Chapter 54: This Is Reality

[This work is only officially published on R0Y4L RO4D, Wattpad, WebNovel, and Scribble Hub. If you are reading or seeing this work on sites such as PhoenixNovel, NovelPhoenix, FireNovel, or anywhere else not listed above, those are unauthorized reuploads. Please read the original work on one of the official platforms, as doing so helps support the story and allows it to continue.]

BOOM!

The explosion was far louder than the ones before, and its booming sound spread between the trees as thick smoke immediately swallowed the section of trunk Zeldryn had targeted.

Both Zeldryn and Kera stared toward the tree without speaking, waiting for the smoke to clear. A few seconds later, it finally began to thin, gradually revealing the trunk beneath it.

Kera examined the mark left behind by the explosion before turning toward Zeldryn with his usual smile.

“That's all?”

Zeldryn immediately wanted to snap back at him, but his body had other priorities.

“Hah... hah...”

He bent forward slightly and instinctively pressed one hand against his lower abdomen. His Mana Hole was fluctuating strongly after controlling twenty-one particles at once, and his breathing had become noticeably heavier.

'Bastard. You can still say that's all?'

He had just produced the largest explosion he had ever managed, and Kera's first response was to mock him.

Zeldryn almost opened his mouth to curse at him, but another thought suddenly pushed his irritation aside.

'Wait. There's something much more important than getting angry at him right now.'

He raised his head.

“H-hey, Kera.”

“Hmm?”

“What happened?”

Kera continued smiling while Zeldryn tried to steady his breathing.

“Why can I use more mana now than before?”

Kera stared at him for several seconds before humming thoughtfully.

“Hmmm... Should I tell you or not?”

His smile became even more irritating.

Zeldryn immediately glared at him.

'Bastard. Come on. I really need the answer this time.'

He let out a rough sigh.

“Come on. Why did I suddenly become stronger?”

Zeldryn genuinely did not understand the change that had just taken place. Previously, fifteen particles had already felt like his absolute limit, and attempting to control sixteen had made him cough up blood. Yet now he had just controlled twenty-one.

“Am I some kind of protagonist in a novel who suddenly gets a power-up?”

Kera immediately burst out laughing.

“Ahahahaha!”

Zeldryn frowned.

Kera pointed at him while continuing to laugh. “Yeah. You are the protagonist of a novel.”

Zeldryn froze for a moment.

Then Kera continued.

“In a trash novel.”

“Hahahaha!”

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

Zeldryn's expression darkened.

'Bastard.'

Kera laughed for a while longer before finally raising one hand.

“Alright, alright. Ahahaha... I'll tell you.”

Zeldryn immediately became serious again.

Kera looked directly at him. “Remember the balloon analogy from earlier?”

Zeldryn nodded. “When a Mana Hole receives too much mana, the body can explode?”

Kera immediately pointed at him.

“Gotcha!”

Zeldryn stared back.

“If you keep forcing mana beyond what your body can withstand, then yes, your body can actually explode.”

Zeldryn did not particularly like how casually Kera said that, but the man immediately continued before he could comment.

“Now I'll give you another example.”

Kera raised one arm.

“What do you think happens if a muscle is constantly trained close to its maximum limit?”

Zeldryn listened carefully.

“Not until it's damaged, and not until it's destroyed,” Kera clarified. “I mean forcing it to work close to the limit it can still withstand, then stopping, giving it time, and refilling it with what it needs.”

Kera looked at him.

“After it recovers, what do you think happens to that muscle?”

“It develops?” Zeldryn answered almost instinctively.

Kera smiled.

The implication reached Zeldryn almost immediately. His gaze dropped toward his lower abdomen before returning to Kera.

“Wait. The Mana Hole...” His eyes widened slightly. “A Mana Hole can develop?”

Kera fell silent for a moment before suddenly bursting into laughter again.

“KUAHAHAHAHA!”

Zeldryn's irritation returned at once.

“What now?”

Kera looked even more entertained than before.

“You really love asking absurd questions, damn it!”

“What the hell is absurd about that, bastard?”

Kera gradually calmed himself.

“Your question is the same as your previous one.”

Zeldryn frowned as Kera pointed toward him.

“Why do you think there are levels among Manholers? If the Mana Hole couldn't develop, then what would be the point of Level 1, Level 2, Level 3, and everything above them?”

Zeldryn began to understand what he meant.

Kera pointed at himself next.

“Imagine a Level 3 Manholer like me having a Mana Hole with the same limited capability as yours right now. If that were the case, what would be the point of having levels?”

Zeldryn remained silent.

'That's true.'

Kera turned slightly before looking back toward the tree they had been using as a target.

“So stupid.”

Then his attention returned to Zeldryn.

“A Mana Hole can indeed develop.”

Zeldryn immediately paid closer attention.

“But that doesn't mean it'll keep developing without limits.”

Kera raised one finger.

“Every Manholer has a different limit to how far they can develop. Take you, for example.”

He pointed toward Zeldryn's lower abdomen.

“Earlier, you pushed your Mana Hole close to the maximum capability it could withstand at that time. After that, your Mana Hole became empty, you stopped using it, then absorbed mana again and refilled it.”

Kera smiled slightly.

“And now your Mana Hole's capability has developed.”

Zeldryn stared at him as the explanation finally clicked into place.

So that was why fifteen particles had previously felt like an absolute limit, yet now he could control twenty-one.

'So it wasn't sudden. There was actually a process.'

His Mana Hole had been pushed close to its limit, then drained significantly before being refilled again. As a result, the amount it could handle had increased.

Before Zeldryn could get too excited, however, Kera spoke again.

“But don't start thinking you can just keep doing the same thing over and over.”

Zeldryn immediately focused on him.

Kera shrugged.

“If everyone could endlessly develop their Mana Hole just by emptying it, filling it again, and repeating the process, wouldn't everyone eventually become a Level 5 Manholer?”

He gave Zeldryn a look that made the answer seem obvious.

“Or even higher?”

Zeldryn fell silent.

'That's true too.'

If progressing were as simple as ordinary training that always produced improvement, then anyone with enough time and persistence should eventually become a high-level Manholer. Clearly, that was not how this world worked.

Kera continued.

“Think of it as a factor called talent. Or luck. Everyone is different, and not every Manholer can become a high-level Manholer.”

Zeldryn listened without interrupting.

“And don't misunderstand those levels either.”

“Hmm?”

Kera looked directly at him.

“A higher level does not mean absolute victory.”

Zeldryn frowned slightly as Kera continued.

“Under certain conditions, even a Level 1 Manholer can defeat a Level 3 Manholer.”

Zeldryn's eyes widened.

“A Level 1 can defeat a Level 3?”

“They can.”

Kera answered without hesitation.

“It depends on what they've mastered and how they fight.”

He raised one finger.

“Battle IQ.”

Then another.

“Experience.”

A third.

“Cunning. Deception. The terrain they're fighting on. The type of ability they possess, how they use mana, and many other things.”

Zeldryn listened carefully to every word.

Kera then lowered his hand.

“But don't twist that around either. Just because a Level 1 can defeat a Level 3 doesn't mean every fight between them will somehow be won by the Level 1.”

He looked directly at Zeldryn.

“Levels still matter. The amount of mana you possess and what your Mana Hole is capable of still matter. They just aren't the only things that determine who will still be standing at the end of a fight.”

Zeldryn remained silent as he thought about the explanation. It was different from many of the power systems he had encountered in novels, where a higher level often acted like an absolute wall that weaker characters could never cross without some special exception.

Kera turned away from him and spoke in a casual tone.

“You think this is some romance novel where having a higher level automatically makes someone absolutely stronger and guarantees they'll win?”

Zeldryn stared at his back.

Kera glanced over his shoulder, a small smile returning to his face.

“No, kid. This is reality.”