Prologue & Chapter 1 - Regression
Prologue
There existed a being with power rivaling that of a god. It bore scales harder than adamantium, a Dragon Heart brimming with infinite mana, and wielded the divine might known as the "Dragon Word"—the mighty entity known as the "dragon."
Called the sovereign of magic, the dragon that lorded over all living creatures was a being that existed only in myths. Especially on Earth, scarcely a century past the Great Cataclysm, no one had ever laid eyes on a real one.
"...That dragon's power... given to me?"
Kim Jehyun, the Magic Tower's perennial 2nd Circle failure. One day, he awoke to find himself bestowed with the power of a dragon from legend.
Chapter 1
Regression
"Oh, my God. My son got into the Magic Tower."
He recalled his father's beaming smile from childhood. That expression had been brighter than any other memory.
And it made sense. After the Great Cataclysm, the world's order had been rebuilt around mages.
Getting into the Magic Tower was synonymous with becoming an exceptional mage.
'I thought back then that I'd become a proper mage, too.'
A self-mocking smile tugged at Jehyun's lips.
"Hey, is that old guy taking class with us?"
"Who? Oh... that dude? He's famous, and you haven't heard?"
"Heard what?"
"That guy's an enrollee from 2213."
"Whoa, 2213? That's like... 26 years ago?"
Whispers about Jehyun rippled through the room from boys who looked about 16 or 17.
"This is just the 2nd floor... No way he's been at it 26 years and still only 2nd Circle, right?"
"If that's true, that's why he's famous."
"Dude... insane. How's that even possible? If it's real, he's got zero talent... How'd he even get into the Tower?"
The murmurs grew louder.
'Sigh... These stares never get any easier.'
He'd endured them for over a decade, but the pity, contempt, and condescension still stung—eyes that branded him a loser, laced with every humiliating emotion imaginable.
"That guy's hopeless. 26 years for 2nd Circle? Basically civilian level."
"Hey, still, reaching 2nd Circle is something. Normies can't even accumulate mana, let alone that."
"True, but... it's nowhere near enough to get into the Tower."
"I heard applicants were super scarce when he enrolled."
"So he lucked into it."
They weren't wrong. Jehyun hadn't entered the Magic Tower through overflowing talent. It was a time when qualified applicants had dried up—a rare shortage of prospects that let even someone like him slip through.
'Should I have graduated with the others?'
Among his cohort, those without talent had long since left to forge their own paths. They might never reach 4th Circle and the noble treatment that came with it, but a Magic Tower diploma carried weight. Even mastery of basic 1st Circle spells opened doors—private academies and organizations lined up to hire Tower alumni. Having a Tower-trained mage, even at 1st Circle, elevated their status.
'If I'd left early, I could've secured a decent position and lived comfortably. But...'
Jehyun bit his lower lip hard.
Before his eyes danced visions of the world's greatest archmages and their miracles—feats that rent the skies and upheaved the earth with a mere gesture, summoning natural disasters at will. His heart pounded fiercely at the thought.
'I want that, too... I want to ascend to the pinnacle of magic. No—surpass even them and reach its very end.'
Volcanic ambition burned in Jehyun's eyes.
The pinnacle of magic. That exalted realm—he yearned for it with a desperation forged over thirty years of obsession.
"Whoa, sticking it out this long means he's got grit, at least. Should we chat him up?"
"What? Why bother?"
One boy whispering toward Jehyun started to approach, but his friend scowled and yanked him back.
"Dude, hold up. Don't risk catching his bad luck. You wanna stall at 2nd Circle till you're thirty?"
"Ugh, that's nightmare fuel. I'd rather drown in a septic tank."
"Kekeke. Gross, but yeah—better than 30 years of training for 2nd Circle."
The boys snickered, thinking they'd lowered their voices enough. But every word rang clear in Jehyun's ears.
'Damn sharp hearing... I hear everything. And it's 26 years, not 30. Four more to go, you brats.'
A surge of anger welled up, but Jehyun reined it in.
'Getting mad at kids at my age would just be pathetic.'
He was 33 this year. He'd entered the Tower at age 7, and 26 years had passed since.
The weight of those 26 years crushed him, dwarfing the boys' mere decade-plus of life.
'Haa.'
A sigh heavy with regret escaped his lips.
* * *
Gulp. Gulp.
Jehyun's throat bobbed as he downed the liquor.
"Ugh... Why's the booze so bitter today?"
After the first "2nd Circle Fundamentals" lecture, he'd returned to his dorm with the usual bottle, right on schedule.
"Damn it... You think I want to be stuck at 2nd Circle?"
Recalling the class soured his mood even more.
—Hello, everyone. I'm Park Doohyun, and I'll be teaching "2nd Circle Fundamentals" this year. Looking forward to a great semester.
Uh, ahem. Jehyun, you're in my class again this year.
Park Doohyun, spotting Jehyun, flashed an awkward smile and addressed him directly. Whether it was teasing or encouragement, Jehyun couldn't tell. But...
—Jehyun's passion and perseverance are well-known even within the Tower. Our new 2nd Circle beginners need only half his determination to keep up just fine.
Having studied 2nd Circle for so long, Jehyun, I hope you'll lend a hand to these fresh sprouts.
—Professor! What if we end up stuck at 2nd Circle past thirty trying to "help"?
—Ack! I'll train solo, thanks!
—Me too!
—Haha, well... Jehyun has lingered at 2nd Circle a bit long, true, but that won't happen to you all.
This is purely due to Jehyun's... ahem, individual aptitude. Personal differences, you see.
Anyway, let's all strive for great achievements this year.
By name-dropping Jehyun, Park Doohyun had turned him into the class joke once more.
"Haa..."
Jehyun clutched his burning face and sighed. Shame and rage boiled up together.
'If only I'd had real talent... or even just average aptitude.'
He clenched his fist until his knuckles whitened.
He could proudly say his effort outmatched anyone's. He'd pored over grimoires until nosebleeds came, skimped on sleep for magic practice. By sheer grit, he might've rivaled an archmage.
'And yet...'
The result? A measly 2nd Circle. Devastating.
—2nd Circle? Isn't that easy to reach?
—I heard up to 3rd is usually straightforward...
Not wrong. With any aptitude, mages typically hit 3rd Circle within about 15 years of starting. Real prodigies did it in under 10.
'Me? 26 years. And still early 2nd—not even 2nd Circle mastery.'
That was why he was still in "2nd Circle Fundamentals."
'It's so unfair... so goddamn unfair.'
Jehyun's eyes reddened. Tears streamed down.
Frustration and sorrow at his lot crashed over him.
'I can't give up like this.'
He swallowed his tears, steeling his faltering resolve. It wasn't over yet.
'Right. Even the Tower Master didn't awaken till his mid-twenties. I'm not too late. My potential could bloom any day. It's possible.'
Face flushed from booze, Jehyun reaffirmed his vow.
'Training... I need to train.'
Wasting time wallowing was unforgivable.
Stagger.
He lurched drunkenly to a corner of the room.
Thud.
Sitting cross-legged, he immediately circulated mana to accumulate more.
'Mana... Ack.'
His head spun as he forced mana through his Mana Road, and suddenly blood sprayed from his mouth.
For a low-rank mage like him, channeling mana while drunk was risky. Rare as it was, it could trigger mana surge or reflux.
And Jehyun hit that unlucky jackpot.
"Guh... guhuh..."
Agony like his body shattering sent him tumbling to the floor.
Sobriety hit late. Too much liquor had dulled his judgment, causing this mess.
'Wh-what have I done...'
Clang.
His thrashing foot knocked over bottles in a crash. Pity no one noticed his plight amid the rolling glass.
'I-I can't...'
As Jehyun's eyes rolled back and breath failed—
—Hmm. Circulating mana after booze. A pipsqueak who can barely sense it... This is dire.
An inexplicable voice slammed into his ears.
With it, Jehyun's consciousness winked out.
* * *
"Ugh... umm."
Blinding sunlight through the window roused Jehyun. He rubbed his eyes and sat up.
"Ugh... my head. What hap—?!"
His words cut off as clarity struck. Memories of last night's mana reflux and surge flooded back.
'M-mana... I can't feel it.'
Checking his body, his face drained white.
Reflux and surges usually meant long recovery. But in bad luck—and low odds—death, or a ruined Mana Road unfit for magic.
Terror flashed: he'd lost his mana to the backlash.
"No... no!"
Screaming in pallor, he sensed something off.
"...?"
Realization dawned. He scanned the room, then his body.
Panic over mana had blinded him to the mismatch prickling his skin.
"What the...?"
He bolted to the full-length mirror on the wall.
Staring back was a boy of about 16 or 17—his own face from the past.
"What is this...? A dream?"
Heart hammering, Jehyun touched his face.
Then—
—Does this feel like a dream?
The sudden voice made his eyes widen.
Turning, he saw a single magic tome hovering, scattering multicolored light.