When Gauss changed into a bathrobe and stepped into the hot spring, he immediately felt what this place could do.
It was like countless invisible, gentle little hands were kneading him from head to toe.
If there hadn't been maids waiting nearby, he would've almost let out an involuntary, satisfied hum.
Oh man…
"Phew—"
He exhaled long and deep.
It was so comfortable.
He focused on the changes in his body.
Every pore seemed to loosen under the soothing mana-infused spring water, and then the active substances beneficial to the body began flowing in through those pores without restraint—absorbed almost instantly.
At the same time, the potions and mid-grade mana crystals he'd taken beforehand—items he'd asked Playaos to purchase—started to kick in.
And the life energy that still hadn't been fully absorbed inside him slowly released a warm current.
Gauss knew what that was.
It had to be the life-restoration potion Playaos had mentioned—the one Playaos got from a mysterious elf.
Playaos had identified its effects, but after being away from the front lines for years, he'd never had a chance to use it… until he used it on Gauss a few days ago.
Under the combined effect of the potion and the spring, Gauss's pale skin gradually flushed with red.
Threads of white mist seeped into his pores, then rose back out.
He was like a sponge, constantly exchanging with the environment—expelling impurities, absorbing nourishment.
The whole misty scene carried a strange kind of beauty.
A young maid nearby had been staring, completely transfixed, eyes unblinking toward the spring.
Only when an older maid tugged her sleeve did she snap out of her wandering thoughts.
They were trained professionals. They wouldn't do anything beyond their duties.
Unless Gauss showed discomfort, or called for them himself, they had to watch over him like trees—silent, motionless—so they wouldn't disrupt his cultivation.
Gauss didn't know what was happening outside.
In fact, he'd already entered a state of extreme focus. Even if someone screamed in his ear and tried to drag him away, it would be hard to pull him out of this concentration.
Hot… so hot…
As the furnace-like energy inside him built up, his temperature started climbing rapidly.
For an ordinary person, that kind of heat would've caused organ failure long ago. That was part of why breakthroughs were risky—they weren't just "leveling up," they were a full body refit, a second forging of the flesh.
But for Gauss, whose body had long since stopped being "normal," it wasn't a problem.
Inside him, the Magic Cup and Sword Soul blazed with dazzling light—especially the Cup. As it shone brighter, the cracks across its surface became even clearer.
And then, at a certain instant, the cup—laden with immense mana—shattered.
The energies in his body surged forward like a stampede, pouring into the void it left behind.
"Wng—"
A clear ripple expanded from him, washing outward.
The maids took a few steps back.
From the center of the spring came an invisible, intense pressure.
Even the air felt thinner—as if what sat in the water wasn't a human at all, but a vicious beast that triggered instinctive fear at the genetic level.
The maids narrowed their eyes, struggling.
"Splash, splash—"
The spring, which had been calm, now looked like it was boiling.
Bubbles leapt across the surface.
If someone could look down from above at the entire luxurious estate, they'd be stunned to see the tangible mana-mist around it spiraling inward—like a whirlpool of fog converging on Gauss as the "eye of the storm."
The decorative plants rustled violently.
"What's going on?"
Guards farther out felt a sudden gust and turned toward the hot spring compound.
Wind was natural.
But at Emerald Ridge Hot Spring Estate, wind was something you almost never saw.
Most guards had never felt so much as a noticeable breeze while on duty—like even nature itself quieted down around this place.
That wasn't natural, of course. There were arrays outside the estate that blocked wind and rain—meant to protect guests from external disturbance.
And now, the wind was coming from inside.
"Keep watch. Don't lose focus. I'll go ask what's happening."
After warning his men not to relax, the captain approached the main gate quietly. He couldn't enter—he could only speak to a maid on duty.
When he learned the wind was caused by Gauss and not an outside threat, he finally exhaled and returned to his post.
The estate was only opened a handful of times per year, usually for the city's most honored guests.
And this time, the guest was someone who required even greater caution.
The fact that so many arrays were active made it obvious: security had been raised to the highest level.
So the captain's alarm wasn't overreaction—an incident here simply couldn't be allowed.
In the spring, the abnormality continued, growing stronger.
Even high above—hundreds, maybe thousands of meters up—the clouds began to form a faint spiral.
At that altitude, normal air currents shouldn't be able to stir them like that. This looked less like the wind and more like an omen.
Rather than Gauss actively changing the environment, it felt like the world itself was answering him.
"My god…"
"Look up!"
"Spiral clouds!"
"That's the Eye of the Gods!"
People across the city looked skyward.
A spiral cloudbank wasn't a common sight—this was the kind of phenomenon people called a heavenly sign.
Civilians swallowed hard, stunned.
The sky was bright and clean, a deep blue like polished gemstone.
And the spiral cloud sea stretching across it really did look like a divine eye slowly opening—watching the world below.
A pure white beam of afternoon sunlight poured straight down from the "pupil."
Some devout believers even dropped to their knees in the streets, praying to whichever god they worshiped.
Atop a white tower—nearly the highest point in the city—two men walked to a huge window.
The view was wide enough to overlook most of Longflute City.
But their attention wasn't on the city. Like the civilians below, they stared at the sky.
Tracing the "Eye" down to where its beam landed, their gaze fixed on a distant place: Emerald Ridge Hot Spring Estate.
"Playaos—today was supposed to be the day Gauss went to the hot spring estate, wasn't it?"
Beside the man in a crisp white uniform, Playaos answered softly.
"Yes, Lord Noah."
"I had someone deliver the supplies Sir Gauss requested this morning."
"By now, he should have been inside for a while."
"How many times do I have to tell you—just call me Noah."
The man smiled helplessly, then focused back on the estate, as if he could see Gauss bathing inside.
Of course he couldn't—there was an invisible barrier around the estate that blocked outside observation.
"So this 'heavenly sign'… it's connected to Gauss?"
"Most likely."
Playaos said it plainly.
"What an unbelievable man."
Noah shook his head.
He already valued Gauss highly—Gauss was barely twenty and already Level 5, strong enough to heavily injure a transcendent-tier, had a red drake, and was on the verge of breaking into the master tier. You could hardly overestimate someone like that.
And yet, even now, Noah realized his estimate had still been too low.
"Sir Gauss truly is a peerless genius favored by heaven and earth."
Compared to Noah, Playaos—who had spent far more time near Gauss—looked calmer. Or maybe he'd simply set his expectations impossibly high already.
A young man who could clash with a transcendent-tier while still elite-tier could never be ordinary. Achieving this wasn't only effort or patronage—this was the kind of miracle that required "heaven, earth, and man" all aligning.
Only someone like that could leave a deep mark on the world.
Playaos's eyes flicked to Noah.
Just like Noah—born as an illegitimate child, yet rising to become Longflute City's executive—holding the power of an entire city.
That kind of "carp becoming a dragon" wasn't just luck. Mason Hayes saw himself in Noah, yes—but Noah's own talent and the reputation he earned while adventuring mattered just as much.
"Assign extra protection to Gauss's teammates. While they're in the city, nothing can happen to them."
Noah understood he'd already provided plenty of "support" through Playaos—too much could backfire. Now his job was simple: cut off any hands that might reach toward this team within Longflute City. Gauss would remember the favor.
"Understood, Lord Noah. I'll arrange it at once."
Back at Emerald Ridge Hot Spring Estate, Gauss's body was undergoing a complete transformation.
A shaft of sunlight fell onto the spring and onto him.
Mist wrapped around him so thickly that through mist and light you could only make out a blurred silhouette.
"Wng—wng—wng!"
The air—now almost viscous—pulsed outward in ripples.
The maids who had been stationed beside the pool were forced to retreat to the edges of the courtyard.
Some of the weaker ones had to be supported and escorted out.
The pressure around Gauss was too immense. Even though his aura wasn't aimed at anyone, it spread evenly—still crushingly heavy.
It felt like standing beside a dragon in full dignity.
A gap in life-tier. The body's survival instinct screamed at them to get away from the danger.
Fainting, racing heartbeat, anxiety, dread… all normal reactions.
"Hah… hah…"
That same young maid who'd stared earlier was panting hard.
"Yvette, do you want to step out and rest?" a colleague urged.
"No. I'm staying."
Yvette shook her head stubbornly.
Her cheeks were flushed, and mist rose from the top of her head—yet she refused to leave.
It was her duty.
The spiral-cloud omen in the sky lasted only about half an hour before vanishing.
But inside the estate, around Gauss, the upheaval lasted far longer than anyone imagined.
In a blink, four days passed.
Gauss was still wreathed in mist, but it had thinned noticeably—the breakthrough was clearly reaching its end.
The maids could now withstand his steadily shrinking aura.
"Has Sir Gauss still not finished?"
Outside the courtyard, maids about to switch shifts whispered.
"It's been four days."
"If I soaked in hot spring water for four days, my skin would fall apart. But Sir Gauss somehow looks even healthier."
"Of course he does. I heard Sir Gauss's skin is basically blade-proof, like a dragon. And his stamina is endless."
"I heard he's only twenty."
"Then he's younger than me!"
Over these days, whenever they weren't working, the maids spent most of their time talking about Gauss.
Some things they'd heard from gossip, some they invented out of sheer imagination.
Their lives were repetitive and small. Gauss's arrival was a monumental event—something they might still tell their grandchildren about someday.
"Quiet. Stop talking."
A maid came out from the courtyard and warned them.
At the center, Gauss had reached the final stage.
His consciousness slowly rose back to clarity.
The shattered Magic Cup had been reforged. The new cup was slightly smaller than before, but its sheen, beauty, and the mana it radiated were on an entirely different level.
Truly powerful things often carried their own unique beauty—like the rules of the world shaped them toward a "perfect" form.
Inside Gauss, his mana had become incredibly dense, circulating through his entire body, spiraling through the Cup, and returning again.
Beside it, the Sword Soul looked renewed as well.
Gauss opened his eyes.
"It's done."
He stood up from the still-warm spring water.
Splash—!
Water ran down his taut, jade-hard skin.
"Main class: Mage leveled up to 6!"
"Sub-class: Sword Soul leveled up to 4!"
Gauss clenched his fist. His joints cracked like a string of firecrackers.
He felt like his body and mind had reached a peak—radiant with life.
Most of all, the mana inside him… it was completely under his control.
It clung to him like an affectionate kitten, obedient to every command.
"So this is master-tier power…"
Gauss exhaled slowly—joy, relief, pride, and a hundred other emotions tangled together.
He'd waited for this moment for a long… long time.
And from today onward, he was no longer elite-tier.
He stepped across the first great threshold and entered the master tier.
Level 6.
Just one number higher than 5.
But that single step was a canyon that stopped countless people for life.
"Hah—haha!"
He couldn't help but throw his head back and laugh out loud.
Looking back on the road he'd walked… it really hadn't been easy.
And now he'd finally stepped onto the crowded stage where people truly mattered.
From here on, he wouldn't be an adventurer who had to tiptoe through everything with constant fear.
The world itself looked different.
And in a moment like this, he wasn't going to force himself to suppress that joy.
"Sir… Sir Gauss!"
A young maid nearby nearly fainted, cheeks burning so red they looked ready to bleed.
"What's wrong?"
Gauss tilted his head and looked down, confused.
"C-clothes!"
The maid shoved a clean robe into his hands.
Gauss glanced down and realized his bathrobe had been soaked and heated for days—it was basically falling apart.
"Sorry."
He quickly took the robe and put it on.
He wasn't an exhibitionist.
Once he stepped out of the pool, the maids immediately went into motion.
They carried dish after dish to the pavilion's dining table.
Gauss was hungry, so he sat down without hesitation.
"Thank you."
He didn't stand on ceremony.
If he hadn't stocked up before the breakthrough—then continuously absorbed nutrients from the spring—he would've been drained dry.
He was awake now, but still ravenous.
He began eating quickly.
Plates emptied one after another, and the kitchen continued cooking.
As he ate and replenished his body, he checked his status changes.
This breakthrough was generous—every attribute rose.
Strength: 13 → 14
Agility: 12 → 13
Constitution: 12 → 13
Intelligence: 16(15) → 17(16)
Perception: 10 → 12
Charisma: 13(12) → 14(13)
A total of 7 attribute points gained.
Perception—previously low—jumped noticeably.
And although Intelligence only rose by 1 on paper, at his level that single point was worth more than several points in a weaker stat.
And he could tell: raw attributes were only part of what becoming master-tier meant.