Chapter 291: Flight [2] [GOLDEN TICKET BONUS]

After several seconds, the process stabilized, and the rune completed its transformation into a genuine Kinetic Element Rune. Alex then poured his mana into it, creating Kinetic Element Mana.

The moment the process was complete, he could feel something different from the ordinary mana he had used before. Kinetic Element Mana wasn’t simply normal mana with a different appearance; its properties were closely connected to movement and force.

Alex could also feel several gazes falling on him from the people around the rooftop. His Advanced Battle Instinct immediately noticed them, but he ignored the attention and continued experimenting with the new mana.

He moved the kinetic mana around his body, changed its direction, increased its speed, and then reduced its movement before repeating the process several times. After testing it for a while, Alex finally gained a better understanding of how it functioned.

So far, every type of Element Mana he had encountered seemed to follow the same basic principle. They could function as both "fuel" and "source."

If spark was introduced into Fire Element Mana, the Fire Element Mana would catch fire, while introducing Lightning Element Mana to lightning would cause the entire mass of mana to become lightning. This was why Element Mana could function as fuel, because it could be transformed into the corresponding element when the right conditions were provided.

However, Element Mana could also become the source of an element when it was compressed enough. If Alex compressed a large amount of Fire Element Mana, it would eventually produce sparks, and with even more compression, those sparks would turn into flames.

Lightning Element Mana worked in a similar way. If enough of it was compressed together, it could produce actual lightning instead of merely providing the energy needed to create it. Alex hadn’t personally experimented with Air, Water, or Earth element mana yet, but his instincts told him that they followed the same principle.

There was a fundamental relationship between element mana and the elements they represented, and Alex was becoming increasingly confident that understanding this relationship would allow him to create much more powerful spells. Kinetic Element Mana, however, was different.

It was closer to a battery than the other types of element mana Alex had encountered. Fire, water, earth, air, and lightning could all act as fuel or become the source of their respective elements, while Kinetic Element Mana could store kinetic energy and release it whenever Alex wanted.

Of course, there was a limit to how much energy it could hold. If Alex stored too much kinetic energy inside it, the Kinetic Element Mana would become unstable and eventually explode.

There was another important property as well. The more he compressed Kinetic Element Mana, the more kinetic energy it could store within the same amount of mana. This meant that improving his control over compression would directly increase the amount of energy he could store.

After confirming these properties, Alex moved on to the next stage of his experiment. He created a Mana Shuriken behind his back, keeping it vertical instead of its usual horizontal position, and then began filling it with Fire Element Mana.

Once he had finished, Alex began compressing the Fire Element Mana inside the Mana Shuriken. He added more mana as he compressed it, and before long, flames began erupting from the sides of the shuriken’s blades, causing it to start spinning.

Alex could immediately feel intense heat radiating from his back, and he knew that this would become a serious problem if he couldn’t control it. He started with a relatively slow rotation while carefully studying the heat and movement being produced by the spell.

Then he activated the Kinetic Element Rune. Kinetic Element Mana began flowing around the Mana Shuriken, wrapping around it and absorbing the kinetic energy generated by its movement, causing the spinning blade to gradually slow.

Alex also tried to absorb the heat coming from the Mana Shuriken. Heat was essentially the movement of molecules, and movement meant kinetic energy, so in theory, Kinetic Element Mana should be capable of absorbing at least some of that energy.

He focused intensely on the process, adjusting the flow of mana and changing how much kinetic energy was being absorbed. After several attempts, the scorching heat against his back began to lessen considerably, and Alex knew that his theory was correct.

He took a few deep breaths before moving to the next step. He slowly increased the speed of the Mana Shuriken while maintaining the flow of Kinetic Element Mana around it.

The process immediately became more difficult. The faster the Mana Shuriken rotated, the more kinetic energy it produced, which meant Alex had to maintain the right balance between allowing the shuriken to spin and absorbing the energy generated by its movement.

He focused completely on the task. The Mana Shuriken was now rotating at an incredible speed, yet it produced almost no sound because Alex was absorbing the kinetic energy created by the movement of the surrounding molecules and preventing that energy from spreading outward as sound.

A white disc gradually appeared behind his back, so bright that it illuminated the surrounding rooftop and made the darkness of the night seem much less noticeable. The guards watching from a distance could only stare at Alex as they tried to understand what he was doing.

Alex ignored them and continued adjusting the flow of kinetic mana until he finally felt that he had achieved a delicate balance. The Mana Shuriken was spinning rapidly, the heat was being absorbed, and the kinetic energy was being stored without causing the system to become unstable.

Now came the final step.

Alex used the kinetic energy stored inside the Kinetic Element Mana and released it downward, intending to push his body upward. Nothing happened, so he frowned and increased the amount of force.

The ground beneath his feet cracked, but his body remained in place. Alex increased the force again, putting even more energy into the release.

Alex increased the force again, putting even more energy into the release, but the result was still not what he wanted.

Then he made a mistake.

Because he was concentrating so heavily on keeping the Mana Shuriken spinning at high speed while simultaneously absorbing its kinetic energy, he released far too much stored energy at once. A powerful shockwave erupted, and in the next instant, Alex was suddenly far above the rooftop.

Pain immediately spread through his body as his bones nearly shattered despite the protection provided by his Superior Body Reinforcement Spell. His clothes had been almost completely shredded by the force and were barely hanging onto his body, but Alex had a faint smile on his face.

He could fly.

Alex began falling as gravity took hold of him, but he quickly adjusted the amount of kinetic energy he released. The Mana Shuriken continued spinning rapidly behind him, constantly generating kinetic energy that he could absorb and store.

He carefully released small amounts of that energy downward, and his descent gradually slowed. A moment later, he stopped falling altogether and began floating in the air.

Alex experimented with moving sideways before trying to rise and descend. The movements were somewhat difficult at first, but he quickly began understanding how much energy he needed to release in each direction.

Within a short time, he had gained a basic understanding of how to control his flight. A grin appeared on Alex’s face as he looked around.

From this height, he could see a large portion of the city. Based on the buildings below him, he estimated that he was roughly as high as a forty-five-story building.

He then looked toward the high school. A large number of people had gathered outside, and many of them were pointing toward him, although Alex couldn’t hear what they were saying from this distance.

To them, he probably looked like a star floating in the night sky. Alex didn’t pay much attention to them because a notification had suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[Mana Circuit Spell has leveled up. Level 1 → Level 3.]

..

Author’s Note: If you’re enjoying the novel, consider leaving a vote. It helps the novel a lot. Thank you!