Mana.
It couldn't be anything else.
I took a deep breath.
Haah.
That warmth, I tried to guide it, not commanding, more like gently leading it.
I imagined a stream flowing downward, from my heart to my stomach.
The warmth slipped, scattering, before returning to my heart.
It took a few tries until my stomach warmed slightly.
The feeling was strange.
It was weak, barely enough to be felt.
I lead more of this 'warmth' toward my stomach, holding it there.
My lips curved into a smile.
'Good.'
Now—
Let's see if this is really mana or just my imagination.
I started to guide the 'warmth' toward my left hand.
But—
It vanished the moment I tried to move it, scattering before returning to my core.
Sigh.
I took a deep breath.
'Again.'
The first step was easy, guiding it to my stomach.
Next, I thought of leading it to my hand and—
It vanished.
'Again.'
Gone.
'Again.'
The same result.
Frustration built up.
Bam.
I struck my fist against the floor, knuckles aching.
Haah.
'Think.'
My thoughts raced.
'Something is missing.'
I leaned further back, resting my head against the cold stone wall. It calmed me.
'If my core is located at my heart and the mana starts to flow from there...I need to guide it toward my stomach, then from there to my left hand.'
That's when I realized.
Stomach?
Wait.
Why had I guided it to my stomach first?
There was nothing in the information about the Path of Mana saying that.
That's when it clicked.
I tried to imitate what I had read in one of these martial arts novels.
A chuckle broke out of me at the thought.
To my defense, mana was pretty similar to Qi or whatever they cultivated there.
But—
This was a different world.
Not one ruled by Cultivation and Qi.
It's called the Path of—
Wait.
'Path' of Mana?'
Thud.
I bumped my fist into my palm at the idea.
What if?
Mana needed a path?
I always imagined the destination.
My hand.
But not the path itself.
My back straightened on its own.
That idea.
It could work.
'Let's try it.'
I took a deep breath and pictured the path I needed to guide the mana on.
First, the heart.
From there—
I guided it through my chest, toward my shoulder.
Then—
Down.
Biceps.
Inner elbow.
The 'warmth' traveled.
Forearm.
Wrist.
Palm.
At last—
My fingers.
I felt a strange tingling sensation in my right arm.
But—
It didn't scatter.
Feeling that I was on the right track, I guided more 'warmth' into my fingers.
Slowly, carefully, so as not to break the current path.
My muscles pulsed, as if alive.
Then—
Lowering my hand to the ground, fingers touching stone.
Scratch.
The movement was small.
My fingers scraped against stone.
But—
Scratch.
I felt it, stone giving in under my fingers, and then there was that feeling of strength pulsing through my arm.
It was unmistakable.
Mana.
My hand lifted, enough to show the floor beneath it.
And—
There they were.
Marks.
Left behind by my fingers digging into stone.
They weren't deep, barely enough to be seen, but still marks.
My eyes widened at the sight.
"This...This is real."
I had my doubts.
The memories of Earth clearly dominated the ones of this world. The surreal power of mana—I had to see it with my own eyes to believe it.
And—
Now, watching claw marks on hard stone made by nothing else but my own hands, a smile blossomed on my lips.
I scratched my fingers again over the floor.
Nothing.
That's when I realized.
My focus was gone, the mana had already scattered.
But—
My gaze shifted toward the piece of stone in my left hand.
With this—
It should be possible.
I placed the stone in my right hand, gripping it firmly before softening.
'I need to be careful not to break it. I don't want to start grinding the huge stone piece down.'
Haah.
I took a deep breath, steadying myself.
'Again.'
I focused on my core and started to guide the mana toward my right hand.
Creating a Path between heart and hand.
Surprisingly, it felt much easier than the first time I did it.
It was still hard, but there was a lot less resistance now.
My hand slowly warmed as I led more mana into it.
'Careful.'
I moved the stone piece slowly, forward and back.
Scratch.
A scratching sound was heard as I ground the stone.
But—
It didn't take long until.
Thud.
The stone only made a dull sound.
My focus had broken, and the mana scattered, ending the enhancement.
I blinked in thought.
'So I need to focus even when I have already enhanced a body part.'
This—
It was annoying.
Haah.
I took a breath, calming myself.
"Again."
I pictured a path and led the mana toward my hand. My fingers twitched at the feeling of strength.
Scratch.
I moved the stone again, grinding it carefully thinner.
Scratch.
Thud.
Haah.
"Again."
Scratch.
Thud.
"Again."
Each attempt was different.
Sometimes it held up for minutes.
Sometimes it vanished after a few seconds.
Scratch.
Thud.
Again and again.
I didn't know how long I'd been working on it.
My fingers had started to bleed at some point.
My head throbbed, and I felt dizzy.
But—
Eventually, the stone had the right shape.
It wasnt perfect.
I still had to use some force to push it through, but it was enough.
I stood, legs shaking, hand aching.
But—
The pain was nothing.
Nothing in comparison to the pain I felt from the crash.
Some of the pain still lingered when I thought about it, but I pushed it aside.
I didn't have time for that now.
There was a small headache and a feeling of sluggishness after using a lot of mana.
But—
In return, I had grown more used to the way of picturing paths and using mana.
It felt much easier now, still difficult, but familiar.
After confirming the piece fit, I began training my mana a bit more, focusing on enhancing my legs.
The process was slightly harder than with my arms, but I slowly got a feel for it.
Enhancing both legs at once was still hard, but I didn't have time to practice more.
My gaze shifted to the door in front of me.
I didnt know—
When the guards would come.
If I were moved to somewhere else.
If I could do the same thing in another cell.
It would have been better if I could have practiced my mana control more.
But—
There was no time.
It was now or never.
Haah.
I let out a breath before crouching down, and placed the stone beneath the door.
It slipped through the gap.
I angled it so that I had enough space left to grip it.
Haah.
Another breath left me, shallow.
I hesitated.
But—
No.
I shook my head firmly.
It had to be now.
I enhanced my right arm, strength pulsed, and I pushed upward.
Creak.
The metal groaned for a moment as the door was lifted, but it didn't fall out.
Once more.
I forced everything I had into it and pushed.
Creak.
BAAM.