A series of information immediately assaulted my mind, carving itself deep into my head.
It took all i had to stop myself from screaming out in pain. Purchasing techniques from the Association was supposed to be a painful process. Yelling and crying right now and calling that maid in the room wouldn't do anything.
Still, wasn't it only supposed to hurt my head? Why did it feel like my entire body was on fire?
So I endured, and after several minutes, the pain began to subside, leaving me behind with rows of information in my mind. Information that felt like I had known my entire life.
Letting out a deep sigh and wiping my sweat with the sheet under me, I began to inspect the technique only to get another surprise, this one, a bit more pleasant.
New Title Unlocked- Mana Manipulation- Lvl-1 (0/100)
Had the Old Gods finally decided to go easy on me? Trying to contain my excitement, I quickly began searching through the technique, looking for an explanation.
That explains its high price. I carefully began combing through the technique's finer details. It turns out that, to use the technique, a person was required to know basic mana manipulation. So, in order to deal with cases like mine, it was sold in two separate versions. One with a drop of Elysiam Essence and another without it.
As for what Elysiam Essence was. It was a rare shimmering liquid, extracted from the petals of a flower called celestial bloom. This thing had the strength to alter a person's physical and metaphysical body, increasing or decreasing any desired effects.
A single drop was usually priced at no less 100,000 credits, not to mention only sold in rare auctions. Mine must not have been a full drop, that would explain why I had gotten it so cheap. Still, it was a welcome news that Elysiam drop could be used in this world.
Being able to see and manipulate mana even before possessing a proper core would give me a huge jumpstart. Still, the Elysiam essence had only made me capable of feeling and manipulating my mana, if I wanted it to be useful I had to work it myself.
Thinking so I immediately get to work. I closed my eyes and tried to feel the mana inside my body.
The skill was at level 0, so it took a couple of hours before I managed to feel anything. A mystical stream of energy was flowing through my entire body from head to toe; the first time I felt it, I almost yelped and broke my concentration.
It was hard to describe this thing, it was like I was looking at luminous golden threads that were flowing life inside my body with each heartbeat. It was… astonishing.
These streams of threads were also very elusive. It took me several hours to catch one, not to mention control one. The more time I spent playing with mana, the more I realized something. It would have been real trouble if I had gotten this at the same time as everyone else.
For now though, a single thread was all I needed, worried it would slip away, I focused in my mind, concentrating and reciting the verses of some unknown language. The strange thing was, even though I was reciting these, I couldn't recall anything I was mentally chanting.
Suddenly, I felt a tremor pass through the thread of mana; it shook and clutched itself on a single drop of blood in my body. Despite lying down, my body began to sway, and my vision began to fade.
Was this it? Was I going to see it now? Before I could get an answer to my question I lost consciousness.
---
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was the sky, darker than the void itself. All that illuminated the sky was a single star shimmering high above ahead.
Where was this place? I tried to speak, but my words were caught in my throat the moment I observed my surroundings.
I was currently standing waist deep inside a dug-up grave. "What in the void?"
A curse escaped me, my legs buckling as I stumbled backward startled by the sound of my own voice. I… I could speak. And—what in the Void—how did I have a body? And why am I naked?
Confused, I tried to sort my thoughts. The last thing I remember was trying that stupid bloodline technique.
Whatever this place was, I first needed to climb out of this grave. Resolving myself, I placed my legs on the sides and pulled myself out. Thankfully, this body was athletic, just like my previous body. Hmm, curious.
Climbing out of the grave, I took a quick look at my surroundings, and what I saw almost caused my eyes to pop out of their sockets.
I stood in the heart of an endless graveyard, the tombstones jutting from the ground like jagged teeth, their surfaces worn and cracked by time. A heavy fog clung to the earth, swirling around the graves like ghostly tendrils, as if the dead were watching from below.
In front of these tombstones existed several dug-up graves, tens of them, including the one that I had climbed out of.
This is freaky. I took a step forward, trying to inspect the grave near me. Reaching the grave, I kneeled down to take a closer look at the tombstone.
Unfortunately, I couldn't see a name. For some reason, the writings on the tombstone were covered by the strange haze, preventing me from reading anything.
I tried to disperse the haze, touching the tombstone when.
My sight once again darkened, and I lost consciousness.