He landed on the ground with a big ‘thump’. The sound echoed through the dense forest, gaining the attention of the seven-foot monsters.

With a flick of his wrist, he conjured up a [Fireball] spell and urged them to come at him.

The dead wolf was thrown to the side instantly as the trolls focused on him, their red eyes glinting.

Their roar reverberated through the forest as Kai took two steps forward and shifted the ball of fire from one hand to his other.

His cloak billowed behind him as one of them lunged forward. It slashed its claws at him, and Kai bent down to dodge it.

Sliding back to escape another attack, he aimed the fireball at the troll’s head.

It hit the monster on the head and groaned in pain as the attack left a mark. Being a 1st circle spell, it wasn't enough to cause significant damage, but by how the troll looked at him, Kai knew it stung.

As the monster stumbled back from his spell, the other two sent guttural growls.

He barely had time to think before one troll lunged forward. Kai twisted at the last second and cast [Fire Bolt] with a flicker of his wrist.

His fingertips threw a small, concentrated bolt that exploded when it hit the monster.

The troll touched its left shoulder as the fire crackled, inflicting a burning sensation. Slight grey smoke came out from where it hit it.

Kai didn't have time to think too much as two trolls attacked at the same time. His feet were quick as he tried to dive back to avoid the lunges and slashes they threw his way.

He weaved between their clumsy swings, finding pockets of spaces where their bulks couldn’t reach.

Although he wasn't in shape, the trolls were known to be slow and there was enough space to train his reflexes as they came at him.

“Agility is a mage’s shield, Kai. Use it wisely,” his master’s voice rang in his head as he rolled through the gap between the troll's legs before slinging another bolt at it.

In his previous life, he had mostly ignored that advice. He was swift and trained for running, but he had never utilised it. Most of the time he spent covering the back and slinging spells.

In this life, he wanted to change that and sharpen his skills with short-range combat, especially after what had gone on with the necromancer.

With him being fairly weak, he needed to grow in all ways. Learning how to fight at close range might just save his life if he ever ran out of mana.

Kai pictured the spell structure of [Searing Pyre], a 2nd circle spell.

It formed in just a few seconds as a troll charged at him. Before it could reach him, a small bead of flame launched forward, hitting its shoulders and the next second, an explosion shook the area as the monster stumbled back, flesh and blood flying around Kai.

Its whole shoulder was removed from its body and it lay dead just on top of the body of the wolf it had been eating before.

The other two trolls looked at Kai with some hesitation seeing the display of strength, but with a guttural shout, one of them slashed at him.

He jumped back, but the troll moved with vengeance, closing the distance in a matter of seconds.

Kai used [Gust] to push it back before stomping at its feet. The attack didn't seem to do anything as the second Troll struck from behind.

He used a barrier to protect himself while hurling down [Fire Bolt] at it.

They hit the troll's neck and shoulders, but only left behind small marks as it cried out in stinging pain. It didn't look like 1st circle spells were going to do much, and as Kai wondered if he should increase the firepower, an idea came to his mind.

As the monster roared again, he swiftly prepared a [Fireball] and hurled it towards its mouth. It entered it as the monster coughed, the flames burning its jaw from inside. Taking the opportunity, he used a wind spell to cut the area around the neck which was already charred with his attacks.

With the second monster dead, the third let out a visceral scream.

It shrieked as Kai's flames leapt towards it, roars turning into gurgling moans before they fell silent.

The monster didn't give up as it still tried to fight back, but Kai didn't let it get close and unleashed more of his powerful spells on it.

Finally after a few minutes, its fur singed and reeking of burnt flesh, the troll whimpered before falling to the ground. Dead.

“That took a few more spells than what I was expecting.”

Kai stood, panting heavily, the adrenaline slowly draining from his body. The air was thick with the stench of burnt flesh and decaying swamp matter.

His robes were stained with dust, blood and sweat, but he was alive. Just a little out of breath and mana.

Once he took a look around the grasslands and saw no one, he sat next to the dead bodies and inhaled.

He felt a blanket of mana around him and pulled it inside of him, circling it into his Mana Heart.

Kai took another deep breath in. Feeling the wave of mana rushing inside his body, he smiled.

Although this current world was abundant with mana all around, the current ambient mana in the air was still on the higher side, letting him take more and more mana inside his body.

It was all thanks to the dead bodies around him.

Apart from killing the trolls to improve his skills, this had been his aim ever since he stepped outside the castle.

Usually, after a death, mana from the bodies of the deceased tends to escape into the surroundings.

As mana worked as energy in living beings, everyone would have a lot of mana residue inside of them and after death, it would mix into the air.

So, Mages would sometimes kill a lot of monsters and let the mana from their body rise to absorb. It was a method to grow faster that he had no idea was popular or not in this era.

Though, it wasn't that simple.

The mana from dead creatures wasn't always pure and one needed to carefully filter it before absorbing it, making the method only used by a few with a great sense of mana control like Kai.

Unfortunately, he had seldom used the method because of the rise of mana fiends.

Since in his world mana fiends ruled a lot of parts, monsters were rare and there was no way to absorb dead mana without being willing to give up on your humanity.

A little more… I can feel it.

Kai’s focus intensified on his Mana Heart as absorbed most of the mana from his surroundings and felt a burning sensation in his chest.

It was stinging, but he smiled understanding what it was.

He was making a breakthrough.

It was almost as if a sudden rush of pleasure. He felt the energy coursing through his very being.

Focusing, Kai tried to put all the mana into building the 2nd circle in his heart, slowly moving his mana to accomplish it.

It was a fairly easy process since he had more than enough mana to build it and after an hour of absorbing mana, he opened his eyes, feeling newfound strength coursing through his veins.

Finally, he was a 2nd circle Mage.

It was nowhere near his previous life's strength and advancing from here on would simply be harder as he built more circles, but it was a good and necessary accomplishment out of his way.

With a higher rate of regeneration of mana and a bigger mana reserve, he would be able to cast much stronger spells.

It would help him immensely with his plans as he moved forward.

The countless things that he had to deal with were undeniable. Mage Actra, the Tradeheart Merchant company— all of these were problems he let be for the time being as he didn’t have the resources nor the ability to afford any big negative consequences if he acted on them.

Most of all, there was one question that rang in his mind every time he remembered he was living inside Arzan Kellius’s body.

Who killed him? Who wanted a Duke’s son gone so bad that they poisoned him to never be able to rise as a Mage?

Kai knew that the answer to the question could be complex. As he was a son of the Duke, there could be many people who wouldn't have liked his presence.

It could even be Mage Actra for all I know.

Kai sighed and stood up. There was no use in worrying about things right now when he had no answers in sight.

He glanced at the dead monsters one more time and decided to head back.

The night was getting colder and he wanted to rest his eyes.

***

Malden's usual business facade crumpled into a reluctant smile as he stood amidst the throng in the bustling marketplace.

A cacophony of barters, hagglers, and vendors hawking wares filled the air. But Malden wasn't hawking anything ordinary.

He was standing in a fairly medium-sized city and in his hand, he held a single, smooth, fist-sized stone.

Its surface shimmered faintly, the intricate enchantments adding an undeniable value.

His staff stood beside him, ready to distribute the "Heat stones" to the crowd.

"Heat Stones!" Malden boomed, his voice barely cutting through the din. "Guaranteed warmth through the day, even in the harshest winter's bite!”

A ripple of disbelief and murmurs went through the crowd. All of them had heard of the Heat stones, and how Malden was selling it all over in every big city, but they were seeing it for the first time.

According to rumours, even nobles coveted them and during the harsh months of Frosania, they were the hottest commodity in the market.

Malden held out his palm. “Two gold coins each," he declared, his voice calm and steady.

The marketplace fell silent.

People looked at him like they were waiting for him to say that he had been lying about the price.

Although there had been rumours of the Heat stones, people knew that nobles were paying hundreds of gold coins to get them before anyone else could.

So, selling them for two gold coins was like selling gold for the price of copper.

The disbelief on people's faces mirrored Malden's thoughts, but he was already getting a good profit out of the nobles and charging more from the commoners would mean most people wouldn't be able to afford it.

“Is the price really true?” A guy asked. In his hand, he held a fish he had just bought and was waving it to get attention.

“Yes, but only 100 left. So, get in a line or you won't be able to get your hands on one.”

As soon as Malden said that, the crowd erupted in a frenzy. People surged forward, coins clenched tightly, their voices a jumbled chorus of pleas and barters.

A few people ran back home to get the money while people like the guy with the fish returned it to put money together for the Heat stone.

Malden staff and security quickly got a line made in the middle of the market, already used to the commotion Heat stones typically made.

A weathered old woman, her face etched with the harsh lines of life, stepped forward, two gold coins clutched in her hand.

Malden's smile widened as one of his staff handed her the stone. The faint warmth emanating from it seemed to intensify in her calloused palm.

His staff scrambled to keep up as people pushed each other to get to the Heat stones faster. Ignoring it, his staff distributed the stones and kept the gold coins in a box.

"Tend to that side, Isabelle," Malden called out to a staff member after making sure that everything was going smoothly.

He glanced around, catching the disbelieving gazes of other merchants. They scoffed, not believing what was going on.

Most of their customers didn't even look at their stalls anymore, staring at the people who got the Heat stones with envious eyes.

Malden could see the jealousy simmering on their faces as they watched the stones disappear. He chuckled softly. Sometimes, the greatest value wasn't the price, but the power to disrupt the game.

A quick glance behind confirmed more people rushing towards them. His eyes caught someone familiar.

"Handle the stall for a while," he instructed the young man beside him.

The staff quickly filled the space and continued selling while Malden approached the old man. "Elias. Long time no see," he said with a broad smile.

"Interesting display you have here, lad," Elias replied, his voice gruff yet curious. "Heat Stones at two gold coins each? They can go even higher if you try."

Malden offered a lopsided grin. "Just a little something to ward off the cold. If I go higher, I doubt most would be able to afford it."

Elias's brow furrowed. "Indeed. But such generosity… where'd you acquire such a treasure trove?" The old merchant's eye looked at him with a glimmer.

Malden's smile widened, his eyes twinkling. "Ah, that's part of the secret, isn't it? Let's just say it wouldn't be possible without the glorious intervention of Lord Arzan."

Elias blinked, confused for a few seconds before he seemed to recall the name. "Lord Arzan? You mean the Duke's… third son?"

"The very one," Malden confirmed.

Elias scratched his beard thoughtfully. "But aren't there rumours of Tradeheart… well, eyeing the Arzan estates? Planning a takeover perhaps?"

A hearty laugh escaped Malden's lips. "Rumors, Elias, nothing more. Lord Arzan is a man of… unorthodox methods, but his plans are always grand. And I can assure you, Tradeheart will soon be singing a different tune. Perhaps even finding themselves on the streets."