In this world, humans usually begin to awaken their mana core at age 12. This mana core is essential for harnessing magic, but simply having it doesn't guarantee a large mana pool. Years of meditation and training are needed to expand one's mana reserves.
"But what if I force my mana core to awaken before I turn 12?" Leo wondered.
In rare cases, it is possible to forcefully awaken a mana core by meditating for an entire day without any interruptions. However, such cases were last heard of nearly 200 years ago, during the Great War era. Only children with exceptionally strong bodies could survive the process back then. For a normal 11-year-old, meditation would typically last only about an hour, even for the most talented children of noble or royal blood, who could manage up to five hours. The level of focus required to force a mana core to awaken is something that only adults usually possess.
No one in this era would dare force a child to meditate before their mana core had naturally awakened, due to the potential risks. Forcing a premature awakening could destroy the mana core, rendering the person unable to use magic or aura ever again.
"But it's different for me," Leo thought. "I've already gone through meditation."
There are two main organs in the body that can store the mana accumulated through meditation: the heart and the brain. The brain is where magic is manifested, while the heart is the source of aura.
- **Magic** taps into the mana in the atmosphere, allowing the user to manipulate and create phenomena with intent.
- **Aura** is the energy that envelops the user, granting them defensive and offensive capabilities depending on the user's energy.
Typically, a person can only awaken one mana core. However, in rare cases, some individuals have awakened both their heart and brain mana cores. These individuals are known as **Magic Swordsmen**, capable of using both magic and aura.
There is only one Magic Swordsman in the human race: **Arthur Windward**.
"Just thinking about him makes me angry," Leo muttered, remembering his encounters with Arthur.
Leo had overheard Arthur discussing how he became a Magic Swordsman during a drunken conversation. Although Arthur had warned that simply knowing the method wasn't enough, as it could not be done forcefully by an unawakened user, Leo believed he had an advantage.
One day, Leo gathered his family and made a bold request: no one was allowed to enter his room for the next several days. His family was shocked, as Leo had never shown such determination before—he was often considered a good-for-nothing. Still, they agreed and promised not to disturb him.
Leo knew that trying to awaken both mana cores was extremely dangerous. Failure could lead to mana spreading uncontrollably through the body, resulting in death.
"If I only awaken one mana core, it won't be enough," Leo thought. "It would be easier, but I need to be more powerful."
"I need to prevent the many disasters that are coming."
Typically, a person can only awaken both mana cores at the same time. If a person awakens one core first and then tries to open the second, it could lead to death. For example, if someone awakens their heart mana core for aura, their veins and bones become focused on the heart. Forcing the second core to awaken would cause confusion and malfunction, potentially leading to coma or death.
That's why it is crucial to awaken both cores together if one wants to wield both magic and aura without harming the body. This was the difficult method Arthur had mentioned.
"It would be much easier if I had the scroll Arthur talked about," Leo thought. "But I'll have to rely on what I remember."
"Will I really be able to do this? No, I have to. I was once an eight-star aura user."
Leo began to meditate.
Arthur's words echoed in his mind:
*"First, you need to concentrate and connect thousands of fragments of mana. Then, you must split them in half and place them in your heart and brain. It would be easier if you had the scroll that our ancestors passed down to us."*
*"Without that scroll, I'd be dead by now."*
*"Do you know what the scroll does? It slows down the flow of time in a small area for 14 days, while only one day passes in reality. That's why it's nearly impossible to achieve this without the scroll. Even with the scroll, it took me a full day to complete the process. Without it, it would take at least 14 days, and no human has ever done it without the scroll."*
*"That's why the higher beings came up with this method, known as the 'Time Flow Method.'"*
"Ahh, so that's the reason," Leo had replied during their conversation.
*"Right? Hahaha!" Arthur had laughed. "Because you still don't have a mana core to absorb mana, it's hard. When you have a core, it gathers mana automatically. Without it, you must gather the mana yourself and forcefully awaken it."*
*"It's even harder if you want both magic and aura, because you have to split the mana fragments in half and place them in your brain and heart. Then, you must wait five days to break the mana core, since it's only half of the mana you've gathered."*
"Why are you telling me this? It's very important, you know?" Leo had asked.
*"Because it's not like you can become a Magic Swordsman just by knowing the method. It's something you must achieve by yourself, with the help of the scroll. Only the Windward family knows how to do it, passed down from our ancestors."*
Leo started to meditate, focusing all his energy on gathering the scattered fragments of mana in his body.
Three days later, Leo had gathered all the mana fragments. He began the dangerous task of splitting them in half, knowing that this was the beginning of a life-threatening process due to his exhausted body.