Chapter 15

"Analyze," Do-Jin ordered, prompting the Grimoire of Truth to increase his understanding of the spell Light once again.

It drew from every resource at its disposal: Do-Jin’s raised level, his increased intelligence, his accumulated experience with magic, his instincts, and his knowledge. All of it was fed into the book as raw material.

For a few seconds, the intricate symbols and formulas hovering over the grimoire twisted and tangled like a chaotic web.

[You have reached the interpretation limit of Light.]

[Manifestation proficiency has increased by 1.8%.]

In the blink of an eye, the Grimoire of Truth finished its analysis. The level requirements were met, and everything Do-Jin had poured into the spell was processed and refined. When he cycled his mana, it was clear that he had advanced to Tier 2.

And if my theory is right, the spells I cast while the grimoire is active will be even stronger.

Do-Jin had spent years in LOST as a mage. That experience told him there was a stark difference between casting a spell normally and casting it through the Grimoire of Truth.

Confident, he activated Light. A point of light appeared in midair. Then another. And another. Even with a basic spell like Light, layering multiple instances at once was no trivial feat. For a newly initiated mage like Do-Jin, it should have been borderline impossible.

He’s stacking three spells at once?

Sisala thought, her jaw practically hitting the floor.

It was a natural reaction given that, as a Tier 4 mage, the best she could manage was layering four Tier 1 spells simultaneously.

However, Do-Jin wasn’t stopping at three. He pressed on, pushing his Magic Circuits past their limits. At first, his Magic Circuits felt like they were on the verge of snapping under the strain, but the Grimoire of Truth quickly took over, stabilizing the process by siphoning mana directly and weaving the incantations with precision.

Just as I thought.

Not only was the casting process faster, but it was far more stable. By the end, six points of light hovered in the air.

Sisala could only stare in stunned silence, her wide eyes filled with disbelief. It was the look of someone who’d just witnessed a genius operating leagues above her.

This’ll make her even more convinced that I’ve got ties to Sion Grace,

Do-Jin thought, allowing himself a small, satisfied smirk as he took a step forward.

The mana in the area surged violently, rippling like an invisible tide. The Magic Circle ahead had detected his approach and roared to life, ready to perform its function, but there was nothing left for it to consume. Do-Jin had already wiped out every last specter it could have drawn energy from.

“

Grrroooooooaaaaaahhhh

!” Deprived of fuel, the circle let out a guttural howl before disgorging the spirit it had been storing.

A bone-deep wail echoed through the corridor as a massive silhouette rose from the circle. The first named monster of The Magic Workshop Consumed by Evil, Shadow Dwelling in Malice, had appeared.

When Do-Jin sharply snapped his fingers, six points of light were conjured simultaneously. The spell Light, now supercharged with every drop of mana he could muster, burst into a searing brilliance that flooded the corridor.

For beings of darkness and shadow, light was the ultimate nemesis, and Shadow Dwelling in Malice was no exception. Against such intense radiance, its hulking form shrank to less than half its original size, recoiling as if the light itself burned.

“Now, Sisala!” Do-Jin shouted.

Without missing a beat, Sisala unleashed a focused, single-target attack meant to obliterate the monster in one precise strike.

[Explosive Flame]

The instant the Tier 4 spell struck the weakened shadow, it was lights out. The monster, already battered by its exposure to light magic, collapsed in a groggy stupor. The successive detonations from the spell were overkill, turning the specter into nothing more than a bad memory.

As it dissolved, so did the Magic Circle. The dark, sticky mana it had been hoarding began to slither away, flowing toward the remaining intact circles like a sluggish, tar-like river.

“

Hah... hah

...” Sisala gasped for air, her breaths shallow and uneven, a mix of adrenaline and awe from watching Do-Jin in action.

In stark contrast, Do-Jin deactivated the Grimoire of Truth and turned away, as calm as ever.

What’s so hard about a dungeon like this?

For someone who had fought far stronger enemies in far worse conditions during his past life, this dungeon was nothing more than a warm-up.

[Sisala Omen’s favorability has increased by 3 points, bringing her total to 28.]

That was Do-Jin’s take, but Sisala clearly felt differently. The notification popping up about her increased favorability was proof enough of that.

Well, this is an unexpected bonus.

It was one thing for someone’s evaluation of you to improve; it was another for their personal feelings to turn favorable. People could think “That guy’s amazing

”

while secretly wanting to take you down a peg, which would tank their favorability instead.

But Sisala? She wasn’t just impressed, but actually

liked

him more. That meant her favorability had plenty of room to grow. With the Grimoire of Truth keeping his genius mage act alive, Do-Jin had no doubt he could keep this momentum going.

Honestly, that starstruck look of hers is a bit much... but for someone like Sisala Omen? It’s worth putting up with.

Do-Jin glanced away, avoiding her gaze.

What would you even call the emotions swirling in her eyes? It was a whole damn cocktail of envy, admiration, and even a bit of sadness. Regardless of how she felt on the inside, it was the kind of look that made holding eye contact downright uncomfortable.

“How’s your mana holding up?” Do-Jin asked, breaking the silence to steer the conversation back to something practical.

“I’m okay for now. I’ve got about half left—no, maybe a little more than that.”

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

“Half, huh? In that case, we should take a break here. You might feel fine now, but if things heat up, we can’t risk you running on fumes.”

“Ah, right. That makes sense.”

Before she could say another word, Do-Jin plopped himself down in a suitable spot, pulled out a mana cigarette, and lit it. As he closed his eyes and inhaled, the faint aroma of mana-infused herbs filled the air.

Smoking the enchanted herb and closing his eyes were part of his routine that accelerated mana recovery, not just for show. Do-Jin focused solely on the scent of the cigarette as his racing heart began to slow. With his pulse steadying, his mana recovery efficiency improved, speeding up the process.

It was a deliberate, mind-over-matter technique to recover faster by calming his body and mind.

[The skill Meditation has been created.]

After repeating this routine at every opportunity, Do-Jin’s efforts finally bore fruit. The new skill, which boosted mana recovery and efficiency, appeared in his repertoire.

The moment Meditation was unlocked, a faint golden glow shimmered around his eyes and mana circuits, a side effect of the skill being inscribed into the Grimoire of Truth.

That showed up a lot faster than I expected.

With his eyes still closed, Do-Jin opened both his Status Window and Skill Window, confirming the new addition. Satisfied with the slightly faster rate of mana recovery, he leaned into the rhythm of his routine, fully focused on getting back to peak condition.

***

Seeing Do-Jin sit down, Sisala hesitated before awkwardly settling a short distance away. Her posture was stiff and uneasy as she gazed thoughtfully at him.

What the hell was that? Did I actually see what I think I saw?

Sisala’s mind was spinning with questions she desperately wanted to ask, but she couldn’t. Asking about another mage’s magical techniques was a cardinal sin in their world. Even so, her curiosity was unbearable. Her eyes kept drifting toward him.

That golden, mana-forged book... what was it? Was it an innate magic? Or maybe some kind of ancient artifact?

Her thoughts ran wild, cycling through theories, but nothing fit. Everything about what she’d witnessed clashed with her understanding of magic. There was no way a Tier 1 mage could wield innate magic, and the idea of it being an artifact was equally absurd. Artifacts powerful enough to produce that kind of effect wouldn’t just let an unqualified user activate them.

But one thing was certain. Whether it was magic or some ancient tool, it had to be connected to Sion Grace.

Where else could someone like Do-Jin have obtained such abilities, especially after becoming a mage only recently? The timeline spoke for itself. Right after opening his Magic Circuits, Do-Jin had gone straight into the Ten Thousand Archive, a place no ordinary mage could access. And then there was that wooden ring, a gift directly from Sion Grace herself. There was no way it was just some ordinary trinket.

It’s probably a key. Something that allowed him into a space only accessible with Sion’s blessing.

If that theory was correct, then the Ten Thousand Archive likely held the secret knowledge of a grand mage, a treasure trove of forbidden wisdom.

As Sisala mulled over her theories, her eyes caught a faint golden glow flickering around Do-Jin’s eyes and mana circuits. Sisala recognized the phenomenon immediately. It was the telltale sign of a mage experiencing a breakthrough.

Which meant that even now, after wrapping up that grueling fight, Do-Jin wasn’t resting. He was still thinking about magic, whether it was about the spells he had cast, the Magic Circle they’d destroyed, or something else entirely. Whatever it was, this man was relentless in his pursuit of magical knowledge.

What an idiot. No wonder I’m stuck in one place while people like him keep moving forward.

Regardless of his ties to Sion Grace, Do-Jin’s raw talent was undeniable.

If someone like him is putting in this much effort, what the hell am I doing?

Sisala closed her eyes, steadying her breathing. She concentrated on her own Magic circuits and began meditating. Slowly, her mind emptied, replaced by thoughts of magic.

***

Thanks to his newly acquired Meditation skill, Do-Jin finished recovering much faster than he’d expected.

He opened his eyes and wondered,

Is she not done yet?

Sisala was still sitting with her eyes closed, faint light flickering along her mana circuits. She, too, was meditating. After a moment, she opened them as well.

“Ready to move?” Do-Jin asked.

“Yes, let’s go.”

The corridor grew more labyrinthine as they went deeper. The areas near the still-active Magic Circles were teeming with specters, and the traps the workshop’s owner had left behind made things even trickier. However, the overall strategy remained unchanged. It was still the same dungeon, still the same specters.

If anything, these bastards are going down easier than before

, Sisala thought, noticing how smoothly the battles were going.

Thanks to Do-Jin relentless weakening the specters, their experience gain was also skyrocketing. By the time they destroyed the second Magic Circle and its named monster, Do-Jin had reached Level 27. Clearing the third circle pushed him up three more.

Although leveling slowed down as the levels of new monsters caught up to his own, the hidden dungeon bonuses kept the gains flowing. By the time they cleared the fourth and fifth circles, Do-Jin had hit Level 32.

Level 32. It’s cutting it close, but this should be enough for me to handle the final stretch myself.

Once again, he funneled every last bonus point into Intelligence, a satisfied grin spreading across his face. This was the scenario he’d been hoping for when he first mapped out his approach to The Magic Workshop Consumed by Evil.

Honestly, I didn’t think I’d break 30 in a single dungeon, hidden or not.

Level 32 marked the threshold he’d set as the bare minimum to beat the dungeon’s final encounter without Sisala’s help. Now that he’d reached it, it was time to take center stage.