Icarus (2)
Confirmed reactions in some test subjects. Precursors of mutation appeared in dogs, cats, rats, and rabbits, but they couldn't withstand the mana and died. So injecting spatial mana isn't the way to force mutation? Still not sure.
Voices of cooperation came from the Hunter Association and Magic Association. Of course, behind the scenes. They gave me their data. Hoping it helps.
Found a way to force mutation. Not by injecting mana into the subject, but by filling the cage with spatial mana. All test subjects mutated, but died soon after.
I found a clue inside a gate. Usually, fully mutated creatures roam there. And if something mutates inside, it shares similar or identical traits with them. Is the environment key? Can't know before testing.
Rushed to a gate opening that day and shoved in a rabbit, dog, and mackerel vulnerable to spatial mana. The animals mutated immediately with grotesque movements. It didn't matter what animal they originally were or their traits. They kept only tiny features while transforming into forms like the gate's monsters.
The Magic Association sent an assistant named Kaiser. I liked that he was an elf. He claimed expertise in spatial magic, but his knowledge of mutation seems shallower than mine. Still, I learned precise mana control from him.
……
The research records continued steadily like a diary even after that.
"I don't look down on others." ...That phrase had been one of the guiding principles throughout my life as a mage.
But even I had apparently been subtly underestimating Han Myung-hun.
He was a human mage, and the time he'd encountered mana in his life was incredibly short. Compared to me, it was a mere thousandth—an infinitesimal fraction.
In such conditions, how much could he really achieve? That arrogant thought must have taken root deep in my heart.
"……"
To put it bluntly, he'd researched an area I'd never even considered.
What he wanted to know wasn't spatial mana.
His subject was mutation.
Of course, spatial mana was essential in the process, but it was just a material.
"Are you... reading it?"
As I was flipping through the book intently, the orphanage director looked at me with surprised eyes and asked.
Reading it? What did that mean?
As I gazed at her questioningly, the answer came soon after.
"Most mages who came here said they had no idea what it meant and closed the book right away. They said the context didn't flow right. Some could read bits, but... they couldn't get past a few lines before complaining of extreme fatigue and shutting it."
"……"
I peered even more closely at the book. Upon closer inspection... faint letters written in spatial mana began glowing purple between the words.
This was a method once commonly used by ancient spatial mages of Yggdrasil to hide their records.
It wasn't that difficult, but writing documents this way required tremendous concentration and mana.
Above all, this technique hadn't spread widely on Earth. Spatial mana was reevaluated only after magitech gained popularity upon our arrival. No one had reason to hide data this way.
The ancient mage Charlotte, being human, had favored this method too. As a subject under emperors and kings, she'd used it often to deceive them.
But even she hadn't applied it to her main research materials. As I mentioned, it consumed a huge amount of mana.
In short, it wasn't suitable for humans.
"Director."
After studying the book intently for a while, I looked up and met her eyes. Sensing the shift in the air, she straightened up and met my gaze.
"Before the mass suicide incident, what was Han Myung-hun's demeanor like?"
"Th-that... It's been so long... Give me a moment."
She looked troubled by my question. Meanwhile, I kept reading his research materials. A few phrases caught my eye.
Succeeded in creating a stable mutated specimen. It was a dog. The dog grew larger while infused with spatial mana, its teeth and claws sharpened. It could walk on two legs and use tools. A remarkable achievement worthy of being called evolution.
But for some reason, it showed strong aggression toward me. Same with Kaiser. It seemed to harbor hostility toward all life forms, even trying to attack other specimens.
Cause unknown. Kaiser says it's predatory instinct from spatial mana-born life, but I believe the root cause lies beyond that.
Correcting the name of stable mutated specimens. Henceforth, call them evolved species.
Han Myung-hun had renamed his artificial mutants. Of course, it was a name I'd never heard or seen. Mutants born in labs weren't natural occurrences. It was only natural we didn't know them.
She fidgeted with her lips. She was finally about to speak.
"...I don't remember well, but his eyes were twitching a lot. He was visibly wasting away. I told him to take care of himself... but he wouldn't listen."
The image of a researcher lost in his work. Fine up to there. I'd neglected food and sleep countless times myself, buried in research and mana development.
But the problem started after that.
"It got harder to approach him. Not the atmosphere—it was just... being near him made it hard to breathe."
Mana.
The effect of dense mana. How could he wield such power? I glanced at the materials. The more pages I turned, the stronger the spatial mana emanated.
Still, I read on. Probably no one else could.
As expected, the aggression's cause lay beyond. Not predatory instinct, but the instability inherent in spatial mana itself. Instability provokes wariness in life forms, turning that wariness into aggression.
How to suppress this instability? A difficult task.
Rubbing my throbbing forehead, I stepped out of the archive room briefly. Han Myung-hun's office—supposedly used by the deputy director—was right next door. I entered.
"Cough."
A acrid dust smell revealed the interior. Photos lined one wall.
Three: one straight-on of his face, one with the current director, and a group shot with kids.
I stared especially at the group photo frame. Next to Han Myung-hun, two beaming high school boys—looking happy—had their arms around him, smiling at the camera.
I checked his records.
Found a way to suppress aggression. Spatial mana also has restorative properties. Beyond a certain threshold, restoration strengthens dramatically. If I can make spatial mana rampage past that threshold, evolution into an evolved species isn't impossible. Animal tests failed— they exploded past threshold. Only possible on humans.
Some orphanage kids were blessed first to become evolved species. They volunteered, and I granted their wish as they desired. They were joyful. I am Jesus himself.
That section was especially heavily encrypted with powerful spatial mana. Unreadable by anyone but him or a mage like me.
"What are those high school boys in the photo doing now?"
I asked an unplanned question. For some reason, my intuition screamed bad vibes.
"……"
The director couldn't speak.
"You have to tell me."
Urged by me, she finally opened her mouth.
"They... became mages. They were diligent in classes. But tragically, they died shortly after entering a gate on the field. Such a shame. High mortality rate—can't be helped."
No.
Back then, and even now, it might seem that way, but if the records were true, they didn't die in a gate. I turned the next page.
With a foreboding heart, I opened the final page of the short research compendium.
New Year. Succeeded in grasping correlations between shamanism, magic, and mana. Normally, hard to expect more from a human body, but if there's a way to break limits, why not.
I didn't know or seek such methods for a simple reason.
I had no such hurdles or limits. But for Han Myung-hun, it might have felt like grasping a rotten rope—knowing it was futile, yet clinging anyway.
Today, the ritual. Kaiser gathered participants. Don't know how long they'll last, but gave him copies of my research. If I fail, he'll gather others.
That ended his research materials. Han Myung-hun thought he'd reached truth. Believed it possible. But what he struck was the ceiling—a limit named impossibility, unbreakable.
"……"
I closed the book. Impressive research. Things I'd never conceive, blessed as I was with elfdom and genius. I handed the compendium back to the director with a smile.
"Good materials."
At some point, he'd been consumed by his research. Forgot the old Han Myung-hun. Heading downstairs, I told Chen Zuiyuan and Huh Song-hyeok.
"Let's go back."
All questions answered. He'd clearly transcended human limits. Now it made sense he wielded such potent spatial mana. If it was species transcendence, not mental fortitude, it fit.
Wanting his research shared wasn't odd. It had that much value.
But that's all. His research couldn't be accepted. No one wants to go mad.
Ring ring— ring ring—
Right on cue, Baek Seol-yeon's call came. I answered with relief.
"Yeah, Baek Seol—"
Before I could finish, thunderous scolding hit.
"Where are you!"
Baek Seol-yeon was flustered. First time I'd seen her like this. Her words rushed on.
"Come here right now. D-Deputy Director Han Myung-hun... he's awakened!"
……
Resurrection.
Something utterly unforeseen had happened.