Inops lay sprawled across the stone table, his body trembling from the experiment. His breath was ragged, and sweat clung to his skin. His face was covered in blood, with his mouth and nose still oozing blood


    A dull ache throbbed through his limbs, but what truly unsettled him was the sensation deep within his chest—something foreign, something unnatural, as if a new organ had forcefully embedded itself inside his chest. The thought alone sent chills down his back.


    Inops remembered that the amethyst-eyed lady had said that only a quarter of whatever had embedded within him had formed.


    What would it feel like if it had fully formed—the biggest question is, what was that thing that had formed?


    She had spoken of forcing the formation of a magical circuit. Was this foreign organ inside him what she described as a magic circuit?


    The amethyst-eyed woman eyed Inops “Hmm… Looking at this, it is integral for the subject to participate in the process. Without him, the results will be… unpredictable.”


    She approached a bookshelf and pulled out one of the books. After removing it, she returned to the stone table. The book appeared ancient, and its leather binding nearly rotting, with the last threads hanging on tightly to life.


    She opened the ancient book, its pages as worn as its exterior, scanning its contents before her frosty gaze turned to Inops.


    “A quarter formed… and you are still alive,” she mused, her voice laced with satisfaction. That is a good sign, but the process is far from complete. For the next time, you have to participate for it to succeed. Without your cooperation, the results will be… far from optimal.”


    She closed the book gently and approached Inops. She then handed it to him, placing it in one of his trembling hands.


    “This book may decide your life and death.” She began chuckling, her voice unnaturally encouraging. “Read it well and understand more of what you’re going to go through and this world.”


    The book''s weight seemingly gained mass as the amethyst-eyed woman''s words echoed through Inops'' ears. It had no cover, no title, and no author.


    The book’s pages were yellowed, yet the ink was still bold despite its age. Inop opened the book and began to read the first page of many. The symbols within the book were strange and unfamiliar, yet the more he read, the more he understood.


    <b><i>“Magic Circuits: the fundamental power source of a mage. An organ formed within the body that channels and amplifies magical energy. The strength of each circuit is dependent on the methods used to form the circuit…“</i></b>


    Inops blinked and attempted to process the information. He pressed his chest as a strange pulsing sensation began from his chest.


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    <b><i>“...in order for a circuit to fully form and stabilize, the apprentice must sense the mana that flows through all things, regardless of the method used to form the circuit. Those that do not will be gazed upon by the Eyes of Umbra…“</i></b>


    The words seemingly blurred together as Inop struggled to comprehend what he was reading. <b><i>“Mana flows through all things…” </i></b>He hardly understood what that meant, much less how to sense it. His chest throbbed with a strange pulsing; he clenched his fingers around the yellowed page.


    A voice interrupted his thoughts.


    “Are you starting to understand?” The woman with amethyst eyes spoke in a calm voice, too calm, as if she were testing him.


    Inops looked up; his vision began to blur from the pulsing “This…” He swallowed, his mouth dry “What is happening inside me? This… is a circuit?”


    “Yes, it is a quarter complete,” she replied, the voice cold yet seemingly patient. “Your body is reacting to it; that feeling you feel is the circuit begging to form. Yet without guidance, it will remain incomplete—volatile, even dangerous.”


    “I attempted to do it without you, yet I failed. Only a quarter of the circuit was formed, and the rest is reliant on you.”


    He didn''t want to be the subject of this experiment. Yet he was forced. The pulsing continued, and his chest began to tighten. Something pushed against his ribcage as if it was trying to escape.


    His eyes darted back to the page.


    <b><i>“...Those who do not will be gazed upon by the Eyes of Umbra…”</i></b>


    “What are… the <i>Eyes of Umbra?</i>” he asked, his voice trembling as he thought of what was trying to escape his ribcage.


    The woman’s lips curled into a smile; this was far from comforting. “The <i>Eyes of Umbra </i>are something that corrupts and consumes us. We descend deeper and closer to the <i>Eyes of Umbra with </i>each circuit we form.”


    She chuckled and continued, “Those who fall into the gaze of the <i>Eyes of Umbra</i>. Fufufufu. Let''s just say their fates are far from peaceful.”


    His breath quickened as her words resounded through his mind. Knowing this was possibly a life and death situation, he asked her, “So… What am I supposed to do?”


    “You have to stabilize your circuit.” She paused and then continued. “Which is to say you have stabilize your circuit. And to do that, you must first sense the mana.”


    Her eyes seemingly bore through his body as she looked at every flicker of fear his face showed.


    “How does one…s-sense the mana?” He spoke as the fear began to almost suffocate him.


    She looked at him with the same smile and spoke, “That I cannot help you with; it won’t be easy. There is no one set path. You must simply sense the mana.”


    A silence broke out in the room. His heartbeat broke the silence as it began to quicken.


    He had no choice but to find a way to sense the mana. A thought came to mind: meditation. Perhaps that was what was used to sense the mana. He had previously mediated as a child in the fragments of memories he had.


    Inops closed his eyes, his breathing heavy. He focused his mind, searching for the mana. His eyebrows scrunched as he tried harder and harder to find a small glimpse of it.


    The feeling in his chest only intensified with each passing moment; it came closer and closer to escaping.


    Deep down, he knew that this feeling was the <i>Eyes of Umbra</i>, and if he let it gaze upon him, he would probably die.


    Pain coming from his chest erupted, and his chest began to spasm. Blood began to trickle down from his chest as if something was truly trying to escape his body.


    Then he heard the voice of the amethyst-eyed woman, “Focus. Find the feeling.”


    His eyebrows scrunched further as he ignored the pain coming from his chest, searching for any feeling of the mana.


    Nothing.


    Nothing.


    Suddenly, he felt something, and it was almost minuscule. He reached out his finger to what he was sensing, and it felt like an ember had entered his fingertip.


    That was it! That was the mana. He had sensed it, but he knew this was only the beginning.