The First Archive?

***

[Very well. I have received the confirmation. Now--]

The Angel folded his arms.

[Before anything else, there are some things you must understand first.]

"What things?"

[Unlike the magical energy that flows in your world, the magic that will flow in your body in order to utilize the new power will be something different. You can say that the formula has changed in order to suit your new powers. The magic energy in your world can replenish your reserves but the formula will change as fit. Put it this way, the standard measuring devices of magic energy in your world will not be able to detect your new powers accurately. Next...]

The Angel looked down at Arata as a serious expression formed on his face.

[This is a power that draws heavily upon seven Archives of Magic, based on the seven deadly sins. It is a completely different form of magic from your world, although certain things will be changed as well. But, there is always a risk involved when it comes to Magic.]

"Risk"

The Angel nodded his head.

[Yo will understand what I mean eventually. And if you cannot control your power, you will become something that will cease to be human. Especially in your case, since you are somewhat special, things will be much harder for you. But don't worry, there will be some precautions put in place...and another thing you must be careful of...]

'Precautions?'

[When you reach a certain stage of mastering your new powers, there will come a time where the strength of your heart is tested. A warrior can possess great strength, but his heart is weak. If you fail to overcome it, you might end up destroying the world you wish to save as a result. Every great power come with a cost...with a price. But, if you do end up overcoming it, the results will certainly be rewarding. A few of those who have wield and mastered this power before even have the potential to be called a 'God'. But, remember, nothing is truly omnipotent. There is either a weakness or a price that is involved. I hope you consider these words wisely.]

"I see." His reply was short but the Angel seemed pleased with that answer as 'he' continued,

[In order to make sure your powers do not run out of control so quickly, I have put in place something that will enable you to master it without completely overwhelming you. Depending on how you use your powers, the influence it might have can be a double edged sword as well. Now then, time to send you off back to your world. There is quite a distance between the dimensions but it should take me this much to...the time stamp here...I might be able to make it...]

The Angel started mumbling to 'himself' as 'he' started to calculate some figures.

"You are not going to tell me exactly what these new powers are?"

[Don't worry, I'm sure you will be able to figure things out quickly. You are the guy I chose after all. The first step has already been put in place. You can consider it a small parting gift from me. I hope you choose to use your powers wisely, O child from another world. The fate of the world will ultimately be within your control, whether it faces salvation or utter destruction, everything will be within your grasp. Remember the words I told you before. A great power always come with a price. You would do well to remember it.]

The Angel raised his hand as a glowing silver circle engraved with various geometric patterns glowing appeared below Arata.

[Do not disappoint me.]

The magic circle began to glow brighter and brighter, until it's light started to envelop Arata and at the same time -- he lost his consciousness.

The next moment, the magic circle flared up in a brilliant explosion of light.

After a few seconds, the light finally began to fade and Arata disappeared from the space.

***

He opened his eyes.

He saw a white ceiling, and his nose stung from the odor of disinfectants. He also felt the sensation of a hard mattress against his back.

Arata immediately recognized where he was.

'A hospital?'

Hospitals were rather familiar places for Arata, just as he'd be with a local convenience store.

Arata raised his upper torso up. He then placed his hand on his chest and felt the vibrations coming from there. His heart was beating without a problem.

'So that really wasn't a dream?'

It wasn't only that, though. His entire being felt light and airy, as though he was overflowing with energy.

It was as if he had woken up in his own bed after a night of a good rest.

"You have finally woken up."

Arata was surprised by the weighty voice coming from the corner of the hospital room, and turned his head to look.

"I apologize if we took you by surprise."

"Unfortunately, we are unable to wait any longer."

Two men kitted out in black business suits approached Arata's bed. The youth tilted his head and asked them.

"What do you want?" Slightly surprised by the tone of his voice, one of the men cleared his throat.

"We are from the Association. My name is Hideyoshi."

"What does the association want from me?"

The man called Hideyoshi dragged a chair closer to the bed and sat down. The other man, who must've been his subordinate, stood behind him.

The unspoken pressure emanating from the two buff guys staring down in close vicinity was quite heavy. The story they conveyed was rather surprising, though.

"I was unconscious for three days?"

"By any chance, do you remember what happened before you blacked out?"

"Yes, I do."

"Please tell us everything you can remember."

Arata told them nearly everything truthfully, minus the strange encounter he had.

"And that's when you lost your consciousness… Is that all?"

"Yes. I open my eyes next, and I'm in a hospital."

Hideyoshi and his lackey exchanged meaningful glances. For some reason, they seemed to be troubled by Arata's lack of knowledge.

"What happened? Did a Guild come and settle the Dungeon for us?"

Hideyoshi nodded his head.

"That's right. The moment we heard the news from the survivors, we sent the nearest Guild over to investigate. Except, when we went inside, we found you lying unconscious on the ground. It was a surprise you weren't killed yet, considering the creatures that appeared were well beyond your level..."

Hideyoshi displayed a meaningful expression.

"It's hard for us to believe it as well. If there had been any inconsistencies in the testimonies of the survivors, we might have suspected something fishy was going on."

"So, this is what we've been thinking��."

Hideyoshi carefully opened his mouth.

"There were creatures beyond the level of your party, no doubt. Their numbers were also something impossible to handle. And yet, you, an E rank, was the only survivor we found still alive in that dungeon."

They had to consider all the possibilities. Even if the odds were low, they had to confirm them all. The head honchos of the Association deliberated, and then deliberated for some more, and finally came up with a theory.

Hideyoshi carefully studied Arata's reactions as he continued on.

"We… suspect that Hunter Kasuga Arata might have gone through another Awakening."

Although extremely rare, there had been instances of a human who had awakened his or her abilities as a Hunter going through yet another Awakening.

Often referred to as 'Re-Awakening', those who undergo this process would normally become extremely powerful compared to before.

Originally, once a Hunter's rank was assigned at the beginning, it rarely changed. A Hunter's abilities were determined the moment one went through an Awakening, that was why.

However, it was a different story for those going through the Re-Awakening or Double Awakening process.

Jumping past their own limitations to rise up from, say, rank C to A, or even from B to S, such things had happened before.

'If he went through a Re-Awakening and became a rank A, no, maybe even S, then it's of course possible for him to kill those monsters all by himself.' He knew that the guy he was currently talking to was known as the weakest Hunter, labelled a trash by many. But...

To prepare for this unlikeliest possibility, Hideyoshi labelled this incident as 'top secret' and made sure everyone involved would keep their mouths shut.

This was also the reason why Arata found himself in a hospital room all alone, as well as being 'guarded' by the association.

Of course, confirming the truth of the Re-Awakening wasn't difficult at all. Didn't the wise elders once say to make hay while the sun still shines?

Hideyoshi signaled to his lackey.

"Bring it here."

Then, the lackey went to the corner of the room and began rummaging through a briefcase placed there.

"That is…?"

Before Arata could finish his sentence, Hideyoshi explained first.

"It's the device to measure your magic energy."

He added that, although this device had been miniaturized, its efficiency or accuracy did not fall short of the actual full-size measuring device located in the Hunter's Association.

"All you have to do is to place your hand on this magic crystal over here."

On top of a circular plate, there was a fist-sized magic crystal embedded in the middle.

It was one of the highest quality magic crystals that cost as much as a hundred million yen, not to mention that it could only be found in monsters ranked A or higher.

Hideyoshi formed a dignified, serious expression and spoke up.

"This is a necessary step during our investigation, so please, cooperate with us."

Arata nodded his head. However, in his heart, he already expected the result.

'If that really wasn't a dream, didn't he say the results would be undetectable?'

Arata placed his hand on top of the black crystal and soon enough, warm rays of light oozed out from it.

Cold sweat drops formed on the foreheads of Hideyoshi and his lackey.

Not too long after then, the light surrounding the crystal dissipated.

Hideyoshi confirmed the numbers.

Right away, a small earthquake rocked his eyes.

"How can this be?!"

He rechecked the numbers, but it remained the same.

'How can….'

'How could a person holding a Hunter licence possess the magic energy value of only 9?!'

Arata only looked on, as though he was bored by the situation surrounding him.

Meanwhile, Hideyoshi was comparing the existing data on Arata with the new measurement.

'His first measurement returned the value of 11. Now it's 9. It has decreased by 2, but it is within the margin of error.'

In other words, the magic energy measuring device was working fine. Instead, it was Arata's magic energy that happened to be just illogically, nonsensically low.

It was a miracle that he had survived until now.

Hideyoshi rapidly realized that being here was a waste of time, so he got up from his seat.

"Let's go."

"Yes, sir."

Hideyoshi and his lackey quickly packed up to leave.

He bowed his head slightly.

"Thank you for your cooperation. If you remember anything else, please give us a call anytime."

As if their rear ends were on fire, two men-in-black rapidly left the room as soon as they put away the device.

Finally, the room became quiet again.

As Arata placed his hand on his chest in order to once again confirm that his heart really was beating--

He felt it.

'What is this?'

As he lifted up the object, he started to slowly examine it.

Slung around his neck, was a necklace with a ring made with materials similar to copper.

'Just what is it?' He took a closer look.

It was really quite an ordinary ring.

'Was I wearing an accessory when I went to the Dungeon?'

Arata inadvertently raised his head up. And that's when he saw 'it'.

[You have an unread message.]

***

"…..?"

He closed his eyes and opened them again.

[You have an unread message.]

The words remained floating up there without a single change. He shook his head hard a few times and even rubbed his eyes, but they were still there.

'Is this what he meant by a new power?'

In order to confirm the message, he reached out towards the words.

And his hand simply went past them.

'It's not touch-operated?'

It seemed that he got way too used to how a smartphone worked.

'Well, maybe I should try speaking to it.'

He didn't really know what words to say but simply said the first thought that came to his mind.

"Open."

Instantly, a screen like projection appeared in front of Arata.

***

Name : [Kasuga Arata] Age : [21]

Magic Class : [Unknown]

Archive(s) : [Gula]

Theme(s) : [Fides]

Magic(s) : [Mantra Enchant]

Grimoire(s) : [Gematria(1/3), Solomons Ring]

Skill(s) : [Conception] -- [Enhanced Perception] -- [Fore Sight] -- [Farsight] -- [Poison Resistance] --