Chapter 488 This is a bonus chapter from the donations
The power of extreme Magic Body Strengthening, refined to its utmost limit, does not cause mana to be released.
Originally, the blue aura that envelops the body of someone using Magic Body Strengthening was a sign of incomplete combustion, caused by improperly condensed mana being released outward.
Therefore, a proper Magic Body Strengthening does not result in the release of power.
Complete Magic Body Strengthening.
I had successfully taken the first step.
Though it was only a small part of my mana, I was able to achieve an extremely refined Magic Body Strengthening, compressing the power to its limit without causing a release, within a state of calmness and tranquility.
"I thought you might have picked up some strange habits while cultivating your skills, but it seems you've made some progress on your own," Luna said, casting a slight smile at me even though I hadn't spoken a word. She seemed to have read something in my eyes.
Strictly speaking, neither Luna nor Ronan had taught me anything.
In fact, it was Arta who had given me the hint.
"Give it a try."
Since I knew what she meant, I immediately activated the Magic Body Strengthening.
A very small portion of the mana I possessed.
Not for the purpose of releasing a powerful force, but with the feeling of letting my mental state flow as the mana within my body.
It wasn't for battle.
It was the sensation of expressing a peaceful mind through my physical form.
Although there were no visible changes, the exhilaration of mana circulating throughout my body enveloped me.
The output was certainly weaker than when I exerted my full power, but I had a clear sense that it was operating at maximum efficiency.
Luna quietly observed me as I succeeded in achieving the extremely refined Magic Body Strengthening.
And then.
She pointed her thumb and middle finger at my forehead as she looked at me.
"…Mother?"
It was the posture commonly used for flicking someone's forehead.
-Snap!
"Ouch!"
With the sudden flick, my head jerked back and I crumpled to the ground.
What the hell?
Why all of a sudden?
"What! Why did you do that?!"
As I yelled in protest, Luna pointed at me with a smile.
"Just look at yourself."
"…?"
Following Luna's gesture, I noticed a faint blue aura surrounding my body.
I understood immediately what she was trying to say.
My calmness had been disturbed by the flick, and I had lost control of the mana flow, causing it to be released outward.
"It's still too early for you to use this in a real fight, isn't it?"
"…Yes."
Maintaining a peaceful mind while controlling the mana flow completely.
I needed to use this power in battle.
But with a mental state that could be so easily disturbed by a simple flick, it was impossible to use in a real fight.
After taking a few deep breaths, the released mana lost its light and disappeared. However, I hadn't deactivated the Magic Body Strengthening.
Luna helped me up.
"From now on, maintain this state throughout the entire day."
"Let your mental stability be reflected in your physical stability."
"Make mana manipulation more natural than breathing, until you can even forget the sensation of using mana."
"Do you understand?"
Maintaining this complete Magic Body Strengthening all day meant maintaining a peaceful mind all day.
It had to become so natural that I wouldn't even be aware of my own Magic Body Strengthening.
If I could reach that stage, it would mean I had achieved the level of maintaining a clear mind all day without any conscious effort or struggle.
Even without conscious effort or struggle, a clear and bright mental state is maintained.
Soon, one enters the stage of ‘clear mirror, still water.’
"Yes."
I spend the entire day with Magic Body Strengthening activated, doing so very meticulously.
Throughout the day, I have to maintain this precise level of Magic Body Strengthening.
Is it possible?
"Well, for now, enduring a day like this is just the beginning."
I had obviously thought about it like that, but Luna's words about how this is just the beginning sounded daunting to me.
——
The task Luna assigned to me is quite simple.
Maintaining Magic Body Strengthening throughout the day.
The fact that my magical power is one of the greatest in the world remains unchanged. That is why I can use Magic Body Strengthening for much longer than most people.
Even if I were to output at full power in the original way, I could maintain it for at least two hours. That's quite impressive, considering the efficiency drops so much.
Thus, maintaining a day-long Magic Body Strengthening using only a small portion of my magical power should be an easy task.
Of course.
It was not easy at all.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
-Thump
"Ouch! You little-!"
"What, what's the matter? Why are you suddenly angry?"
Seeing Arta approach and tap my shoulder, I furrowed my brow, looking at the blue light of magical power emanating from my body.
It's not just about maintaining Magic Body Strengthening, but also maintaining a state of tranquility.
Maintaining that state throughout the day was by no means an ordinary feat.
——
For a week after receiving the assignment from Luna, I was cautious not to encounter any external stimuli.
Of course, I knew that this behavior was a misunderstanding of Luna's intentions.
What I needed to do wasn't just to stay in a corner or sit under a waterfall and maintain Magic Body Strengthening all day long, but rather to maintain the extreme state of Magic Body Strengthening even while going about my daily life.
It meant maintaining that state even while eating, having conversations, or helping with farm work.
However, I couldn't even reach that stage.
Just sitting on my bed alone, I couldn't withstand an hour maintaining that extreme Magic Body Strengthening.
After about 30 minutes, my whole body was soaked in cold sweat, and eventually, I became exhausted, and the state was lost.
It was difficult even to maintain that state alone, without anyone else interfering.
Focusing all my nerves on maintaining inner peace made me tired, and I ended up losing it.
I was experiencing a strange paradox where maintaining inner peace was destroying my inner peace.
If I thought that excessive focus was the problem and tried to disrupt it, the quality of the Magic Body Strengthening inevitably changed, and I had no choice but to return to the original method of emitting mana outward.
To begin with, the original method of Magic Body Strengthening also required extreme concentration. It was already a challenging task to become accustomed to this mentally draining Magic Body Strengthening, and now I had to adapt to a new method that required several times more concentration.
Two weeks have passed since I discovered the new method of Magic Body Strengthening.
"…This is driving me crazy."
Even in a state with minimal external stimuli, I could not maintain this state for more than two hours.
——
In the end, feeling that neither this nor that was working and unable to bear the frustration any longer, I met up with Arta and Lena for a day off.
"You've been whining like a sick person lately, was that what you were doing?"
"…Yeah."
By chance, Arta had seen me step outside and take a brief break after every step, worried that my focus on strengthening my magic might wane.
To the untrained eye, I must have looked like a fool.
Arta nodded as if he finally understood why I was acting this way lately.
"Magic Body Strengthening all day? Is that even possible?"
Lena tilted her head and asked Arta.
"Arta, can you do it?"
"Well, I've never tried, but I'd probably be exhausted before I could."
So, does that mean if his magical capacity allowed it, he could maintain this state all day?
Maintaining a still mind all day.
Ellen would be the one with the temperament suited for this.
Saviolin Turner, who had risen to the ranks of Grandmaster, seemed to have almost no emotional fluctuations.
Of course, Ellen's personality was naturally like that, but did people who had mastered magic body strengthening evolve to have similar, steady personalities?
But no matter how one looked at him, Arta didn't seem to be that kind of person.
He wasn't reckless, but he wasn't steady either.
"Hey, what's your secret to concentrating?"
"…Secret?"
"Yeah."
Arta didn't particularly seem like someone with extraordinary mental discipline.
However, Arta was able to use extreme magic body strengthening in real combat, even though it was just in practice.
When I use extreme magic body strengthening and maintain it, I have to be extremely cautious, even with my movements.
Naturally, I can't even dream of engaging in practice duels.
If only I could be as good as Arta, I wouldn't ask for anything more.
To my question, Arta hummed and crossed his arms.
"Well… I'm not sure if I have any secrets…"
It's true that when it comes to magic body strengthening, he is superior to me and Ellen. But in terms of actual skill, Arta could not compare to either me or Ellen.
"I don't know. I've never tried maintaining magic body strengthening all day like you."
"Well, why don't you try it?"
Lena said in response to Arta's words.
——
In the end, Arta joined me in my practice.
Instead of standing under a waterfall like in the past, we sat still in an empty field, maintaining our magic body strengthening.
The continuous maintenance would end the moment our concentration wavered and mana was released outward. Although we could refocus and return to that state, what Luna wanted from me was to maintain this state all day.
"…Whew, damn it."
After maintaining the state for about an hour, I grew tired.
My magical capacity was sufficient, but it felt like my mental strength was being consumed in real-time.
On the other hand, Arta sat still, concentrating without a single movement.
In the end, I focused, lost concentration, and repeated the process while sitting next to him for about three hours.
"Ugh, I can't do it anymore. I'm exhausted."
Having nearly depleted his magical power, Arta collapsed after enduring for about three hours.
I felt like my mental strength was being consumed and lasted about an hour.
Arta had no problem with his mental strength but reached his limit due to his magical capacity after about three hours.
Those were our respective limits.
"I don't really know, but is Arta really amazing?"
Lena didn't even know what we were doing in the first place, so she merely tilted her head in response to the results.
"Though I hate to admit it, he is."
"Why do you have to say that you hate admitting it?"
Arta chuckled while looking exhausted.
I don't know exactly how much magical power Arta possesses, but it's probably not very high. He just uses that power with the utmost efficiency.
This means that when I can fully utilize this method with my own abilities, I'll be able to wield a strength and endurance incomparable to what I've had thus far.
"Anyway, I really don't know. The secret to mental focus? I don't know. I really don't."
Arta, lying sprawled on the dirt ground, gazed blankly at the sky as he spoke.
The secret to good mental focus.
When I think about it, I wonder what that could be, just as Arta said.
What could there be besides being able to concentrate well?
"Hmm, I'm not really sure, but I think I know the difference between Arta and Reinhardt."
However, Lena, who had been watching both Arta and me for three hours despite her illiteracy, tilted her head and said so.
"Really?"
At Arta's question, Lena nodded.
"Arta, you don't have any thoughts."
"…Huh? All of a sudden?"
Arta was taken aback by the unexpected criticism that seemed to imply he was an ignoramus.
"And Reinhardt, you have too many thoughts."
"…Is that so?"
"So, Arta seems sort of relaxed, like he's just letting things happen, whereas Reinhardt, it feels like your whole body and eyes are straining…."
Lena looks at me.
"When I look at you, Reinhardt, it feels like I'm getting tired too."
"Ah…"
"I'm tired just watching you, so I can't imagine how tired you must be while doing it."
"Isn't it natural for the mind to lose focus if I just let myself go limp?"
At my words, Lena silently pointed at Arta, who was sprawled out on the training ground.
A real-life example of someone who can focus well even when relaxed.
I was at a loss for words in the face of Lena's simple observation.
"I do think, you know…"
Arta didn't seem too pleased with Lena's comment that made him sound like a brainless guy.