Sleep didn't come.
Not even close.
I stared at the ceiling—stone, uneven, faint cracks running through it like veins—and counted the seconds between breaths.
One.
Two.
Three.
Still awake.
Of course I was.
"Forge Weaver."
The words replayed on a loop.
Not the way everyone else heard them.
The way the captain said them.
Crafting. Replication. Knowledge. Mana control.
Not suited for combat.
"…That part was their problem," I muttered.
They stopped listening after that.
I didn't.
I turned onto my side.
Same result.
Nothing.
Too many unknowns.
How mana worked.
What counted as 'understanding.'
What I could actually replicate.
Where the limits were.
"Guessing won't fix that."
I sat up.
The room was quiet.
The kind of quiet that made it obvious you weren't supposed to be awake.
Didn't matter.
Staying here wouldn't change anything.
I grabbed the cloak they'd given us and stood.
No hesitation this time.
Just movement.
The castle halls were empty.
Lanterns burned low, shadows stretching across the stone like they had somewhere to be.
Guards stood posted, but no one stopped me.
One glance was enough.
Summoned hero.
That label carried weight.
Even if the job didn't.
I stepped outside.
Fiore at night wasn't dead.
It was controlled.
Lanterns lined the streets, warm light reflecting off stone roads and wood-paneled shops. Conversations drifted through the air—low, steady, intentional.
People still moved.
Work didn't stop.
"Different world," I thought.
"Same structure."
I walked without a destination at first.
Observing.
Traffic flow.
Building clusters.
Movement patterns.
Then I heard it.
Noise.
Not chaotic.
Layered.
Focused.
I followed it.
The Adventurer's Guild stood out immediately.
Wide structure. Open doors. Warm light spilling out.
People inside.
Lots of them.
I stepped in.
The smell hit first.
Wood. Metal. Alcohol.
Voices overlapped—contracts, arguments, laughter.
A system in motion.
Good.
My eyes landed on the counter.
And the woman behind it.
She noticed me before I spoke.
"You're not from around here."
Not a question.
"…No."
She smiled slightly.
"Summoned?"
"…Yeah."
"Knew it."
She leaned forward slightly.
"I'm Kathy. Guild reception. What do you need?"
Straight to the point.
Good.
"Information."
That got a pause.
Then curiosity.
"About?"
"Everything. But start with where I can find records. Books."
She blinked once.
"…You're serious."
"I don't ask things I don't mean."
A small smile.
"Fair enough."
She straightened.
"Great Archives. East side of Fiore. You'll find anything there."
"Open?"
"…Not at this hour."
I turned.
"Wait," she called.
I stopped.
"If you're trying to learn the world, rushing it won't help."
I glanced back.
"It will if I start now."
She studied me for a moment.
Then nodded.
"…East district. Big stone building. Can't miss it."
"Got it."
"Be careful."
"I will."
I left.
The Archives weren't hard to find.
They dominated the district.
Tall.
Wide.
Closed.
Of course.
I stood in front of the doors.
No guards.
Just a lock.
"…Convenient."
I stepped closer.
Crouched slightly.
Studied it.
Structure.
Pattern.
Function.
"Replication requires understanding."
Right.
I closed my eyes briefly.
Reconstructed it in my head.
Shape. Grooves. Teeth.
Mana moved.
Not forced.
Guided.
Something formed in my hand.
Rough.
Unstable.
But real.
I opened my eyes.
A key.
"…So that's how this works."
I inserted it.
Turned.
Click.
Unlocked.
Noted.
I pushed the door open.
The inside felt… different.
Quiet.
Heavy.
Like knowledge had weight here.
Shelves stretched endlessly, filled with books, scrolls, and records.
No noise.
No distractions.
Perfect.
Time stopped mattering.
I moved.
Book to book.
Page to page.
Scanning. Filtering. Retaining.
Mana.
Essence.
Systems.
That's all I focused on.
Mana wasn't static.
It flowed.
Through the body.
Through the world.
Capacity wasn't fixed.
It expanded.
Based on intelligence.
Understanding.
Efficiency.
"…So brute force isn't the path."
Good.
Mana essence.
Extracted from:
MonstersMaterialsEnvironment
Converted.
Used.
Stored.
"Resource system."
Makes sense.
Meditation.
Recovery.
Refinement.
Control.
"…Alright."
I sat down.
Closed my eyes.
Focused.
At first—nothing.
Then—
A current.
Faint.
Subtle.
There.
I reached for it.
Not physically.
Intentionally.
It responded.
Slow.
Then smoother.
Then faster.
"…Got it."
I didn't force it.
Just guided it.
Flow.
Stabilize.
Repeat.
Something changed.
Inside.
The resistance dropped.
Mana moved more easily.
Cleaner.
Faster.
I opened my eyes.
Raised my hand.
Focused.
Mana responded instantly.
No words.
No delay.
Just intention.
"…That's new."
I didn't question it.
I just accepted it.
Forge Weaver.
Knowledge.
Mana.
Replication.
Everything connected.
"…So that's the game."
I stood.
Looked around one more time.
Endless knowledge.
Untapped systems.
"Good."
I turned toward the exit.
"If knowledge is power…"
I stepped back into the night.
"…then I just found the fastest way to get stronger."