Chapter 58: Mana Pool

[What you are experiencing right now is mana. Try to interact with it, but don’t break your focus or try to force your way into it.]

The System repeated its explanation and began guiding Kyle through the basic process of interacting with mana. Kyle carefully followed each instruction, maintaining his concentration while trying to understand this strange energy that he had only just discovered existed.

As his focus deepened, his inner vision seemed to expand.

What had initially appeared to be a dark void containing only a few scattered points of light slowly revealed itself to be his entire room.

There were thousands of those strange, bright bubbles scattered throughout the space.

Kyle could now sense mana almost everywhere around him.

The glowing bubbles drifted slowly through the air, occasionally colliding with one another. When two or more bubbles came together, they would merge into a larger and denser mass of mana. In other places, larger concentrations of mana would split apart, becoming several smaller and weaker bubbles that drifted away from each other.

Kyle couldn’t see any of this with his physical eyes.

Yet with his newly awakened inner perception, the entire room had become visible to him in a completely different way.

It reminded him of looking at countless tiny galaxies scattered throughout an endless void. Each glowing bubble was like a miniature celestial body, floating peacefully through space.

It was mesmerizing.

’Why am I failing to interact with it?’

Kyle focused his attention on one of the nearby mana bubbles.

He tried to pull it closer.

Nothing happened.

He tried pushing it away.

Nothing.

He attempted to make it change direction, gathering his concentration around it and willing it to respond to him.

Still nothing.

The mana simply continued drifting according to its own movement, completely indifferent to Kyle’s efforts.

It was as if he didn’t exist.

’Why isn’t it reacting to me?’

Kyle tried again.

And failed again.

Since this was his first attempt, he didn’t become discouraged. Instead, he assumed the problem was his concentration. Perhaps his focus wasn’t strong enough, or perhaps he had unknowingly broken the meditation.

He steadied his breathing and tried once more.

’They don’t even react no matter how hard I try to interact with them.’

Strangely, Kyle could now speak to himself within his own mind without disturbing his meditation. His thoughts remained separate from his concentration, allowing him to observe his situation while maintaining his focus.

He tried again.

Nothing.

Again.

Nothing.

He continued trying until the mana bubbles began to feel like immovable boulders.

No matter how much effort he put into interacting with them, they simply continued drifting through the room.

Eventually, the System spoke again.

[You are making the right effort, but the mana present in your environment is too scattered and shallow for you to interact with effectively.]

Kyle frowned.

’Too scattered and shallow?’

The System had already told him that Earth had an extremely low mana concentration, but seeing thousands of mana bubbles floating around his room made him question that explanation.

’What do you mean by shallow? I can see thousands of mana bubbles scattered throughout my room. Shouldn’t that be plenty?’

The System responded immediately.

[Because this is the only perspective you currently have of mana, it may appear abundant to you. However, this amount is extremely low.]

[If the mana concentration in your environment were actually abundant, your entire surroundings would be saturated with mana. Hundreds of thousands of these particles would be surrounding you, and they would exist in much denser concentrations.]

Kyle finally understood what the System meant.

He was looking at the situation from a human perspective.

Thousands of glowing bubbles sounded like an enormous amount of energy when compared to the complete absence of magic he had experienced throughout his life.

But compared to an actual magical environment, it was apparently nothing.

’So even though I can see thousands of them, it’s still considered almost nothing.’

[Correct.]

The System paused for a moment before continuing.

[Since the normal method of interacting with environmental mana is ineffective under your current circumstances, we will use an alternative method.]

Kyle immediately paid closer attention.

[Instead of attempting to directly interact with the mana around you, focus on the mana that naturally comes into contact with your body.]

[When mana enters your body, try to absorb it. Do not attempt to forcibly pull distant mana toward yourself. Instead, allow the mana that reaches you naturally to enter your body.]

[Think of your body as a vacuum. Rather than grabbing the dust from across the room, simply absorb whatever dust comes close enough to be caught.]

Kyle understood the explanation almost immediately.

He had already felt the mana occasionally passing through his body.

Every few moments, one of those glowing bubbles would drift toward him before passing directly through his body as if he weren’t there.

’So I don’t have to control the mana itself. I just need to absorb the mana that comes into contact with me.’

That sounded considerably easier.

’Let’s do this.’

Kyle steadied himself and returned his attention to the mana surrounding him.

Instead of trying to manipulate the distant bubbles, he waited.

A few moments passed.

One bubble drifted toward him.

It passed straight through his body.

Kyle missed the opportunity.

Another came.

He focused on it but failed to absorb it.

Another passed through.

Then another.

Kyle remained patient.

He waited for the next opportunity and prepared himself.

Finally, several mana bubbles drifted toward him at once.

As they approached his body, Kyle concentrated entirely on them.

’This is it!’

The moment they made contact, Kyle tried to absorb them.

Instead of using his mouth or a specific part of his body, he imagined his entire body becoming a vacuum, drawing the warm energy inward.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then—

Kyle felt it.

The warm energy was pulled inside him.

His eyes would have widened if they were open.

’I did it!’

He had successfully absorbed mana.

The sensation was completely different from anything he had experienced before.

The mana entered his body as a warm stream of energy and settled inside him. It didn’t disappear or spread randomly. Instead, it remained within him, waiting for somewhere to go.

Kyle could feel it clearly.

But there was a problem.

’Where do I put this?’

The mana had entered his body, but there was nowhere for him to store it.

[Perfect.]

The System’s voice carried a hint of satisfaction.

[You have successfully learned how to absorb mana.]

[However, absorption is only the first step. You now need somewhere to store the mana you have absorbed.]

Kyle immediately asked the question that came to mind.

’Where am I supposed to store it?’

[I recommend using your heart as your Mana Pool.]

[Guide the mana you have just absorbed toward your heart.]

Kyle followed the instruction without hesitation.

He focused on the mana inside his body and slowly guided it toward his chest.

For the first time, he could actually feel the energy moving through him.

It traveled through his body, following his intent as he carefully directed it toward his heart.

The closer it came, the stronger the sensation became.

Then the mana reached his heart.

The moment it arrived, Kyle felt it drop into the space surrounding his heart like water being poured into an empty tank.

The energy settled there.

Kyle could clearly feel its presence inside him.

He had done it. He had created his first true reserve of mana.

[Congratulations, User.]

[You have unlocked the following:]

[1. Mana Heart (Mana Pool)]

[2. Novice Mana Absorption Technique]