Back at the Mage Department, the classroom air felt heavy. The professor walked in, his voice dropping into a cold tone as he began calling our names from his ledger. I was still completely exhausted from training last night. I had tried meditating to refine the [Mana Heart] and circulate my [Ki] core at the exact same time, but the dual strain consumed far too much of my mental power.
My muscles were incredibly stiff; I could barely move when I woke up this morning. I thought to myself that I should never have attempted that—
"Mr. Ferios!!!"
The sharp bark snapped me out of my thoughts. I had dozed off completely at my desk. "I apologize, Professor," I stammered, pulling myself upright. His gaze locked onto me, radiating intense pressure.
"What exactly happened to you, Lucas?" Prate whispered from the seat beside me once the professor looked away. "We didn't even have practical training yesterday."
Sigh. Of course we didn't, but I had spent the entire night grinding alone in my room. "I did some personal training yesterday at my dorm," I murmured back.
"I see," Prate nodded, understanding instantly.
The professor tapped his clipboard against the podium to draw our attention. "Now, everyone, listen up. Today we are going to an official dungeon to help all of you level up your baseline attributes. For this exercise, I want you to form a party consisting of exactly four members. Are there any questions?"
A student in the front row raised his hand. "Isn't a dungeon significantly more dangerous than a standard gate, sir?"
"Professor," another chimed in, "wouldn't it be much safer for our department if we went to a gate rather than a closed dungeon structure?"
Hearing them debate, I couldn't help but think about how I had originally designed the underlying mechanics of this world. The stats of the monsters were entirely different. A Gate was an open-field environment where the territorial bosses were much weaker and could be easily killed by newly awakened players. A Dungeon, however, was a closed instance with rigid layout rules.
In my original notes, there were three standard difficulties. But hidden beneath those lay a secret tier: Hell Mode. In Hell Mode, the baseline stats of every ordinary monster were multiplied by four, while the dungeon boss's stats were inflated by a massive five times. To unlock that mode, players had to meet specific, hidden system requirements. Naturally, the drop rewards were on a completely different level.
Prate leaned over, breaking my train of thought. "Lucas, why don't the two of us team up? In my opinion, it's much better if it's just the two of us. I'm sure it'll benefit your growth."
This kid was always so unpredictable whenever he was around me. "Alright," I agreed. "Why don't we fill out this registration form and hand it over to the professor?"
Prate quickly scribbled our names and walked up to the podium. "Professor, here is our group form."
The instructor grabbed the paper, his eyebrows furrowing as his eyes scanned the sheet. "Why are there only two of you registered here?"
I looked up at him from my seat. "Professor, we decided that the two of us are going to partner up as a duo in the dungeon. We believe it's much more efficient for our specific builds than having more than three members slowing us down."
The professor sighed heavily, shaking his head, but ultimately stamped the document. "Sigh. Alright. You two can go back to your quarters, pack your necessary gear, and we will depart from the campus gates this afternoon at exactly three o'clock."
As we walked out of the classroom building, Prate gestured toward the elite housing path. "Lucas, come back with me to the villa first. There are a few useful artifacts in my inventory that should help us with the run."
His obsession with collecting and tinkering with artifacts really couldn't be measured. "Alright," I said, rubbing my temples. "But actually, can I borrow some points? I'm completely broke right now."
"Sure," Prate laughed, pulling out his interface. "What are you going to use the money for?"
"I have to buy a specific skill book from the West district market."
"Isn't that where the main Hunter Market is located?" Prate asked, tilting his head. Did he really have to ask an obvious question like that? He tapped his screen and handed me a physical piece of plastic. "Let me come with you. I need to pick up a few components there anyway."
We arrived at the Hunter Market shortly after.
"We finally made it," I noted, stepping out into the bustling marketplace. "The traffic took a long time just to get here. Since we're looking for different things, let's split up and meet back up after we're done. Just leave me a system message."
Prate nodded and headed down a different path toward the mechanical machinery and raw metal stalls. I walked inside the main skill emporium and looked around the shelves until I found a manual that immediately caught my interest.
[Mana Surge]. The listed price was incredibly high. I knew for a fact I wouldn't have been able to afford it if I hadn't borrowed funds from Prate. I looked around to see if there was anything else that could catch my eye, but my conscience stopped me. I was currently using someone else's resources. Prate had left me his spare financial card so I could buy what I needed. I realized it was a bit too generous to just leave an open card in someone's hand instead of a set amount of cash or a checked voucher, so I decided not to abuse his trust.
In the end, I strictly stuck to my choice and brought the [Mana Surge F] book to the front counter.
"That'll be a total of 3,000 Quor," the cashier stated mechanically.
My eye twitched. That was insanely expensive. If I converted that amount back into the currency of my past life, that would be roughly 30 million won for a single F-rank book.
After paying for the manual, I walked out of the store and sent a system message to Prate. Since he was the only one who brought a vehicle and I couldn't drive, I was completely stuck waiting for him to pick me up.
A few minutes later, my interface buzzed with a call from Prate. I answered it immediately. "Lucas, could you wait there for a few more minutes? I'm still caught up at the blacksmith workshop."
What on earth was he doing over there? I thought he went to the mechanical machinery sector. "Sure," I replied, leaning against a pillar.
I checked my clock. It was already 11:00 AM. Why was he taking so long? We still needed to head back and prepare what to bring for the three o'clock raid—
Finally, his car pulled up to the curb.
"Sorry about that! Did you wait long?" Prate asked as I climbed into the passenger seat.
Of course I did. "Don't worry about it," I muttered, shaking my head.
"So, what skill did you end up buying?"
"I just bought this pass," I said, showing him the cover. "I'm sure this is going to help my build."
"Why haven't you learned the skill from the book yet?" Prate asked, glancing over as he drove. "And why did you only buy that single book instead of matching gear?"
"I just don't want to be overly indebted to someone, that's all," I explained. Holding the leather cover, I focused my intent and learned the skill from the book. A panel flared to life in my vision.
Name: Mana Surge F
MP Cost: None
Type: Passive Skill
Description: Triggers automatically when the user's mana pool is about to be completely depleted. Upon activation, overall skill damage output increases by 30%, and grants a chance to instantly duplicate the exact skill that was cast during the 'Mana Surge' state. This effect persists for exactly five minutes.
Drawback: After the five-minute Mana Surge state concludes, natural mana recovery will be completely halted for 10 minutes, and the user cannot consume or benefit from any mana potions.
"Dammit!" I shouted aloud.
"Huh? What's wrong?" Prate blinked, startled by my sudden outburst.
"Nothing... I just didn't mean to buy this," I groaned, staring at the interface in horror.
I thought this skill would be highly useful, but it was a double-edged sword. How the hell was I supposed to fight high-level monsters if my mana recovery completely froze for ten minutes after a state? To make matters worse, system skills were permanent; it couldn't be removed or undone. No wonder the cashier had looked at me weirdly and warned me to think twice before buying it.
We pulled up to Prate's villa shortly after. Walking back into his workspace, Prate walked over to a velvet case on his workbench, picked up a uniquely designed item, and held it out to me.
"Lucas, I finished making this artifact. I'm certain this is going to help you in the dungeon."
I stared at the piece, stepping back. "Prate, isn't this a bit too much? I've been continuously receiving a massive amount of help from you since my very first day at the academy."
"No, it's totally fine," Prate insisted, forcing the item into my hands. "It's not an artifact that suits my specific build anyway. That's why I decided it was best to give it to you."
I looked down at the intricate crafting lines, and my breath hitched. Wait... isn't this the exact project he said he had been sacrificing his resources to build for the past few months? "Why, Prate? I really can't accept this from you anymore."
"Just think of it as an early birthday gift," he said. But as I looked at him, I noticed his expression wasn't joyful at all. His eyes were downcast, and he looked deeply troubled.
"Sigh... sorry, Lucas," Prate muttered, crossing his arms as he looked away. "I don't think I can actually come with you to the dungeon this afternoon. I have to leave the campus and go back to Eather City immediately."
"Why?" I asked, completely caught off guard. "What happened?"
"My grandfather suddenly contacted me and ordered me to return home right away," Prate explained, his voice low and upset.
"But don't worry about the housing situation—I'll let you keep using this villa and its training facilities while I'm gone. There are urgent family matters I have to handle back in the city."
I stood there, looking at my only friend in this academy. "That's so sudden, Prate... we only just met a few days ago."