Building a Kingdom and Conquering the World - Chapter 215

Chapter 215: The lesson (2)
Luna and Henry stood facing each other, the faint sounds of the trainees struggling with their spells drifting in from the horizon. Luna crossed her arms over her chest, her emerald-green eyes fixed on Henry with a mixture of impatience and curiosity. “So,” she began, her tone sharp, “what do you know about Mana?”

“It’s energy,” Henry replied flatly, as though that simple answer was all that needed to be said.

Luna’s foot tapped against the frozen ground, a steady, irritated rhythm, as if she were hitting the pedal of a drum. “Of course, I know it’s energy!” she snapped, her voice rising slightly. “Give me a real explanation. Where does it come from? What is it for? How does it work? For goodness’ sake, don’t just parrot back the obvious.”

Henry paused, his gray eyes narrowing slightly as he studied the golden-haired woman in front of him. She stood there with complete disregard for decorum, speaking to him, the king of Stahl, as if he were a misbehaving student. Everywhere he looked, from the horizon to the very ground beneath their feet, this land was his. Yet, here she was, talking down to him in a tone that would have sent anyone else to the dungeons or to the beheading grounds.

Meeting her piercing gaze, Henry finally responded, his tone calm but firm – “Mana is the essence of life. It’s what flows through everything that breathes, moves, or exists in this world. Every creature that walks, every plant that grows, it is Mana that holds own existence together.”

Luna raised an eyebrow, her impatient tapping slowing as she listened.

Henry continued, trying to organize his thoughts. “Mana is what makes this world… possible. It’s the foundation of all things, the force that connects and sustains everything. But as for where it comes from… I don’t know. Perhaps no one in the North knows” His gaze met hers, steady and unyielding, though inwardly, he braced himself for her response.

Luna nodded, her restless tapping finally coming to a stop. “Not bad,” she said, her tone carrying a faint trace of approval. “For someone from such a backward region, you have managed to grasp the basics.” She began pacing back and forth, her golden robe brushing against the damp earth. “You’re right, Mana is the fundamental energy that forms everything around us. As for its origin, there are dozens of theories, but the one I prefer is… poetic, in a way.”

She raised her hand, and the damp soil beneath their feet stirred, rising into the air. Slowly, it reshaped itself into the form of a large, hollow eye. “There is said to have been a being” – Luna began, her voice softer, almost reverent – “an existence that watched over the endless void of darkness. This being, bored of the emptiness and of its eternal existence, chose to end it all. To destroy everything.”

The dirt eye floated higher, trembling slightly in the air, before it suddenly exploded. Loose earth flew in all directions, small bits landing on Henry’s long black coat. Without a word, he brushed them off, his expression calm but thoughtful as he listened.

“But,” Luna continued, her tone rising, “after every ending, there is a new beginning. In its act of destruction, this being unknowingly sparked the creation of life, fragile, fleeting, and full of light.” She gestured around them. “It created you, me, this land beneath our feet, the stars above us. It set the cycle of life in motion.”

Henry’s gray eyes narrowed as he considered her words. There was something oddly familiar about this explanation, it reminded him of the Big Bang Theory from his previous life on Earth. The similarities were striking, though dressed in mysticism and myth. His lips moved almost unconsciously as he murmured – “After every ending, a new beginning follows.”

Luna didn’t stop at his words. She folded her hands behind her back as she continued her lecture – “Everyone in this world carries a spark of Mana within them. It exists in all life, but only a chosen few can sense it, harness it, and grow it. Those who can… they can reshape their bodies, elevate themselves, and inch closer to the nature of that first existence.”

Henry stayed silent, his mind focused on her explanation. Luna turned to face him directly, her emerald-green eyes gleaming. “But there are different ways to approach Mana. The one you are most familiar with” – she said, pausing slightly – “is the Way of the Warrior.”

She began pacing again, her steps slow – “The Way of the Warrior involves absorbing the raw Mana from your surroundings and drawing it into your body. From there, you create a kind of furnace within your heart, like a living sigil. This furnace aligns the chaotic Mana, transforms it, and channels it through your Mana Circuits.”

Henry tilted his head slightly. “Sigil?” he asked, his tone curious. Despite being a warrior and diligently studying the Sun God Technique, there were still many gaps in his understanding. He had read the instructions, but proper education on such topics had been scarce, there weren’t enough books on the subject, nor researchers studying it in his region. Knowing doesn’t mean understating it.

Luna took a deep breath, her fingers twitching as though she wanted to pinch the bridge of her nose. “You’re a warrior,” she said, exhaling slowly, “and yet you don’t even know this…” She clenched her fists briefly but forced herself to stay calm as she tried to explain.

“For warriors, the heart is surrounded by a thin layer of Mana, shaped and assembled based on the technique they practice,” she began, her tone measured but firm. “This layer forms what is called a sigil, and each technique creates a unique and individual sigil. It’s the core of a warrior’s power.”

She paused, pacing slightly as her green eyes flicked back to Henry – “The sigil determines how Mana behaves in your body. Most techniques only allow the transformation of Mana into a single element, because the human body can’t contain multiple elements at once. If it tried, the conflicting elements would clash violently, likely killing the warrior.”

Luna stopped pacing and gestured with one hand. “Some sigils are designed to open more Mana circuits, allowing Mana to flow faster through your body. Others focus on directing the elemental Mana into your muscles and bones, strengthening them at the cost of limiting how many circuits you can create. Every aspect of a warrior’s strength, the speed of their Mana, the durability of their body, the power of their attacks, is dictated by their technique and the sigil it forms.”

Henry nodded, understanding the concept. The sigil was like the blueprint of a building, everything about the structure was pre-designed and predetermined. From the placement of rooms and gardens to the iron supports and doors, the entire plan had to follow the sigil’s design. Likewise, for a warrior, the sigil dictated the number of Mana circuits they could open, the methods for strengthening their body, the speed at which Mana flowed through their circuits, everything was governed by this blueprint.

“However” – Luna continued, her voice taking on a more thoughtful tone – “despite most things being set by the sigil, there’s one thing that isn’t fixed. And this is something warriors share with us mages.” – She raised her hand, and the air around her seemed to ripple as strands of Mana began to gather. The strands aligned and formed into a glowing sigil in her palm. The sigil pulsed briefly, and a pressurized arrow of air materialized, hovering just in front of her.

“It’s combination” – She said – “You can guide Mana through your circuits in countless ways, creating combinations to discover new applications of Mana. With the right combination, you can even bypass some of the limitations of your sigil. For instance” – she pointed at the arrow – “if your sigil doesn’t naturally allow you to strengthen your body, you could create a combination that forces Mana to circulate in a certain pattern and at a certain speed, letting you enhance your muscles. Of course” – she added with a slight smirk – “it will never be as effective as a sigil specifically designed for physical enhancement, but it can still give you an edge. The problem is…”

Luna paused for a moment. Then, just as she was about to continue, Henry spoke up, almost unconsciously.

“The number of combinations” – he murmured, as if piecing it together himself.

Luna’s emerald eyes widened in surprise. For the first time, she looked mildly impressed. “Well, it seems there’s actually a smart head on your shoulders,” she said, a playful hint of sarcasm in her voice.

“You are absolutely right. The number of combinations is the problem. A typical warrior can open at least twelve Mana Circuits, while those with transcendent sigils can open hundreds. The possibilities for combinations grow exponentially. Sorting through all of them is nearly impossible. And even when you do find combinations, many will only be slightly stronger or weaker than others while producing the same effect.”