Chapter 204: Summer Vacation [3]

Chapter 203

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Episode 50 - Summer Vacation [3]

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"Ah... it will be a long journey to obtain the Essence of the Divine on the Floating Continent."

Lumina let out a sigh as she rubbed her temples.

She already had everything prepared to advance to Five Stars, but she was still missing one thing.

’This regression will be the first time I awaken the Divine Body. To finally bring everything to an end, I need to build the ultimate foundation for my growth.’

Throughout all of her regressions, she had always awakened the Transcendent Body, but in one of them, Lumina realized that it was not enough to build the foundation for her growth.

She needed a perfect initial foundation, one with no gaps or imperfections.

So, after countless regressions, she searched for a way to obtain the Essence of the Divine, the main ingredient required to awaken the Divine Body.

’I wanted to try it in my previous regression, but...’

At that time, something completely different from anything that had ever happened in her regressions had appeared.

And from the moment he appeared, everything became much easier, making her believe that everything would finally come to an end.

And, just as expected, everything ended exactly as Lumina had originally wished, though at the cost of what she desired most.

He died, the only person who ultimately achieved what Lumina never could.

’But this time will definitely be different from all the other regressions, even more so than the last one.’

First, she had to travel to the Floating Continent, then meet the Consciousness of the Tree of Dreams and Desire.

Finally, she would have to lift the strange curse that kept its consciousness bound in a state of hibernation in exchange for receiving the Essence of the Divine.

It had taken Lumina countless regressions to discover how to obtain the Essence of the Divine.

Only then did she realize that the Consciousness of the Tree of Dreams and Desire remained in hibernation because someone had placed a curse upon it.

’Then reaching Six Stars will only take me about five or six months.’

For Lumina, advancing all the way to Nine Stars was simply a matter of mana.

Having reached every Star in each of her regressions, she already possessed both the experience and the knowledge.

So all she needed was to gather mana, and that was all.

’Lifting the curse would take me nearly four weeks, but I’m not in much of a hurry.’

As Lumina walked, lost in thought, she failed to notice that she had already reached the campus.

There wasn’t a single cadet anywhere along the way.

Lumina was returning to the dormitories to prepare for her journey to the Floating Continent.

Then, at that moment, she heard voices and finally emerged from her thoughts to look ahead.

But she only saw Veronica running in the distance, so she watched her with mild confusion.

Then, unconsciously, she lowered her gaze when she heard a faint murmur.

"...."

Her expression remained as impassive as ever, and then she murmured,

"Adel..."

At that moment, little Adel turned around and stared directly at her.

"....?!"

But then Lumina realized that little Adel was no longer wearing the bandage over his eyes.

".....!"

Adel tilted his head slightly and silently "looked" straight at Lumina, trying to understand what was going through her mind.

Meanwhile, Lumina simply gazed directly into his eyes.

"...."

Just as she had seen them for the first time in her previous regression.

Eyes that were far too striking, a deep golden color tinged with crimson. Such an unusual eye color that it truly lived up to the meaning of that word.

To Lumina, Adel’s eyes were unlike anything she had ever seen throughout her countless lives.

Perhaps because she had lost herself trying to change the outcome at the end of every regression.

Or perhaps because she had never truly been interested in looking at other people, believing they would only distract her.

But when she looked into his eyes, a strange feeling washed over her. She could not remember it very well, but at that very moment...

The same feeling arose within her.

Clap!

Lumina took a step forward and reached out her hand. Adel narrowed his eyes and took a step back.

"...."

"...."

Then, without any warning, Adel turned around and hurried away.

Lumina kept her hand outstretched, but then her other hand grasped it, as though a part of herself was holding her back.

"..."

Lumina watched little Adel as he walked away.

His small body and tiny figure caused a single thought to cross her mind.

’I want to hug him.’

***

After a while, the two days finally passed, and my body returned to normal.

I let out a sigh as I stretched, feeling refreshed, as though I had been exhausted all day.

"Being in a child’s form is really exhausting."

In any case, after returning to my original state, I quickly headed to one of the Academy’s training halls.

Once inside, I checked to see if anyone was there, but the entire place was empty.

So I sat down in the center and activated my senses.

Instead of expanding outward, my senses turned inward.

Together with Mana Sense, I was able to perceive absolutely everything about myself.

From my current condition down to the smallest detail.

The flow of my mana, my heart, the place where my mana was stored, and even any organ that might have been accumulating some kind of new energy.

After spending several minutes scanning myself, I found nothing.

Then I let out a sigh.

"I really don’t feel any different, so how exactly am I supposed to use Astral Power?"

I lay down on the ground with my arms and legs spread out as I thought.

I couldn’t feel anything at all.

Even after using my senses, which had returned to normal, I still couldn’t feel Astral Power.

’Do I need some kind of trigger to sense Astral Power, or perhaps a specific Trait?’

To awaken a Trait related to Astral Power, I first needed to understand what Astral Power actually was.

I needed the basics; otherwise, awakening a Trait related to Astral Power would be impossible.

’Mhm...’

Although Astral Power was unfamiliar to me, it didn’t feel exactly like mana, which could be sensed naturally.

Astral Power seemed to be the kind of energy perceived through emotions, Will, or some similar concept.

’Then perhaps it’s a conceptual form of energy.’

Speeding up my thoughts and drawing upon everything I knew, I spent the next several hours searching for a solution.

I wanted to understand at least the bare minimum about Astral Power and how to use it.

Or, at the very least, try to awaken a Trait related to it.

But even after coming up with several theories, I ultimately ended up back where I started.

"What exactly is Astral Power?"

"Astral Power is an energy of laws, a unique energy of the Astral Plane that beings such as Astral Spirits can use; an energy that manipulates conceptual laws, just as the Soul does."

"....?!"

I turned my head toward the voice that had answered.

"When did you get here?"

Veronica, who was sitting beside me, tilted her head.

"I thought you already knew I was here."

"No, I was completely absorbed in my thoughts... but what are you doing here?"

Veronica replied with a smile.

"To help you, of course."

"Help with what?"

"Older brother, sometimes you’re slow when it comes to certain things, but other times you’re not. Of course I came to help you use Astral Power, idiot."

".....!"

I raised my fist, and Veronica quickly leaned back.

"O-okay, I was just joking."

I slowly let out a sigh before asking,

"So, how exactly do I use Astral Power?"

Veronica nodded and changed her expression, as if she were a teacher.

"To begin with, don’t think of Astral Power as if it were mana. Naturally, it’s an energy that you can’t sense the way you sense mana."

"As I already said, Astral Power is an energy that manipulates conceptual laws, and because of that, controlling it doesn’t require thought or intuition."

"Then how do I do it?"

Veronica answered,

"Simple. Use your Will. Just as emotions can be manipulated, Will is connected to many concepts, and one of them is the manipulation of Astral Power."

"But since your Astral Power is only a pitiful three points, it’ll take much longer for you to even sense Astral Power through your Will."

I took a deep breath as I began to use my Will.

I was already accustomed to using my Will. My Unique Trait, Gravity, relies solely on Will as its source of power.

I’m more than accustomed to using my Will.

So I delved deeper into it.

The passage of time around me faded away, and it felt as though it was moving much faster.

Time passed, but I still didn’t feel anything.

’I guess it’s true; my Astral Power is only three points. That amount is probably considered truly pathetic.’

I wasn’t sure what the average standard was, but even I could tell that the amount of Astral Power I possessed was nothing more than a pittance.

And with such a pitiful amount, it was only natural that it would take me a long time to sense Astral Power.

Above all, I seriously doubted there was even the slightest trace of Astral Power in this world’s atmosphere.

’If I enter the Astral Plane, I’ll most likely be able to sense Astral Power much more easily and much faster.’

In any case, it was already time to leave the Academy.

So I pulled myself out of my thoughts, but then...

"...?"

I lowered my head. Resting on my lap was Veronica’s head as she slept.

’Uh, wait a second. How long was I trying to sense Astral Power with my Will?’

I extended my senses throughout the Academy and noticed that several people were already lying down.

"...?"

I sighed as I thought.

’I guess I’ll leave tomorrow.’

Then I lowered my head again and silently "looked" at Veronica.

"...."

"Ah, I guess... thank you for your help."

I "looked" at Veronica, and then I noticed a smile appear at the corner of her lips.