Chapter 57: Mana

"Yes!"

Without even a moment of hesitation, Kyle clicked the YES button, fully expecting to learn the skill instantly.

Instead, another notification appeared.

[Unable to learn the skill.]

[Reason: User does not have a Mana Pool unlocked.]

Kyle’s face immediately turned sour.

"Do I seriously need to buy a guide to unlock the Mana Pool fir—"

Before he could finish his sentence, another System notification appeared.

[Do you want to unlock your Mana Pool?]

[YES / NO]

Kyle stared at it for a moment.

"Why would I even say no?"

Just like before, he immediately clicked YES because what was the reason to do the otherwise?

The moment he did, something strange happened.

A wave of heat suddenly spread throughout his body.

"What... is this feeling?"

Kyle instinctively looked down at himself, but there was nothing visibly different about his body. Yet the warmth was unmistakable. It started somewhere deep inside him and slowly spread through his entire body.

Before he could figure out what was happening, another System message appeared.

[Close your eyes and sit down on the ground.]

The System’s tone was different this time. Instead of its usual teasing and sarcastic tone, it sounded very serious and stern.

"Okay."

Kyle instinctively knew not to question it.

He sat down on the floor and crossed his legs into a lotus position before closing his eyes.

The strange warmth inside his body continued to grow.

[Breath in and out slowly and continuously. Relax your body and do not put up any resistance.]

Kyle followed the instructions.

He slowly inhaled through his nose and then exhaled just as slowly.

Again.

And again.

With every breath, he felt the strange sensation becoming more manageable.

His muscles gradually relaxed, and the tension that had unknowingly built up in his body began to disappear.

[Good. Now follow this carefully because this is going to be very important for you.]

Kyle remained silent like a good boy and simply listened.

[Put all of your focus on your body and the energy around you.]

Kyle frowned slightly.

’How?’

He focused on his body.

He could feel his breathing and could feel his chest moving as he inhaled and exhaled.

He could feel the position of his arms and legs but the other part was impossible.

’Energy around me?’

He didn’t feel anything.

’What am I even supposed to feel?’

Kyle tried harder.

He focused on his body and then tried to sense whatever the System was referring to as energy.

Nothing.

He couldn’t feel anything remotely resembling some mysterious magical force surrounding him.

[Don’t worry. It isn’t easy to feel the energy immediately. Just remain calm and avoid conflicting thoughts. Keep your focus locked.]

[Instead of focusing on both your body and the energy around you, focus only on your body for now.]

The System seemed to understand his struggle and simplified the instructions.

Kyle nodded slightly.

’Okay. Body first.’

He returned his entire attention inward.

He started with his breathing.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Inhale.

Exhale.

He carefully observed every breath instead of simply allowing his body to perform the action automatically.

Several minutes passed.

Nothing happened.

His focus occasionally wandered.

A random thought would appear now and than.

But every time his thoughts wandered, Kyle brought his attention back.

He didn’t stop.

He continued meditating, slowly shutting out the world around him and focusing only on himself.

After several more minutes, something changed.

’What’s this...’

Kyle’s breathing suddenly wasn’t the only thing he could feel anymore.

There were tiny movements happening throughout his body that he had never consciously noticed before.

The subtle movement of his muscles.

The shifting of his chest.

The rhythm of his heartbeat.

Plus The movement of blood through his body.

The countless tiny processes happening beneath his skin.

It was strange.

It was almost like he was experiencing his own body for the first time.

Kyle remained completely still.

Instead of allowing the unfamiliar sensations to distract him, he focused even harder.

[Good. You are doing the right thing.]

[However, don’t ignore your body. Embrace it instead. Suppressing the sensations will only hinder your progress.]

Kyle understood what the System meant.

Instead of trying to suppress everything he was feeling, he began acknowledging each sensation.

He slowly became aware of the sound of his own heartbeat.

The faint movement of blood flowing through his veins.

The tiny contractions of his muscles.

The rise and fall of his chest.

Even the smallest movements inside his body became increasingly clear.

It was an experience Kyle had never encountered before.

He wasn’t simply thinking about his body anymore but instead he was making sure to experience and understand it.

Every tiny function seemed to become distinct while simultaneously remaining connected to everything else.

It was almost like looking at himself from an entirely different perspective.

’This is... amazing.’

Kyle couldn’t even properly describe what he was experiencing.

If someone had asked him to explain it, he wouldn’t have known what words to use.

It felt like an awakening.

Something fundamental about his perception was changing.

He continued meditating.

Ten minutes passed.

Then twenty.

Then thirty.

Kyle remained completely absorbed in the experience.

He explored the sensations inside his body one by one, sometimes focusing on them individually and sometimes experiencing them all together.

He became so immersed in the meditation that he almost forgot about the outside world entirely.

Then suddenly—

"What...?"

Kyle felt something strange.

There was something outside his body.

Something he hadn’t been able to sense before.

It was warm.

Not the same warmth he had felt inside his body earlier.

This was different.

It seemed to exist everywhere around him.

And somehow, it was moving.

The energy flowed toward his body and passed through it without any resistance.

There was no barrier.

No blockage.

It was almost as if his physical body didn’t exist for it.

Kyle’s breathing slowed even further.

His attention immediately locked onto the strange sensation.

In the darkness behind his closed eyes, something began appearing.

Small, warm, glowing shapes.

They were scattered throughout the space around him.

Some were closer.

Others were farther away.

They floated through the darkness like countless tiny bubbles of warm light.

Kyle stared at them in disbelief.

’What is this?’

He had never seen anything like it before.

The strange glowing particles moved naturally through the space around him, drifting toward and away from his body without any obstruction.

Kyle instinctively tried to focus on them.

The moment he did, the System finally spoke.

[This is it.]

The System’s voice carried a hint of satisfaction.

[What you are experiencing right now is mana.]