I’m Here to End This Fight

Chapter 12. Mana (1)

For a long time, the Enrite Unified Empire had ruled the continent of Layment.

But that was now a story from decades ago.

The empire had collapsed due to the Sword Master, and the continent had been divided into fifteen administrative districts.

A new governing administrative system created by the Sword Master.

Each administrative district had territories comparable to a kingdom, with dozens of estates within it, forming a new system.

The Croton Administrative District, where the Irons estate was located, was situated in the north of the continent, surrounded on three sides by the sea.

Naturally, the sea route heading south had developed.

Among these, Chrome, where merchant ships and passenger ships had been continuously coming and going since ancient times, was the largest port city in the Croton Administrative District.

As befitted its reputation, dozens of sailing ships left Chrome Port every day.

The medium-sized passenger ship carrying Yuri and Johan was one of them.

Flap-.

The passenger ship, which had left Chrome Port, caught the favorable wind and swelled its sails.

Splash-.

Cutting through the waves, the passenger ship advanced quickly, and the four-week voyage to the Niger Administrative District began.

And inside a shabby two-person cabin.

Johan looked down at the unconscious Yuri.

“Ugh……”

Yuri, who had fainted to the point where he couldn’t wake up easily, groaned in pain.

Johan looked down at him with a hint of absurdity in his eyes.

“What a stubborn kid.”

It was pure admiration.

‘I didn’t think he’d actually do it.’

The day he had imparted knowledge about mana and magic power to Yuri.

He had promised to introduce Yuri to mana if he could reduce the four-day journey to Chrome Port to two days.

Although Johan had set the condition of two days, he had thought it was practically impossible.

Cutting the four-day journey in half was only possible if one ran day and night without resting.

No matter how much stamina Yuri had gained recently, it was nearly impossible for someone who hadn’t even accumulated mana yet.

But Yuri had accomplished the impossible.

Purely through sheer willpower.

‘He’s lost all manners, but his determination is remarkable.’

Yuri had heroically collapsed at the entrance of Chrome Port after completing the four-day journey in two days.

A slight smile appeared on Johan’s lips as he recalled this.

But the warm smile quickly turned into a sinister one.

“Pfft, such a naive boy.”

The kid probably didn’t know.

Even if he hadn’t pushed himself to reach Chrome Port, Johan had planned to finish the stamina training and slowly move on to the next stage.

If the unconscious Yuri knew this, he would probably grind his teeth in frustration.

Johan’s face lit up with a gentle smile as he imagined it.

“It’s fun to torment him because he reacts to every little provocation.”

At first, he had provoked Yuri moderately to draw out his motivation.

But now, he was teasing him more because Yuri’s fierce reactions were amusing.

Recently, it was Johan’s only pleasure.

“Is this why old men train disciples? If it’s this fun, one wouldn’t be bored in their later years.”

…Johan muttered something that would have driven Yuri crazy if he had heard it.

Then he erased his smile and reached out toward Yuri.

Soon, Johan’s hands started to knead Yuri’s entire body.

Face, body, arms, and legs.

Johan’s hands roamed Yuri’s body without hesitation, and each touch was meticulous.

Soon, steam began to rise from Yuri’s entire body.

Sizzle-.

The smoky, foul-smelling vapor soon dispersed into the air.

Simultaneously, Johan’s touch became even more careful.

Crack- snap-.

Strange sounds came from various parts of Yuri’s body.

The process of torn muscles from excessive exercise reconnecting and twisted bones and joints gradually aligning.

What would have originally taken a long time, Johan’s powerful mana was rapidly shortening.

Moreover, this wasn’t just a process of reducing time.

Crackle- snap-.

The newly formed muscles and bones were aligning in a way that would help Yuri learn the Magic Body Technique in the future.

This consumed an enormous amount of mana and required a high understanding of the human body, making it a dangerous procedure.

A high-level procedure that prestigious families would hide and only perform for their successors.

Johan was performing such a task casually, also, every time Yuri fainted.

Yuri feeling his body recovering and becoming healthier every time he fainted was all thanks to Johan’s efforts.

Crackle- snap-.

As time passed, the sounds from Yuri’s body gradually diminished and finally disappeared completely, at which point Johan removed his hands from Yuri.

“Whew……”

Johan let out a sigh, his face slightly tired.

No matter how powerful he was, the procedure just now had consumed a considerable amount of mental energy.

However, despite his tired face, Johan’s eyes were shining brightly.

“…He’s a natural martial artist.”

A body born with innate strength, or resilient muscles, good vision, and so on.

There were many conditions that could be called a martial artist.

But Yuri’s condition was a bit more peculiar.

‘What a strange body.’

At first, Johan had been quite disappointed with Yuri’s ordinary physique.

But as time went on, he felt a sense of discomfort.

And when he finally realized the source of that discomfort, he was astonished.

‘How can a human body be so symmetrical?!’

People have different left and right faces.

Additionally, they are divided into left-handed and right-handed individuals.

Feet are the same.

Of course, there are those who use both hands and feet, but they still have a dominant side.

Accordingly, the degree of development varies.

But Yuri was different.

He used his hands and feet almost equally, and their development was similar.

The funniest part was that Yuri did all this unconsciously without realizing it.

Moreover, with each of Johan’s procedures, Yuri’s body became more symmetrical.

‘A symmetrical body means balance.’

This was a huge advantage in learning the Magic Body Technique.

‘Although his body isn’t perfectly symmetrical yet, if he achieves and masters it in the future…….’

If he could do that, it would become a great weapon for Yuri.

It was a good sign.

But not everything was optimistic.

‘It’s worse than I thought.’

The day he first met this kid, he had roughly realized it while examining the unconscious Yuri’s body.

That Yuri’s body was in worse condition than he had thought.

But now, seeing it again, it was several times more dangerous than he had initially assessed.

‘How is this kid even alive?’

Given his body’s condition, it wouldn’t have been surprising if he had died on the streets long ago.

It was almost a miracle that he was still breathing.

‘I’ve barely managed to keep his fragile life thread attached…….’

But that didn’t mean Yuri was out of danger.

The minor adjustments he made while Yuri was unconscious were merely temporary measures.

Unless the fundamental issue of imbalance was resolved, the barely maintained balance would collapse again.

‘Now that his physical shortcomings have been somewhat addressed through the procedures, it’s time to replenish his energy.’

Energy.

In other words, if mana were to be infused, he would be able to overcome the critical juncture.

As Johan pondered this while gazing down at Yuri.

“…Why are you staring at me so intently with that gross look?”

Yuri had woken up and was squinting his eyes open.

“When did I ever look at you grossly?”

“Just now.”

“Don’t worry, I don’t have that kind of preference.”

“What kind of preference?”

“The kind you’re imagining.”

“I wasn’t imagining anything?”

“…If you weren’t, then why are you sneaking away?”

“For the reason you’re imagining?”

As Johan said, Yuri was squirming his butt and slowly moving away from Johan.

Even managing to wriggle sideways while lying down was quite a feat.

“You little rascal……”

When Johan’s brow twitched, Yuri stopped fooling around and got up to look around.

“Where are we?”

“You sure ask quickly.”

Johan sighed lightly and informed him that they were on a passenger ship heading to Niger.

Nodding, Yuri suddenly jumped up and shouted.

“Oh, right! The promise!”

“Hm?”

“You said you’d tell me if we made it in two days! About mana!”

“Tsk, I haven’t forgotten. Sit down.”

“Then?”

“I’ll tell you now.”

Since he was planning to tell him anyway, there was no reason to delay.

“Woohoo!”

Excited, Yuri quickly ran up to Johan and knelt down.

“Hurry, hurry!”

It was the first time Johan had seen Yuri so eager since they met, and it made him feel slightly awkward.

Johan cleared his throat and began to speak.

“Ahem! Mana is the origin of all things and exists everywhere in the world.”

“Mhm!”

“Also, a regular martial art only becomes a Magic Body Technique when it contains energy. Thus, the basics of Magic Body Technique are also mana.”

“Mhm!”

“…Do you even understand what I’m saying, nodding your head like that?”

“Yes!”

Yuri nodded his head vigorously.

Johan couldn’t help but feel a bit curious seeing Yuri listening more intently than ever.

‘How much talent does this kid have for mana?’

A soul capable of summoning an Avatar.

A perfectly symmetrical martial artist’s body.

The talent of his soul and body was beyond Johan’s imagination.

If his talent for mana was outstanding too?

No, even if his talent for mana was just above average…….

‘This kid’s growth rate might be much faster than I thought.’

Johan swallowed dryly and spoke.

“Then let’s begin. Sit comfortably in a meditative posture.”

“Here?”

“Yes. Straighten your back and breathe comfortably.”

“Should I close my eyes too?”

“If it’s comfortable.”

No sooner had he said that than Yuri closed his eyes and assumed a meditative posture.

Huff- huff-.

Yuri’s small breaths continued, and Johan’s calm voice overlaid them.

“Entering the world of mana begins with sensing mana. From now on, I will release mana around you. So, feel it. The mana.”

A very small number of prodigies, born with extraordinary sensitivity to mana, could sense and comprehend it on their own.

Such individuals instinctively accumulated mana in their bodies from a young age.

Unfortunately, Yuri wasn’t to that extent.

Currently, there was no mana in Yuri’s body.

If Yuri had held mana, Johan would have been the first to know.

Therefore, Johan intended to use the common method of mana perception, assuming Yuri’s talent was ordinary.

That was none other than increasing the mana density around the target.

The earlier the target sensed mana at a lower density, the higher their mana talent was considered.

‘Now, show me your talent.’

Johan, his eyes shining, released mana around Yuri.

The mana density quickly increased.

In that moment.

Something happened that even Johan couldn’t predict.

‘……?!’

The mana Johan had released…….

Swish-.

Was being absorbed by Yuri.

At an incredible speed.