"What an incredible feeling..."
Inside the eastern sanctum, at an ordinary, simple-looking room, Maverick was lying stretched out on the bed, with one hand tucked beneath the pillow and the other raised lazily toward the ceiling. And above his hand, he was curiously observing the tiny sparks of orange, energy-like substance that was flickering and dancing above his palm.
Now, with his meditation technique upgraded to the intermediate level, he didn't need to sit cross-legged or focus on his breathing to connect to the magical energy outside. The flow of dimensional energy seemed to come to him naturally now, effortlessly—like any other reaction from a subconscious action.
The point of Eldritch meditation, he had realized, wasn't about sitting posture, breathing, or clearing the mind, but the result of practicing all three together — which was, quite simply, making the initial connection to cosmic energy. And once that connection was made, it would linger permanently, like a bridge.
With that bridge in place, energy can flow across—and eventually be used to cast spells. Moreover, the bridge makes the flow of energy feel like a passive action, meaning that, from then on, tapping into cosmic energy becomes instinctive and no longer requires full concentration.
And just like how greater proficiency in magical energy manipulation within the wizarding system made controlling magic easier, being more proficient in Eldritch meditation meant more efficient control of cosmic energy as well.
Let's raise it up a notch, he thought.
Without hesitating, he opened his system interface and dropped a hundred points more into the meditation skill.
Oh shit!
As soon as he willed the talent to upgrade, the reaction hit him like a flood.
Normally, there shouldn't have been such a violent response at his current level. But with both his innate magic and Magical Sense sealed off to prevent conflict with cosmic energy, the only protection his brain had was—well—nothing, aside from his raw physical resilience.
Of course, with his rank as an Archmage, his physique alone was many times stronger than that of a regular human. But even so, without magical energy circulating through his body, it felt as though his brain had been struck by lightning.
Thoughts, sensations, and memories surged through him in a wave of blinding clarity. Countless years of experience and knowledge of refining cosmic energy poured into him, slamming against his body and soul with such force that he nearly lost consciousness.
Fuck!
Fortunately, his instincts acted on their own, and his innate magic kicked in at the very last fraction of the second, reinforcing his mind before it could fracture.
Huff.
Huff.
He pushed himself up, bracing on his hands as he sat back on the bed, drenched in sweat. Only now did he realize that if magic hadn't been flowing through his body and soul all this time, the flood of information from the system—both during past integrations and now—would have hit him way harder and caused pain beyond anything he could have imagined.
But thankfully, it all worked out in the end. With that thought, he lay back down and let the system work its miracle.
Time passed. Half an hour, maybe more. He didn't move. Just lay there with his eyes closed, processing everything until, finally, they opened with a sharp snap.
Incredible.
The word slipped from his lips before he could stop it.
He felt it—truly felt it—on a level he never had before. His entire body seemed to hum with newfound understanding. It was a part of him now. With the knowledge and experience freshly integrated, he waved his hand through the air. The energy around him might as well have been water—tangible, responsive, and completely within his grasp.
And just as expected, with a simple gesture, the cosmic energy responded immediately—condensing into a perfect sphere above his palm, smooth and stable, without a single spark escaping.
Then the shape changed into a cube. A triangle. A disk. Whatever he imagined, the energy followed.
He laughed, unable to help himself. The orb of pure energy spun from hand to hand like a juggling ball. It was child's play. It was exhilarating.
But then… another thought struck him.
Holding the energy steady in one hand, he reached inward and unsealed his magic, activating his Magical Sense—just a little. Just enough to feel both forces at the same time.
As a result, almost immediately, sparks leapt across the smooth surface of the condensed sphere, and the once-stable energy began to flicker like a candle in a strong breeze. But… it did not dissipate completely.
Interesting.
He then pushed his focus even further. One part of his mind steadied the cosmic energy, and the other slowly peeled the seal on his magic and Magical Sense.
When the condensation of cosmic energy became too unstable, he would pause but not stop, then focus and make it stable. Again and again he repeated this until the seal on his innate magic was completely gone.
Until dawn, he persevered, making it work according to his intuition. And sure enough, he saw the two forces—innate magical energy and dimensional energy—respond like oil and water. They swirled together in the same space, never mixing, yet not repelling each other either.
Once again, laughter bubbled from his chest. This time he held two condensed energies, one in each hand—cosmic in one, and magic in the other.
He scanned his body using his internal senses and found something entirely new. Instead of one stream of magic flowing through him, there were two—parallel, distinct, and untangled. Like twin rivers in the same channel, flowing side by side but never blending.
Whenever he stopped the connection to cosmic energy, one stream would disappear, or rather dim out, leaving only his innate magic. And as soon as he reached out for cosmic energy again, that stream lit up instantaneously, and just like before, it flowed harmoniously alongside the other stream.
Subarash—cough, cough...
The thought of being able to use both energies exhilarated him. What if his proficiency in Eldritch meditation rose to mastery? he wondered, then quickly brushed the thought aside for now.
Finally, he released both energies and let his head drop back onto the pillow, and then a wide, satisfied grin spread across his face.
Now that he had access to cosmic energy, the next step was learning to control it.
Raw energy, no matter how vast, meant nothing except that it was just another primitive force of volatile power. Without structure, like his native magic, it needed spells or instructions to produce complex results. Otherwise, he was just some guy blasting energy beams.
Tomorrow, he thought as his eyelids grew heavy. Tomorrow.
---
The following morning, after breakfast, Maverick stepped into the study and found the Sorcerer Supreme seated cross-legged on a floating cushion, with her eyes closed and breathing in and out in a steady rhythm. In other words, she was meditating.
"You don't have to meditate here, Mage Caesar," she said calmly, not even bothering to open her eyes. Her voice floated through the room as if it had been waiting for him.
She was in the same basic posture as the one in the book she had given him yesterday. Seems like even with her mastery long refined, she still practiced the basics.
Maverick didn't say a word in response. He simply walked over to the futon across from her and sat the same way—legs folded, hands resting loosely on his knees.
After a moment, she opened one eye and raised an eyebrow at the smug little smirk on his face.
"You made progress?"
And his grin said everything she needed to know about her question.
He raised his hand and pointed a single finger upward. A breath later, cosmic energy gathered like liquid, smooth and flawless, and then forming a perfect sphere that hovered above his fingertip.
Her eyes widened. Just for a moment. But it was there.
He tilted his head, still grinning. "So," he asked nonchalantly, "what's next?"
The Sorcerer Supreme opened her mouth to speak, then paused, falling silent as a thought crossed her mind. After a moment, she let out a quiet sigh.
What a monster, she thought, but didn't say it aloud. Instead, she swallowed the words and spoke calmly, "You know... Ambrosius sensed cosmic energy within moments of his training. You may be slower than him in that aspect… but... to reach the level of control you just showed took him far, far longer. Even I wasn't any better."
When she had first become the previous Ancient One's apprentice, it had taken her years to refine her control over cosmic energy to the level Maverick had just demonstrated. That was what had shocked her at first. But she said none of that to Maverick—instead, she simply remarked, "You're even more of a genius than I initially thought, Mage Caesar."
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