At the westernmost edge of the Carseon Empire stood Kellion, a prestigious family renowned for black magic.
The Kellion Family had amassed enormous wealth through the creation of chimera guards, surgical operations, and strategic supplies utilizing the undead.
Mitchell Kellion, born the eldest son of such a family, was its unwanted black sheep.
There were two main reasons.
The bastard who had devoured his mother to be born.
An ill-fated genius.
His mother, who had always been frail, had died giving birth to Mitchell, so he had no memories of her at all.
But he did not particularly resent that.
He might have felt differently if he had once possessed it and then lost it, but maternal love was something he had never experienced in the first place, so its absence never truly struck home.
Instead, the Mana Rampage he suffered at the age of ten left Mitchell with a far greater sense of loss.
“The Eldest Young Master…… will likely never be able to wield mana again.”
A Mana Rampage was the worst possible calamity a mage could experience.
It destroyed both the Mana Hole and Mana Circuits within the body, robbing Mitchell of his once-brilliant talent.
The family genius, born with exceptionally resilient Mana Circuits, an enormous Mana Hole, and even a talent for soul magic, had fallen from grace in an instant.
But the people of the family initially tried to cure Mitchell.
He had been the Eldest Young Master from birth and had been called a genius.
As retainers of the family, they had no choice but to run themselves ragged searching for a way to restore his body.
“Family Head, we will begin preparations for experiments to restore the Eldest Young Master’s body.”
“I will search for anything that might help. If we can obtain an elixir, matters should become considerably easier.”
However, the Family Head shook his head at their words.
“I can always have more children. Do not waste the family’s strength on something pointless.”
The Family Head’s orders were absolute.
All the more so when those orders came from a 7th-rank black mage who had reached the level of Master.
And so even those who had been willing to help followed his will and stopped paying Mitchell any attention.
Instead, all that attention shifted to a child of the secondary wife who happened to possess talent in magic.
Naturally, the family’s support that had once been directed toward the Eldest Young Master, its heir, was withdrawn piece by piece.
‘Why…… Why is everyone suddenly acting like this……?’
The servants who had attended to him disappeared, and he was moved from his large, lavish room to an annex tucked away in a corner of the estate.
The banquets he had once enjoyed alone in the enormous dining hall were replaced by ordinary meals delivered by a servant—no, meals that had thrown any concern for taste far, far away.
Even the retainers who had tried to grow close to him by teaching him whatever little things they knew stopped showing their faces after the Mana Rampage.
Having spent his entire life receiving the family’s undivided attention, Mitchell could not believe the sudden change.
But the young Mitchell believed that everything was his fault.
He thought they hated him because he could no longer use magic.
‘If I can use magic again, everything will go back to the way it was.’
He decided to study magic as a way to regain their love and attention.
But without the family’s support, his only option was self-study, so Mitchell immediately headed to the family library.
“Whoa, there are so many…….”
Countless books filled the shelves.
Until then, he had learned magic from books brought to him by his private tutors, so this was his first time entering the library.
“But…… where do I even start?”
The sheer number of books made his head spin, but Mitchell steeled himself.
He believed everything would return to normal if he could use magic again.
‘There!’
Mitchell blindly headed toward the bookshelf closest to the entrance.
He climbed a ladder, took the book tucked deepest into the corner, and sat down at a table.
Mitchell was clever enough to have been called a genius.
But the book was far too difficult for a ten-year-old child to understand. Even so, Mitchell read it.
Even when he could not understand what he was reading, he forced himself to keep turning the pages.
After carefully reading it from beginning to end, he immediately took out the next book beside it and began reading that one.
It was a brute-force method, but for Mitchell, who had been left alone after his Mana Rampage, it was the best method available.
And two years passed like that.
***
Mitchell rapidly turned the pages of a book.
He lingered on each page for barely an instant, and in only thirty minutes, he closed the book he had brought with him.
THUD.
“Whew…… That’s finally the last one.”
Over the past two years, he had carefully read every book in the library.
Whenever he encountered something he could not understand, he read it again and again, managing to commit most of their contents to memory.
But he had failed to find what he wanted.
‘There’s no way to fix my body.’
He drew a deep breath in frustration, and the library’s distinctive musty smell filled his nose.
At first, he had hated the smell.
Now, he had grown quite accustomed to it.
Two years was long enough to grow fond of something one had once hated.
And it was also enough time for Mitchell to grow.
But if he desires more than that, if he wants his life to improve, he must do something else.
The ferocity to never let go once he has bitten down, the perseverance to never stop after taking up a sword until he has swung it thousands and tens of thousands of times, and the fighting spirit to never turn his back in fear.
Only by never forgetting these things can one advance toward a new life.>
Those words came from the heroic chronicle of the first Knight King.
He had taken up the sword and trained endlessly until he became a Master. Then, as heroic chronicles always went, he defeated his enemies and became revered.
What mattered was that he, like Mitchell, had been abandoned by his family and climbed all the way up from the very bottom.
Because of that, his words had left a deep impression on Mitchell.
Mitchell might have held a book instead of a sword, but he did not think the two were all that different.
So he gathered his resolve and made a vow to himself.
‘For now, I’ll do whatever I can! I can use a spell called Soul Drain. If I can use magic that advanced, Father and the family will pay attention to me again!’
Soul Drain was a support spell that absorbed and stored souls, but surprisingly, it was a high-level spell.
That was because it required no mana at all, relying solely on affinity with and control over souls.
For that reason, only black mages of the 7th rank or higher who had reached Master—and even among them, masters of soul magic—could use it.
Occasionally, someone overflowing with talent might manage to use it before becoming a Master.
But for Mitchell, whose damaged Mana Circuits prevented him from using other magic, this was the only spell he could delve into.
Mitchell took the grimoire containing the formula for Soul Drain and headed for the training grounds this time.
And another long three years passed.
***
Mitchell focused solely on mastering Soul Drain.
When he finally became capable of using it perfectly, he emerged from the training grounds.
Mitchell believed that now that he could use magic, he could become a member of the family again.
But that belief had been far too foolish.
“What? He mastered Soul Drain and finally came out? That boy really is tenacious.”
“Hah. Even after suffering a Mana Rampage, I suppose inborn talent does not simply disappear.”
“And what good does that do him? He can’t use any other magic.”
“That’s true, but…… isn’t it still impressive? A child spent five whole years working at something and managed to achieve a result like that. His perseverance deserves recognition, at least. The Family Head might even take an interest in him.”
“Come now, do not say such pointless things. Can you not tell from the fact that the Family Head still has not summoned him? If he hears you and starts hoping again, it will only hurt him more.”
The reactions around him were cold.
No one had any reason to take an interest in Mitchell when he had no potential for further growth.
Moreover, while Mitchell had practically lived in the library and training grounds, his younger half-sibling had already become a 4th-rank black mage.
‘Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!’
For a time, Mitchell despaired countless times and cried countless tears.
But then he sprang back to his feet.
He remembered that if he wanted more than merely surviving, if he wanted his life to improve, he had to do something else.
To accomplish that, he had to stop being the wounded young master of a prestigious family and become someone who had survived from the very bottom.
At that moment, Mitchell decided to cast aside his former self completely and thought about what he would do next.
‘I’m going to fix my body and leave the family. I picked up a clue while mastering Soul Drain.’
The problem was that he needed a great many souls to do it.
And the souls of serious criminals lay dormant within the family’s training cave.
‘I need to meet Father…… No, the Family Head.’
After organizing his thoughts, Mitchell left his room to meet the Family Head.
As he walked, he spotted a servant carrying food toward him.
The moment Mitchell saw the servant, he lowered his head and stared at the ground.
He had always done so until now.
Because he had believed everything was his fault, he had found it difficult to meet the eyes of anyone in the family.
‘Damn it. I just decided I was going to change, and what am I doing?’
Had he not decided to be reborn as someone new?
Mitchell straightened his hunched back, pushed out his chest, and spoke in a bright, cheerful voice.
“You’re the servant assigned to me now, right?”
“……Yes, Young Master.”
“It’s been so long since I saw your face that I nearly forgot. Anyway, just leave the food there and go. I’ve got something to do.”
The Eldest Young Master had always been taciturn, doing nothing but training.
The servant’s pupils trembled at his suddenly changed demeanor.
Mitchell smiled and resumed walking, and every servant and attendant he passed began whispering among themselves as they watched him.
When Mitchell finally arrived outside the Family Head’s study, he encountered another familiar face.
“It’s been a long time, Fourth Elder. I think this is the first time I’ve seen you since I moved into the annex. Have you been well?”
“W-Well…….”
“You look like you’ve been doing well. I came to see the Family Head. He’s inside, isn’t he?”
He carried himself with complete confidence.
Faced with someone who seemed so completely changed, Elder Sa could only nod.
“That’s good.”
Mitchell gave him a cursory greeting, then threw open the doors to the study and walked inside.
It was an act utterly devoid of etiquette, but Mitchell was in no position to concern himself with such things.
He had come to make a deal.
“It has been a long time.”
“Yes. It truly has been a long time, Family Head.”
“What brings you here?”
Raul Kellion, Head of the Kellion Family.
There was not the slightest trace of affection for his son in his black eyes.
He had been the same when Mitchell was young.
To his father, his children were nothing more than pieces among the countless chess pieces belonging to the family.
That was why Mitchell had always shrunk back whenever he looked into those eyes.
But not now.
Mitchell drew a deep breath and opened his mouth.
“I came to make a deal.”
Only then did Raul’s expression change, as though he had finally found something interesting.
A cold smile soon formed on his lips.
“Very well. Speak.”
“I want to use the family’s seclusion training cave.”
“You said you came to make a deal, so should you not also tell me what you intend to give?”
“I will use whatever I gain from the training cave for the sake of the family.”
Mitchell spoke as confidently and boldly as he could.
He had nothing left but his own body.
So he was telling Raul that he would achieve something in the training cave and use it to contribute to the family.
‘Of course, I’ve got no intention of actually doing that.’
But Raul smiled as though he could see straight through Mitchell’s intentions and began tapping the desk with his long, pale fingers.
Then he spoke.
“You talk as though you are certain you can emerge from the training cave with your body restored.”
“Yes. I found a clue. That’s why I’m trying to enter the training cave.”
“But that is not a deal. It is an investment. And I am not fond of investments with no prospects. Tell me again what you will offer.”
Mitchell clenched his teeth.
If he failed to convince his father here, he had no way to restore his body.
“But I have nothing. Why don’t you make the investment?”
“No. You do have something. Hand over the money.”
“What? All I have are a few pieces of jewelry Mother left me…….”
“Hmm. It seems you do not know. Your mother left you an inheritance in the Imperial Bank. If you hand over that inheritance in its entirety, I will allow you to use the training cave.”
An inheritance…… He had never expected that.
No, even setting that aside, what little affection he still had left for his father vanished at the sight of a man trying to strip his son of everything he had remaining.
But at present, Mitchell had no other choice.
Looking at Raul as he waited for an answer, Mitchell nodded.
“In return, I’ll come out of the training cave for you.”
“You resort to petty tricks. Very well. As your father, I can concede this much.”
Raul’s lips moved as his fingers traced through the air.
Then a black sphere flew toward Mitchell and seeped into his body.
“But you cannot simply run away. The curse I placed on you just now will activate the moment you leave the training cave, so do not entertain any foolish ideas.”
***
The next day, Mitchell rode a mana vehicle (magic-powered vehicle) to the training cave.
RUMBLE—
The enormous doors closed, leaving him alone.
Mitchell looked around.
Just as he had heard, the training cave was well stocked.
There was enough food to last ten years, all preserved by magic, and a well that produced an endless supply of clear water.
‘Good. It’ll probably take quite a while to fix my body and figure out how to deal with the curse.’
There was one thing his father had failed to consider.
Mitchell had read an enormous number of books, and some of them had dealt with curses.
‘He used a simpler curse than I expected. If I can just get my body back to normal, I’ll find some way to deal with it.’
After quenching his thirst at the well, Mitchell immediately began researching a way to restore his body.
The clue he had discovered while mastering Soul Drain was a method of converting absorbed souls into dark mana.
He intended to use that converted dark mana to repair his Mana Circuits and Mana Hole.
But even for Mitchell, with his brilliant mind and tremendous perseverance, it was anything but easy.
It took him an entire year of research just to find the faintest lead.
Another year passed before he managed to reconstruct the formula for Soul Drain to suit his purpose, and still more time passed as he learned the modified spell himself and continued correcting it.
***
“I finally did it!”
Mitchell was twenty years old when he finally perfected his own version of Soul Drain.
The effect of the modified Soul Drain was to convert absorbed souls into dark mana.
“Now I just have to try it…….”
The theory was flawless enough, but now that he was about to begin, countless concerns came to mind.
Mitchell thought for a moment, but his hesitation did not last long.
‘If I fix my body, I can live a new life.’
It was his chance to live purely as Mitchell himself, rather than as the Eldest Young Master discarded by the family and its head.
He could not let that opportunity slip away.
Mitchell immediately sat down in the center of the cave and began absorbing the souls of the prisoners nearby.
These prisoner souls had been acquired by the Kellion Family through an Imperial tender.
They were bastards brimming with malice.
SKREEEEEE—
The sinister souls screamed.
It was an ironic sight—people who were already dead, with nothing but their souls remaining, screaming that they did not want to die—yet Mitchell’s expression remained unchanged.
His lips were pressed tightly together in concentration.
‘Damn…….’
Mitchell bit down hard on his lip.
The energy that had transformed into dark mana did not move as he had expected.
The dark mana moving through his Mana Circuits burst outward and began consuming his body.
His blackened veins swelled and spread across his entire body as though they might tear through his skin.
Death was imminent.
But Mitchell did not give up.
He desperately exerted his will, trying somehow to gather the dark mana spread throughout his body into a single place.
Originally, the dark mana should have repaired his Mana Circuits and then gathered in his heart.
Mitchell guided the energy toward his heart, and more and more dark mana accumulated there.
But because there was no Mana Hole even in his heart, the dark mana could not circulate.
It felt as though it might burst at any moment.
Before long, the churning dark mana began to overflow.
WHOOOOOSH—
The raging torrent of dark mana escaped his heart like water bursting through a collapsed dam.
Death was approaching.
Mitchell knew death was about to come for him.
But then—
‘It’s gathering!’
The dark mana suddenly began pouring into an enormous vessel he himself had never known existed.
A place that had remained blocked until now had been forced open by the tremendous power of the dark mana.
With every last ounce of strength, Mitchell pushed the dark mana into it.
It felt like trying to move all the water in a reservoir with a single bucket, but now that he had found a way out, he continued guiding the dark mana.
One day passed.
Then two.
In truth, Mitchell was too disoriented to know how much time had passed.
He could only tell that it had been a long time.
The task of moving a reservoir’s worth of water one bucket at a time was finally beginning to near its end.
‘There!’
At last, after drawing even the final handful of dark mana out of his heart, Mitchell survived.
He had failed in his original goal of restoring his Mana Circuits, but he had not died, so he could simply search for another method.
Mitchell breathed a sigh of relief and desperately clung to his fading consciousness.
He still wanted to check what had happened to the dark mana he had moved.
‘I just need to research a little more. I’ll find some kind of solution. As long as I have dark mana, somehow I can…… Huh?’
Mitchell was shocked when he examined his body.
All that dark mana had disappeared without leaving even the slightest trace.
Only then did Mitchell turn his attention toward the place the dark mana had moved into.
A location he had only ever heard about in theory.
‘An Aura Hole?’
The source from which knights and martial artists drew their power—the Aura Hole.
Instead of Mana Circuits, the dark mana had created an enormous Aura Hole and thick Aura Roads.
Only after confirming the unbelievable result did Mitchell finally black out.