Chapter 76

Part 1 Test

A dark night.

Sitting alone in the room, I took out the necklace hidden deep in the desk drawer.

It was the necklace I had switched with Pia's, which had a gem removed from the original.

I hadn't paid much attention to it as the peaceful daily life had continued, but now, seeing the signs of impending chaos, I took it out again.

I intended to identify and eliminate any potential issues before anything happened.

At first glance, the necklace looked very ordinary.

It was a simple design with a small, glass-like gem embedded in the center.

It wasn't made of gold but rather a thin chain of iron.

"Wasn't it iron? And the gem doesn't seem to be an ordinary one."

However, when I focused mana on it, the material of the necklace didn't seem to be iron but rather an alloy that conducted mana well, and the gem was not ordinary. It was a transparent gem intricately processed into a peculiar shape.

It was an item that seemed full of things to study.

But I wasn't in a position to do such research.

I was examining this necklace not to understand how it was made but to figure out what it could do.

In my previous life, I didn't need to know the principles of smartphones or cars; I just needed to know how to use them.

According to Pia's teacher, this necklace amplified and caused mana to surge.

It could also be used as a timed device to store mana and activate later, though I didn't hear the details of that.

The necklace was designed to overload the mana of an ability inheritor, causing them to explode.

When I first heard about it, it seemed so terrifying that my eyes widened, but fortunately, it had many limitations.

First, it was very difficult to make. He admitted that it took over a year to make just two.

Moreover, it wouldn't cause an explosion unless the wearer was a buffer or amplifier type, like Pia or Mira, who could store a lot of mana in their bodies.

Additionally, it wouldn't work just by putting it on anyone.

It required high mana detection and a good circulation of mana in the body to function.

Furthermore, there were almost no ability inheritors who could activate the necklace.

The teacher knew only one person besides himself.

The female teacher who committed suicide on the opening day. She was the other person.

He boasted that only unique ability inheritors with high mana detection and the ability to use mana effectively could activate this necklace.

"I can infuse mana into it, though."

Hum, hum, hum.

The necklace on my hand began to glow faintly as it accepted the mana.

Just in case, I pushed mana into it in a way similar to the flow of mana I had seen that day, and the necklace started to activate.

It was a trick possible only because I could see, or rather, feel mana.

"I wish only I could do it..."

I hadn't seen anyone else who could detect mana like me, but I couldn't be sure that only I could do it.

Still, it was clearly a very difficult task.

"Even if I could, it wouldn't do much good."

Shaking my head, I put the glowing necklace back on the desk.

I couldn't activate the necklace from a distance like the teacher or the female teacher who committed suicide.

Moreover, it wouldn't work just by putting it on anyone.

Right now, the only use was to put it back on Pia and Mira's necks and trigger it by touching their necks.

"It's not like I can detonate it from a distance; it's more like a suicide bomb."

Ultimately, it was a completely useless item right now.

"Suicide bomb..."

I stared intently at the necklace on the desk.

If I were to become a suicide bomber, there was no need to put it back on Pia or Mira.

After a moment of thought, I put the necklace around my own neck.

"..."

Nothing happened.

A slight smile appeared on my face. I had been unnecessarily tense.

"Of course, nothing would change."

Then I tried to move the mana.

The mana began to circulate in my body.

"It's working fine."

Indeed, there were no issues this time.

I carefully pushed the mana towards the necklace.

The mana that had been circulating in my chest passed through the necklace and seeped back into my body.

The necklace didn't glow or store mana.

"Hmm, it's true that it doesn't activate with ordinary mana..."

I infused mana into my hand, similar to the form of mana I had used earlier to activate the necklace.

I could see the mana rising from my hand.

I moved my hand towards the necklace.

20 cm.

10 cm.

5 cm.

1 cm.

At the last moment, I stopped my hand in front of the necklace.

"Surely, it won't cause me to commit suicide, right?"

The probability seemed almost zero.

Still, it was hard to touch the necklace.

"Using my body for such an experiment is a bit reckless, isn't it?"

I started to lower my hand.

Then I stopped again. And sighed.

"If I hadn't come back to life, I wouldn't have done such a thing..."

I placed my hand on the necklace.

Whirr.

The mana flowing from my hand began to light up the necklace.

"Ah!"

It felt like electricity was flowing from the necklace.

My body shivered, and the mana was sucked into the necklace. At the same time, several times more powerful mana rushed out of my body.

The mana circulated wildly. The stagnant mana in my body was sucked into the necklace, forming a large mass and then bursting out.

My muscles swelled, steam rose from my head, and my body felt full of mana.

It seemed like a lot of time had passed, but in fact, it was just a moment after I placed my hand on the necklace.

'Damn, I won't really die, right?'

I felt like my body was about to explode.

'The mana needs to be released. There must be a way...'

I desperately looked around.

Due to the raging mana in my body, I could see and feel even the dust in front of me and the subtle mana.

I could feel the wind touching the fine hairs on my arms, and my mind was moving several times faster than usual.

'I have a dagger!'

I took out the dagger from the wardrobe.

Bang!

I gripped it and released the mana.

Whoosh!

A red light shot out from the dagger. It was an incredibly thick blade of energy.

'This will pierce the ceiling!'

I lunged forward in a hurry.

Crash.

The red blade of energy shattered the window and extended outside.

Boom!

The red blade of energy shot out like a laser and gradually disappeared.

Thud.

The moment the blade of energy disappeared, I collapsed on the floor.

My mind was numb. All the mana in my body had disappeared.

It was mana depletion.

"Ugh!"

I trembled and clenched my teeth.

The muscles in my body, deprived of mana, twisted.

It wasn't just mana depletion. It was more than that.

It felt like every bit of mana in my body had been squeezed out.

While I was trembling, I heard a knock on the door.

"What's going on?"

It was Pia.

The sound must have reached the next room.

But I couldn't let anyone in the room, especially not Pia, since I was wearing the necklace.

I opened my trembling mouth.

"...I made a mistake while practicing with the sword... I'll be more careful..."

"...Okay. Be careful."

After an awkward silence, his response came, and I heard him return to his room.

I took a small breath, then a deep breath, and repeated it.

But I couldn't feel the mana, and the pain continued.

Time passed.

I don't know how much time had passed, but at some point, I could feel a faint trace of mana in my body.

A slight movement.

The mana slowly gathered.

I could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

As I began to feel the flow of mana, I could finally pay attention to my surroundings.

Chirp, chirp.

I could hear birds chirping in the distance.

I opened my eyes to see the red sunlight coming through the window.

"Is it morning...?"

I had clearly started the incident last night, but when I came to, it was morning.

"I spent the whole night gathering mana."

The mana was barely moving now.

I almost died.

Fortunately, I didn't die, but I suffered a lot throughout the night.

"I should have just not done it."

With a belated regret, I looked around.

The room was a mess.

The wardrobe was broken, and the window was shattered.

The window must have been shattered by the mana that shot out.

"Did the wardrobe break when I took out the dagger?"

I thought it was just a matter of taking out the dagger, but it wasn't.

I recalled the situation when the necklace activated.

The mana surged in my body, my strength increased, my speed increased, and my senses heightened. The blade of energy raged.

"My mind's processing speed also increased. It must be because all the mana was amplified."

As expected (or not), this necklace amplified or caused mana to surge, so if I didn't die, I could gain a powerful ability like a finishing move.

However, the effect was much stronger than I expected.

But with the overload, there was no way to avoid the damage, and it was much greater than expected.

"It's a finishing move, but the cooldown is not just a cooldown. It's not a self-sacrifice spell, but it leaves me in such a state that I can't use it in real combat."

I moved my body around. My whole body ached.

"Being alive is a relief, I guess."

I took off the necklace and stared at it.

It seemed like I had found something with a great purpose, but I had no desire to use it.

"If there are more of those teachers, it wouldn't be safe."

If someone else activated the necklace while I was wearing it, it would be a disaster.

"Maybe if I reduce the power a bit, I could use it in emergencies?"

Even as I thought this, I put the necklace deep in my bag.

That day, I went to class with a tired body, and Varea sat next to me again.

"Last night, there was a loud noise coming from the boys' dormitory. Some say a ghost appeared, and others say a red light shot up into the sky."

She waved to the people around her.

No one was approaching me, but both boys and girls greeted her warmly.

It seemed I had said something unnecessary yesterday.

Just because I was sitting next to her, it didn't mean everyone would be ostracized.

Given her face and personality, it was unlikely she would be ostracized.

Sigh, maybe it was just because I was a bad person.

More importantly, the commotion was bigger than I expected.

It was surprising that Pia just went back. Maybe it was because he was ostracized.

I thought about this while listening to the class.

After the class ended, before leaving the lecture hall, Varea whispered in my ear.

"Do you want to meet for a bit tonight?"

Huh? What is she saying?

When I looked at her with surprise, I noticed her eyes slightly curved upwards.

"Please go on a date with me tonight."

Her smile and soft voice were enough to make me look forward to tonight.

However, I felt a chill down my spine.

"I have something to ask the young master about my father."

She smiled brightly at me.