Effort and Technique

Children on the Star Continent typically began their magical training at the age of ten.

From then until twelve, they practiced magic under the adults in the ‘Nomad’ their parents belonged to.

Upon turning thirteen, they would enter a ‘School Nomad’ for more specialized education.

The School Nomad had two educational goals.

The first was to raise children to become ordinary adults of the Star Continent.

This meant learning various combat and survival skills necessary to survive in the Star Continent, and becoming a ‘Mana Beginner’ who could sense and handle refined mana.

Most of the School Nomad graduates, about six or seven out of ten, achieved this first goal.

In contrast, the second goal was accomplished only by children with exceptional talent.

Namely, becoming a ‘Mana User’ who could sense and utilize the mana dwelling within their own bodies rather than just refined mana.

Unlike Mana Beginners who could only handle magical items, Mana Users transcended human limitations.

Their strength, agility, and senses exceeded normal human boundaries, and they would awaken a ‘Gift’ based on their individual characteristics.

‘Gifts’ were also called superpowers or primitive magic, referring to special abilities like enhanced physical capabilities, telekinesis, or clairvoyance.

Once in a lifetime, when awakening as a Mana User, one could develop a single Gift.

In other words, becoming a ‘Mana User’ was the first step to becoming a true apprentice mage.

Typically, only one or two students out of ten in a School Nomad successfully awakened as Mana Users.

Out of ten students, six or seven became Mana Beginners, one or two became Mana Users, and the remaining one to three usually died during the School Nomad’s nomadic training.

Such was the harshness of the Star Continent.

Three months after receiving the Stone of Memory, I turned fourteen and was diligently working toward becoming a Mana User.

However, I was experiencing some trial and error.

“Next! Miri!”

“Yes!”

At Teacher Sena’s call, a girl with short orange hair stepped forward. She was fourteen, the same age as me.

She exhaled deeply while mounted on her horse, relaxing her shoulders.

In front of her stood an array of rocks scattered across the plain with weathered wooden obstacles positioned between them.

It was one of the points created by ancestors for the Nomads’ magical training.

Tsk tsk.

Making a clicking sound with her tongue, she lightly kicked the horse’s side, and it began moving forward.

“Good, alternate walking!”

“Alternate walking!”

At Teacher Sena’s instruction, Miri echoed the command while gripping the reins and shifting her weight from side to side.

The horse walked briskly, skillfully weaving left and right between the rocks that stood in a line.

After passing through the rock formation, a wooden obstacle as tall as a person stood before her.

Teacher Sena called out with a stretched voice.

“Jump!”

“Jump!”

Miri leaped with her horse. They magnificently cleared the obstacle.

“Spin in place!”

“Spin in place!”

As Miri shifted her center of gravity sharply to the left, the horse began spinning with its hind legs as a pivot.

“Good! Now, leap up!”

“Leap up!”

Miri stopped the spinning horse, faced a rock so tall that an adult would have to fully extend their arms to reach its top, and charged at full speed.

In front of the rock, Miri shouted as she leaped upward.

“Ha!”

The horse soared with a whoosh. Its hooves briefly caught on the edge of the rock, but despite wobbling, the horse ultimately stood atop the rock and gave a triumphant neigh.

Frrrrrr!

Shadows stretched long. It was a magnificent scene—a large horse and young girl atop the rock, bathed in sunlight.

“Excellent!”

“Thank you!”

Miri smiled with beads of sweat as she lightly guided her horse back down to the ground.

Woooong—!

I could see some of the surrounding mana being absorbed into her.

It meant that she had succeeded in her task and received mana’s acknowledgment.

This was the practice of magic.

The teacher would assign challenges and covenants, and the children would fulfill them.

Successful completion earned mana’s recognition, allowing one to contain more mana. Conversely, failure could result in the loss of existing mana.

A good teacher’s role was to develop tasks that were likely to earn mana’s recognition, and to present suitable challenges and covenants to each child individually—difficult enough but still achievable with effort.

‘But it’s too little.’

Even Miri, who was absorbing the mana, probably couldn’t sense it, but to my eyes, it was crystal clear.

I could see bright white mana and deep blue mana being absorbed into her. However, the green mana circled around her before turning away.

No wonder the amount of mana being absorbed was limited.

Green mana was the most abundant in this area, yet she was being shunned by it.

All of this was visible only to my eyes.

Others couldn’t see this.

I used to think I was the strange one.

I worried that I might be delusional, as Teacher Sena suggested. But after receiving an Earth person’s 50 years of memories, those worries vanished.

‘Teachers can be wrong too.’

It was a simple thought, but for a child whose entire world consisted of teachers and parents, it was a difficult realization to reach on one’s own.

If I hadn’t received the Stone of Memory, I would have wasted time searching for flaws in myself that didn’t exist.

“Next! Baek Jun-woo!”

Teacher Sena called my name.

I casually rode my horse forward. With each step, my body shook. The horse’s springy energy transmitted directly through the saddle.

Compared to the knowledge from the Stone of Memory, the horses of the Star Continent were larger and more physically capable than Earth’s horses.

As evidenced by how Miri’s horse had leaped onto that high rock in a single bound.

As I moved forward, I heard mocking voices again.

“I wonder what kind of accident that bastard Baek Jun-woo will cause today? How does he keep getting worse?”

Do Gyeong-su. Tall but skinny. Always at the forefront of tormenting me.

“I’m not sure he’ll even manage to graduate.”

The nonchalant taunt came from Mukuru with his sturdy build and dark face. He often shoved my shoulder as he passed by.

“Maybe he’d be better off falling from the horse and dying… For his parents’ sake, I mean. It’s filial piety for a hopeless child to die.”

The one making such heartless remarks was Kallin. The ringleader of the trio who despised me. His grades were second only to Yuria’s.

Though harsh, such comments were common in the Star Continent.

It was such a brutal world.

A worthless child is better off dead.

Adults would say such things without hesitation in front of children.

Even now, Teacher Sena didn’t stop these insults. She simply gave instructions.

“Trot!”

Unlike the directions given to Miri earlier, not alternate walking but simply trotting. She was giving me an easier task because I was perpetually at the bottom of the rankings.

But as always, I had no intention of following her instructions.

After all, what mattered wasn’t her, but the mana watching me now.

I could see the colors of mana.

Not only that, I could feel their gaze.

As I prepared to perform the task, I felt the nearby mana observing me intently.

About 60 percent of it was green mana.

“Haaah…”

I took a deep breath.

I admit it.

I’ve been a mess until now.

But that was because I was experimenting to distinguish the characteristics of different mana.

What differences exist between mana of different colors? What do they like and dislike? I spent time trying to figure this out, which is why I’ve been deliberately disobeying Teacher Sena’s instructions and doing all sorts of strange things.

I glanced at the surrounding children. Faces with faint smirks, except for Yuria.

Inwardly, I gave a derisive snort.

While you’ve been blindly following Teacher Sena, I’ve been coldly observing.

And today is when I’ll show the results.

‘According to my observations so far, green mana values harmony. Rather than forcing compliance with instructions, respecting the horse and feeling unity with it is more important.’

What matters isn’t forcibly making the horse climb rocks like Miri did. The key is for the horse and I to enjoy riding together.

It’s still just my hypothesis, but… today I can confirm it.

I whispered to the black horse, which was exhaling steadily.

“Let’s do well. Heukseom.” (TLN: While I can use English version of this, I feel like using Heukseom is more fitting. You will be able to see the name’s meaning after this.)

Neigh!

Heukseom (Black Flash). This one was specially chosen for me by my parents. We’d grown up together, like family.

I had no intention of treating this one harshly to follow Teacher Sena’s instructions. No need to, either.

Once again, I felt the gaze of mana watching me intently.

<…>

<…?>

It almost seemed like they were saying something, but I couldn’t understand.

What thoughts do they have… these faceless spectators, silently watching. Indifferent gazes.

With mana watching, I begin my challenge.

Is this how an actor feels performing on stage for the first time? Excited, nervous…

“Baek Jun-woo! Trot!”

Teacher Sena urged me with an irritated voice.

“Yes! Yes! I’m going!”

I answered cheerfully and lightly tapped the horse’s side.