"Master, can you teach me how to use the Core?"
The master stopped walking and stood still.
With a rather lethargic expression, he said,
"Hm… I'm in a good mood today. I'll teach you a few things."
The master sat down and began explaining.
"Listen. In this world, the first person who possessed powers unreachable by ordinary humans was given the title The First."
"He possessed a power called Force and could do almost anything. After he married, his wife gave birth to twins."
Ryo listened carefully.
"So?"
"When those two grew up, they didn't inherit their father's power completely. Instead, they each had roughly half of it."
Ryo looked at the master in surprise.
"One of them had a Core, and the other had a Circle."
"Oh, that's interesting."
"What we now call martial arts originated from the Core, and magic from the Circle. No one could possess both at the same time and still become Force. Anyone who tried would die."
"They each walked their own paths and developed their own systems of knowledge."
"But this polarity never meant peace. Wars eventually broke out. After countless battles, the Sun and the Eleven Stars were formed—peace-seekers from both sides."
"And that is how the power hierarchy of the Sun and the Eleven Stars began, and the human world returned to a new dawn."
Ryo, now excited, said,
"So that means I can choose one of the two as well!"
"No. You have both."
Ryo froze and stepped back slightly.
"What?! What do you mean I have both?! Does that mean I'm going to die?!"
The master replied calmly,
"There's a chance you could even die right now."
Ryo, who always trusted the master's words, felt his legs go weak.
"What do you mean I might die right now… I don't want to die young."
"Haha, I was joking. It seems you're the second person capable of using both."
Hearing that, Ryo felt both relieved and annoyed.
"That wasn't funny."
The master continued.
"In magic, when you first begin, you possess nine Circles. Each time you grow stronger, one Circle merges with the others, making you stronger."
Ryo, who had been slightly distracted, asked in surprise,
"What happens when you're left with only one Circle?"
The master looked at him and answered,
"It transforms into a Magic Core. It's different from a Martial Core."
"Think of the heart as the center—like the Earth, with the moon orbiting it. First come the Circles, and once they condense into a Core, it becomes something close to infinite energy. Even while sleeping, your energy continues to increase."
Ryo grew increasingly curious about magic and martial arts and listened intently.
"So far, only three people have reached that level. The First, who possessed Force. The Seventh Sun, who was once called the strongest human in Earth's history—he had the strongest Magic Core in the world and was on the verge of forming a second one."
"Wow! What about the third person? Who are they?"
"The third is a prodigy—the current Sun, Roger. They say he might eventually reach the level of the Seventh Sun."
"Now, let's set that aside and talk about martial arts."
"To be honest, I don't know much about it. I only know that the final realms are the Ultimate Realm and the Infinite Realm—one of which no one has ever truly reached."
"The only person who reached the Ultimate Realm was the Seventh Sun's closest friend. When he attempted to ascend to the Infinite Realm, he died under the immense pressure. When his body was found, he had written 'Infinite Realm' with his own blood. From that day on, the Infinite Realm became known as the final martial realm."
Ryo's eyes sparkled. He was thrilled by the fact that he could use both powers.
The master picked up some sand and let it fall through his fingers as he spoke.
"The knowledge of the martial and magical worlds is vast—endless, impossible to fully comprehend. Through training, you can only reach a fraction of it."
"For now, I'll teach you how to use the Martial Core."
"Listen carefully. Your Core has three plus one forms."
Ryo looked at him, confused.
"Three plus one? What does that mean?"
The master stood up and explained,
"The first form manifests as a blue aura. You can use it normally."
"The second form is red. You can't reach it until you've fully mastered the blue form—unless you enter Core Frenzy."
"And the third form appears once you've mastered both. Your aura becomes either blue-gold or blue-red."
"And the last one, Master?"
"You'll understand that yourself in the future."
"Hm… alright."
"So… can you teach me how to actually use the Core now?"
The master placed a hand on his chin.
"Let me see…"
"I'll teach you the simplest technique."
"Feel the energy inside your Core and circulate it throughout your body."
"Focus on your hand. Imagine a blue flame forming on it."
Ryo stood up, raised his hand slightly, and followed the master's instructions.
A warm energy surged from his heart and slowly traveled toward his right hand.
He could feel it clearly. He focused hard, but just as the energy began to take the shape of a flame, his concentration wavered and the energy dispersed.
He tried again. And again. The same thing happened several times.
Watching him, the master said,
"Normally, people need several weeks to succeed. But let's try something interesting."
Ryo looked at him in surprise.
"What is it, Master?"
The master explained,
"Instead of releasing your internal energy outward, try gathering external energy into a single point."
Ryo followed his advice. Rather than releasing the energy in his hand, he held it there and gathered the surrounding energy—the energy of nature itself.
This time, he succeeded. The energy formed a yellow, flame-like shape.
"I finally did it!!"
The master, visibly stunned, said,
"I didn't expect this. Reverse energy circulation/absorption actually worked. Normally, anyone who attempts this has their Core destroyed and dies."
Ryo fell silent and stared at him.
"So you told me to do this without warning me about the risk… meaning my chances of dying were extremely high, right?"
"Heh. Yeah."
"Have you lost your mind?! I could've died!"
The master looked at him seriously.
"No. I knew you'd succeed."
What a relief… good thing he didn't die, he thought.
Feeling relieved, Ryo asked how he could use this power in combat.
The master replied,
"For now, you've only managed to circulate energy within your body. Next, you must coat your hand with it. By reinforcing that part of your body, you'll greatly increase its destructive power."
(A few hours later)
Ryo finally succeeded. The power he felt was immense, and its destructive force was overwhelming.
Motivated, he looked at the master and said,
"Master, when will you teach me magic?"
With a completely exhausted expression, the master replied,
"Not today. And we've arrived at the city."
Ryo, who had been training nonstop, hadn't even noticed when they arrived.
"Huh…?"
He looked toward the city gate. It was so massive that he had never seen anything like it before.
( Zed city)
End of Chapter 24