Chapter 7

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The Star Continent is filled with calamities, making it impossible to survive even a day without magic.

That’s why ‘mana,’ the resource that enables magic, became currency. Typically, materials containing mana were processed into coins or bills, with value determined by the amount of mana they contained.

The smallest unit, 1 Spark, represented the minimum amount of mana capable of producing a magical phenomenon.

Just enough mana for a Mana Beginner to create a single spark in the air using a magical tool.

Compared to South Korean currency, it was worth about 10 won.

100 Sparks made 1 Light. Enough mana to illuminate empty space with a bright flame for one minute.

Worth about 1,000 Korean won, Light was the most commonly used unit, sometimes replacing the word ‘money’ entirely. Phrases like “Got any Light?” were common.

100 Lights became 1 Shine.

Mana powerful enough to create a flash of light that could blind someone. It was the minimum unit of mana capable of harming a person.

Finally, 10 Shines became 1 Morning. The minimum amount of mana required to manifest sustained magic.

Asset number one, the protective talisman, was a magical tool with four types of magic engraved on it—barrier, neutralization, concealment, and detection. Even the cheapest one sold for 5 Mornings, about 5 million Korean won.

In other words, the minimum cost for a young person of the Star Continent to become independent as an adult was 5 Mornings.

-Currency of the Star Continent.

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Whiiirr—

The sound of magical power surging in.

“This sound… and magical power intense enough to feel on my skin… incredible.”

Teacher Sena muttered.

The magical power flowing in was so overwhelming that even Teacher Sena, who normally couldn’t sense it, could feel it.

I felt uneasy.

‘If the orc found us earlier because of the magical power I absorbed…?’

The magical power gathering now was incomparable to before. If another Calamity of Night sensed this power and found us? The mere thought made my head spin.

That’s when Teacher Sena took out her talisman.

Her talisman was designed for mage use, with a lightning-struck peach tree as its body and ivory for the handle. A luxury item that sold for at least 100 Mornings, in a completely different league from ours.

What emerged from her pocket wasn’t a 10-Light mana coin but a 1-Shine mana bill.

Fwoosh—

The bill she tossed disintegrated into ash and was absorbed into the talisman.

“Conceal!”

Her talisman rippled with five types of magical power—red, blue, green, light, and dark.

As the mana spread like waves, the fierce flow of incoming magical power vanished.

The dark magical power that had been clearly flowing in became increasingly transparent and faded from view, and even the whooosh sound of rushing wind disappeared.

‘Ah…! Using concealment can hide us from calamities’ detection!’

Only then did I realize what I needed to do.

I quickly tossed a 10-Light mana coin.

“Conceal!”

Crackle!

At the sound of the mana coin crumbling, Teacher Sena turned to look at me. After a moment of confusion, she nodded and praised me.

“Ah… I almost forgot. Well done. With that level of contribution, magical power would have flowed to you too. Always be careful when large amounts of magical power gather. Calamities are sensitive to movements of magical power.”

She must have been quite disoriented, as her speech mixed formal and informal tones confusingly.

And…

The magical power did flow to me.

More than I had accumulated in my entire life.

Whether drawn by the dead orc or not, dark red magical power rarely seen in this area surged in powerfully yet silently.

If the magical power flowing to Teacher Sena was a river, what flowed to me was a mountain stream, but even that was so dense it was suffocating.

‘Ah…’

It was a strange sensation.

Like magical power was creating new blood vessels and muscles inside my body.

A feeling of both itchiness and fulfillment, as if old cells were being pushed out and new flesh was growing.

My entire body became sensitive, as if eyes had sprouted all over it.

I was completely immersed in the changes happening in my body, falling into a state of total absorption.

How much time passed?

“Looks like you got something out of it?”

Thanks to Teacher Sena tapping my shoulder, I barely managed to come back to my senses.

The magical power that had covered her entire body was now completely contained, and a complex smile played on her lips.

“Ah, yes. So much magical power flowed in… it feels strange.”

The feeling was so incredible, like being reborn, yet my words came out modestly. It felt like words were stuck in my throat, unable to escape.

Teacher Sena nodded as if she understood.

“Yes. Perhaps you’ll be Sena School Nomad’s first Mana User. And maybe I’ll even recover my Circle…”

As she said this, her expression was complicated. Joy and pride were clearly there, but the stronger emotion was… worry.

“Sigh…”

After sighing, she quickly composed herself and gave orders to the students.

“Everyone! Spend 10 Lights each to neutralize this entire area! If we don’t completely neutralize the traces left by the battle, we might be pursued by calamities!”

The children diligently waved their talismans to activate neutralization.

Only then did the orc’s eyelight that still lingered everywhere begin to fade.

Only after the area was cleared up did Teacher Sena attend to her right arm, which was torn to shreds.

“Kallin! Help with the bleeding, please!”

Kallin’s father was the most skilled medical practitioner in the School Nomad, and Kallin had learned from him, making him good at first aid.

Kallin rushed over and carefully applied herbs and wrapped her arm in bandages.

Teacher Sena endured the terrible pain of herbs being packed into torn flesh with just a furrowed brow, and issued another order.

It was delivered in a colder voice than any command she had given before.

“Baek Jun-woo, Yuria, Monggu. You three will immediately capture Do Gyeong-su who fled. He ran without saying anything, so he couldn’t have gone far.”

Teacher Sena, who always used formal speech in class.

Teacher Sena, who hated Baek Jun-woo for his strange questions and always scolded him.

Teacher Sena, who had shown terrifying fighting spirit against the orc.

She had many facets, but no student could have anticipated this side of her.

Her eyes emanated a colder, heavier killing intent than when she faced the orc.

Her lips moved like a heavy, sharp blade.

“If he resists, you may put holes in his limbs. Just bring him to me with his consciousness intact.”

She radiated an intensity that made it hard to believe she was a severely injured person.

“You have five minutes.”

“Yes!”

Yuria was the first to respond.

“Yes! Yes!”

Monggu and I belatedly answered and ran to mount our horses.

A deserter who fled during battle.

Worse still, a traitor who threw Miri in front of the orc as bait.

We tracked Do Gyeong-su’s trail.