Chapter 332

332 Carrot and Stick #6

As the massive claw was about to tear my body apart, someone grabbed me.

“Hey, that’s dangerous. Phew, I thought I was in big trouble there!”

Even though I was completely disoriented, I could still feel that my body was floating up high.

“This place isn’t for amateurs. The living aren’t allowed here, and even if you’re a bl**d-related sibling, you’ll get torn apart without mercy. Then you’ll end up bound here underground forever.”

Who are you, exactly?

I looked at the strange man who had a hold of me. He wore a winged cap and shoes and carried a long staff, but his face was obscured by an impossible halo of light, making it difficult for me to see clearly. However, one thing was certain: the man talked a lot and very fast.

“I’ll take you back to the top, so hang on tight. No one but me, Mercury, can do this with such speed and precision.”

Mercury?

“Anyway, you need to achieve at least an overall stat value of 50 before you attempt to open the gate here. Oh, and here’s a message from my father: confidence is key when dealing with women.”

What is this supposed to mean?

Before I could say anything, I was suddenly thrown back with a strange force.

“Aaaaah!”

When I came to, I felt something cold splash onto my hands and feet. Glancing around, I saw nothing but the dim, shabby inn room with its bed, window, and curtains swaying gently in the breeze. Gone were the strange darkness and the massive gate.

“What the hell, what just happened? d*mn, that was really weird.”

I wiped the cold sweat off my face with my palms. I was soaked as if I had been caught in a downpour, clearly not in a normal state.

“Looks like I got caught in a mana feedback.”

I could sense Elpride watching me. She sat on the bed, reading some book, and without looking up, she added a few words.

“You can sometimes fall into such a meditative state when practicing unfamiliar forms of meditation. Elf martial monks call this ‘demonic transformation.’ You might see illusions or hallucinations.”

Demonic transformation, huh?

Had I fallen into some strange state like in martial arts novels while meditating?

“So, does that mean everything I just saw was a lie?”

“I don’t know what you saw, but probably. It’s best not to force yourself out to avoid making it worse, so I didn’t wake you.”

Huh, so it was all a dream after all.

I felt a bit relieved knowing that everything I’d just witnessed wasn’t real. But as I wiped the cold water off my hands, I noticed a strange handprint etched into my wrist—exactly where Mercury had grabbed me in my vision.

If it was all just an illusion or imagination, how could a mark like this be left behind? I began to feel that what I had seen was not a fabrication.

That massive gate.

And the things cowering within it.

Could that place be the entrance to Hell, the final destination of Pluto’s labyrinth that everyone had been searching for? I couldn’t think of any other explanation.

The thought made a chill run down my spine. Had I almost been dragged into Hell during my meditative state?

Was this some kind of near-d*ath experience during a trance? The prospect of what might have happened without Mercury’s help was terrifying.

Thank you, Mercury!

I gave thanks to the god of messengers and travelers who had helped me during my meditation. Whether or not he received it, well, that’s not my problem.

Anyway, it sounds like I had an interesting experience there.

Karma said to come when it reached 50. Could the Underworld be something like a special dungeon with a 50-level entry restriction?

“So, can you feel mana now? You were in meditation all evening.”

Elpride slammed the book she had been reading. Only then did I notice how dark it had become outside the window.

The brief moment that felt like seconds had, in reality, lasted hours. It was somewhat disorienting, but it seemed that the meditation had at least been productive. So, I focused on my surroundings to see if I could sense mana.

Sshhrrr…

Something cold like melting snow began to cling to my skin. Of course, it was autumn, so there shouldn’t be any snow here. It was a very strange, tingling sensation that made the back of my neck tingle.

Is this… is this mana?

Could I, truly, be sensing mana right now?

I was overwhelmed with awe.

I was so shocked and moved that if Elpride hadn’t been watching me, I might have broken out into some kind of ecstatic dance like the one Luna does during rain.

Elpride spoke to my slightly dazed state.

“I didn’t think you’d be able to sense mana after just a day.”

“Is that supposed to be impressive?”

“Yeah. You usually wouldn’t achieve that level of mana sensitivity unless you reached a state akin to d*ath. Are you becoming some kind of god?”

The young mages in training would probably spit bl**d at what you’re doing, Elpride remarked with a slight tone of annoyance.

If others were like that, they would need significant practice and time investment. But I didn’t care much about that.

“Well, anyway, can I cast magic now? Something like a fireball?”

“No, you’ve just taken your first steps. The real work starts now.”

“sh*t.”

*

Elpride was right.

Being able to sense the mana in the air was great, but sensing it didn’t mean I could use magic yet.

I was barely at the starting line.

Three days, four days, five days passed, and while I had quickly gained the ability to sense mana, learning magic was turning out to be way harder than expected.

“Right in the center of your palm, gather the mana there. No, don’t scatter it, gather it!”

“What does that even mean?”

“Don’t scatter it, gather!”

“How do I do it?”

For real, how do you do it?

Even with Elpride’s pointed-out location on my palm, I stared at it intently, trying to gather mana while straining my brain until the veins popped, but it didn’t work.

“There are quite a few people who can sense mana, but only about a third of them can actually use magic.”

“And of those, the ones who can use offensive magic are even fewer?”

“Exactly, you get it.”

Where had I heard this before? It was similar to what Belmina, the ice-attribute mage I met when I first entered Pluto’s labyrinth at Bronze Tier, had said. Only a few people can sense mana, and even fewer can use it, and among those, the ones who can wield practical and offensive magic are exceptionally rare.

I asked.

“Is necromancy the same?”

“Yeah, it’s similarly difficult. You need to have affinity with the hellish powers, so most necromancers tend to lose their minds.”

sh*t.

How had I managed that before?

Back when I could just wave my fingers and raise Bone Goblins without any of this complicated theory. Now thinking about it, it almost felt like I was using some kind of game cheat.

If my power hadn’t been sealed back then, what would have happened? Would my mind have been corrupted further by the hellish power?

I don’t know.

What was clear was that Baron Fleur’s deadline was nearly up—I had less than two days left—and it seemed unlikely I’d learn the Light Vessel spell in time.

“Hmph.”

After calming my breathing, I tried to gather a sphere of light in my palm, but the energies that had started to gather only dispersed at a certain point, leaving me exhausted.

“Magic is all about imagination, stupid. Imagine the form of the magic you want to create. Picture what it would look like when you cast it.”

Imagine it?

I tried to visualize myself using magic.

Magic warrior Hassan. Extremely powerful. And once I fully learn necromancy from Baron Fleur, I’ll become a true necromancer, not a hack, and I’ll definitely be insanely strong.

Necromancer.

No, Necromancer Sultan.

Necromancer Sultan Hassan.

Lord of the Underworld, Sultan Hassan.

And, as I’ve heard, sultans have harems that are off-limits to others, filled with pretty women. It’s a genre rule.

Even though it was all imaginary, these thoughts made me feel incredibly motivated and eager.

“Ho-! Light, come to me!”

“You don’t need that dramatic intro.”

“sh*t.”

“It is true that incantations can serve as self-suggestions, so they do help, though.”

That night, I spent hours trying to gather light in my palm. And on the last day that Baron Fleur gave me—

“Master Hassan, Lady Luna sent me to check on you… Are your magical practice sessions going well?”

Paranoi approached me in the cheap inn where I was having breakfast, having learned of my whereabouts through Luna.

“Just… it’s fine.”

“Master Hassan, you should be good with Light Vessel by now… Here, let me show you!”

Swoosh…

Paranoi raised a palm, and a glowing orb of light began to form in their hand. Seeing this, I was thoroughly amazed.

“Wait, you can use magic too?”

“Master, what do you take me for? The amount of mana I possess rivals that of any decent mage!”

Indeed, Paranoi was a former cultist, and nymphs themselves are known to naturally have an affinity for mana, with most of them able to use magic.

sh*t, knowing that Paranoi could do this, and knowing I couldn’t, made me feel surprisingly frustrated.

“And Lady Luna wants to know why she was gripping your buttocks tightly in your dreams!”

“What is this you’re saying?!”

Ultimately, as the final day passed…

“I need to master the Light Vessel spell today.”

Evening fell and yet…

“For a week now, I’ve meditated deeply and trained to the point where my nose bled, but I haven’t managed it. Such a waste.”

“You’ve accomplished quite a bit in just a week. It would’ve taken a regular mage about a year to reach that level.”

“I know, but time is now running out.”

“Yeah, time is running out.”

Elpride, however, remained unruffled no matter the situation.

I understood. No matter how urgent my situation was, it was my issue. Elpride’s only role was to teach me the methods.

So, in that sense, she had done her best, teaching me all she knew.

There’s nothing I can do about it.

The opportunity for Baron Fleur’s sponsorship is probably lost. Still, I managed to awaken and train my mana sensitivity, making it a fruitful week.

I’ll just need to find a new noble sponsor. Though I don’t personally know any nobles, maybe Lady Enya could help me in some way.

Still, the feeling of regret lingers.

At that moment, a thought struck me.

“Hey, Elpride, didn’t you say that staves or something can help you use magic more easily?”

“…”

At my words, Elpride, who had been reading a book on the bed by candlelight, looked up. Her red eyes, visible between the falling strands of her silver hair, seemed unusually ominous.

“If you do that, there will be irreversible consequences. Do you think you can handle it? Once addicted to magic, there may be no return.”

“But didn’t you tell me about it first? Why the sudden scary warning?”

But I can’t back down now.

I’m truly out of time.

“Fine, so what? It can’t be that bad.”

“Alright, then lie down on the bed and take off your shirt.”

“What? You want me to strip? What are you trying to do?”

“You’ll see.”

Elpride splashed some liquid over her legs and bare feet, which smelled of peaches. The strange fragrance made my head spin slightly.

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