The Extra who regained his past life memories

A heavy silence settled over the training room.

Mother looked at me for a long moment before speaking.

"...A black hole?"

I nodded.

"Yes."

Closing my eyes once more, I focused on the mana gathering around my heart.

A vortex was stable.

Efficient.

It was the conventional choice.

But...

It wasn’t the best choice for me.

Instead, I pictured something else.

A single point.

Tiny.

Silent.

Yet possessing an overwhelming gravitational pull.

A force that drew everything toward itself.

Not simply gathering mana...

But continuously attracting it.

A structure inspired by a black hole.

Not an actual black hole—something like that would be impossible.

Rather, a mana core that mimicked its principle.

One that constantly pulled surrounding mana toward itself while compressing and refining it.

It matched me perfectly.

Darkness.

Space.

Even Ice, with its calm stability.

All of them fit this concept.

Slowly...

Very slowly...

I began shaping the mana.

Unlike before, I didn’t rush.

Every strand of mana was carefully guided into place.

Whenever the structure became unstable, I corrected it immediately.

Again.

And again.

Time seemed to lose all meaning.

The mana surrounding my heart gradually condensed, becoming denser and more refined.

Eventually...

The final piece fell into place.

A tremendous pulling force erupted from the center of my chest.

The surrounding mana instantly flowed toward it before settling into a smooth, steady circulation.

The chaotic currents throughout my body disappeared completely.

Everything became...

Orderly.

Balanced.

Stable.

I slowly opened my eyes.

"...Mom."

A small smile appeared on my face.

"I did it."

"I formed my Mana Core."

For a brief moment, Mother remained silent.

She carefully observed me, sensing the mana flowing naturally throughout my body.

A flicker of surprise crossed her usually composed expression.

"...Interesting."

She walked around me once before nodding.

"Your mana circulation is extremely stable."

"It appears you’ve successfully formed a high-quality Mana Core."

Although she didn’t fully understand the structure I had created, she could clearly tell that it wasn’t an ordinary vortex.

Still...

She chose not to question it.

Instead, she continued the lesson.

"Good."

"Now we’ll move on to the next step."

I immediately became attentive.

Mother raised a finger.

"Spread the mana from your Mana Core throughout your entire body."

"Strengthen every part evenly."

"At your current level, that’s all you’ll be capable of."

She continued calmly,

"As your control improves, you’ll eventually learn to reinforce individual muscles, joints, tendons, and bones."

"Doing so allows you to maximize every movement while minimizing wasted mana."

She looked directly into my eyes.

"Mana reinforcement is not about releasing as much mana as possible."

"It’s about precise control."

"The more precise your control..."

"The stronger you’ll become."

I nodded firmly.

"I understand."

"Good."

"Then begin."

Taking a slow breath, I focused once more.

This time, I guided the mana outward from the newly formed core.

At first, the flow resisted.

The circulation felt awkward.

Uneven.

Whenever I tried forcing it, the mana became unstable.

So instead...

I slowed down.

I carefully adjusted the flow.

Little by little.

Again.

And again.

On my third attempt...

Everything suddenly clicked.

Warm energy spread throughout my entire body.

It flowed through my arms.

My legs.

My torso.

Every muscle seemed to awaken.

My body became noticeably lighter...

Yet simultaneously much stronger.

I slowly clenched my fist.

"...Amazing."

I could feel the difference immediately.

Mother nodded in satisfaction.

"Good."

"You’ve succeeded."

Then she pointed toward the training dummy.

"Now..."

"Attack it again."

A grin naturally spread across my face.

Without hesitation—

Shing.

Eclipse left its sheath once more.

The crimson blade shimmered beneath the training room’s lights.

This time...

Everything felt different.

I lowered my stance.

Circulated mana evenly throughout my body.

Strength flowed naturally into my arms.

My breathing steadied.

Then—

I swung.

One clean horizontal slash.

Swish!

There wasn’t the slightest resistance.

The blade passed cleanly through the reinforced dummy.

A moment later—

The upper half slowly slid away before crashing onto the floor.

The cut was perfectly smooth.

Almost flawless.

My eyes widened.

"It worked!"

I couldn’t stop myself from smiling.

"Mom!"

"It split in half!"

Excitement filled my voice.

Mother looked at the clean cut before giving a small nod.

"Good."

"Your mana reinforcement is functioning properly."

Then she looked back at me.

"And now?"

The excitement on my face hadn’t faded.

Instead...

A familiar mischievous smile slowly appeared.

Mother sighed the moment she saw it.

She already knew.

Whenever I smiled like that...

I was about to ask for something troublesome.

"...What are you planning this time?"

I scratched my cheek sheepishly.

"Nothing too serious."

Then I smiled.

"I just want to join the family’s recruitment training."

Mother blinked once.

"The recruitment training?"

I nodded eagerly.

"I’ve never fought people around my own age before."

"I’ve only sparred with Amy."

"I want real experience."

"I want to see how ordinary awakened people fight."

Then I added,

"And..."

"I don’t want anyone to know who I am."

"I want to participate as an ordinary recruit."

"I don’t want special treatment."

Mother quietly stared at me.

After several seconds...

She let out another helpless sigh.

"...You really do have endless ideas."

Despite her words...

She wasn’t angry.

If anything...

She sounded amused.

Finally, she nodded.

"Very well."

"I’ll make the arrangements."

"You’ll participate as a new recruit."

A grin instantly spread across my face.

"Really?"

She nodded once.

"Yes."

Before I could celebrate—

Amy suddenly stepped forward.

"Wait!"

She pointed at herself excitedly.

"I’m joining too!"

Both Mother and I looked at her.

Amy folded her arms confidently.

"That sounds way too fun."

"I’ll enter as a late participant."

"We can train together."

Mother looked between the two of us.

For a brief moment...

She genuinely seemed to consider refusing.

But eventually...

She simply closed her eyes and sighed.

"...Now you’ve infected your sister too."

Amy giggled.

Mother shook her head with a faint smile.

"Fine."

"You may join as well."

"Yes!"

Amy pumped her fist triumphantly.

Mother pinched the bridge of her nose.

"...My children are going to be the death of me."

Although she said those words...

There wasn’t the slightest trace of annoyance in her voice.

Only affection.

⸻

The rest of the day passed in training.

Mother continued teaching me the fundamentals of mana control.

How to circulate it more efficiently.

How to minimize waste.

How to reinforce my body without placing unnecessary strain on it.

Every lesson was simple...

Yet invaluable.

"Remember this, Gray."

Mother stood before me with her usual composed expression.

"Mana is not merely power."

"It is control."

"The difference between a novice and a master is not how much mana they possess..."

"But how efficiently they use it."

I engraved every word into my memory.

Every correction.

Every demonstration.

Every explanation.

Little by little...

My strikes became cleaner.

Sharper.

More refined.

And with every passing hour...

I could clearly feel myself growing stronger.

Not because I had awakened.

But because I had finally taken my first true step toward mastering the power that now rested within me.

And deep inside...

I couldn’t help but smile.

This...

Was only the beginning.

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