The transition from the Rust Districts to the Azure Academy of Magitech was not merely a change in scenery; it was a vertical ascent through the layers of a civilization built on a foundation of harnessed divinity and silicon. In Aethelgard, social status was measured in "Altitude" and "Throughput." The higher you lived, the cleaner the air and the purer the mana flow.
Elian sat in the back of a mag-lev transport, his hands tucked into the pockets of a second-hand academy uniform. His father had spent three months' salary to bribe a clerk just to get Elian into the entrance exams. Loran believed Elian was a "latent talent"—someone who had potential but lacked the spark. He didn't know that his son was currently suppressing a mana signature that could power the entire transport for a century.
"System," Elian thought, staring out the reinforced glass at the sprawling city. "Give me a breakdown of the local laws of reality. I need to know how to fake it without blowing a hole in the stratosphere."
[Query Accepted. Initializing 'Aethelgard Arcana-Physics' Overview...]
[1000x Processing Speed Engaged.]
In an instant, a flood of data bypassed Elian's optic nerves and wired itself directly into his consciousness. To a normal student, this lecture would take a semester. To Elian, it was a half-second pulse of clarity.
The Mechanics of Aethelgard
The world operated on a dual-axis system: The Flow and The Code.
The Flow (Mana): This was the raw, primordial energy that permeated the atmosphere. It was volatile and chaotic. To use it, a human needed a "Core"—a biological organ located near the heart that acted as a pressurized filter.
The Code (Runic Arrays): Raw mana was useless without direction. "Runic Arrays" were the programming language of this world. They were etched into everything: from the cybernetic limbs of veterans to the toaster ovens in the slums.
The Integration (Magitech): This was the pinnacle of their society. By using Aether-Cells (stabilized mana batteries) to power Circuit-Runes, they could create technology that mimicked Earth's electronics but functioned on spiritual laws. A "Fireball" wasn't just a chant; it was a thermal-kinetic sequence executed by a mage's internal core and projected through a focus—usually a wand, a staff, or a tactical gauntlet.
[Note: Most mages have a 'Throughput' of 5 to 10 units per second.]
[User's Current Throughput: 10,000 units per second (Unrestricted).]
"So, if I try to cast a basic 'Light' spell," Elian mused, "I'm basically turning on a sun?"
[Correct. 1000x Multiplier applies to Volume, Intensity, and Calculation Speed. Recommendation: Use only 0.1% of your intent at all times.]
The Entrance Exam
The Azure Academy looked less like a school and more like a military fortress. Floating obsidian pillars circled the main spire, acting as lightning rods for the constant mana storms that brewed in the upper atmosphere.
Elian stood in the Great Hall with five hundred other applicants. Most were nobles from the "Spire-Born" class, their skin shimmering with expensive dermal augmentations and their clothes woven from high-conductivity silver thread.
"Look at this trash," a voice drawled.
A tall boy with hair slicked back with conductive gel stepped forward. This was Valerius, the son of an Iron Core executive. He wore a "Mk. IV Sorcery Gauntlet" on his right hand—a piece of tech that cost more than Elian's entire neighborhood.
"The Academy is lowering its standards," Valerius sneered, looking at Elian's frayed sleeves. "What's your Core Grade, rat? A 'D'? Or are you a 'Null' hoping for a scholarship?"
Elian didn't look up. "I'm just here for the books."
Valerius laughed, a sharp, metallic sound. "The books are for those who can understand the Code. You look like you can barely read a grocery list."
"Candidates! Line up!" a voice boomed.
A woman in a sharp, military-style uniform floated down from a balcony on a disc of solid light. This was Instructor Kora, a veteran of the Border Wars. "The exam is simple. We test your Resonance. You will step up to the Monolith and channel as much mana as possible. The Monolith will translate your power into a numerical score. 40 is a pass. 100 is a genius. 200 is... well, 200 is impossible for your age."
One by one, the students stepped up.
Candidate 01: Score 42 (Pass).
Candidate 12: Score 18 (Fail).
Valerius stepped up with an arrogant smirk. He placed his gauntlet on the black stone. The runes on his arm hissed, steam venting from the cooling ports as he drew deep from his internal core. The Monolith glowed a vibrant orange.
[Score: 112]
The hall erupted in whispers. "A hundred and twelve! He's already at the level of a Junior Knight!"
Valerius looked back at Elian and winked mockingly.
"Next," Kora called out. "Elian of the Rust District."
The room went silent. The noble kids chuckled. Elian walked to the Monolith. He felt the System buzzing in the back of his mind.
"System, I need to pass, but I cannot destroy the building. Calculate the minimum pressure required to hit exactly 43."
[Calculation in progress...]
[To achieve a score of 43 with 1000x Multiplier: User must use 0.000043% of total capacity.]
[Warning: Physical contact with Monolith may cause unintended 'Feedback Loop' due to User's passive absorption.]
Elian hesitated. He reached out his hand, barely grazing the surface of the cold, black stone with his index finger.
He didn't "channel" mana. He simply stopped holding it back for a fraction of a microsecond.
To Elian, it felt like a tiny spark. To the Monolith, it was an existential crisis.
The stone didn't just glow; it groaned. The deep, obsidian surface began to vibrate at a frequency that shattered the windows in the upper gallery. The numbers on the holographic display flickered wildly: 0... 99... 500... 999... ERR.
"What's happening?" Kora shouted, stepping forward, her hand on her sidearm—a mana-disruptor.
Elian pulled his hand back instantly, sweating. "I... I think it's broken? It's very old, isn't it?"
The Monolith settled. The display hissed and finally landed on a number.
[Score: 43]
The tension in the room broke. Valerius let out a loud snort. "A forty-three? Luck. The machine probably glitched because of the dirt on his hands. He's a bottom-feeder."
Instructor Kora, however, wasn't looking at the score. She was looking at the ground. Around the base of the Monolith, the indestructible floor had been scorched in a perfect circle, the stone turned to glass. She looked at Elian, her eyes narrowing with a mixture of suspicion and genuine fear.
"Step aside, Elian," she said quietly. "You pass."
The Library of Secrets
The first month at the Academy was an exercise in extreme boredom and extreme caution. While other students struggled to memorize the 'First Ten Runes of Ignition,' Elian's 1000x learning speed meant he had mastered the entire First-Year curriculum in the first twenty minutes of the first day.
He spent his time in the Forbidden Archives—not because he was a rebel, but because the basic library didn't have enough data to keep his System occupied.
One evening, he found a restricted tablet detailing the "Great Collapse."
"System, decrypt and summarize."
[1000x Decryption Engaged... Complete.]
[Summary: Aethelgard is not a 'natural' world. 300 years ago, it was a purely technological society. An event called the 'Aether-Bleed' forced a parallel dimension of high-density mana to merge with the tech-grid. Result: 90% of the population died as their electronics turned into monsters or exploded. The survivors built Magitech to survive the new laws of physics.]
"So it was an accident," Elian whispered to the empty rows of glowing books. "The system I have... it's not just magic. It's the 'Source Code' of the merger."
Suddenly, the doors to the archives slammed open.
"I knew I'd find you here, rat," Valerius said. He wasn't alone. Two other students, their eyes glowing with chemically-enhanced mana, stood behind him. They were holding "Stun-Rods"—high-voltage Magitech weapons used for subduing beasts.
"You've been acting too smug, Elian," Valerius said, his gauntlet humming. "My father says people like you—low-borns with 'glitchy' resonance—are a threat to the stability of the city. We're going to teach you your place."
Elian sighed, closing the tablet. "Valerius, you're using a Mk. IV gauntlet. It has a flaw in the thermal exhaust port. If you fire a high-output bolt in an enclosed space with this much latent mana, you'll cause a feedback loop that will take off your arm."
Valerius paused, then reddened with rage. "You dare lecture me on my own gear? Eat this!"
He raised his arm. The runes glowed a violent, angry red. The air smelled of burnt metal.
"System," Elian thought, his pulse not even rising. "I don't want to kill them. I just want them to go away."
[Option 1: 1000x Kinetic Shield (Will liquefy the attackers upon impact).]
[Option 2: 1000x Gravity Well (Will collapse the floor into the basement).]
[Option 3: 1000x Mana-Dampening Field (Will temporarily 'reset' their nervous systems).]
"Option 3. And make it look like a technical failure of the building."
Valerius pulled the trigger. A massive bolt of fire-aspected mana roared toward Elian.
Elian didn't move. He just exhaled.
[1000x Dampening Field: Activated.]
The fireball didn't explode. It simply... vanished. It turned into a puff of warm air. Valerius's gauntlet let out a sad whirr and began to smoke. The stun-rods in the other students' hands sparked and died.
Suddenly, the lights in the library flickered and went out. A wave of "heaviness" washed over the room. Valerius and his goons fell to their knees, their muscles refusing to obey. They weren't in pain; they just felt like they were made of lead.
"What... what did you do?" Valerius gasped, his face pressed against the cold floor.
Elian walked past them, his footsteps echoing in the dark. "I told you. The exhaust port. You triggered the building's safety dampeners."
As he reached the door, he stopped. "By the way, Valerius. The 'Iron Price' your father talks about? It's about control. But you can't control something you don't understand."
Elian stepped out into the hallway.
[System Notification: Combat Encounter Resolved.]
[Experience Multiplied by 1000x.]
[Level Up: 12 -> 45.]
[New Skill Unlocked: 'Technomancy Dominance' – You can now control any machine within a 1km radius.]
Elian looked at his hands. He was getting too strong, too fast. At this rate, he wouldn't just be the strongest student at the Academy. He would be the most powerful entity on the planet before the end of the semester.
And in a world of complex politics, corporate greed, and ancient secrets, that kind of power was a magnet for disaster.
He needed to find out who—or what—had given him this System. Because as much as he enjoyed being 1000x stronger than his bullies, he knew that in the world of programming, there was no such thing as a free upgrade. Everything had a cost.
[New Main Quest: Investigate the Iron Core "Project Heaven's Gate".]
[Reward: Information on the User's Origin.]
Elian looked up at the highest spire of the city, glowing with the artificial light of a thousand stolen stars. "Alright, System," he whispered. "Let's see how deep the rabbit hole goes."