***
The light that had blinded Kim Do-hyeon slowly faded, and he opened his eyes.
‘……Where am I?’
His blurred vision gradually came into focus.
BEEP— BEEP—
A white ceiling. Fluorescent lights. The sharp scent of disinfectant invading his nose.
And an IV line inserted into his left arm.
‘A hospital……?’
After looking around, he could roughly infer his situation.
An electrocardiogram monitor beside the hospital bed emitted rhythmic beeps, while modern buildings were visible beyond the window.
‘I made it back to Earth safely!’
Relief washed over him, but it only lasted a moment.
‘I need to find out when I am.’
He had spent no less than fifty years on the Rodinia Continent.
Returning to Earth after the same amount of time had passed would be meaningless.
That was why he had forcibly turned back time using various artifacts and high-level magic.
If everything had gone according to plan, he should have returned to the day he had stormed out of his home fifty years ago. However, since this involved space and time, he couldn’t be certain that everything had worked perfectly.
He was about to sit up and confirm it for himself when—
Excruciating pain overwhelmed him.
Even raising a single arm was difficult.
His muscles screamed from the simple act of opening and closing his fingers.
‘I expected this, but it’s still devastating.’
This was the price of crossing space and time.
All the physical capabilities he had trained for decades were gone. Kim Do-hyeon now possessed the body of an ordinary person.
No, his body was in worse condition than that of an ordinary person.
He appeared to have been bedridden for quite some time, as a considerable portion of his muscles had atrophied.
‘It seems I returned to the wrong point in time…….’
Had he returned to the intended point in time, his body should have been that of an ordinary adult man.
Yet his current condition could only be described as that of a patient.
Something had gone wrong.
‘I shouldn’t jump to conclusions before checking for myself.’
Mages were beings who grew through immense imagination and keen intuition.
That was why they knew how to command their imaginations better than anyone else and weren’t easily consumed by them.
Of course, neither his present circumstances nor his physical condition could be called favorable.
He had no strength. His physical capabilities were at rock bottom.
But he didn’t despair.
The reason was simple.
‘I can feel it.’
Compared to the mana within the Sanctuary, its density was absurdly low.
It was faint, but unmistakable.
Mana existed within the atmosphere.
The instant he perceived it—
DING—!
You have successfully perceived mana independently without external assistance.
A message suddenly appeared before him, but Kim Do-hyeon remained composed.
‘So this is the System the Awakened used to talk about.’
Because he had missed his family so deeply, he had continuously revisited and preserved his memories of Earth and everything connected to it.
Even before Kim Do-hyeon was born, Earth had been home to the Awakened, as well as magical beasts and demonic creatures classified as monsters.
Thanks to that, the very concept of a System wasn’t unfamiliar to him.
Naturally, this was his first time experiencing it for himself, but he had occasionally heard stories about it. That allowed him to accept it without much concern.
Thus, the events that followed didn’t bewilder him either.
–You have acquired the qualifications to awaken. A suitable ability will now be granted!
–The Babel System grants User ‘Kim Do-hyeon’ a 1st Circle.
A subtle ripple spread through the mana in the atmosphere as the messages appeared.
At the same time, Kim Do-hyeon felt mana welling up within his heart.
THUMP.
The rhythm of his ordinary heartbeat skipped.
‘This is better than I expected.’
A peculiar light entered Kim Do-hyeon’s eyes.
The mana gathering around his heart was rapidly taking the shape of an elliptical Circle.
In other words—
He had gained the ability to use magic without any exceptional effort or talent.
That alone was astonishing, but—
‘Not bad.’
The mana Circle settling around his heart was in remarkably good condition.
Not all mana Circles were equal. Their degree of completion differed greatly depending on their creator’s abilities, knowledge, and experience.
Yet in terms of efficiency alone, the Circle forming around his heart could rival those of most mages.
Naturally, it couldn’t be considered a highly refined Circle by an Archmage’s standards.
Had Kim Do-hyeon used an ordinary type of Circle, he would have needed to forcibly disperse the one the System was attempting to construct.
But the Circle Kim Do-hyeon used wasn’t ordinary.
‘The Circle created by the System could prove useful.’
He watched the Circle take form while examining the nature of the mana entering his body.
TING—
The sensation of mana flowing through his blood vessels spread all the way to his fingertips.
It was unfamiliar.
Its nature differed from both the mana of the Rodinia Continent and that of the Sanctuary.
Kim Do-hyeon narrowed his eyes.
‘……What is this?’
Its unfamiliarity wasn’t the problem.
The problem was that he couldn’t identify its source.
He couldn’t determine where this mana came from or what was bestowing it upon him.
Kim Do-hyeon had encountered countless types of mana over the past fifty years, but this was a first.
Instinctively, he reached toward the flow of mana within his body.
He could block it.
For an Archmage, dispersing the Circle attempting to settle around his heart would be as easy as breathing.
Just as he was about to obstruct the flow of mana—
‘……Wait.’
Kim Do-hyeon drew his consciousness back.
He calmly examined it again.
There was no malice.
Nor did he sense any threat.
He probed the nature of the mana flowing into his body more deeply, but there wasn’t the slightest indication that it would cause him harm.
Not knowing its source didn’t necessarily mean it was dangerous.
‘……Was I being overly cautious?’
It was a habit forged over fifty years on the battlefield.
Reject anything unfamiliar. Never accept a power whose nature couldn’t be identified.
Those principles had preserved his life through countless battles.
But he was no longer on a battlefield.
Kim Do-hyeon withdrew the consciousness he had extended to block the mana.
‘There’s no reason to reject it.’
If he sensed any danger later, he could simply annihilate it then.
There was no possibility that an Archmage would be incapable of filtering out mana entering his own body.
Ultimately, there was nothing to lose and only something to gain.
Just as he completed his assessment—
HUMMMM—
A heavy vibration spread from the center of his chest.
The System completed the elliptical Circle around his heart.
DING—!
–1st Circle creation complete.
–You have acquired the special stat Mana. Mana has increased by 1.
A green holographic window appeared before him, but Kim Do-hyeon ignored it.
He merely inhaled and exhaled deeply while concentrating his consciousness.
“Haa…….”
His focused consciousness meticulously examined the inside of his body, which resembled a miniature universe—particularly his heart, which could be considered its center.
Kim Do-hyeon began constructing an elliptical orbit around his heart.
At a glance, it appeared similar to the Circle the System had created earlier.
However, its location and structure were distinctly different from those of a Circle.
More precisely, it could be said to contain the System’s Circle within itself.
Indeed.
What Kim Do-hyeon had created was a mana system resembling an entire star system.
The two might appear similar from the outside, but their structures and methods of operation were fundamentally different.
That was also why he had left the System-created Circle intact.
‘Ultimately, it’s nothing more than a supplementary measure.’
The orbit created by Kim Do-hyeon himself would form the central axis.
HUMMMM—
Invisible attraction extended in every direction from his heart. Like the moment a star was born, a faint but unmistakable pull could be felt throughout his body.
The instant he completed the orbit with unwavering intent—
The mana drifting through the atmosphere was drawn into his mouth and nose.
No, it was sucked through every opening in his body.
The surging mana poured into the orbit constructed around his heart.
The same happened to the Circle created by the System. Drawn by the immense attraction, it was absorbed into Kim Do-hyeon’s orbit.
With his eyes closed, Kim Do-hyeon examined the completed mana system surrounding his heart in the form of an elliptical orbit.
A tiny star rested at its center.
The Circle created by the System revolved around it like a satellite.
Having accomplished what he intended, Kim Do-hyeon smiled with satisfaction and recalled the name of the unique mana system and mana-manipulation method he had once used.
‘Arcanum Cosmos.’
The moment that name entered his mind—
DING—!
–A Circle with a previously nonexistent structure has been created.
–Attempting to classify the structure.
‘Classification?’
This message felt somewhat different from those that had appeared before.
–Classifying……
–Classifying……
–Classifying……
The holographic text continued repeating the same phrase.
One second. Two seconds. Three seconds.
The message remained frozen.
‘……Did it crash?’
Kim Do-hyeon narrowed his eyes.
He hadn’t been in direct contact with the System for long, but every response until now had been immediate, from perceiving mana to receiving a Circle.
Every message had appeared without even an instant of delay.
Yet now it had stalled.
That meant the Babel System was incapable of analyzing Kim Do-hyeon’s mana system.
‘Interesting.’
The corners of Kim Do-hyeon’s lips slowly rose.
In truth, it was only natural.
Arcanum Cosmos was fundamentally different from conventional Circles.
It couldn’t be forced into any classification known to the System.
At that moment—
BEEP—!
The hologram flickered once alongside a brief warning tone.
–Classification failed.
–No matching structure exists within the current database.
–Attempting reanalysis with higher authorization.
–……
–Reanalysis impossible.
–Classification deferred.
–The structure has been provisionally registered as ‘Circle (Unclassified).’
‘Unclassified, huh…….’
Although it called the structure a Circle, the System was effectively admitting that it wasn’t truly one.
Unable to classify it, the System had merely assigned it a provisional name.
–The special stat ‘Mana’ has increased by (2), based on the amount of mana contained within the current Circle.
It contained twice as much mana as the Circle previously created by the System.
However, both the increase and the way it was displayed appeared slightly different from the previous stat increase.
‘I need to determine exactly what’s different…….’
It was only natural, considering that the power had been created by an Archmage and transcended the conventional concept of a Circle. The System, however, responded differently.
–This is an extraordinary achievement!
–The Babel System acknowledges the achievement of User ‘Kim Do-hyeon.’
–You have acquired the title ‘Pioneer.’
[Pioneer]
Grade: Rare
Effect: Increases the special stat ‘Mana’ by 1.
A subtle ripple spread through the mana in the atmosphere alongside the message.
At the same time, mana gathered near the satellite like a tiny celestial body.
Thanks to that, he now had a comfortable reserve of mana.
‘I can use magic immediately.’
To use magic, one ordinarily had to form a Circle and then fill it with mana.
That was both basic knowledge and the proper sequence.
However, because the System had filled his Circle with mana, Kim Do-hyeon no longer needed to wait.
His eyes gleamed as he drew upon the mana within his body. A faint but distinct current of magical power emerged from his fingertips.
WHIRRR—
As pale blue light spread from both of Kim Do-hyeon’s hands, he invoked a spell within his mind.
‘Recover.’
It was an extremely basic spell.
Its effects weren’t particularly impressive.
Rather than healing injuries completely, it merely accelerated the body’s recovery slightly. If an ordinary mage used it, that would be the extent of its effects.
But when it was used by Kim Do-hyeon, the man once called an Archmage—
The blue light slowly swept across his atrophied muscles.
He used magical power to relax the muscles within his body.
The stiffened muscle tissue gradually loosened, and as the magical power reached even his joints, their rigid range of motion slowly began to return.
DING—!
–The F-Rank Skill ‘Recover’ has been registered in the Skill Window.
–Perfect execution confirmed.
–Skill ‘Recover’ has increased to F+ Rank.
–Exceptional mana control!
–The stat ‘Mana’ has increased by 0.1 as a special reward.
A hollow laugh escaped Kim Do-hyeon as he read the messages before him.
‘Isn’t this a little too easy?’
The figure of 0.1 might not appear particularly significant.
However, hundreds of spells immediately came to mind.
Although his limited mana prevented him from casting most of them at present, overcoming that restriction was ultimately only a matter of time.
‘I might be able to regain my power faster than I expected.’
Of course, there were matters he needed to confirm first.
‘Fortunately, I can move now.’
Thanks to Recover, his stiffened body had recovered to some extent.
Although he hadn’t recovered completely, Kim Do-hyeon was confident that he could sit up. Without hesitation, he raised his upper body.
ZING—
A dull ache spread throughout his body, but it was incomparable to his earlier condition, when he hadn’t even been able to lift an arm.
He carefully removed the IV line and peeled away every sensor attached to his body.
BEEEEEP—!
A warning alarm blared throughout the hospital room.
‘So noisy.’
He wanted to stop the machine and silence it, but that wasn’t his priority.
Kim Do-hyeon climbed out of bed and began walking.
The cold tiles pressed against the soles of his bare feet.
He staggered, but he didn’t fall.
One step.
Two steps.
Slowly but steadily, he advanced toward the hospital-room door.
SLIDE—
The moment he opened the door—
“……Huh?”
His eyes met those of a nurse passing through the corridor.
The nurse’s face instantly turned deathly pale.
“P-Patient!?”
CLATTER—!
The clipboard in her hands fell to the floor.
“Doctor! The patient in Room 301 is awake!”
Her urgent cry echoed down the corridor.
Several sets of footsteps soon followed, and the hospital corridor—silent until moments ago—erupted into commotion.