Episode 9: My Foundation

The fabric of space and time warped and twisted around the massive hemispherical shape before me.

"So this is the Gangnam Abyss…."

The place everyone feared—the ticking time bomb they called the [Gangnam Dungeon].

The examination officer standing beside me looked at me with a tense expression.

"Unaffiliated apprentice mage Yoo Eun-ha. Here are today's readings for the [Gangnam Abyss]."

I checked the screen the examiner held out.

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[Gangnam Dungeon Abyss]

[Gangnam / Abyss / Core-Class / (Disaster)* / (Registration)**]

* Ether Concentration: Weak [Weak–Stable–Unstable–Collapse–Disaster]

** Registration: Personal Abyss registration procedure

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"Today's [Gangnam Dungeon] shows minimal spatial distortion, but the Abyss concentration is extremely dense. Please exercise caution."

"Understood."

"Beyond this point is the real Abyss. If you feel nervous at any time, you may cancel without hesitation."

"I am fine."

"…When you are ready, please place your hand on the surface. You will be transferred inside the Abyss."

I drew a slow breath and brought my hand to the surface of that enormous hemisphere.

Out of nowhere, the image of that white-haired mage—Lee Han—surfaced in my mind.

'This is the first time since then.'

In this shrunken body of mine, I was returning to where it had all begun.

'But where on earth did that fellow disappear to.'

I turned the thought over briefly, then made my decision and pushed my hand into the black sphere.

In an instant, the world inverted—and before my eyes, slowly.

A new world unfolded.

"Ah."

I had naturally expected a burning house.

"What manner of place is this…."

The sight of a starlit shoreline struck me dumb for a moment.

"What is this…?"

In the midst of my confusion, a memory from the distant past surfaced.

'I'm sure you could become a wonderful mage. Stop hunting mages and become one yourself—for the sake of humanity.'

The beach where I had been asked to become a mage.

My Foundation bore a striking resemblance to that place.

The moment I grasped the truth, the strength drained from my body.

"This cannot be. It cannot…."

I listened to the crashing of the waves and wept without end.

"Why here. Why! Where is my family! Where is the house that burned to ash!"

That this was the foundation of my magic—I could not believe it.

"I spent fifty years refusing to acknowledge it. And now, after all this time! Why!"

When I clutched the sand with trembling hands—

A gurgling sound reached me from all around.

Gurgle, grrr—

That sound, like the voice of a drowned corpse, was the sound of Abyssal Entities rising from the sea.

I caught my breath and hurled magic outward.

[Level 1 Projection-Type]

[Ether Shot ETHER SHOT]

Blazing Ether shattered the Abyssal Entities surging up from the black sea.

The demon-like Abyssal Entities splattered dark liquid as they were driven back into the water.

Only then did I take in my surroundings.

"A nighttime shoreline…."

This would make it easy to learn water magic from Monika.

I sniffled and wiped the corners of my eyes with my sleeve.

"Yes. Grieving changes nothing."

A sky thick with stars and a sea that stretched without end.

A vast expanse of sand and a great forest.

Just surveying the first floor would take quite some time.

"Truly. What an absurd origin."

Had that offer—the suggestion that I could become a mage—lodged itself so deeply in my heart?

Had those words, telling me to become a mage, truly been such a joyful thing?

Had they been so immense as to eclipse even the deaths of my family and my hatred of mages?

"I cannot accept this. An origin like this—I will never accept it…."

[Level 1 Projection-Type]

[Ether Shot ETHER SHOT]

The Abyssal Entities that appeared once more were swept away by the magic and vanished.

Using magic in rapid succession over such a short span brought a headache crashing down on me, but I wanted to cast.

If I did not sweep something away, I felt I would explode.

"Come at me. More! All of you, come at once!"

As if answering my words, Abyssal Entities erupted from the black depths of the sea.

[Wearer's Danger Detected]