Mana Heart Upgrade

The tension in the clearing was thick enough to cut. Riven held Valis's gaze for a beat longer before turning away, suppressing the smirk threatening to pull at his lips. He didn't need to provoke anything further—his performance had done that for him.

The instructor clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention back to him. "With that, the second trial is complete. Those who reached red-tier absorption—" his gaze flickered between Valis and Riven, "—will be awarded with one high-tier mana potion for their outstanding display of potential. The rest of you will be ranked accordingly and be given mid to low tier mana potions based on your results."

A murmur of discontent rippled through the students who had barely managed to change their glow to yellow, but none dared to voice their complaints outright. Strength dictated status after all in this place.

"Now," the instructor continued, "The third and final trial will take place tomorrow at dawn for those who were successful today. Your results from these tests will determine your standing within the academy, so rest well and good luck." His golden eyes gleamed. "You'll need it."

With a casual flick of his wrist, the portal reopened.

"Dismissed."

Riven exhaled slowly as students began filing back through the shimmering gateway. He could feel the weight of their glances, the murmurs passing between them as they whispered his name alongside Valis's.

He was no longer unknown. Soon, the illegitimate son of house Darkar will the topic on everyone's lips.

Riven stepped through the portal, the rush of magic once again tingling across his skin. When his vision cleared, he was back in the main courtyard they had been in before. All the students began to usher towards the main building and he followed along with them.

He barely took a step forward before a voice cut through the low hum of conversation.

"It seems you got lucky today."

Riven turned, finding himself face-to-face with a tall, silver-eyed student. He recognized him immediately—Valis, the one he'd nearly matched in the trial. His expression was carefully neutral, but there was an edge to his gaze, a challenge unspoken yet obvious.

Riven let the silence stretch between them before replying. "Lucky?" He tilted his head slightly, as if considering. "Is that what it really seemed like?"

Valis's jaw clenched, but before he could respond, someone else spoke.

"Oh god, it's like there's two Valis's now. Here I thought one was bad enough."

A girl with auburn hair approached, arms crossed, an amused smirk playing at her lips. Riven didn't know her name, but the way others glanced at her in passing told him she was someone important. She was someone who also scored high marks in the trials.

"Your control was slipping toward the end," she continued, addressing Valis. "Another moment and you'd have collapsed. Not a good look for someone who clearly thinks he's untouchable."

Valis exhaled sharply before replying. "Then you were clearing seeing it wrong." He smirked, "And I don't see how someone who scored lower than me can comment."

She only shrugged before turning her gaze to Riven. Her green eyes flickered with interest, studying him like he was some puzzle worth figuring out. "You're new." It wasn't a question.

"It's my first time in the capital." Riven offered blandly, tiring of the conversation between the three. He just wanted to get to his lodgings so he could investigate his ready-to-evolve mana heart.

"Hm. Impressive, then. Not often someone makes Valis look like he has something to prove." She offered a small nod. "Lucenya Caelmont."

The name meant nothing to him, but he committed it to memory.

Actually, he committed Valis and Lucenya's name to memory because he knew that these were two people he had to surpass first.

"Riven Drakar," he said simply.

"Ahhhh." Valis grinned as he clapped his hands together. "You're the infamous illegitimate son of Count Drakar." Understanding blossomed on Valis's face as he let out a chuckle.

"So the rumours are true," Lucenya pondered and Rivens jaw clenched.

"It seems rumours spread fast amongst the nobles." Riven stated, his voice sharp and harsh.

Lucenya's smirk widened. "Oh, faster than wildfire." She tapped a finger against her chin. "Though, I'm surprised you're here. I thought House Drakar kept its embarrassment locked away."

Riven's fingers twitched at his side, but he forced his expression to remain neutral. He'd heard worse. Endured worse. He wasn't about to rise to the bait.

Valis, however, seemed thoroughly entertained. "It makes sense now," he mused. "I was wondering how some no-name managed to keep up with me. You may be a bastard, but I suppose Darkar blood still counts for something."

Riven exhaled through his nose, willing himself to ignore the sharp heat curling in his chest.

He met Valis's gaze head-on, allowing a small, knowing smile to creep onto his lips. "If blood was all it took, you wouldn't have lost to me today."

Valis's amusement flickered, just for a second. Lucenya let out a sharp laugh.

"I like him," she decided, her eyes roving over Riven with approval.

Riven didn't respond. He was done with this conversation. With a click of his tongue, he turned away, catching up with the crowd that was disappearing through the doors of the main building.

Valis didn't stop him, but his voice followed him as he walked. "We'll see if you're still smiling after tomorrow's trial, Drakar."

Riven didn't look back. He didn't need to. He could feel Valis's gaze burning into his back, the tension settling between them like a drawn blade. Tomorrow would bring the final trial, and with it, the true test of his abilities.

He stepped through the grand doors of the academy's main building, letting the murmurs and footsteps of the other students fade into the background as he made his way towards where the staff were leading them. The halls were lined with shimmering sconces, casting long shadows across the polished stone floor. Ornate banners hung from the ceiling, each embroidered with the sigils of powerful noble houses, he even recognised the banner of Drakar, a dragons head surrounded by a spiral of fire. The sight of them all made his stomach coil and a sour taste filled his mouth.

A sharp voice pulled him from his thoughts.

"You, first-year. Over here."

Riven turned to find a stern-faced man in academy robes standing beside a massive registry book. His uniform was marked with silver embroidery—a detail, he noticed, that all staff wore.

"Name?" the man asked, quill poised over the pages.

"Riven Drakar."

The man barely reacted, though his quill hesitated for half a second before scratching his name onto the list. "Dormitory Wing A, Room 1. You'll find your assigned uniform and schedule inside. And here," he pulled something from his robes, a similar potion bottle to the mana potion his father gave him. "Your reward for today."

Riven gave a short nod as he accepted the bottle and tucked it away in his jacket. He started forward, but the man's voice stopped him.

"Best not get comfortable, Drakar. The third trial tends to… thin the ranks."

Riven met his gaze, searching for mockery or warning. He found neither—only cold, detached amusement.

Without a word, he turned and followed the corridor toward the dormitories.

The halls were quieter here, save for the distant echoes of footsteps from other students settling into their rooms. Riven followed the signs and ascended a few flights of stairs. The rooms here were more spaced out and elegant. He even noticed that the higher he ascended in the academy the more the air grew thicker with mana. Just what were the floors above him like?

He found his room near the end of the hallway and his eyebrows shot up as he walked inside.

"Nicer than my bedroom back at the Counts manor." He mused to himself as he crossed the threshold and looked around at the large apartment style room before him. There was a large living area, a small kitchen area, a bedroom with an adjoining bathroom and - to his surprise - a fortified training room. It was much smaller than the one at the counts manor but it was still a relief that he had somewhere to train.

He entered the bedroom and noticed a trunk at the foot of the bed, likely containing the uniform and supplies he'd been assigned.

He entered back into the living area, rolling his shoulders as the silence settled around him. Finally, a moment alone.

He made his way over to the training room and secured the door with the locks on the inside. Now he could do as he pleased without anyone disturbing him.

He sat cross-legged in the middle of the room and calmed himself before he asked, "System, are you able to tell me what forming the first circle around my mana heart will be like?"

[[ Upgrading the mana heart is relatively easy the first time a circle formed. Mana is collected from the mana heart and is compressed until it's then refined and begins to orbit the mana heart. The user may feel uncomfortable but it is relatively pain free.]]

"How long will it take?" Riven asked, not worried about the pain part.

[[The upgrade will take 6 hours in total. 

Would you like to proceed?

(Yes/No) ]]

"Perfect!" Riven grinned. The trial tomorrow wouldn't happen until dawn and the sun was only just starting to set at the moment.

With a deep breath, Riven steadied himself as he prepared himself to step into the next level of power.

Without hesitation, he selected 'yes.'

And then the world turned black.

—x—

Rivens vision cleared and all of a sudden he froze. His blood seemed to turn to ice as he recognised his surroundings.

He wasn't at the academy anymore.

He was at the bakery.

"This bitch is ignoring me!" The gang leader he remembered from his past life was now crouched in front of him and Riven felt his body begin to tremble. "I said, you've missed the last few months payment!" The punch came suddenly, Rivens head snapping backwards from the force.

"Fuck! That hurts!" Riven hissed and that's when he realised that this wasn't some twisted dream.

This was real.

[[ New mission received: Defeat those who defeated you before.

Defeated foes: 0/10 ]]

What the hell was this?! The system told him he would only receive mild discomfort whilst forming the first circle around his mana heart.

So what the fuck was this?!

"Hey!" The gang leader grabbed a fistful of Rivens hair and yanked his head back up so they were eye level. "Have you gone mute, bitch?"

A moment of clarity and realisation settled on Riven as he realised that this wasn't a punishment - this was an opportunity.

He wasn't the same as he was back then.

Letting the mana coarse through him, he placed his hand securely over the gang leaders face.

"Fuck you." Riven said through gritted teeth before he unleashed a fireball point blank against the gang leaders face.

Blood and flesh exploded around them as the gang leader scrambled backwards, howling as he clutched his disfigured face.

Silence fell upon the bakery and Riven took the opportunity to scramble to his feet.

"What the hell?!" A gang member shouted. "Fuck, he must have some kind of weapon! Grab him quickly!" 

The members began to reach out for him and Riven reached behind the counter to where he knew his father kept the knives. He grabbed the biggest hand and swung the blade out in front of him, slicing the hand of one of the members.

"Shit!" The injured one cursed and Riven wished he had enhanced his strength or learnt some fighting.

Whilst he had the fireball spell, it wasn't good in close combat like this… or was it?

As another member lunged towards him he decided to keep using the spell like he did with the leader. Using his hand like some sort of explosive device, he grabbed the members arm and quickly casted the fireball skill. A loud bang filled the air once more followed by a soft thud. The thug yelled as he grabbed at his damaged arm, but when he felt nothing there, his face paled as he looked down.

There, on the ground beside his feet, was his charred arm.

"Argh!" The member cried and then the members took an unconscious step back.

"Thanks," Riven said as he outstretched his arm, dropping the knife behind him."Giving me space actually helps me out a lot."

He grinned as a multitude of fire balls erupted from his palm, lighting up every corner of the bakery with a brilliant orange glow.

The gang members screamed as they scrambled around the bakery trying to doge the fiery globes, but the fireballs tracked them down, each of them landing perfect hits.

Riven didn't stop releasing the fireballs, he was burning through his mana at an alarming rate but he didn't care. Even after the gang members long stopped moving, he continued to barrage them with explosions.

His eyes were alight with satisfaction as blood covered his face and soaked through his hair. The feeling of vengeance, even if this wasn't real, was euphoric. He tipped his head back with a sigh as a smile curled at his lips, never once stopping the continuous explosion.

[[Mission complete. Defeat foes 10/10]]

Something deep within him began to stir again as if woken by the excitement coursing through Rivens body. The darkness inside him shuddered in pleasure, and all of a sudden his surroundings turned dark.

He was in his training room again, the gang members and their blood now gone and everything returned to normal.

Riven could see sunlight just beginning to lighten the sky to a purple hue through the fortified windows in the room and his eyes widened. Just how long had he been in that nightmarish place? It seemed like he was only there for a moment but now all of a sudden it was the next day.

The euphoric feeling of killing those men was still coursing through his blood. His heart, and mana heart, still thundering with excitement.

That darkness was still there deep inside of him, relishing in Rivens emotions. It began to grow and grow until Riven noticed the room around him beginning to darken.

[[ Upgrading mana heart:

97%… 98%… 99%… ]]

With each percentage that ascended in the system, to room grew darker.

[[ ERROR. ERROR. ERROR.]]

Riven flinched at the blaring alarms coming from the system. The shadows that grew around him began to twitch and shiver.

[[ System administrator override:

Abyss mana heart is reacting to the administrator.]]

His heart thundered in his chest and he felt as if it was going to explode. The darkness continued to grow around him, pulsating along with his heart as it began to slide over his skin, caressing his face and body seductively.

[[ It seems I underestimated how malicious you were.]]

System? Was the system talking to him?

Was this the administrator?

[[ See how the darkness is drawn to you, Abyss Born? It actively seeks you out.]]

Riven lifted his arm and watched as the shadows nuzzled against his skin.

"What does this mean? Who are you really?" He asked, his vision becoming blurred by the increasing shadows.

A chuckle sounded in the room and a woman's figure made of pure darkness began to form in the shadows. It drew closer and dragged a hand against Rivens chest causing goosebumps across his flesh.

[[Did you really think forming a circle around your Abyss Heart would be this easy?]]

The woman stood infront of him, cupping his chin as she forced him to look into the void that was her eyes.

"What-?!" Rivens eyes widened as her hand drew backwards, her fingers turning into something that resembled talons.

[[ Endure. ]]

Her claws dug into his chest with a sickening thud and he yelled as she scooped out his flesh and then repeated the motion over and over as if she was digging through the flesh on his chest. A cracking noise followed by a scream as she passed through his ribs and clutched his mana heart.

A loud reverberation thundered through the room and the shadows shook from the force. Then all of a sudden they began flooding into his chest and the whole scene reminded him of the time he was in the void.

The dark woman was also being sucked into his chest, her free hand lifting to touch his cheek affectionately.

[[We're finally one, Abyss Born.]]

As the last of the remnants sunk into his chest, he slumped forward and passed out.