As Ash sat down in a lotus position and began to ditate, his breathing slowed, and his senses drew inward.
He focused on the center of his chest, where his magic circle resided. With his inner vision, the intricate formation soon ca into view, softly glowing like a familiar old friend.
He stared at it quietly for a few monts. It was strange—just a few months ago, he had ford this circle with such excitent, believing it to be the start of his magical journey. And now, here he was, about to destroy it.
A strange wave of nostalgia washed over him, as if he were saying goodbye to a piece of himself. But he pushed those feelings aside. This was not the ti for sentint.
Gritting his teeth, Ash willed the mana within the circle to go berserk, to twist and turn and force the structure to collapse under pressure.
The magic circle resisted. As expected, it clung to its existence, unwilling to shatter so easily.
It was like a battle of wills, a tug-of-war between him and the magic system that had beco a part of him.
But Ash didn't back down. His resolve surged, and with unwavering determination, he forced his will to dominate.
And then—
A sharp CRACK echoed through his consciousness.
The circle shattered.
It fractured into countless shimring pieces before dissolving completely.
Ash felt a brief pulse of pain, but also an odd sense of liberation. He was lucky—he had only ford his first circle. If he had advanced further, the resistance would've been far more intense, and the destruction might've caused even greater damage.
Still, the mont the circle broke, the mana contained within it was unleashed. Wild and untad, it surged through his body like a storm, raging without direction.
It targeted his ridians, threatening to rupture them, and even reached toward his heart, trying to burn everything from within.
But then, just as the chaotic energy reached its peak, a chanical voice echoed in his mind, calm and emotionless:
[Protective Override Activated]
The effect was instantaneous.
The rampaging mana slowed as if soothed by so invisible force. Its fury lted away, and it gently redirected itself inward.
Instead of causing harm, the energy flowed directly into Ash's core and was absorbed smoothly, disappearing into the depths like rainwater into thirsty earth.
The mana now rested quietly within his core, dormant, waiting patiently for his call.
I totally forgot about this... Ash thought, watching as the Protective Override activated, sparing him hassle and saving precious ti.
"You really are strange one. There's no reaction at all after your Mana Circle was destroyed," Solareth said, his voice carrying a hint of shock.
Can he sense it...? Ash wondered nervously as Solareth asked, "Can you sense what's happening inside my body?"
"Of course I can. At my level, anyone can sense that."
Ash hesitated for a mont before asking, "What is your level then?"
Slightly amused, Solareth replied, "Around the power of Saints, according to your ranking system."
He is that powerful. I guessed he'd be at that level, but can he really sense inside ? Isn't it hidden by the Rune of Concealnt? Can he sense my core too? And if he can sense all that, why did he ask if I can do magic?
"Then why did you ask if I can do magic if you can sense what's inside ?" Ash pressed.
Solareth's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Well, didn't you rember I said you have sothing that hides everything from my vision? I thought you allowed to look, so I was able to see. Is it not even in your control?"
Does that an the Rune of Concealnt subconsciously knows what I want and hides or reveals things based on that?
Ash felt like he was close to unraveling another mystery, but he quickly responded, "Nah, just testing sothing. Now tell what to do—I've destroyed my magic circle."
Solareth fell silent. He stared at Ash sitting below him, his rainbow-colored eyes glowing softly.
Ash was covered from head to toe in a web of golden threads, not a single inch of his body visible beneath the shimring strands.
He was connected to so many destinies that it was almost impossible to comprehend.
It's only growing stronger and more tangled, Solareth thought, watching the increasing number of threads.
One of the threads connected directly to him, shining a little brighter than the rest. Two others linked to mbers of his own family.
But among them, one thread stood out—bright red, thick, and stretching far into the void.
Is that his Soul Partner? Maybe she's the one he talked about.
Solareth's thoughts grew heavier. I don't know if what I'm doing is right, but I can feel fate getting more tangled as ti goes on.
Is it really okay to keep the Fate Disruptor alive? I killed him before, but he revived. He can't be killed—so what's the point? I don't know.
Fate should've thought twice before taking my daughter from . At first, I thought he was nothing but a pest, but after seeing how he revived, maybe now I can give fate a gift worth rembering... heh.
Then Solareth placed his finger gently on Ash's forehead, attempting to transmit information directly into his mind, but imdiately encountered a strong resistance.
"What the hell are you? I can't even send information to you like this," Solareth said, looking at Ash with a mix of confusion and curiosity.
Ash smiled faintly, just enough to show a hint of amusent, and signaled him to try again.
Quietly, Ash willed his mind to allow only the incoming information while blocking everything else that might interfere.
He wasn't sure if this thod would work, but he gave it a try. Fortunately, it did.
Soon, Ash's mind beca filled with detailed knowledge about the runes, as if a floodgate had opened and the information poured in steadily and clearly.
So basically, in runic magic, it's all about manifesting power from words. The stronger the word and the clearer its aning, the more powerful the magic it produces.
There are around twenty symbols that form the foundation of this magic system. Each symbol has its own distinct aning, but many symbols carry multiple related anings.
For example, one symbol stands for stability, but it also includes ideas like equanimity, tranquility, firmness, solidity, soundness, anchorage, foundation, and many more. All these anings revolve around a similar core idea, but each shade adds depth and nuance.
If you can figure out the right combination of these anings between different symbols, the magic will manifest accordingly.
For instance, if you combine a word like ignite with a symbol like stability, the power will increase and beco stronger. The result is a stable fire—fire that burns with control and steadiness rather than wild chaos.
So basically, it works like the magic in many novels, except instead of moving mana around, you use your willpower to command and manifest specific words.
Although explaining it is easy, actually doing it is much harder. According to the mories, unicorns and other mythical beasts like dragons can perform this magic naturally through their bloodline.
It's written into their blood, and the blood acts like an anchor that holds the power steady.
Think of the blood like a cell phone tower that stores all the anings of the symbols deeply embedded inside it. The "signal" we receive is the user's willpower sending commands through that tower.
Another way to think about it is the internet. You type a query, and it shows results. The blood is like the internet infrastructure, the typing is the command sent by your will, and the search result is the magic you get.
This system acts like a middleman, performing magic according to your wishes by interpreting your commands. But eventually, there is a limit.
The symbols have countless anings—so so strange or vast that no one fully understands them. If you can't imagine a aning, how could it be known to you? So not all anings were present in the bloodlines of these creatures.
According to information, the true symbols are ever-changing. The recorded knowledge only includes what their ancestors were able to comprehend from those symbols and store in their bloodline.
Only four or five symbols were present in the unicorn bloodline. Solareth gave Ash knowledge of one of those symbols.
I see… those ever-changing symbols must be the Runes. Maybe their ancestors tried to comprehend the Runes when they weren't in a locked state and understood at least a part of their true anings.
They probably managed to store that understanding within their bloodline, passing it down from generation to generation.
Which eventually beca the foundation of Runic magic.
And the information related to the Rune of Stability… it's a bit too overwhelming for my head to handle all at once. It honestly feels like a headache every ti I activate Omni Thought.
Was that the reason why those mythical ancestor beasts decided to store the knowledge directly inside their bloodlines? Because the sheer amount of information was too much for a mind to process normally?
But what about … Do I also need to comprehend these anings personally? And if so, what will act as my anchor? Will it be my soul? The Rune itself? Or maybe sothing completely different?
Ash didn't know the answer, so he rubbed his head, trying to ease the slight throbbing, and asked softly, "What will be my anchor?"
To that, Solareth replied in a calm but serious tone, "I don't know. You'll have to figure that out on your own. Didn't I already tell you? You have to think through everything and create everything by yourself."
"The most I can do is provide information. And even then, I've only shared the knowledge of one of the symbols with you. If you want to learn more… you'll have to pay so kind of price. It can't be given freely."
Solareth then turned to leave, but as he walked away, he added with a hint of amusent in his voice, "Now that I've given you your paynt, just feed my child three tis a day for a month."
"Once that's done, leave. And maybe… just maybe, if you return after that, I'll give you the information of another symbol."
Saying that, he walked away into the distance.
Ash quietly watched Solareth's back as he left. Even though he didn't receive the knowledge of the remaining four symbols, Ash didn't feel disappointed.
Why would soone pay to recharge their phone when they themselves own the entire data company?
He had the real Runes.
So why would he bother chasing secondhand interpretations of their anings?
There was even a chance that he wouldn't need to understand their deeper anings at all. Maybe, once he collected all the Runes, he could just manifest the power behind any word through sheer will.
He could already see the image in his mind—himself standing tall amidst the battlefield, casting powerful magic with nothing but spoken words like "Slow" and "Stop," each syllable bending the flow of reality itself.
While his sword slashing through enemies with unmatched elegance and strength. A perfect fusion of magic and blade, overwhelming anyone who dared to face him.
Just imagining it gave Ash goosebumps, but he quickly cald himself down.
For now, he had to try. He needed to test if he could actually use the Runic magic.
***
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