'I'm the conductor… my essence is the battery… and the mana outside—an overcharged field desperate to discharge.'
A grin tugged at his lips.
A moment ago, he had feared removing threads, terrified the orb would explode before he could reattach them. Not anymore.
The snarl of threads vanished as Jan rose to his feet, staring at the massive orb of mana still swelling above him.
'I thought the answer was more. But no—I was just using the wrong kind of thread.'
From the glow at his chest, a single lightning thread lashed upward, piercing the orb.
Boom—
The orb shrank instantly.
Jan grinned wider. His essence seemed ravenous, eager to devour. More lightning threads erupted, spearing the orb again and again—until the once-massive construct shattered, collapsing into nothing.
[Congratulations, you've obtained a new skill: "Mana Control LV.1"]
[Congratulations, your skill has improved: "Meditation Lv.4"]
[Congratulations, your skill has improved: "Clear Mind Lv.3"]
[Congratulations, your skill has improved: "Insight Lv.4"]
"I'm not stopping there!"
His eyes snapped open. Lightning burst outward, lashing the magical circle beneath him. Each strike devoured the escaping mana, dragging it back into his core. In seconds, the endless river was gone—and Jan stood tall within the silence.
[Congratulations, you've obtained a new skill: "Lightning LV.1"]
[Congratulations, you've obtained a new skill: "Tesla Coil Lv.1"]