------------------
HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
------------------
Chapter 120
I had expected it would take at least one to two more months for my body to reach this stage.
That’s why I even used a magic core to create a magic circle.
As I stood there in confusion, the librarian’s text surfaced in my mind.
[Your soul has already adapted to the process. Your body is resonating with your soul and adapting as well. It is estimated that the resonance has significantly increased at a deeper level.]
“Am I going to turn into some hulking muscle monster by mistake?”
In Labyrinthos, there were no changes to my body, but who knows here.
[It is presumed that there will be little change in appearance.]
That’s good, then.
Is this what those heavenly martial physiques from novels are like?
No, this is beyond that.
Constantly adapting to become stronger.
Real-time metamorphosis.
There was no need to explain how absurd and fortuitous this opportunity was.
* * *
A massive flow of energy appeared.
It was a torrent of necromana far beyond the realm of any ordinary human.
Yet, surprisingly, it had no effect outside the training grounds.
When breaking through to a new level, few could control something like that.
Leon was doing it effortlessly.
A 7th Circle…
Is that even possible?
Even among the continent’s top mages, are there any at the 7th Circle?
Misha, the head maid, squinted and thought hard.
She didn’t know much about the Magic Tower, but she was sure there were none within her knowledge.
Well, maybe those five legendary archmages of the continent were beyond that level.
But this wasn’t about pioneering a new level—it was simply taking the next step when ready.
In other words, all the factors that would normally be needed to break through were meaningless for Leon.
“I will report.”
Misha, who had been silently observing him, sent a report to her family as usual.
– Understood. What’s the situation?
“He’s causing another commotion.”
– Ha… hahaha. What, is he trying to break through to the 7th Circle now?
When Duke Catsey Mielephon’s voice came through the artifact, Misha narrowed her eyes and stayed silent.
– …Is he really breaking through?
“Yes. He’s still in the process, but knowing him, he wouldn’t lie.”
– Unbelievable. If it were that easy, everyone would be a 7th Circle mage by now.
The Duke’s voice over the artifact was filled with disbelief.
– Is he even human?
“By my standards, he seems human….”
She stopped herself from saying more.
– Why stop there?
“Well… I may be overstepping, but what are your thoughts on his engagement to Lady Isna?”
Misha asked cautiously, with concern in her voice.
– Why? Did Leon fall for someone else?
Misha couldn’t be certain.
“I’m not sure….”
– Ah, it’s that girl from before. I had that feeling when I first saw her, even if Leon himself didn’t realize it.
She answered calmly.
“Is that all right with you?”
– The engagement was fake to begin with. It’s not like we expected them to fall in love. Besides, there’s a debt to Luna as well.
She didn’t seem too concerned.
“However, if that’s the case, Lady Isna…”
– Misha.
Catsey’s voice took on a more serious tone.
“Yes, mam.”
– Isna is my daughter, but I’ve never seen her show romantic feelings for a man. If anything, she always seemed guarded.
Misha flinched at those words.
– Anyways. We may have to prepare for the engagement to be annulled soon.
Even so, there was a hint of regret in the Duke’s tone.
“Will that be okay?”
– It’s fine. The engagement was more about building connections than the marriage itself. My father hoped they’d truly be wed, though.
“If, by some slim chance, Lady Isna does develop feelings…”
– That seems unlikely.
Catsey had already made a cold assessment.
As her beloved daughter, the Duke naturally wanted Isna to marry someone she truly cared for.
The issue was that Isna was anything but ordinary.
“Where is Lady Isna now…?”
– She caused trouble and is currently under house arrest. She destroyed a shrine in a fit of joy, apparently.
Of course…
– Until his return, keep supporting him, Misha. I’ll issue the order for his return at the right time.
“Yes, mam.”
Flaaaaaash!!!
The moment their communication ended, the magic circle surrounding Leon erupted with intense violet light.
The massive flow of energy swirling around Leon began to tremble violently.
He said he was breaking through to the 7th Circle, but that’s not something you can achieve just because you want to.
So how was that magic circle increasing the caster’s Circle level?
A spark of primal curiosity lit up in her.
As she pondered the phenomenon, something strange unfolded.
The air in front of Leon tore apart, splitting space itself.
------------------
HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
------------------
An eerie figure emerged from the magic circle amidst swirling smoke.
The first thing she saw was a hand made of stark white bones.
Next came a fog-like mist, reminiscent of dry ice, that seeped out from the rift and spilled onto the floor.
Sssssss….
The sheer dread it radiated made Misha’s legs go weak.
She nearly collapsed but managed to steady herself.
It felt like facing the legendary dragon’s fear head-on—a reflexive reaction.
“Ah, I can’t take this anymore. Thanatos, I’m requesting a deal.”
As the eerie figure slowly extended its hand, black shadows coalesced around Leon, isolating the space and pointing countless shadow scythes at his neck.
That’s a monster.
Not some Sword Master or transcendent being, but a genuine disaster.
It looked alive, but it didn’t feel like a living being at all.
It’s as if a massive spell had taken form—that’s the feeling it gives.
What in the world has that lunatic attention-seeker summoned!?
—Sssss…
The massive skeletal reaper remained silent, as if it lacked a will of its own.
“I desire the 7th Circle. What I offer is the right to form a contract with me.”
A one-sided and oppressive contract demand was thrust at me.
* * *
The figure of the massive skeletal reaper.
Seeing it, Misha, the chief maid, turned pale.
And for good reason.
The entity I had summoned was not a living being but more like a concept.
Of course, the contract request I made also didn’t carry any particular meaning.
The key to triggering that enormous phenomenon lay in the catalyst.
The first condition was pouring a vast amount of mana into a magic circle that had been refined over a long time.
Normally, creating this magic circle with a 6th Circle would take about a year, but I had an abundance of necromantic mana.
Being able to condense a year’s worth of work into a single day was a fortunate advantage.
Once the magic circle was complete, it was ignited with the catalyst, much like inserting a battery and starting an engine.
The method involved absorbing the massive storm of necromantic mana and forcibly blossoming the Circle.
That was the method for advancing to the 7th Circle.
However, what I couldn’t predict was the dominance contained within the necromantic mana I currently possessed.
In Labyrinthos, I had never manifested Thanatos with this level of dominance.
Thanatos would either swallow up beings below a certain threshold or resonate with those above it, granting them immense power.
So then…
What happens now that I have far surpassed that threshold?
I had no certainty about the outcome.
Which meant I had to try it out for myself.
Suddenly, the surrounding area was enveloped in a black mist.
As the necromantic mana intertwined with lifeforce and resentment, it engulfed everything in its path.
An eerie chill began spreading from my neck through my entire body.
It felt like the phenomenon itself was staring at me, silently saying, “I’ll take your life right now.”
Even so, I stood still and did not resist.
After all, the entity was created from both the magic circle and catalyst, but a considerable portion of its essence came from my necromantic mana.
In other words, I had already paid the price to it.
As I waited, I felt the black scythes aimed at my neck vanish all at once.
At the same time, the six rotating circles began spinning ferociously and drew closer to each other as if they would collide.
Although circles are said to form around the heart, if they collide, the resulting shock would be fully borne by the mage—a very dangerous symptom.
Yet ironically, from the 7th Circle onward, the circles had to be compressed to progress.
A level that could only be reached by putting one’s life on the line.
At least, that’s how I thought of the 7th Circle and beyond.
In this process, there was no easier, faster, or less side-effect-prone way to compress the circles than using the Thanatos phenomenon.
The compression criterion for circles determined how many more could be formed beyond the initial ones.
After breaking through to the 8th Circle, the circles would have to be compressed again, and again for each subsequent level.
But since my immediate goal was the 7th Circle, I didn’t need too much compression.
Based on my personal experience of discarding all power in Labyrinthos and rebuilding it from scratch, even summoning Thanatos once didn’t make the compression process any easier.
Yet…
“What?”
The compression was far greater than expected.
If the gap between circles was about 10 centimeters, compressing them for the 7th Circle would normally require only about 1 centimeter.
But now, the gap had suddenly shrunk by over 5 centimeters.
“What?”
I tried to control it, but to my shock, the circles didn’t align.
Instead, they kept compressing endlessly, forcing them together into a single point.
Naturally, as the circles compressed, they would eventually converge into a singularity.
But the compression speed didn’t slow down, leaving me completely bewildered.
Wait, does this mean there’s enough space to reach not just the 7th Circle, but even the 8th Circle?
Huh?
Why is it compressing even further?
As I stared at the transforming circles, wondering, it happened.
The necromantic mana circles rapidly compressed into a single ring and began rotating before I could react.
Simultaneously, my heart—the heart of the machine god—began to resonate with it.
“Librarian.”
At my call, the Librarian immediately responded.
[You are undergoing adaptation. Your necromantic mana’s overwhelming dominance has caused instant physical transformation.]
This was insane.
Once again, I had undergone evolution—or adaptation, rather.
And in that process, something strange occurred.
The phenomenon of necromantic mana surrounding me—the shape of Thanatos—solidified and began to seep into the circles within me.
------------------
HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
------------------
