Beyond the Eternity

Clatter! Thud!

Rubble scattered across the floor as dirt and debris rained down from the ceiling after the earth-shaking impact.

Moments later, the tremors subsided, leaving only silence.

I frowned, glancing upward.

What was that? For a brief moment, I thought I caught the residual traces of an attack.

Though I couldn't wield mana, my spirituality was still intact. I closed my eyes and let it spread, reaching out above to sense the disturbance.

From the chaotic movement above, it seemed like there was some kind of commotion. Looking further, the entire fourth floor looked like it had suffered from a bombing.

'Impossible. Were we attacked? I don't believe we had gained the wrath of another party. Was it another king candidate?'

Judging by the scale of the damage, it bore a resemblance to the handiwork of [The Sun]. But that didn't make sense. We hadn't provoked that person, nor entered into any kind of hostile relationship

Wait. Am I jumping to conclusions here? Maybe so. And no Stellar Cloud constellation had any reason to target us either. At the very least, not at this stage. It was still early.

Frustration bubbled up. Damn it. What the hell is going on up there?

And then it hit me.

'Wait...'

My breath caught as my eyes flew open wide.

... No. It couldn't be…

The fourth floor. Wasn't that where Miyuki was?

"Shit!"

I tensed, ready to dash upstairs, but rationality quickly overwhelmed and flattened the rising tide of emotion, forcing me to focus.

My mind sharpened like a sword, and my eyes narrowed.

'I don't sense any other presences apart from the survivors. And the traces of mana… they're identical to Miyuki's signature.'

'Was she trying to practice magic upstairs? That would explain the multiple traces of her mana. She doesn't seem hurt.'

'That foolish girl... Didn't I tell her to consult the adults for practical experience?'

I shook my head. Not that it matters. Kim Hyunwoo can easily fix any damage with his Crafting.

'Still, why did she have to give me such a fright?'

Relief flooded through me.

There were still a few minutes left before the effects of the [Silence Stone] wore off. If I rushed outside to resolve the situation now, I'd only squander the brief window of freedom from the Constellations' watchful eyes.

Even though Miyuki might have been injured by the explosion, I saw no reason to act immediately.

With Kim Hyunwoo present, there was no urgent need for me to rush outside. I could finish my experiments and observations first, then deal with the situation. Additionally, I had ensured that medical supplies were readily available. If anyone's injuries weren't life-threatening, they could be treated quickly.

The likelihood of someone sustaining life-threatening injuries, especially Miyuki who had been at the center of the explosion, was minimal.

If it was magic conjured from her mana that exploded, she should be safe.

With that in mind, my gaze shifted to the massive hole left in the front wall by the Sanctified Howl Bullet. I assessed its destructive power.

Ten out of ten.

Full marks.

It was undeniably, vastly, much stronger than my Lv. 9 Spirit Bullet.

The difference was so vast that I couldn't help but wonder how much spirit power would be needed to achieve that level of destruction, probably over 100, maybe even 200 units.

For the moment, I didn't have the exact values.

"I suppose the testing of the new rounds was a success. Now, let's proceed with the final experiment."

That experiment was the true reason I had descended here.

Improving my shooting accuracy and testing the Sanctified Howl Bullets had been part of the plan, but not the primary goal.

A few seconds later, I stepped into the shooting lane and opened the door on the right. The moment it creaked open, an unpleasant stench hit me.

Dragging out my test subject, a Man-Eating Rat, I observed the pitiful creature I'd captured and experimented on days ago.

It was once one of the lower-grade nightmares, feared at the beginning of the Main Stories, but now it served as little more than a subject for my experiments.

As I reached the center, I released its ankle. The creature made no attempt to flee. In fact, even if it tried, it wouldn't be able to escape.

I had modified the muscle structure of its body using 'Drafting.'

The Man-Eating Rat remained motionless, twitching slightly as it adjusted to the changes I'd made.

Its muscular legs and arms had become unnaturally thin, like frail twigs, while its once-alert eyes now held a dull, empty gaze. It opened its mouth to make a sound, but no noise came out.

The creature had been blinded.

It could neither move, see, nor scream in pain.

Its body had been rendered completely useless. I had too much fun with manipulating and forcefully altering the structure of its body that it had turned to something truly pitiful.

Killing it seemed merciful, but I wanted to see how long it could survive in this state. Evolution, perhaps?

Unfortunately, it seemed unlikely.

I sighed, pulling out my smartphone to take notes.

"Subject 0021: Man-Eating Rat, Condition: Modified, Status: Inactive."

"Muscle structure altered using 'Drafting'—limbs have become unnaturally frail, resembling twigs rather than limbs suited for the creature's natural predatory lifestyle. Eyes—completely blind, unresponsive to light stimuli. It is unable to make any sounds as its vocal cords has been completely crushed."

"Current state: Completely immobilized. The lack of movement suggests a failure of the creature's neurological system due to the alterations. No visible signs of distress, though no attempt to escape has been made. It seems to exist in a state of semi-consciousness."

I glanced at the rat again, feeling like all those scientists in movies and films that carry out similar experiments.
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"Final hypothesis: Subject is unable to perform any basic functions. No movement, no sight, no vocalization. It's basically just a living shell that can no longer holds any inherent threat."

Closing the smartphone, still looking down at the creature, I then also made a mental note.

«Drafting» Not only was it an individual skill capable of going against the world's natural order and probability, it also allowed me to alter the physical state of living creatures and inanimate objects.

However, I wouldn't reduce it to simply modifying physical states.

It could change the very aspect of a target, whether living beings, objects or even concepts. This Man-Eating Rat was the perfect example of the physical altercation caused by the unique skill.

Another example would be altering the aspect of inanimate objects and transform them into living creatures. Imagine a talking wall or a moving apple, things that should be impossible, but they were achievable with Drafting.

It was a power that converted impossibilities into plausibilities by flattening or crushing "phases" into a script-like structure.

Basically, It was like editing a written novel with a pen.

Of course, it was a skill that greedily consumed "reality points," making it far from the whimsical wave of a magic wand. Every alteration came with a price.

The real questions were: How much does each change cost? And more importantly, which alterations are worth the expenditure?

For those two questions, the answer was simple.

According to the Law of Causality, for every cause, there would be an effect. Major alterations demanded a large amount of reality points, while smaller ones were more manageable. For instance, transforming a car into a talking car would be considered a small change in the grand scheme of things. But attempting something far more drastic, like removing one of the twelve primary colors from existence, would require a whole different level of investment that I couldn't afford.

For instance, minor alterations, like tweaking small objects or simple traits, would cost anywhere from 10 to 50 reality points, depending on the complexity of the target.

Moderate changes, such as tampering with items that relied on probability or altering mechanisms tied to chance, ranged from 100 to over 1,000 reality points.

But for large-scale alterations, like erasing one of the twelve primary colors from existence, the cost skyrocketed to 10,000 reality points or even more.

It was unreasonable. Even thinking about it felt excessive, especially considering I wasn't a constellation with an endless reserve of power.

Even if I tried, without the necessary reality points, the effect would backfire, and the result would be a serious, unknown 'backslash.'

Fortunately, when it came to living creatures weaker than myself, I didn't need to rely on reality points. This Man-Eating Rat, for instance, had fallen victim to my unrestricted experimentation. I could freely alter its physiology without facing any repercussions. I'd done more than simply reduce it to a husk. I'd also experimented with other monsters, such as turning them into zombies, objects, or compacting their bodies.

How far could I stretch a creature's body before it snapped? How much could I shrink it before it ceased to exist? How many days could it go without eating?

The entire process was fascinating and even thrilling. The possibilities felt endless, and I found myself becoming more and more excited with each experiment.

It was addictive.

And, above all, it was fun. So much so that I started to wonder if I was enjoying it a little too much.

It could become troublesome if I picked up one or two strange hobbies.

"Hmm..."

A sudden thought crossed my mind, freezing me in place.

"Thinking about it, I've been able to manipulate the minds of others before. Which means Drafting can bypass the defenses of the Mind Body within the brain, right? If that's true... could it also influence the Soul?"

The Soul held far more mysteries than it revealed on the surface. I had questions that I needed answers to. It was crucial because it might be connected to my strange condition.

I suspected there was something wrong with my Magic Circuits.

And this wasn't baseless speculation.

"Mysteries," "Martial Arts," and "Skills."

They all shared a fundamental similarity: they were different methods of manipulating mana. Perhaps the real reason why my magical potential was so absurdly low was due to the quality of my magic circuits.

If they were defective, it would explain why my mana reserves barely surpassed those of a four-year-old child.

In truth, having magic circuits of low quality but high quantity was far worse than possessing average reserves with high-quality circuits.

In the case that my magic circuits might be defective, it only made sense to perform countless tested in order to confirm that truth.

The issue, however, was that nightmares had a vastly different physiology than humans. Using monsters for tests wouldn't give me any clear answers.

"At least I captured one of those species. That thing doesn't have much use apart from serving as a lab rat. Still, what should I do about this?"

Glancing at the motionless Man-Eater, I concluded there was no point in keeping it alive any longer.

There was no benefit. Prolonging its suffering seemed equally impractical.

I stepped toward the table and picked up both [Ivory] and [Castor].

After confirming the destructive power of the Sanctified Howl Bullets, I returned [Castor], which contained them, into my [Watcher's Dimensional Star Coat]. Then, I swept the remaining firearms off the table and onto the floor.

Turning around, I leveled the Silver Demon, [Ivory], at the Man-Eating Rat, determined to put an end to its misery.

A few seconds later, I squeezed the trigger with little strength.

Crack—!

The spirit bullet burst from the muzzle, tearing through the Man-Eater's skull and detonating within. Blood sprayed across the floor in a crimson arc.

That was all it took to end its suffering and misfortune.

I announced expressionlessly, "Subject 0021: Terminated."

Then, without a hint of reaction, I moved toward the wall, hung my coat on a hook, and then approached a hidden door on the right.

Gripping both handles of the double door, I swung it wide open.

Immediately, a horrible stench assaulted my defenseless nose. I forced myself to ignore it and pulled something out from the hidden room.

Another subject.

Unlike the previous subject, this subject maintained all its body functions, but was restrained.

It was a monster I had become all too familiar with in the past few days. Humans who had forsaken their humanity to gain powers beyond themselves. Outcasts who had chosen a forbidden path in this ruined world.

Demonic Werewolf.

The creature's yellow eyes burned with hatred, glaring at me with an intensity that seemed to scream, 'I despise you with every fiber of my being!'

A faint smile formed on my lips. With my voice calm and clearly pleasant, I addressed it, "Subject 0028, how are you feeling today?"