On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

A few minutes before we proceed to the procession of Mana Pool activation, Valeria warned me about something.

"Using Mana for the first time is the same as letting lava flow through your vein—it\'s very hurtful. Unlike the Heroes, who are blessed by the God, you will experience a pain that is several folds than normal."

"Why is that so?"

Valeria was explaining me about how my body, due to its lack of prior contact with Mana, would receive a much more pain than it should have upon using Mana. I honestly didn\'t care much about it that time, but I still nodded my head nonetheless.

The Mana Pool activation was conducted in the Training Field that is not far from my hut, so it didn\'t take us long to arrive there. Millonia and Ilschevar were already there by the time we arrived, and all of them looked expectant.

It took me a few seconds to realize it, but there was a Magic Circle carved on the ground of the Training Field. Under everyone\'s watch Valeria told me to stand in the middle of the Circle, and I did as she said.

As Valeria extended her hand, the ground—the Magic Circle below me suddenly glowed, and I felt an invisible yet familiar pressure overwhelming my surrounding. Mana—I knew instinctively it was Mana.

It wasn\'t until a few seconds passed since the Magic Circle\'s activation did I feel something occuring inside my body. The areas below my navel suddenly felt like it was burning as my heart beat faster for reasons I didn\'t quite understand.

Warm—the sensation of having Mana course through your body is warm. No one told me that the warm feeling was Mana coursing through my body, but I instinctively knew it was Mana.

Ilschevar was right when he said my growth would be limitless upon learning how to use Magic. Even though I technically haven\'t learned any yet, that moment when I first felt Mana—the energy that fuels Magic—coursed through my body, I felt invincible.

My body felt lighter, and my vision got clearer. Weak as I may be still, I felt like I could do much more just with the aid of Mana.

As the light from the Magic Circle died down, I looked at the three people spectating me excitedly. While Ilschevar gave me an elated smile, Valeria and Millonia gave me a dumbfounded look.

Turns out, my body has adapted to handling Mana, which shouldn\'t have been the case for a first timer.

...

A few minutes have passed since my Mana Pool activation, but Millonia can\'t still get rid of her annoying dumbfounded look. Valeria was quick to get over her shock, but Millonia still can\'t accept what happened did happen.

"This is unfair! There is no way his body could adapt to Mana that quick! I can\'t accept this—this is unfair!" She is grabbing her hair in frustration while shaking her head from time to time. "It took me three months just to get used to Mana!"

I can somehow understand her frustration of my genius—I would be distressed too if I were her—but it feels rather satisfying looking her that distressed. Still, I can\'t let my friend become a full fledged madwoman because of it.

"There is no need to be that distressed." I approach Millonia, put my hand on her shoulder reassuringly, and look at her with a smile. "Don\'t worry, you are still great. But... I will be greater than you soon."

"This cheeky prick!"

Millonia tries to hit me, but, of course, she failed to do so. I have fought her for a month straight—I know her fighting habit. Besides, physically speaking I am stronger than her, so it\'s extremely easy to dodge her half-assed attack.

"Layland."

"Yes, Miss Valeria?"

As I turn my head to Valeria at her call, I see her motioning me to come to her. I obey her instruction as usual, then stand in front of her.

\'Well, shit... Didn\'t realize I have grown this tall.\'

Upon standing right in front her, I muse about our height difference—it\'s not as big as it used to. I honestly don\'t think getting taller is significant to my power growth, but seeing that I am just 4 inches shorter than Valeria makes me feel slightly glad.

"I am going to teach you how to consciously move your Mana." Valeria puts her palm on my chest. "You will feel something entering your body, but don\'t resist it in the slightest."

"Understood. Please, begin the process."

Valeria quietly hums as a confirmation, then not long after, I feel something warm invades my chest. It feels like having a heater right above my chest, but I can feel the heat to my bones.

My heart beats faster once again, and I feel another kind of warmth courses through my vein. It is my Mana—I can feel my Mana moves as if it is attracted by something.

That something is Valeria\'s Mana that is entering my body, and I can feel mine is trying to expel hers out of my body. It is really intriguing how I know of this fact despite Valeria having said nothing, but I don\'t feel the need to muse over it too much.

I am given an easy way to control Mana, so rather than questioning how it is the case, it is better to abuse it as much as I can.

The moment my Mana makes contact with Valeria\'s, I lay my hands on my Mana. I immediately feel connected to the Mana coursing through my body, and the Mana that is still inside my Mana Pool.

"Now, allow my Mana to guide yours, so you can slowly—"

Boom!

"I have got the hang of it, so there is no need to do that anymore."

"What in the world...?"

I have just expelled Valeria\'s Mana out of my body with my Mana that is under my control, and it seems to baffle Valeria. She is looking at me as if she has just seen a cat giving birth to a dog.

Clap! Clap!

Ilschevar is being himself; uncaring to the other people around him, he claps his hand as hard as he can in excitement.

"This is not fair! FUCK!"

As for Millonia, who is on the opposite side of Valeria, she is stomping the ground in frustration, all the while cursing at the heavens as if a madwoman.

She already is since the beginning, but now she is making it more apparent.

"Do you feel comfortable with your Mana?"

"Yes. It\'s a part of me to begin with, so there is no reason to feel uncomfortable."

"That is ... A rather interesting perspective, but that is definitely correct."

Valeria has lost her look of bafflement, and now she is looking at me in wonder. I can see by her look that she is expecting more from me than before, and I can\'t wait to surprise her with what I can do.

"Now that you have learnt how to control your Mana, you need to conceal the Demon King\'s Mark on your hand." Valeria gestures at the Mark on my right hand. "It won\'t end well for you, if the other Demon King Candidates see that."

"I understand." I nod my head, then quirk my eyebrow. "Do I just have to channel my Mana to the Mark?\'

"I want you to figure it out by yourself, so ask me when you deem you can\'t do it by yourself."

I merely nod wordlessly at Valeria\'s instruction, then do what she instructs me. I channel my Mana to my hand, but I find it is sucked into somewhere else, which I believe is the Demon King\'s Mark.

Upon finding that out, instead of merely channeling my Mana to my hand, I channel my Mana directly to the Demon King\'s Mark. It shines brighter in result, and the Mana inside my Mana Pool is being drained at a crazy rate.

\'Sheesh. The Mana consumption is unbelievable!\'

As I have figured out how to channel Mana to the Mark, I try to do the opposite while expecting the Mark to stop draining my Mana. It does stop, but much to my surprise, the Mark also disappears from my hand.

"Oh, so I just need to stop the Mana flow to conceal it?" I muse then try to test my theory.

I channel my Mana to the Mark that I can still feel despite being invisible, and it reappears on my hand. I retract my Mana afterwards, then it disappears once again.

I try doing it for a couple of times, until I am sure that my theory is not a mere theory.

"Hoh? It\'s fairly simple, isn\'t it?"

I smirk as I turn my head toward Valeria. I find her blinking at me when our eyes meet, and I believe she is a little bit surprised that I could actually figure how to conceal the Mark by myself.

Her eyes gleam afterwards, and I don\'t like what they convey at all.

"Layland!"

"Yes, Miss. Valeria?"

"A month—you have another month until you will be sent to explore the world." Valeria smiles rather rather excitedly, then exclaims, "Master Magic as much as you can, and show me a good result!"

I regret it a day after, but I really shouldn\'t say yes immediately.