It wasn’t until the next day that Nova finally awoke. He stretched languidly across the bed, letting out a slow yawn—then froze as the memory from the previous day returned. The wind particle—he had left it inside his body. Curious to see what progress had taken place overnight, he focused his thoughts and called out, ‘Status.’

  [Status]

  Rank: 0

  Name: Nova Grey

  Species: Human

  Affiliation: None

  Level: 27 (170/500)

  Mana: Mana Core (Low) (801632/100000000)

  Class: None

  Titles: Goblin Exterminator, Kings Slayer, Survivor, Spear Novice, Troll Exterminator, Orc Exterminator, Rune Novice, Mana Novice, Lord (Giants), Hunter

  Stat Points: 343

  Attributes:

  Strength: 232 (+65)

  Vigor: 205 (+93)

  Dexterity: 255 (+2655)

  Speed: 215 (+2237)

  Intelligence: 171 (+51)

  Wisdom: 215 (+65)

  Will: 10

  Luck: 10 (+10)

  Skills

  Active: Spear Thrust (15) (2497/16384000), Spear Jab (15) (69684/16384000), Spear Sweep (16) (8163241/32768000), Spear Lunge (11) (584102/1024000), Spear Overhead Strike (10) (814/512000), Sword Slash (10) (641/512000), Sword Stab (10) (267/512000), Sword Chop (10) (197/512000), Sword Sweep (10) (784/512000), Sword Parry (1) (184/1000), Sword Block (0) (497/500), Blacksmithing (1) (346/1000), Woodworking (0) (54/500)

  Passive: Regeneration (11) (166179/512000), Keen Reflexes (8) (3140/128000), Momentum Streak (15) (12089674/16384000), One with the World (Spear) (MAX), One with the World (Footwork) (MAX)

  ‘Around 7,000 points. What a nice day’ Nova thought as he rose from the bed.

  After a quick wash, he stepped out of the room. The corridors of the complex were unusually silent. He wandered them for several minutes without encountering a single soul.

  ‘Did everyone leave?’ he wondered, the quiet beginning to gnaw at him.

  Nearly a dozen minutes passed before a faint twang echoed from outside, filtering through a nearby window.

  ‘A bow? Adira?’

  He moved to the window and peered outside. Sure enough, there she was—Adira, gracefully loosing arrows while weaving between targets.

  A smile tugged at his lips. She was training hard, pushing herself without being told.

  “I shouldn’t be too hard on her If she keeps training like this on her own” he murmured.

  Curious of her senses, he opened the window slightly and called out softly, “Adira.”

  Though it was barely a whisper, she froze. Lowering her bow, she scanned her surroundings, eyes sharp. A moment later, her gaze found him—watching from a fourth-floor window.

  There, looking up, Adira spotted Nova grinning down at her from above.

  Surprised to see him awake, she called out, “You’re finally up!”

  Nova gave a nod, then leapt effortlessly from the window, landing a few meters away with practiced ease.

  “Where are the others?” he asked.

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  “Darius and Hector are overseeing the final repair work. Shira went to gather intel on the latest developments in the zone. As for Nox…” She paused, thinking. She hadn’t seen or heard anything from him. With a shrug, she added, “No idea where Nox disappeared to.”

  ‘Repairs are nearly done, and I’ll have a clearer picture of the situation soon. Things are coming together’, Nova thought.

  “Where’s the largest room in the complex?” he asked next.

  Adira frowned slightly, uncertain. “Hmm… I think it’s on the sixth floor.”

  Nova nodded. “Good. Tell the others to meet me there as soon as they can.”

  Without another word, he jumped again, soaring up toward the sixth floor before disappearing through one of its windows.

  Left standing in the training yard, Adira watched him go. A quiet thought slipped out. “Is it starting already…?”

  She shook her head, pushing the tension away, and headed off to find the other generals.

  Meanwhile, Nova had already swept through the sixth floor, opening door after door until he found what he was looking for—a spacious room that would do the job.

  He stepped inside, surveying the space with a critical eye before muttering, “I guess this will do.”

  The room was… disappointing. It wasn’t nearly as spacious as Nova had hoped—perhaps twice the size of his old apartment, but after living in a villa, it felt almost claustrophobic. Compared to that, this place might as well have been a storage closet.

  With a sigh, he found a chair and sat down. While waiting, he turned his focus inward to check on the wind particle.

  But nothing had changed.

  It continued its erratic movement, darting and slicing through his inner channels like a blade with no purpose. Wild, restless, and untamed—it seemed all it wanted was to cut, tear, and lacerate whatever lay in its path.

  “It can’t be this simple,” Nova muttered. “If it were, everyone would be able to convert neutral Mana into an elemental form.”

  He let the thought drift away, leaning back slightly as a new one surfaced. ‘I need to find lightning elemental Mana… Maybe if there's a storm soon.’ He stared at the ceiling, almost wishing for lightning.

  His musing was cut short by the creak of a door opening.

  Nova turned his head toward the entrance. Darius, Hector, and Adira stepped in.

  Raising an eyebrow, he asked, “Shira and Nox aren’t here yet?”

  Adira shook her head. “I couldn’t find either of them.”

  Darius and Hector mirrored the gesture, both looking equally in the dark. There was no telling when Shira or Nox would return.

  Nova considered it for a moment, then gave a small nod. “That’s fine. I need to speak with you about two things today.”

  He paused before continuing. “The first is our short-term strategy. The second…”—his gaze shifted to Darius—“concerns elemental Mana. I’ll share what I know, but I’ll need your input as well.”

  At the mention of elemental Mana, both Hector and Adira turned their attention to Darius. Neither of them had managed to learn how to use elemental Mana of any kind, but Darius did.

  With all eyes on him, Darius gave a sheepish smile. “I’ll share whatever I can.”

  Nova nodded in appreciation. “Good. But first things first.” His tone hardened as he moved to the core of the meeting.

  “You need to begin clearing Blue portals.”

  The three listened closely, nodding slowly as they also agreed with this.

  “You’ll go in teams of three,” Nova continued. “Since Alaric is still recovering, the first team will be Darius, Adira, and Nox. The second: Hector, Shira, and Malachi.”

  He fell silent, giving them a moment to take it all in.

  The three considered the arrangement, turning it over in their minds. There were no flaws they could point out.

  Each team had a scout—Adira in the first, Shira in the second. While Nox was their primary assassin, Shira could fill that role if needed. Team Two had Hector and Malachi for frontline combat, while Team One relied on Darius, whose strength was more than sufficient.

  Balancing the teams was never easy, but these lineups weren’t weak. In fact, sending three into a Blue portal might have been overkill—but they understood what Nova was aiming for.

  “Do you want us to clear the Blue portals as fast as possible?” Darius asked after a short pause, eyes narrowing thoughtfully.

  A grin pulled at Nova’s lips as he nodded. “Exactly. We don’t know how much time will pass out here compared to inside the portals—and I’m not about to spend the next seven months doing everything myself.”

  He leaned forward slightly, voice firm. “So yes. Clear them as fast as you can. Gather every Gold coin. Claim every reward. Push yourselves.”

  Then his tone shifted, colder, heavier.

  “I need you to become strong.”

  A pause followed, heavy with meaning. “You saw Jack, didn’t you?”

  They nodded, the air in the room tightening. The memory of Jack’s overwhelming strength still echoed in their minds, making it impossible to ignore the pressure bearing down on them.

  “I want you to become stronger than him,” Nova said, his tone composed, yet carrying an unmistakable undercurrent of resolve.

  The room remained silent. Darius, Hector, and Adira responded only with solemn nods, each of them instinctively avoiding any mention of Jack—the weight of what had occurred at the academy still too fresh, too raw.

  “Good,” Nova acknowledged with a slight nod, then smoothly transitioned to the second matter at hand. His gaze settled once more on Darius. “Now, onto the next topic. Tell me—how do you control fire?”

  Darius blinked, momentarily uncertain. “What do you mean, Boss?”

  Nova clarified, his voice measured. “I’m asking whether your manipulation of fire is external—drawing and directing the element from the environment—or if you convert your internal Mana into a fire aspect and then release it.”

  Although initially perplexed, Darius chose to respond by detailing his personal experience. “To learn it, I had to subject myself to repeated exposure—burning myself over and over until my Mana eventually adapted and changed to the fire element. When I cast it, I channel the Mana from within. But every time I do… it burns me from the inside.”

  Nova stared down, lost in thought, Darius’ explanation swirling in his mind. A rough picture was forming—one that connected more pieces than he expected.

  ‘The fire Mana particles must’ve entered his body through his skin when it came into contact with fire. I guess they slowly gathered in his body and, over time, ended up changing his Mana.’

  ‘Is this the most primal, unrefined way to wield an element? Even cruder than the first method...’ His brow furrowed. ‘But it also explains why Alaric was so badly injured after forcing himself past his limit. He must’ve been burning his insides too.’

  ‘This isn’t good.’

  Pulling himself from the spiral of thought, he raised his head and asked, “Is the process reversible? Can you go back to using neutral Mana?”

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