A week had passed.

 

In a luscious grassland crawling with undead, a woman in a black cloak swept through wielding an equally black sword.

 

A sword's strike freely intercepted unknowing lower skeletons, with a smash they were left to rot.

 

Exercise and gathering points.

 

‘Both activities conveniently condensed into one.’

 

Cutting through the field.

 

Aside from just exercise, it was done so with a clear purpose.

 

Swordsmanship and Black magic.

 

‘The two missing pieces needed for future growth.’

 

The two were knowledge bases freely purchasable from the system store.

 

‘Strictly speaking, they’re not needed until after advancing to the first circle.’

 

But additional benefits were there too. 

 

The knowledge obtained from magic foundations was sadly only that much. Limited tier zero spells, basic knowledge, background on classes and their magic circles.

 

‘A nicety from the system perhaps.’

 

‘But that much is severely lacking.’

 

A Black magician, wielding a magic circle purpose built for black magic, yet without a single spell, a spell sword without a single sword technique.

 

‘A sad and ridiculous “thing.”’

 

‘But.’

 

She flicked through an interface.

 

[Points: 1021]

 

A smirk appeared, the culmination of what she'd been working had finally bared fruit.

 

Having finished her quota, she didn’t waste any more time, a quick wash in the river and back to the cabin. 

 

Even if the woods were relatively tame, she knew the familiar pain associated with absorbing all that knowledge at once. Such vulnerability left her with a bad taste.

 

‘Even if it is useless.’

 

Worn down walls that would likely fall on their own given an especially strong breeze.

 

Even then, she still made her way regardless, welcomed by the familiar sight.

 

‘Just how I left it.’

 

The leftovers from rations, the bottles, waterskins and papers haphazardly stowed away. A floor of cushiony dirt and wooden remains.

 

She had no hesitation in situating herself.

 

‘It’s something that needs to happen regardless.’

 

Rather than dread the inevitable, she freely resigned herself to it.

 

She picked up a mostly full waterskin and applied tier zero ice magic to it.

 

‘For later.’

 

And set it aside.

 

‘Between Black Magic and Spell Sword.’

 

There was no need for hesitation. It was decided upon long before.

 

Instead she picked her Spell Sword as though contemplation wasn’t even a possibility.

 

‘Confirm.’

 

She paused before the final stretch, just acknowledging what was to come.

 

A finger tapped the button ahead.

 

‘Yep.’

 

And instant skull splitting pain tackled her.

 

A single ‘Yep’ marked what would be her last coherent thought for a while. 

 

The pain was only a reaction, backlash towards more information than what’s humanly possible to comprehend flowing in all at once.

 

The pain that had started as something manageable, grew without restraint, as her brain's limited capacity continued to be ignored.

 

Soon long narrow fingers enveloped by black leather scrunched, grasping a pale forehead.

 

Baring herself against the flimsy wooden wall, she waited for her misery to end, but it only continued to increase.

 

Static, violet eyes full of venom cringed in pain. Her sight was taken up by the shocking flashing colors which had emerged from the corners of her vision. Ears ringing, as though steam had been pouring out from them.

 

A cognizant eternity ensued as her brain's processing power heightened, even if it was minutes in reality.

 

Instead she focused on her breathing, the intervals between breaths used to gauge time.

 

When the pain had subsided. 

 

‘Quicker than last time.’

 

Was the summary of her thoughts.

 

Despite her pale sickly complexion, she stood grabbing her blade.

 

Wordlessly, she made her way outside, daylight having mostly dimmed.

 

A flash.

 

Two sword strokes, horizontal and vertical as though simultaneous. 

 

‘And halfway decent form.’

 

The corners of her mouth upturned despite her cold sweat.

 

The basic sword forms had been engraved into her skull.

 

‘And burst.’

 

Her new sword art, usable at circle zero, a reward suiting the struggle. A mana formation that concentrates mana into specific muscles.

 

“Stronger and faster than what’s possible for typical mana reinforcement, but at the cost of increased mana usage and burden.”

 

To the extent that she immediately regretted having used it.

 

‘Basically it makes muscles explode.’

 

Exhaustion had set in.

 

Skeleton hunting, knowledge flooding her skull, burst.

 

‘A long day.’

 

An unavoidable thought considering her still aching head.

 

She groggily made her way back inside, snatching the previously cooled waterskin, pouring it on her head.

 

Grabbing a hunk of bread, she choked down as much as possible, washing it with the remaining water.

 

She situated herself in her favorite sleeping position since having transmigrated, a seat in the corner, back against the wall.

 

Rather than the cool dirt floor, she found that the slightly decayed wood was preferable, having somewhat softened in its deteriorated state.

 

She worked her way through her meal, eating as much as possible, hurrying to supplement her required daily caloric intake. 

 

But exhaustion still overcame her, and wrestled her to sleep.

 

Cheeks stuffed with bread, eyes closed, but somehow still in bliss. Between hungry and tired she somehow chose both, unconsciously enjoying her meal…

 

…

 

.

.

.

.

.

.

 

…

 

An early morning, before the sun had completely come out. 

 

Laying on the grass below a tree was a neatly folded cloak.

 

A light breeze swayed the grass and leaves.

 

In a dusty clearing, not far from a broken wooden home were the sounds of light yet deep breathing between the intermittent and steady sound of the wind parting.

 

Flourishes of the sword struck, even to a well-trained eye they evoked sharpness. Though basic, the swings drew incrementally closer to an ideal, known in perfect detail in theory alone.

 

Boots moved into position, in line with controlled breathing. Each swing was an enactment of a basic form, known in mind, yet still infinitely far from perfect in execution.

 

Vertical slice, horizontal, various diagonals. All with varying degrees of wasted energy. Tensed muscles, incorrect breathing, shaky sword arc, a grip either too loose or over rigid, poor footwork. The impossible task of correcting each.  

 

On top of it.

 

‘Burst.’

 

The quintessential art of spell swords.

 

At the height of each swing.

 

‘Burst.’

 

An unstoppable explosive increase in power, each marking a slice through air.

 

Sweat beads inevitably formed.

 

Using burst for a split second, when each swing reaps the most benefits, maintaining the power and momentum behind each swing in perfect form.

 

Tearing through muscle fibers, still unused to high concentrations of energy. 

 

A force that would sting and rip through palms when going against it. 

 

‘Any deviance from perfect form can be uniquely felt when using burst.’

 

A self-deprecating laugh.

 

Through screaming ligaments, and muscles.

 

‘A sword art that’s infinitely simple but has an infinitely high skill ceiling.’

 

‘And there was one more thing from beginner Spell Sword.’

 

‘Mana explosions.’

 

For warriors and other physical practitioners, training the body was equally if not more important than forming stars or mana circles.

 

In order for the body to get used to elevated levels of mana, mana must repeatedly flow through the body until acclimated. 

 

The result, a musculature naturally reinforced by mana.

 

‘But well, the opposite would be…’

 

‘Mana explosion.’

 

The result of excess uncontrollable mana flowing.

 

For warriors it’s a heavy injury, for mages it’s far rarer, as they hardly interact with mana outside their circle, but theirs is far worse, not a simple injury, more like a bomb.

 

Though unlikely, going too far and losing control over the mana could mean injury or death.

 

A vertical slice instantly came to max speed, shifting dust underfoot with its halt.

 

A slice that marked the end of an exhausting series of exercises. Or rather, going farther would have been impossible, if not harmful.

 

“Huu…”

 

Amidst various thoughts, over one hundred slashes had been made.

 

It was the last part of an exhausting training regime she decided on using knowledge from beginner Spell Sword and various knowledge from earth as its basis.

 

‘Cardio, legs, core and arms, using swordsmanship to unite them.’

 

‘A focus on endurance and speed over strength.’

 

Exhausting training that wouldn’t be skipped even a single day from there on, if things went as planned.

 

Picking up her hood, she didn’t bother returning to the cabin. Instead, she set aside her sword and stretched, resting up against the trunk of a tree, taking a moment to pause. Feeling the breeze.

 

But only for a moment.

 

‘Meditation.’

 

The state needed when building mana circles.

 

It also represented an increased rate of mana absorption.

 

It’s third effect, regeneration.

 

‘Without it, such training would be impossible.’

 

Though not enough to show visible results, natural healing multiplied in effectiveness during meditation.

 

On earth such training would be overkill and leave the body in shambles given time. 

 

Meditation overrides this.

 

“Huuu…”

 

A sigh, this time in bemoaning.

 

‘But since it is possible…’

 

She thought that if something is doable, necessarily, an uncountable amount of monstrous people will do it.

 

‘It’s necessary, just to keep up.’

 

To maintain the exhausting regimen.

 

She took roughly an hour of meditation, intermixed with occasional snacking. Afterward she got up.

 

Not whatsoever fully healed but,

 

‘There’s more that needs to get done.’

 

She thought about her plans for later that day.

 

And a smile inevitably appeared.

 

‘Today’s main purpose, a special occasion.’

 

‘Taking a tour.’

 

Her cloak draped behind her as she started to make her way.

 

Of course, after her first attempt at her new daily regime she was still tired.

 

‘No more burst.’

 

It wouldn’t kill her, but it would slow her growth if she went too far.

 

She walked past the river and into the meadow.

 

A tour of the castle.

 

‘Today’s mission isn’t skull hunting, but exploration, taking in the sights.’

 

She’d do what she could along the way, but points weren't the main focus anymore.

 

Without any other thoughts to hold her back, she brought up her speed. 

 

‘1 point.’

 

And started slicing away at heads.

 

Any skulls on her main path were promptly disposed of.

 

As she closed the distance to the gate undead gradually increased in density, as they did she focused more on weaving through packs.

 

‘3 points.’

 

Of course she didn’t find it difficult.

 

‘Avoid groups and take out stragglers.’

 

Anything not a lower undead would be avoided entirely.

 

‘Easy.’

 

That many more points accumulated in the meantime.

 

The castle closed in view, to the point where it’d be impossible to see the top of the walls without sharply looking up.

 

But castle wasn't all.

 

A tangible viscous black energy also became apparent when drawing near.

 

‘A likely cause for the reanimating dead.’

 

Noticeably the ratio of undead shifted towards more lesser grade undead than lower undead, though sparse regardless.

 

It became immediately apparent. 

 

‘Things will increasingly become more dangerous as I get deeper.’

 

But

 

‘The benefits will also increase too.’ 

 

The dark miasma surrounding the kingdom. For most It’d be a poison, and the source of an undead plague.

 

‘But for a black magic user with dark element mana it’s nothing less than a top quality elixir.’

 

With that in mind, she brought up her speed another notch.

 

Even exhausted, her speed shifted from what was the outer limit for the average adult, to a pace matching world class athletes on earth. 

 

Avoiding undead as needed, it didn’t take long to get to the breach.

 

She stopped before the gray stone walls, nearly close enough to touch.

 

Even from behind the walls, it was clear to tell.

 

Just steps away, the insides of a dead city, and the sickeningly thick black aura that it emanated.