Hello everyone!
First of all, I want to sincerely apologize for my prolonged absence: these months have been incredibly intense and demanding, both academically and personally. I'm deeply sorry for disappearing without any warning, leaving the story suspended at such a crucial moment.
Despite the pressing commitments, I kept writing in silence during this time away from the platform, and I'm now thrilled to announce that I'm ready to pick the story back up! I can't wait to share everything I've prepared over these months!
Before we dive into Chapter 87, however, I've decided to publish this quick recap of the Second Volume—from Chapter 55 up to where we left off—to refresh your memory on the characters, key events, and the ongoing narrative arc.
The next chapter is already ready and will be released on Saturday, March 14th, which is both International Mathematics Day and Mirac's birthday! And to celebrate the occasion, I'll do my best to publish a bonus chapter as well—I just hope I can finish it in time…
I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank you wholeheartedly for the support the story has received during these months, despite my absence: as always, your support means the world to me! ❤️
With that said, I won't take up any more of your time. Enjoy the read!
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After the daring escape from the Royal Palace, Mirac (alias "Isaac", now hidden behind a scarred black mask) and Carmen (alias "Ananya") find themselves camped outside the city walls, heading toward the base of the secret organization the red-haired woman belongs to—of which nothing is known except that it operates in the shadows to "ensure that evil does not prosper".
After setting up camp, Mirac falls asleep and finds himself transported into his now-familiar dream vision of the starry sky, where a luminous message informs him that he has been granted access to the Realm of Numbers—a supposed parallel world connected to his Syntony with Math. Curious but aware that it is not the right moment to explore a new mystery, he decides to postpone it.
The following morning, Carmen reveals their next destination: the Red Desert of Ahmar, a lethal land of scarlet sand that separates Ardorya from the eastern territories. The news shakes Mirac, who knows well the reputation of that place. Yet, he does not back down.
Two objectives drive him forward: joining Carmen's secret organization to gather information about this unusual world, and discovering more about the mysterious mathematician who revolutionized Mathematics centuries earlier. A man of extraordinary genius, about whom Mirac notices one unsettling detail: he bears the same name as the father he had in his previous life.
But before facing the Red Desert, the two must reach the city of Raerno, where they hope to earn resources and build themselves a new identity.
And so their journey begins, slow and cautious: by day they march in silence, by night they take turns on watch. During the waking hours, Mirac takes the opportunity to train and strengthen his Mana Core.
During the journey, the two encounter Blake, a young adventurer fleeing from a pack of Rogthars—demonic creatures the world believed extinct for over a thousand years, since the Great Extermination.
Thanks to his ability "Instant Knowledge of Age", Mirac discovers that the three specimens faced were only 3 months old. For beings whose development should follow human timelines, it is an inexplicable anomaly—an alarm signal that he cannot get out of his head, leading him and Carmen to suspect that "there could be greater forces at play" behind the reappearance of the Rogthars.
After saving Blake, the trio collects the Rogthar organs and finally reaches Raerno, where Mirac and Carmen decide to enroll in the Intercontinental Association Against Dangers—an organization of adventurers and fighters of all kinds, whose purpose is to suppress the threats and disasters afflicting the world.
The Admission Exam consists of three trials: written, Mana measurement, and physical combat. The Physical Test culminates in a direct clash against Jun Rassing, the current President of the Association—and at one time the second strongest magical swordsman in the world.
Mirac and Carmen perform so well that they impress Jun, who at the end of the Admission Exam summons them to his office. Here the President confides in them, revealing a secret known only to a small circle of people: his Mana Core is unusable, and to compensate he is forced to resort to Erman Leaves as an alternative source of Mana.
The cause dates back two years, during a Raid on Thalor Island against creatures called Varkhuls. Everything was proceeding normally, until the Boss underwent a sudden metamorphosis, transforming into a hybrid creature between its own race and that of a Demon. To save the squad and eliminate the threat, Jun used his most powerful attack, but the Corrupted Mana of the creature irreparably damaged the President's Mana Core.
Following this revelation, Jun promotes the two directly to the rank of Rectified Blade and invites them to participate in a Raid on the Rogthar Dungeon—the same cave in front of which Mirac and Carmen had already faced those monsters to save Blake. The two, however, do not immediately accept the invitation, preferring to wait for the results of the exploration team sent to study the cave.
After a lunch at the "Blazing Pot" inn, Mirac explores the city under Blake's guidance, visiting places such as the Square of Affairs and a Church of Kayro, God of Fire, Forge and War—unaware of being tailed by a hooded figure.
At the Central Library of Raerno, Mirac's Association card accidentally activates a hidden button in the elevator, revealing the existence of a Floor -1. He thus reaches the Secret Archive of the Association, accessible only to members classified from the Seventh Rank upward. Mirac takes advantage of this to consult reports on classified missions, dossiers on worldwide wanted individuals, and above all information on the Western Belt of Ahmar—the western region of the Red Desert—and on a mysterious tribe that inhabits it.
That evening, when he reports the discovery to Carmen, the woman inadvertently betrays with a slight tremor that the tribe is likely connected to her organization.
After the Library, the two reach the Iron District, where Blake leads Mirac to the "Dragon's Jaws" workshop. It is the place where Derek worked, an exceptional blacksmith tied to Blake's troubled childhood—who mysteriously disappeared three months earlier, leaving no trace. At the moment, it is his son Thomas who runs the workshop. Once inside, Mirac chooses to buy a sword forged with Mana Metals for 120 Quorins, with Blake—as a gift—generously offering to cover half the price.
As evening arrives, after the surprise party for his fifteenth birthday, Mirac falls into a deep sleep and finally accepts the invitation to access the Realm of Numbers. He thus finds himself sharing the body of a local inhabitant through sensory synchronization: Mirac does not act in first person, but experiences the senses of another being, identified by his Syntony as +204843. During the connection, however, his mathematical powers do not work.
Mirac finds himself running at night through a forest, holding the hand of a terrified child with the number +503782 tattooed on his neck. The two are fleeing from the soldiers of something called "the Prime Army". The reason for the flight is as cryptic as it is chilling: "The Second Head has awakened".
At a certain point, the boy stops and helps the child hide at the top of a tree, ordering him to come down only at dawn and to reach a certain "Lake Deca", where some people will welcome him.
Afterwards, the boy resumes running alone to mislead the pursuers. During the flight he ventures into a thick fog, which seems to play in his favor. But suddenly, he is attacked and devoured alive by a pack of Zombie-like creatures that appeared out of nowhere, whose decomposing bodies are tattooed with negative numbers.
The visit to the Realm of Numbers turns into a nightmare: Mirac wakes up screaming, shaken by spasms from the pain experienced during that macabre experience, leaving Carmen and Blake shocked and worried. When they ask him what happened, Mirac simply states he had a bad dream.
The next morning, the trio reaches the Association headquarters, where Ms. Rose updates them on the reconnaissance squad sent to the Rogthar cave: the Dungeon has been classified as at least Grade 2, with the concrete possibility that it could reach Grade 1—the most feared of all. The news shakes all three, but Mirac and Carmen have until evening to decide whether to confirm or cancel their participation in the Raid.
Just as they are about to say goodbye, an irate man bursts in at the nearby counter: it is Mr. Voss, the wealthy owner of the Carameo Mine, the main source of raw iron for Raerno.
The weekly load—ten iron carts expected the day before—never arrived in the city, and the team sent by the Association to investigate the matter vanished without a trace after more than 24 hours, even though the mine is only about twenty kilometers away. Carmen seizes the opportunity and proposes the trio for the new reconnaissance mission—a chance to earn money and, perhaps, investigate another possible supernatural anomaly, like the one with the Rogthars.
In the afternoon, at Raerno's South Gate, the trio meets up with the full squad: twelve heterogeneous adventurers, among whom stand out Alvern Forh, a tenth-rank veteran appointed team leader, and a young girl only slightly older than Mirac. But the surprise—far from welcome—is the last person to arrive: Joren Tharion, the noble boy who the day before had insulted Blake, triggering a brawl with Mirac.
As the cart sets off, the squad takes turns introducing themselves.
Alvern leads the introductions with the same steadiness with which he will lead the mission.
He is followed by Roric, nimble with his curved scimitars; Morwen, who wraps her war hammer in the flames of her Syntony with Fire; and Zoltan, a Shaman in Syntony with Shadow—the "rarest" Element of all, which almost always chooses its own bearers.
Next is Lirael, an archer capable of hitting targets up to a hundred meters away; Brann, who relies on the mace and magic enhancement; and Dorran, who does not fight but carries on his back an enormous backpack where, according to him, there is practically everything needed for the mission.
Then Seren, who controls the wind through an elegant metal fan; Darick, listless and bored, with two greatswords whose blades are inscribed with Fire Runes; and Felisia, a silent Assassin whom Mirac had already noticed the previous day during the Admission Exam.
Then it is Joren's turn, who does not miss the opportunity to remind everyone of his illustrious surname, his training at the Sivanyr Academy, and his Syntony with Fire—all with the arrogance of someone accustomed to being heard. Blake introduces himself with his usual awkward smile, limiting himself to offering his speleological guiding skills.
Ananya (Carmen) only says she fights with whatever comes to hand. After her, Isaac (Mirac), his voice muffled by the mask, describes himself as an Incompatible Swordsman: without a Syntony, but more than compensated for by his mastery of Mana Manipulation. The missing arm does not go unnoticed, but no one comments.
The last to speak is Aisha, a sixteen-year-old with a gnarled staff clutched to her chest and fingers trembling slightly: she is the group's Healer, and she admits it with a shyness that clashes with the danger awaiting them. Yet, if Ms. Rose chose her for a mission of this kind, there must be a reason.
After the round of introductions, Alvern announces that there is only one more thing to do: plan their course of action...