Darkness.

Complete and utter darkness.

Nothing could describe Mika’s situation better than this.

She didn’t know how deep into the pit she was, but no light reached where she stood.

She reached out a hand, but it disappeared into the blackness as if swallowed up by some infinite void. A growing sense of disorientation and unease churned within her stomach. It became difficult to gauge distance or direction without any visual cues, and every sound seemed muffled and distorted.

She’s never experienced anything like this, and if she were being honest…

This kind of darkness… this seemingly infinite void of black where nothing could be seen or touched…

Was terrifying!

‘Guh! W-What do I do? S-Should I just go back up?’

Mika’s resolve began to waver as she felt like she had suddenly lost one of her senses!

Not being able to see, especially in this situation, was a huge restriction, as she hadn’t yet reached the point where she could rely on her sixth sense to know when danger was approaching.

What if something approached her from the front, and she died because she couldn’t see it? What if she placed her foot wrong and fell to the bottom of the cliff?

How would she come back up if she couldn’t even see?

There were too many things that could go wrong, and for what? For a…?

‘Eh? Why am I doing this? Why am I risking my life when I don’t even know what’s down there?’

Mika couldn’t answer that question, and the thought of giving up and retreating sounded much more appealing now.

She might be courageous and willing to go to great lengths to become stronger, but she wouldn’t risk her life if it meant gaining nothing.

There was a fine line between bravery and idiocy, and she felt that this situation was becoming increasingly idiotic by the second as death loomed below her.

Still, she wasn’t quite willing to give up just yet as that vague sense of attraction she had felt hadn’t disappeared.

Thus, she was at a crossroads.

Throughout her life, she’s come across many difficult choices that could change her life forever. Whenever something like this happened, Mika always asked the same question:

“What do I lose by not making this choice?”

She could either go back up and forget about this whole thing or march forward in the darkness and see what was on the other side, if there was one.

Mika had no idea what she’d lose by going back up, but that’s also why she felt she’d regret not going deeper into the abyss!

By not knowing, the possibilities are literally endless! It could be anywhere between nothing to altering her entire cultivation path!

Hell, she might directly ascend to godhood this instant!

Though the chances of that are pretty slim...

Therefore, Mika couldn’t, in good conscience, give up this opportunity!

So, she bit her lip and pushed forward, ‘I’m going to find out what’s at the bottom of this pit, no matter what!’

In her mind, she completely removed any possibility of going up and stepped further into the darkness.

As her body fully submerged in the sea of black, Mika felt the density of mana increase by multiple times, but there were two other things there as well.

One gave off a cold, detached, and murky feeling, but Mika found comfort in it as it flowed through her Mana Pathways like butter.

‘Darkness Mana! That’s the only thing it could be!’ Mika’s black eyes lit up and shined with excitement.

However, they dimmed a few seconds later as a realization hit her. ‘I can’t make use of it!’

Her Darkness Affinity was already extremely high. And what good was having the power of her Darkness Spells increased when she literally couldn’t see anything? She wasn’t at the level yet of being able to see in total darkness, if that was even a thing.

Meanwhile, the other Elemental Mana was equally as cold but made Mika feel it was filled with infinite nothingness. At least, that’s how Mika perceived it.

‘What kind of Elemental Mana is that?’

For some reason, it reminded her of the time the System teleported her, and she simultaneously entered a place that seemed infinitely long and short.

‘Is this perhaps… Spatial Mana?’

[Correct Host. What you’re feeling is Spatial Mana.]

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

The System’s answer surprised her, and a smile slowly grew on her face. She could feel that this was related to the lucky encounter she was looking for!

‘Why… No, how can I feel Spatial Mana here? And what can I do with it?’

[It seemed that someone or something tried to warp through space a long time ago but failed and crashed into this place instead, resulting in this massive sinkhole. The stairs you’re walking on are a result of people trying to explore this mystery, just like what you’re doing, but they didn’t know just how dangerous Spatial Mana can be.]

The System didn’t bother to answer Mika’s second question as she should already know the answer.

Mika understood this, but her brows couldn’t help but furrow.

‘What do you mean dangerous? I feel wonderful in all this Darkness Mana. What’s the difference between it and Spatial Mana?’

[Mana exists in all forms, but that doesn’t mean all Mana is equal. You’ll naturally understand the differences as you progress, but just think about it logically for now.]

[Space encompasses everything in the known universe. Thus, can darkness exist without space if space encompasses everything?]

‘I… I-I don’t know. From what you just explained, I’m guessing it can’t exist without space?’

[That’s correct. Without space, there is nothing but an empty void-no fire, darkness, light, plants, or anything. If that’s the case, shouldn’t Spatial Mana be of a higher tier compared to Darkness Mana?]

‘I… guess? Again, how would I know?’ Mika grumbled, feeling like the System was making fun of her. However, her ears perked at a certain word.

‘Void? What’s that? Is it related to those voidlings?’ Mika wondered.

[It seems your intelligence has improved over the last year, Host. I’m glad.]

The System's cold, emotionless, artificial voice only made that compliment sound even more condescending than it already was.

Mika’s eyes twitched, but she didn’t say anything as the System had just answered her. However, since the System didn’t explain more, she knew she couldn’t get any more information from it.

‘Hmmm… Spatial Mana… Elemental Mana hierarchy… Void…’ These were all things for Mika to consider later but now wasn’t the time.

‘I wonder if I can absorb it.’ Mika reached her hand out and wondered.

The thought of absorbing Spatial Mana and maybe obtaining a Space Affinity caused a growing smile to creep up on her face, sending shivers down her spine.

From how the System described it, having an affinity for Space was akin to gaining the best affinity in the world! Thus, she couldn’t miss this opportunity!

However, from where she stood, there was only a little Spatial Mana to absorb.

‘Deeper! I need to go deeper! If I want to find more, I need to go deeper!’

Mika regained her focus and began walking down the rickety wooden steps.

She grasped tightly onto the wall and carefully tiptoed onto each board, testing their integrity before putting her entire weight onto them.

She created a small flame in her left hand to light up the area, even if only a little. And it truly was a little. She couldn’t even see her feet with such a pitiful flame! Luckily, that’s all she needed to ensure she wouldn’t plunge into the abyss.

Mika lost track of time as she descended, and after an unknown amount of hours, days, weeks, or even months, Mika finally encountered her first roadblock.

There are no more stairs.

‘Sigh… I knew this would happen sooner or later, but to think it would be this soon. Is this really the deepest I can go?’ Mika sighed, feeling slightly annoyed.

Although she had felt like she’d made insane progress and the Spatial Mana around her had certainly become denser, she didn’t think it’d be enough to obtain a Space Affinity.

Rather, she was sure it wasn’t; even if it were, she’d only get some low-tier trash rank affinity!

‘Eh? That’s not right. I should just be happy that I even have a chance to obtain a Space Affinity!’

Although she said that, Mika didn’t truly think that way. There’s no way she would get excited over scraps when the whole thing was right in front of her!

‘What if I try and climb down?’ Mika questioned but immediately denied it. Despite being underground, the walls were actually quite smooth. She would definitely fall if she were to try and climb down.

‘Then… what if I just jump?’ It was a crazy idea, one that would label her certifiably insane if anyone else were to hear it, but Mika didn’t really see any other options.

She could either absorb the leftovers around her, go back up, or jump straight into the pit.

[Do it, Host.]

‘...System?!’ Mika gawked.

‘I always knew you wanted to kill me!’

[I take back my earlier statement.]

Mika’s lips twitched, but the System continued.

[If you want to use all the available Spatial Mana in this hole, you’re only option is to jump. You’re too small and weak for any other options.]

‘But… wouldn’t I die?’

[You should have ample time to obtain an affinity since this pit is many kilometers deep. As long as you don’t take too long, you can survive.]

‘Okay? But how do I prevent myself from going splat?’

[You’ll have an affinity with Space. Figure it out yourself.]

‘Ugh! But that’s the problem! I don’t even know how to obtain an affinity, nor do I know how to use it!’

[Sure you do, Host. How do you think you obtained your Fire and Darkness affinities? Moreover, with your Body of Mana(EX) title, you can acquire any element you want, unlike others.]

Mika was stunned by this answer as she had totally forgotten about that! However, the circumstances between now and then are incredibly different.

Before, she was in her mother’s womb and could practice creating her mana core thousands of times in her mind before doing it in reality. Now, not only did she have to use mana from outside her body, she had to acquire an affinity while falling down a pit of darkness, not knowing when she’ll go splat.

‘...Can I really do that? Didn’t you say that Spatial Mana is volatile? What if I die while I’m falling?’

[Then be sure to buy a lot of Nutritional and Healing Serums.]

‘B-But… All my Mana Stones… I worked hard for those…’

[You haven’t finished your Mana Cultivation Technique anyways, thus won’t be cultivating anytime soon. Your Mana Stones will just be a waste of space. So, you might as well put them to good use to obtain an even bigger reward.]

Mika knew that, but she still felt reluctant to spend all of her hard-earned mana stones on Nutritional and Healing Serums.

However, after giving it some thought, she reluctantly agreed.

‘Sigh… You’re right. If I want the appropriate rewards, then I have to take an equal amount of risk.’

‘I’ll… I’ll spend all my mana stones and take the jump.’