The Talent Returns

I didn't even have time to check my talents. I had to savor this incredible shift in the world. I closed my eyes right where I sat. As I took a deep breath, cold air seeped deep into my lungs. At the same time, I grabbed the mana I felt in the air and let it permeate my body.

With my mana-related talents liberated, the vessel capable of holding that mana had expanded as well. It was like an empty jar being tossed into the deep ocean. The mana in the air rushed into Kim Ilshin’s body as if competing for space.

"Huu…."

The exhale was longer than the inhale. Most of the mana I had drawn into my body was pushed back out with my breath. Only about one-tenth remained. It wasn't that I couldn't accept more; by utilizing my Mana Control and Mana Affinity talents, I kept only the highest quality, purest mana within me. Mana accumulated this way would be far more efficient than the ragged, chaotic mana one might gather blindly. It was my first time performing a proper mana cultivation, but I was certain this method was correct. The process of steadily building up mana was exhilarating—so much so that I lost track of time.

"Huu…."

Kim Ilshin exhaled his final breath and opened his eyes. Checking the clock, I realized forty minutes had passed in the blink of an eye. This was my limit for now, simply because my original mana capacity was so low. But as I repeated this cultivation, the amount of mana I could store would grow exponentially.

'Mana is confirmed, now ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for the body.'

Before that, I stood up from the chair and reached for the light switch by the door. I didn't even need to focus; I just let a bit of mana flow, and the lights flickered on. It was the first time I’d seen the room this bright. Something that used to be a struggle to do even once a day was now as easy as clicking a fluorescent light switch. Finally, I was free from the dark world.

"Kuh…."

I swallowed the tears that threatened to spill from the sheer emotion and stood in the center of the room. There was something I wanted to test immediately. I closed my eyes again and took a deep breath, calming my racing heart.

'Shall I try?'

What came to mind was the verse of the Ilshin Pacheon-gong (One Body Heaven-Destroying Art) from a book I had read before. It was a martial art I had read about countless times, yet I hadn't been able to grasp even a single line of the verse, let alone master it. But now, the verse and the intent behind it were overflowing in my mind, threatening to burst out. The Comprehension (A) talent I had slotted in for this very moment was being influenced by my other talents, unfolding far beyond its original performance.

Ilshin Pacheon-gong means to shatter the heavens with one's own body. Shattering the heavens with human strength—this martial art claims that no other power is needed to achieve such a feat.

I lowered my stance slightly and stepped forward with my left foot. Then, I awakened all the mana in my body, pulled it upward, and condensed it into a single point at the crown of my head.

'…!'

The mana plummeted downward in an instant. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠The muscles and nerves along its path were activated. Kwoong. The recoil from the stomp of my left foot drove the mana from that leg toward my right hand, which was thrusting forward. The mana, possessing a tyrannical momentum, flowed along my activated nerves. As my fist was thrown, it reached its peak.

KWA-A-A-A!!

The fist I had thrown in the middle of the room had shattered the wall on the opposite side. The floor where I had stomped was gouged out. Moonlight poured in through the gap in the ruined wall. This was the result even though I had held onto my reason at the last moment to control my strength. If I hadn't controlled it, or if I had thrown the punch from closer range, it wouldn't have ended with just a partial destruction.

'This… is incredible.'

My surprise at the Ilshin Pacheon-gong far outweighed my worry about the cleanup. There was a reason I hadn't been able to master it in the game. The talents you can obtain while playing have limits. No matter how much you grow your strength, your talents remain exactly as they were when you first created the character. But to master this martial art, one needed at least one S-rank talent and two A-rank talents. First, Comprehension (A) to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠understand the verse, and then Martial God (S) and Mana Operation (A) to manifest it with the body. It was a martial art that could never be performed if even one of those was lacking. Considering that if you slotted in an S-rank talent, you couldn't slot in others, the difficulty of mastering it was near-impossible.

'It’s worth the performance.'

Even though my body wasn't fully prepared and the martial art had intense recoil due to its nature, making it hard to handle perfectly, it was still this powerful. If I could reach the Great Completion in the near future, I would be able to unleash even greater destructive power than this. Someday, I might really be able to shatter the heavens.

'Should I have moved the mana more smoothly? Or perhaps faster? Focusing more on my lower body….'

Without a moment's rest, detailed feedback on my recent movement occurred in my mind. Amidst it all, the corners of Kim Ilshin’s mouth were curled upward. It was fun. It was the joy of growth. The clock hands that hadn't moved for two years had finally started to tick. I wanted to use the Ilshin Pacheon-gong again right away, but that was impossible.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"Student Kim Ilshin! What is going on!"

I had to resolve this situation first.

Dormitory supervisor Ahn Young-soon was a fastidious person who valued principles above all else. Because of that, he was one of the few people at the academy who didn't treat Kim Ilshin poorly. He judged people solely on whether they followed the rules, excluding everything else. However, today, I had been caught by that very personality. In addition to demerits and a lecture, I had to write a statement of apology for the late-night disturbance and property damage. I wrote in the statement that it was because of training. If it were anyone else, they wouldn't believe that a student could break a wall with a fist, but Supervisor Ahn Young-soon never doubted his students.

The time after submitting the statement was 2:00 AM. It was now 4:00 AM, after I had caught ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a little sleep. There was a curfew, and I was tired, so I had laid down in bed thinking I would train later, but this was when I woke up. Even though I had only slept for two hours and it was an earlier wake-up than usual, I felt as refreshed as if I had slept for eight. It must have been the result of my high stamina combined with Regeneration (A). The fact that my waking hours had increased meant the time I could allocate to training had also increased. Since Flawless Mind (S) would resolve any mental fatigue, I didn't need to worry about that.

'Let's start with mana first.'

I sat cross-legged on the bed and began mana cultivation. The pure mana, accumulating faster than before, awakened my mind even more clearly.

Mana cultivation ended after about an hour. Since I had done some a few hours earlier, it only took about thirty minutes. I focused on meditation for the remaining time. There was a lot to think about. Most of it was about the future. How should I act from now on, what should I prepare for, what is my goal… I couldn't decide everything with just a short meditation, but things were organized to some extent.

'I will not leave the academy.'

I had thought about dropping out because of unnecessary classes, but there were many things I could gain at the academy. It was easy to obtain equipment, medicinal herbs, and more, not to mention the familiar bedroom and excellent training facilities. Just by having the status of an academy student, you could receive generous treatment in many places, and there was a system through which you could accept requests via the academy. Of course, the biggest reason was separate.

After the constraint was lifted, a new message had appeared in its place.

I didn't know what that 'Ending' was. However, if it meant returning to my original world, that would be perfect, and even if not, the apocalypse was something that had to be prevented in the first place. Since Cosmo Academy was at the center of the main scenario, I needed to keep attending to prepare for the apocalypse.

'The top priority goal is to become stronger.'

I could summarize my various worries with that one thing. I would make becoming stronger my goal, and through becoming stronger, I would prepare for future dangers and the potential apocalypse. So now, all that was left to do was train. Kim Ilshin finished his preparations quickly and went outside. I left my student ID behind. I didn't need it anymore. I ran lightly to the training center. Even though I arrived faster than usual, my breathing was completely steady. It was the result of the stamina I had consistently built up combined with my talents.

"Student Kim Ilshin. Verified."

'…I guess I don't need to come here anymore.'

That was the thought I had as I reached for the door of the physical training room, as was my habit. The reason I had been training my strength and stamina until now was partly because that was all I could do, but the reason as preparation was greater. I had been training all this time to build a foundation upon which I could utilize the talents I would gain after the constraint was lifted. Since I had steadily built things up for two years, it was time to sow the seeds.

Kim Ilshin took a spot in one corner of the physical training room and began to train according to his routine. Speed was unconsciously added to his usual movements. It was hard to control my racing heart.

'Today, I finally pick up a sword.'

Before long, Kim Ilshin finished his training, quickly left the physical training room, and headed to the practice hall on the same floor. His fast, almost running pace revealed his anticipation.

"…."

There was someone who was watching Kim Ilshin’s retreating figure intently. It was Baek Ha-yeon, the woman with white hair who had been in the physical training room with him.